# What you need to know before choosing safety glasses!

> An employer is obliged to provide employees with protective equipment when the risk assessment identifies it as necessary.

URL: https://www.utg-vodnik.si/novice/what-you-need-to-know-before-choosing-safety-glasses

## Why is UV protection so important?

- Damage to eye tissue from repeated exposure to UV rays is cumulative, gradual and irreversible.

- The WHO estimates that cataracts caused by UV exposure could blind up to 3 million people worldwide each year

- Outdoor workers are exposed to up to 10 times more UV radiation per year

- UV radiation increases by 30% with every 1000 m of altitude.

- Snow reflects up to 80% of UV rays, sand up to 25%.

- Experts on preventing cataracts and age-related macular degeneration generally recommend UV400 lenses

## Which MSA lenses provide protection from UV rays?

All lenses of all colours from MSA filter 99.9% of UV radiation up to 380 nm. This is sufficient in most industrial sectors. If your work requires protection between 380 and 400 nm, you should choose a lens with UV400 protection, as it filters 100% of UV rays. Outdoor workers are exposed to up to 10 times more UV radiation per year.

## How best to handle your glasses?

Always remove glasses by placing one hand on each temple and pulling forward and up so they release from the ears and the sides of the head. Removing glasses from one side only can strain the frame, and although stress fractures cannot be seen with the naked eye, over time they can weaken the impact resistance of any safety glasses.

## When should glasses be replaced?

As with all personal protective equipment, glasses must be replaced as soon as you notice any damage. Glasses with dents, scratches or cracks reduce protection and can impair vision. Contact with chemicals such as sunscreens and insect repellents can cause cracks to form. All plastics deteriorate over time.

## What is a transmission curve and why is it useful?

The quality of a UV and sun protection filter cannot be judged just by looking at the lens. With good tinting but poor UV protection, harmful radiation can easily reach the pupil, which is dilated by the light and therefore vulnerable, and cause real damage. Genuine UV protection can only be proven by checking the transmission curve, that is, the transmittance of the lenses. The transmittance curve is a graph on which the actual transmittance through a given lens is plotted against wavelength. That is why for every tint MSA always shows a detailed transmittance curve, which highlights the actual effect of the filter at each wavelength.

## [Tector safety glasses](https://www.utg-vodnik.si/zascita-glave/zascitna-ocala/zascitna-ocala/tector)

[Tector safety glasses](https://www.utg-vodnik.si/zascita-glave/zascitna-ocala/zascitna-ocala/tector)are high-tech safety glasses developed for police, technical and military forces. They withstand an extremely high impact force, in line with the military standard STANAG 2920. Their lens is even resistant to bullets > 240 m / sec (4296 STANAG §5.6). They boast the highest optical quality and unrivalled comfort.
They fit the face perfectly, soft nose pads give you comfort throughout the day, and soft temple tips prevent slipping.
The lenses are coated on both sides with a permanent anti-fog OptiRock coating and have exceptional scratch-resistant properties. This way your glasses will not fog up, and they are also scratch-resistant.

## What about those who need prescription lenses?

You can also fit a prescription adapter to the [Tector safety glasses](https://www.utg-vodnik.si/zascita-glave/zascitna-ocala/zascitna-ocala/tector). The [RX ADAPTER FOR TECTOR](https://www.utg-vodnik.si/zascita-glave/zascitna-ocala/zascitna-ocala/adapter-za-tector) is a prescription insert – easy to fit on the Tector as well as other MSA glasses. The adapter offers a quick and easy solution for anyone who wears prescription lenses and needs safety glasses at work.
You take the adapter to an optician, who fits the lenses to your prescription. This way you get individual optical lenses of your choice (up to 3.5 dioptres).

If you need quality safety glasses, you can see our range [here.](https://www.utg-vodnik.si/en/head-protection/safety-glasses)

We are also happy to advise you. Call us on **01 724 82 58**or write to us at **info@utg-vodnik.si** and together we will find the solution that suits you or your employees best.