Welding is a full-time job for nearly 400,000 Americans, with many more conducting welding-related operations on a part-time or occasional basis.1 In fact, more than 100 different welding, cutting, soldering and brazing processes are performed across a wide range of industries every day, from manufacturing and construction, to oil and gas and more. Whatever the industry, welders face a host of inherent occupational risks: exposure to harmful radiation, fumes and gases; thermal burns; and airborne slag chips, grinding fragments and debris.

Given the hazards, it is not surprising that welding injuries outpace other occupations: in 2014, injuries requiring days away from work in the category totaled 5,720.2 Nearly 2,000 of those were eye injuries. When welders don’t properly protect their eyes from the arc, they commonly suffer welder’s flash, or photokeratitis, a condition caused by exposure to intense ultraviolet radiation resulting in temporary blindness and extreme discomfort. More extreme eye injuries can result in permanent blindness.