July is Eye Injury Prevention Month: Make Your Warehouse More Eye-Aware July 20 2015

According to the CDC, there are about 2,000 job-related eye injuries that require medical treatment in the United States every day. Of those 2,000 injuries, about one-third are treated in a hospital emergency rooms, and more than 100 of the injuries resulted in the loss of at least one work day. Shockingly, the American Academy of Ophthalmology reports that about 90 percent of these eye injuries are preventable with the use of proper protective eyewear. Eye injuries happen quickly; don’t be caught unprotected.

The majority of eye injuries in the workplace are the result of flying particles, like sawdust, metal slivers, wood chips, and cement chips. Other, more serious, types of eye injuries can occur when the flying particle is a larger object, like nails, staples, or slivers of metal or wood that penetrate the eyeball and result in vision loss. These types of injuries can easily be prevented through the use of proper eye protection. Because a lot of these types of flying particles are dispersed throughout the air by being ejected by tools, wind, or having been dropped by someone working from above, these eye injuries don’t just happen to people working with their hands on the warehouse floor. Managers and visitors who may not be directly working with these objects are also in danger of these types of workplace injuries.

How can you make your warehouse floor more aware of the importance of proper eye protection?

Mighty Line offers a wide variety of floor signs which will indicate to the people on your warehouse floor that they are entering an area requiring them to wear proper eyewear protection.

The Safety Glasses Required Floor Sign stands out with a bright blue image of a person wearing protective eyeglasses and bright red letters reading, “SAFETY GLASSES REQUIRED.” Both of these are highly visible and will convey the message, regardless of language or learning type. While some may respond better to words, others may require a visual cue. This sign makes both of those known. For areas which require the entire face to be protected, you can also choose the Protection Mask Required Floor Sign.

The Caution Eye Protection Yellow 16” Wide Floor Sign is a highly visible floor sign in a bright yellow. Per the OSHA requirements for safety colors on the warehouse floor, yellow indicates a need to pay attention to potential hazards. This sign makes it clear to the person entering that area that they need to stay alert.

The Eye Wash Station Blue 24” Wide Floor Sign is necessary for marking the eyewash station area, in the event that there is an eye injury. One of the first things someone who has experienced an eye injury should do is wash out their eyes.

The First Aid Green Floor Sign is also an important sign to have when eye injuries, and any other injuries, occur on the warehouse floor. The highly visible green is the required OSHA color of indicating safety equipment, so this will translate to anyone from any warehouse environment.

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