Safety glass storage and student use

[Francis-134]

First, understand that you will lose safety glasses. The real key is to mitigate the loss to a reasonable level so you aren't breaking the bank every year replacing them.

On my team, we ask that each student either purchase or "rent" a pair of safety glasses at the start of the year (the rent/buy cost is the same, but we give the students the option of returning them at the end of the year to get their money back if cost is an issue for them). We sell these glasses at cost, and we make sure to get stylish blue ones that are essentially unique to our team. Everyone wears them and makes sure not to lose them because they are somewhat invested in them, and they are good looking/unique/project a team identity. I actually work with one of my former students, and he still has his pair from junior year of high school (which was about 8 years ago).

This being said, you will still need loaner pairs to give to those who forgot their glasses, or for visitors. I would suggest marking them either between they eyes or on the ear pieces with an indelible marker, or engraving your number into the plastic. Visual controls are important, so place them near the main entrance to your workspace, and ensure each pair has its own location (i.e. don't have just a bucket of glasses).