PROTECTIVE CLOTHING TO DISSIPATE STATIC ELECTRICITY

This European Standard specifies requirements for materials and the design of protective electrostatic dissipation clothing used in conjunction with a grounded system in order to prevent incendiary discharges. WARNING: These requirements may be insufficient in oxygen enriched flammable environments. This standard is not applicable for protection against mains voltages.

The control of undesirable static electricity on the person is often necessary.

The electrostatic potential may, indeed, have serious consequences on the charged individual, because it can be high enough to cause dangerous sparks.

After a risk assessment, the wearing of protective electrical dissipation clothing may be necessary. The use of clothing certified according to EN1149-5 is then adapted.

The ATEX Directive 1999/92/EC, in its Annex II-A-2.3, requests that workers be equipped with work clothes made of materials that do not produce electrostatic discharges that can ignite
explosive environments.

The electrostatic potential can also affect equipment sensitive to electric discharge. Antistatic clothing is often used on electronic manufacturing sites, assembling semiconductors for example. Finally, they are used on sites with controlled atmospheres such as automotive paint workshops, to avoid the emission of particles that may be deposited on the body paint.

The antistatic charge dissipation can be provided by a process limiting the build up of charge, or by adding carbon or metal wires. People wearing protective electrostatic charge dissipation clothing must always be grounded with a resistance of less than 10⁸Ω, for example, by wearing appropriate footwear such as the safety shoes stated in EN ISO 20345, or by other suitable means.

PROTECTIVE CLOTHING AGAINST COOL ENVIRONMENTS

This standard specifies the requirements and performance test methods for protective garments (vests, jackets, coats, trousers) against cool environments.

These garments are for use in moderate low temperatures (-5°C and over) to protect against local body cooling. Not only for outdoor use such as in the construction industry; may also be used for indoor activities, such as in the food processing industry.

These garments are not always necessarily made of air impermeable or watertight materials.

Therefore, in this European standard, these requirements are optional.

X : Class of heat resistance, Rct

X : Class of air permeability, AP

X : /cler of the garment (Optional)

X : Class of resistance to water penetration WP (Optional)

IMPROVED VISIBILITY EQUIPMENT FOR MEDIUM RISK SITUATIONS

This standard specifies the requirements for enhanced visibility equipment in the form of a garment, or device, capable of visually signalling the presence of the user.

Enhanced Visibility Equipment is intended to provide visibility of the wearer in low or medium risk situations in all daylight conditions and/or under the illumination of vehicle headlights or headlights in the dark. This standard does not apply to high visibility equipment in high risk situations which are covered by EN ISO 20471.

Minimum surface in m² for B1 and B2 type:

Minimum surface in m² for type A, B3 and AB type:

This standard specifies the requirements and test methods for non ventilated protective clothing against radioactive contamination in the form of particles.

Clothing of this type is designed only to protect the body, the arms and the legs of the wearer, but it may be used with accessories that protect other parts of the wearer’s body (for example, boots, gloves, respiratory protective device - APR).

The garments are classified according to their nominal protection factor (ratio between the concentration of test particles in the ambient atmosphere and the concentration of test particles inside the garment), determined in relation to the total inward leakage (ratio between the concentrations of test particles insider the garment and inside the test chamber).

The classes are as follows:

PROTECTION USED IN WELDING AND ALLIED PROCESSES

This standard specifies the performance requirements for protective clothing for use by operators in welding and allied processes with comparable risks. This type of protective clothing is intended to protect the wearer against molten metal splash, short contact with flame and UV radiation. It is intended to be worn at ambient temperature, continuously for up to 8 hours.

MAIVE2
	EN ISO 11611
	A1 Test

HIGH VISIBILITY CLOTHING

This standard specifies the requirements for protective clothing aiming to signal the presence of the wearer visually, so that he may be detected and seen in hazardous situations, in all conditions of daylight, and night under illumination of car headlights.

There are three classes of high-visibility clothing. Each class must have minimum surfaces of visible material constituting the garment; the higher the class, the more visible the garment:

Marking : 

X : Class of high visibility surface (from 1 to 3)

EN ISO 20471  

2
Max. 25x

EN ISO 20471

2 : Class of hight visibility surface (from 1 to 3)

Max. 25x : Optional marking, number of maximum washes authorized for the model. On this example: 25 washes maximum (see indication of service temperature on the garment tag).

This standard specifies the requirements and performance test methods for protective clothing against cold at temperatures lower than -5°C (cold store / extreme cold workers).

There are two types of garment :

Garments: covering part of the body, e.g. parka, jacket, coat.

Suits: covering the whole body (trunk + legs), e.g. coveralls, parka & dungarees.

X (undergarment B/C/R) : /cler of the garment

X : Class of air permeability, AP

X : Class of resistance to water penetration WP (Optional)

EN ISO 374-5 specifies the requirements and test methods for protective gloves intended to protect the user against microorganisms (mold and bacteria, potentially viruses).

Penetration of molds and bacteria (tested according to EN374-2): Test by which the water and airtightness of a glove is checked.

Penetration of viruses (tested according to method B of ISO 16604): Process that determines the resistance to penetration by blood-borne pathogens.

- Test method using Phi-X174 bacteriophage.

The glove, depending on its type, will bear the following pictogram:

Examples of application:

The field of use is decisive because, depending on the case, the glove may have to combine several properties in order to meet the necessary protection requirements. It is therefore very important to refer to the recommended areas of use and the results of the laboratory tests found in the instructions for use. However, it is recommended to check that the gloves are suitable for the intended purpose by carrying out tests beforehand, because the conditions at the workplace may differ from those of the standard test, depending on the temperature, abrasion and degradation.