Safety Glasses Regulations

[Daniel_LaFleur]

Originally Posted by Roger

That's what I was thinking -- and afraid of. I'll have to talk to one of the licensed salespeople, not the student-salesperson. It took a week for the catalog to come in and then I went on vacation, etc, etc, so I don't remember what their standard was. I get a good deal (free!) thru my company to go there, but I do want proper protection. (I'm not part of the university, by the way.)

Heh, the funny thing is, in spite of this place across the street from the university and all the labs, plus being the official eye doctors and store for the university, the student said they don't get any business from the labs for the safety -- they all go to another specialized store in Cambridge.

And isn't ANSI updating their standard? When I was searching on-line for their standards there were some mentions of a newer (as yet unapproved) standard.

ANSI Z87.1-1989 is the current, and only (if I remember from last years rules ... I don't have a copy in front of me) allowable standard for safety glasses in FIRST. Any other standard would not be allowed or accepted (unless they change the rules).

If ANSI is making another standard, then it will probably be a few years before it is accepted in the work place (phase in time).

[Bobwhite2337]

Originally Posted by Daniel_LaFleur

ANSI Z87.1-1989 is the current, and only (if I remember from last years rules ... I don't have a copy in front of me) allowable standard for safety glasses in FIRST. Any other standard would not be allowed or accepted (unless they change the rules).

If ANSI is making another standard, then it will probably be a few years before it is accepted in the work place (phase in time).

ANSI Z87.1 was updated and published in 2003. However, as OSHA still references the 1989 version, it is that version which is considered law. I expect that OSHA will eventually recognize the 2003 update, but the wheels of government turn very slowly.

From what I can see, there were not many significant changes. For a synopsis of those changes, check out the following:

http://www.tasco-safety.com/sglasses/ansi.html

[Akash Rastogi]

Every year our pit crew gets these:
http://www.safetycompany.com/aosafet...es/p_1819.html

All others use these if they feel like buying them- http://www.doityourself.com/invt/3479912

[Billfred]

Compared to most, I've got a pretty big head. I found a pair of safety glasses at Northern Tool for about $3 (see them here, or here, or here) that fit me well--they flex to keep the glasses from pinching my head, which makes them infinitely more comfortable for wearing over extended periods (read: most of the final week before ship, regionals, etc.).

At IRI I was talking with Greg Needel, who happens to wear a pair of DeWalt safety glasses for some strange reason (it's almost like he works for them!). It turns out that mine are a knockoff of the DeWalt glasses; both pairs fit my head great.

I've worn smaller safety glasses, and they hurt after a day of coaching. Of course, I don't want to wind up like Carol, so I grin and bear it. Sometimes, students I've worked with have been less disciplined--therefore, I take no chances with going for uncomfortable ones.

Moral of the story:

-Make sure the glasses are ANSI approved.
-Make sure the glasses are legal under the 2009 FRC rules.
-Make sure you can wear them for twelve hours at a time--some members of your team will at a regional.

[Dick Linn]

We once had an incident in the shop where a few carbide teeth came off a saw blade. One struck the student's safety goggles and punched a hole partway through. If he had not been wearing them, it would have struck his eye right about in the center of his iris.

[Richard Wallace]

Originally Posted by Dick Linn

... If he had not been wearing them, it would have struck his eye right about in the center of his iris.

If he had been wearing them on top of his head, the result would have been the same.

For the last two seasons, we've had volunteers assigned just to watch for people without safety glasses in the pits. At the end of Thursday, the most common report I've gotten from those volunteers is, "I've told at least a hundred people to wear their safety glasses over their eyes, not on top of their heads."

Seems obvious, but we have to keep repeating the warnings. Replacement eyes are not available at the spare parts table.

[thefro526]

On my team we've always gone by the "You must be able to see your eyes" rule and it seems to work for us. We try to get the clearest glasses possible to stay within the rules. I always go to home depot or lowes and go through their safety glasses section and try a few pair and find one that I like to wear and that look cool so I don't mind wearing them.

[DonRotolo]

The local Harbor Freight store sells a pair for about $5 that are extremely comfortable for me; they also come with a cord so they stay around your neck when you try to put them down.

[MoeMom]

Some colors such as Lime green are available at charmand hammer.com.

I traded my MOE pair last year for a rolling thunder gray pair... I did worry a little about the "legality" but I didn't have a visibility issue, at all.

[Wetzel]

Don't expect that mirrored or heavy tint glasses will be allowed.

Last years instructions at regionals where "You have to be able to see their eyes." If you expect changes, I would expect the rules to tighten rather than loosen.