S.I. No. 280/1979 - Factories (Protection of Eyes) Regulations, 1979.

1. The chipping of metal, and the chipping, knocking out, cutting out or cutting off of cold rivets, bolts, nuts, lugs, pins, collars or from similar articles from any structure or plant, or from any part of any structure or plant, by means of a hammer, chisel, punch or similar hand tool, or by means of a power driven portable tool where in any of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person not engaged in any such work from particles or fragments thrown off.

2. Any process involving the use of an exposed electric arc or an exposed stream of arc plasma.

3. Work with drop hammers, power hammers, horizontal forging machines and forging presses other than hydraulic presses used in any case for the manufacture of forgings.

4. The fettling of metal castings, involving the removal of metal, including runners, gates and risers, and the removal of any other material during the course of such fettling, where in any of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person not engaged in any such work from particles or fragments thrown off.

5. Any process involving the use of an instrument which produces light amplification by the stimulated emission of radiation, where in any such process there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person not engaged in the process from radiation.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 10th day of August, 1979.

GENE FITZGERALD,

Minister for Labour.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These regulations prescribe measures to be taken for the protection of eyes of persons employed on a process or nearby, where the process is specified as one which may constitute a hazard to eyes.

6. The chipping of metal, and the chipping, knocking out, cutting out or cutting off of cold rivets, bolts, nuts, lugs, pins, collars or similar articles from any structure or plant, or from part of any structure or plant, by means of a hammer, chisel, punch, or similar hand tool, or by means of a power driven portable tool.

7. The chipping or scurfing of paint, scale, slag, rust or other corrosion from the surface of metal and other hard materials by means of a hand tool or by means of a power driven portable tool or by applying articles of metal or such materials to a power driven tool.

8. The use of a high-speed metal cutting saw or an abrasive cutting off wheel or disc, which in either case is power driven.

9. The pouring or skimming of molten metal in foundries.

10. Work at a molten salt bath when the molten salt surface is exposed.

11. The operation, maintenance, dismantling or demolition of plant or any part of plant, being plant or part of plant which contains or has contained acids, alkalis, dangerous corrosive substances, whether liquid or solid, or other substances which are similarly injurious to the eyes, and which has not been so prepared (by isolation, reduction of pressure, emptying or otherwise), treated or designed and constructed as to prevent any reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work from any of the said contents.

12. The handling in open vessels or manipulation of acids, alkalis, dangerous corrosive materials, whether liquid or solid, and other substances which are similarly injurious to the eyes, where in any of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work.

13. The driving in or on of bolts, pins, collars or similar articles to any structure or plant or to part of any structure or plant by means of a hammer, chisel, punch or similar hand tool or by means of a power driven portable tool, where in any of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work from particles or fragments thrown off.

14. Injection by pressure of liquids or solutions into buildings or structures or parts thereof where in the course of any such work there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work from any such liquids or solutions.

15. The breaking up of metal by means of a hammer, whether power driven or not, or by means of a tup, where in either of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work from particles or fragments thrown off.

16. The breaking, cutting, cutting into, dressing, carving or drilling by means of a power driven portable tool or by means of a hammer, chisel, pick or similar hand tool other than a trowel, of any of the following, that is to say—

(

a

) glass, hard plastics, concrete, fired clay, plaster, slag or stone (whether natural or artificial);

(

b

) materials similar to any of the foregoing;

(

c

) articles consisting wholly or partly of any of the foregoing;

(

d

) stonework, brickwork or blockwork;

(

e

) bricks, tiles or blocks (except blocks made of wood),

where in any of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work from particles or fragments thrown off.

17. The use of compressed air for removing swarf, dust, dirt or other particles, where in the course of any such work there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work from particles or fragments thrown off.

18. Work at a furnace containing molten metal and the pouring or skimming of molten metal in places other than foundries where there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work from molten metal.

19. Processes in foundries where there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work from hot sand thrown off.

20. Work in the manufacture of wire and of wire rope where there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work from particles or fragments thrown off or from flying ends of wire.

21. The operation of coiling wire and operations connected therewith, where there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work from particles or fragments thrown off or from flying ends of wire.

22. The cutting of wire or metal strapping under tension, where there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work from flying ends of wire or flying ends of metal strapping.

23. Work in the manufacture of glass and in the processing of glass and the handling of cullet, where in any of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work from particles or fragments thrown off.

24. The moulding of plastic articles where there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work from molten plastic thrown off.

25. Any work carried out in the manufacture of wood, cork or fibre board products or products composed partly of any of these materials, with a machine (including a portable machine) of a kind specified in the Schedule of the Factories (Woodworking Machinery) Regulations, 1972 (

S.I. No. 203 of 1972

), where there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work from particles or fragments thrown off.

Part II.

26. Any process involving the use of an exposed electric arc or an exposed stream of arc plasma.

Part III.

27. The welding of metals by means of apparatus to which oxygen or any flammable gas or vapour is supplied under pressure.

28. The hot fettling of steel castings by means of a flux-injected burner or air carbon torch, and the de-seaming of metal.

29. The cutting, boring, cleaning, surface conditioning or spraying of material by means of apparatus (not being apparatus mechanically driven by compressed air) to which air, oxygen or any flammable gas or vapour is supplied under pressure excluding any such process elsewhere specified, where in any of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work.

30. Any process involving the use of an instrument which produces light amplification by the stimulated emission of radiation, being a process in which there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the process from radiation.

Part IV.

31. Truing or dressing of an abrasive wheel where in either of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work from particles or fragments thrown off.

32. Work with drop hammers, power hammers, horizontal forging machines and forging presses, other than hydraulic presses, used in any case for the manufacture of forgings.

33. The dry grinding of materials or articles by applying them by hand to a wheel, disc or band which in any such case is power driven or by means of a power driven portable tool, where in any of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work from particles or fragments thrown off.

34. The fettling of metal castings, involving the removal of metal, including runners, gates and risers and the removal of any other material during the course of such fettling, where in any of the foregoing cases there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in the work from particles or fragments thrown off.

35. The production of metal castings at pressure die casting machines where there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work from molten metal thrown off.

36. The machining of metals, including any dry grinding process not elsewhere specified where there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work from particles or fragments thrown off.

37. The welding of metals by an electric resistance process or a submerged electric arc, where there is a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury to the eyes of any person engaged in any such work from particles or fragments thrown off.

SECOND SCHEDULE.

S.I. No. 280 of 1979.

FACTORIES (PROTECTION OF EYES) REGULATIONS, 1979.

I, GENE FITZGERALD, Minister for Labour, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by

sections 60

,

71

,

83

,

84

,

85

,

86

,

87

,

88

and

89

of the

Factories Act, 1955

(No. 10 of 1955), and the Labour (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order, 1966 (

S.I. No. 164 of 1966

), after consultation with the Minister for Health and after due compliance with the provisions of the Third Schedule to that Act, hereby make the following Regulations, Regulations 6 and 11 of which are made as special regulations