Lasers
All Class 3B and Class 4 lasers are registered through the UVic Laser Safety Program offered by the office of Occupational Health, Safety and Environment. The program is designed to provide students, staff and faculty with the knowledge to operate and work safely around Class 3B and 4 laser systems. The program is held to the high standards of provincial (WorkSafeBC) and national (ANSI) regulations.
For more information, please contact the Laser Safety Officer (LSO), Paraskevi Lagaditis at plagaditis@uvic.ca.
Registration & inventory
All Class 3B and Class 4 lasers/laser systems at UVic are required to be registered with OHSE in order to provide an adequate laser safety program for users.
Click here to access or update your laser registration & inventory:
Resources
Training
Due to the potential hazards of working with high risk laser radiation, all Class 3B and Class 4 laser operators are required to complete OHSE Laser Safety training in addition to supplemental laser-specific training provided by their supervisor.
Medical surveillance
It is recommended that individuals operating a Class 3B or 4 laser and have successfully completed Laser Safety Training receive a baseline eye exam prior to starting work with lasers.
Individuals not operating, but working in vicinity of Class 3B or Class 4 lasers should contact the LSO to discuss if a baseline eye exam is required. An online Laser Safety Awareness training course is also available.
Laser classification
Laser systems should be classified by the manufacturer prior to purchasing. If you own or are purchasing a laser please refer to the table below summarizing from the ANSI Z136.1 Safe Use of Lasers standard on important information about each laser class.
|
Class |
AEL Continuous Wave |
Description |
|
Class 1 |
< 1 mW |
|
|
Class 1M |
< 1 mW |
|
|
Class 2 |
<1 mW |
|
|
Class 2M |
< 1 mW |
|
|
Class 3R |
<5 mW |
|
|
Class 3B |
5 – 500 mW
|
|
|
Class 4 |
>500 mW
|
|