Why wear fire retardant clothing

Fire retardant clothing and personal protective equipment PPE are the last line of defense in protecting workers against the unexpected flash fire accidents. Remember, it's not a question of if an accident will occur. It's a question of when. No matter where your business operates, work safe require employers to provide adequate protection from dangerous hazards in the workplace, especially with regard to burn injuries.

In fact, companies are often cited and fined by OSH for not providing fire retardant clothing to their employees under ' Occupational Safety and Health Standards: Personal Protective Equipment'.

Future changes to the requirements are expected to be even more stringent. Written by The Workers Shop Team.

In Safety. What is Fire-Retardant Clothing? Three worker categories are required to wear FR clothing in Australia based on the primary hazards, which are the following: Electric Arc : Workers include electricians and utility workers. Flash Fire : Pharmaceutical, chemical, and refinery workers belong in this category. Combustible Dust : This category includes people who work in food processing plants, as well as those in the paper and pulp industry. These two types may seem the same at first glance, but they have certain dissimilarities: When clothing is fire-retardant , its materials can self-extinguish if they ignite.

This quality, however, fades over time, especially with continuous use. But flame-retardant clothing tends to be less expensive and easier to access. Flame-resistant has fibres that do not ignite easily even when they are exposed to fire. These fibres do not disappear or reduce in strength even with frequent washing. However, flame or fire-resistant clothing can be very expensive and difficult to acquire for many organisations.

How to Pick Fire-Retardant Clothing The benefits are apparent, which is why all organisations should make sure that their workers wear proper clothing , especially in worksites with fire risks. Here are some tips that will help you select the correct FR clothing: Fit Looser clothing offers better protection.

There is an extra layer of air between the wearer and the garment. Therefore, you get added insulation against flames and heat, which can be encountered while wearing FR clothing.

These standards help ensure the safety of the workers and business. Type As mentioned, FR clothing can be fire-resistant or retardant. Select the workwear that meets the budget and requirements. Often, fire-retardants are useful in all cases, and they are less expensive than fire-resistant clothing. However, their efficacy tends to decrease over time. Take these considerations in mind when shopping. Follow us:. Quick Links. All Rights Reserved. Website by Digital Hitmen.

Your Cart Apply. No products in the cart. Many nuances and requirements surround FR clothing. Do you need flame-resistant or flame-retardant clothing? Whatever the case, you suddenly have reason to be curious and ask — what is flame-resistant clothing? Based on the name alone, it might be easy to assume flame-resistant clothing is entirely or even mostly fireproof.

Is that true? As it turns out, not really. Flame-resistant clothing — often abbreviated as FR clothing — refers to any clothing items that are designed and specifically manufactured to protect wearers from potential intermittent flames and thermal exposure.

To break this definition down further, we can look at the specific ways in which FR clothing protects the wearer from injury due to flames. These clothing items will not easily catch fire, and even when they do, their design causes them to self-extinguish. If you get exposed to a brief, intermittent flame while wearing this clothing and your clothes catch on fire, the material will naturally put out the fire. These attributes work together to provide a far greater chance of escape and survival if the wearer finds themselves suddenly in the middle of a flash fire, an electric arc or some other unexpected thermal problem that might cause injury.

In situations like these, fire-resistant clothing can be the difference between being severely injured or escaping unscathed. Any flame-resistant clothing required by a workplace will need to fall within these guidelines.

Many people go to work daily in industries that involve the risk of fire, such as manufacturing or metalworking. While the rate of fires occurring in these fields may be low, it is imperative to prepare for the worst-case scenario.

In a disaster, wearing FR clothing could save someone from severe injuries. Specifically, FR clothing manufacturers use non-conductive fabrics and components that will not melt onto the skin, keeping the extent of a burn injury to the minimum. FR jackets, shirts and pants can provide the thermal insulation needed to protect the wearer from extreme heat.

If an employee works in environments where injury due to fire, heat or electrical mishaps are a real possibility, the odds are good they should be wearing flame-resistant clothing. Three broad categories of workers should wear flame-resistant clothing for protection, based on the type of hazard the worker will encounter while completing their work. Here are the three primary hazards. Does secondary protection offer less safety than primary protection?

The following is a brief breakdown of the two protection levels. Primary protection refers to flame-resistant clothing designed for use during activities that will frequently expose the wearer to flames, radiant heat and potential molten substance splash. When out answering a call, the firefighter will encounter extreme conditions and will need the additional measures offered by primary protection gear. Secondary protection is for situations where the wearer may encounter exposure to intermittent hazards.

These may still include radiant heat, molten substance splash and flames, but the odds are that these will not be constant hazards. Rather, they may appear briefly before disappearing again. In other words, the wearer of secondary protection is not likely to be in as much constant danger as the wearer of primary protection. If flame-resistant clothing protects you from flames, heat and other similar environmental concerns, can you take any additional measures to make the clothing more effective?

On the other hand, should you avoid any gear that might make this clothing less effective? The clothes you decide to wear under your flame-resistant clothing have a significant impact on your safety and the effectiveness of your FR clothing.

Whenever you wear FR clothes, remember to only wear non-melting garments underneath them. There are two primary reasons for this caution. Even if your first layer of outerwear gets damaged or burned, you will still have a second layer to protect you. The layer of air insulation between the two layers also helps keep you safe.

Another reason to dress in non-melting underclothes is the intense environment you may be working in. If temperatures and conditions are extreme enough, these bottom layers of clothing may even ignite and cause serious injury. Anyone who is not extremely familiar with this information and these terms might assume these three terms are synonyms.

The confusion is understandable, given the similarities. Two of the terms are interchangeable, but the other is quite a bit different. Not all fire-resistant clothing consists of the same fabrics. There are multiple choices available, and each comes with different benefits and hazards. What keeps an employee safe in one location may not be ideal for another location.

Most flame-resistant clothing consists of a blend of several different materials, which are almost always synthetic. Their careful engineering and design make them self-extinguishing and slow to ignite. Here are a few of the common fibers with inherent flame-resistant qualities commonly used to create FR clothing. Industrial Uniforms. Work Shirts. Work Pants. High Visibility Workwear. Food Service Apparel.

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