Stay bright, stay safe!

1 February 2005



Employers must ensure personal protective equipment is maintained in an efficient state. Tony Vince talks to rental launderers and clothing suppliers providing a high visibility option


More and more garment suppliers are being asked for high visibility safety garments. Customers range from the transport and construction industries and local authorities, to security firms, sports and events stewards and emergency support services.

Supplying this form of specialist safety workwear has been made easier by the increased availability of high visibility fabrics and finishes in recent years. But there are potential problem areas that the workwear rental supplier needs to be aware of.

According to the Retrorefelective Equipment Manufacturers Association (REMA), the UK trade association for manufacturers of retroreflective products, the problem of safety wear which fails to comply with the accepted standards is “not rife, but it is ongoing”. Compliance with British and European safety standards is a top priority for REMA’s high visibility clothing sub-committee, particularly relating to the supply of garments to the regulated occupational market.

Manufacturers who use less material than specified by the regulations, whilst stating falsely that their products conform to industry standards raise two concerns, says REMA – the safety of the person wearing the garment and the liability of their employer and the pressure for other manufacturers to follow suit so as not to put themselves at a commercial disadvantage.

Setting standards

The Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) at Work Regulations 1992 forms part of a series of health and safety regulations implementing EC Directives.

PPE is defined by the regulations as “all equipment (including clothing affording protection against the weather) which is intended to be worn or held by a person at work and which protects him against one or more risks to his health or safety”.

The main requirement of the regulations is that PPE is supplied at work wherever there are risks to health or safety that cannot be adequately controlled in other ways. Where PPE is the only effective means of controlling the risk of injury or ill health, then employers must ensure that it is available for use at work, free of charge.

In the UK, health and safety regulations require that “every employer shall ensure that any personal protective equipment provided to his employees is maintained (including replaced or cleaned as appropriate) in an efficient state, in an efficient working order and in good repair”.

All high visibility safety garments should conform to BS EN471:1994 High Visibility Warning Clothing – a European Standard introduced in 1994 which sets out exacting specifications for the performance of high visibility garments and accessories (new and in use).

Items are categorised according to the level of conspicuity they provide and divided into three classes.

Class 1 (highest level of conspicuity) includes:

• coats and jackets with sleeves

• coveralls

• two-piece combination suits (if marked correctly).

Class 2 (intermediate level conspicuity) includes:

• sleeveless waistcoats

• tabards

• bib and brace overalls.

Class 3 (lowest level of conspicuity) includes:

• waistband trousers

• harnesses.

Materials must maintain specific performance levels and in the case of care, garments must state the maximum appropriate number of care cycles the item is capable of withstanding.

BS EN471:1994 also sets out specific design criteria for each class of garment, with minimum areas of background and retroreflective materials specified in each case. For instance, jackets, waistcoats and tabards must have bands of retroreflective material in one of the following designs:

• two horizontal bands around the torso and one band over each shoulder joining the torso band, or

• two horizontal bands around the torso.

In both cases, the bands must not be less than 50mm wide, and long sleeves should be encircled by two bands placed at the same height as those on the torso.

Materials used in the manufacture of the garments must meet equally strict specifications, in terms of optical performance, abrasion resistance, colour fastness, influence of rainfall and temperature variation. The finished garments must also contain the relevant label information on storage, cleaning and maintenance, size guidelines, results of technical performance tests and the name and address of the manufacturer or their authorised representative.

Demand for EN compliant protective garments continues to grow, particularly as new standards and regulations are introduced, according to Klopman International, the European manufacturer of workwear, protectivewear and casual apparel fabrics. Klopman International’s Judith Emslie says demand in all sectors is high, although the traditional workwear sectors such as manufacturing have been weaker in recent months.

Recent developments include the addition of several types of fabrics to its EN-accredited advanced protectivewear range. Polaris is a 240g/m2 mid-weight 80% polyester 20% cotton blend, with an inherent water and oil repellent finish. Combining high abrasion resistance and durability, Polaris is available in a choice of high visibility orange or yellow, and can be used in a combination with other colours.

Keeping it visible

Visibility is of crucial importance in the transport and industrial sectors. A high visibility jacket may fulfil the requirements of BS EN471 when it is brand new, but the same jacket may fall short of the requirements once it is covered in mud or grease, or has been exposed to direct sunlight for several months through incorrect storage.

“We are trying to raise awareness of this issue as aftercare can have a big effect on garment performance,” says Peter Slade of the Retrorefelective Equipment Manufacturers Association (REMA).

“For example, if a jacket is ‘black bright’ (soiled) it may well no longer be fit for its purpose; a large lump of tar stuck to the jacket can compromise the garment’s conspicuity in the same way as a large screen print; and the same is true for damaged or worn areas on the garment. New guidelines are required on washing, caring for and replacing garments.”

Gary Scherer, the national operations manager for PHS Hiviz, says it is imperative companies ensure that “PPE equipment is up to standard and well-maintained”. Scherer says one of the biggest problems with high visibility workwear is keeping it clean and visible, since wearers are often working in dirty environments, and dirt soon dulls the bright colours and reflective tape on PPE garments.

He says that, in the past, the absence of any cleaning process that could maintain PPE visibility standards led to many companies discarding soiled garments, resulting in costly replacements; worse, employees were sometimes expected to wear garments beyond the point of a dangerous deterioration in visibility and this put people at risk.

As a leader in effective cleaning and maintenance of high visibility workwear, PHS Hiviz has introduced its “supply and service” range as a cost effective, high visibility garment rental option, which makes it easier for employers to control costs and budget.

It does this by providing an “all in one” service, including supply of top quality garments which are then kept clean, visible and compliant with required standards by PHS’s specialist cleaning and maintenance system. PHS has developed its own special laundering process, which is gentle but highly effective, even on heavy soiling such as oil and grease, says Scherer.

Garments are cleaned with natural, organic materials, dried at low temperatures and, with no bleach involved, colours stay true and high visibility is maintained.

“The whole process is environmentally friendly, biodegradable and it works. The process is so effective that we’ve seen individual garments washed up to 20 times and still comply with BS EN471,” says Scherer.

“But it’s not just about effective cleaning. We understand that our customers all have different needs concerning service delivery and we tailor our system to suit, with plenty of flexibility and some useful extra services to help us meet everyone’s needs.”

The company’s “total management solution” package for the maintenance of high visibility workwear starts with the appointment of an account manager to each customer, to provide specialist help throughout the life of the account.

On delivery to the laundry, the garments are separated according to their cleaning requirements:

• foul weather high visibility garments

• body fluid contaminated high visibility garments

• standard high visibility and workwear garments.

Each type involves different processes, although all are carried out at 40C to ensure that the material and tape are not damaged by excessive heat.

Following the cleaning process, the garments pass through a drying tunnel, then are individually inspected again. Any necessary repairs are carried out before the garment is individually packed ready for delivery.

The standard Hiviz service incorporates a weekly collection and delivery from the customer’s specified sites by a dedicated Hiviz driver.

This ensures that any garments collected are fully cleaned, repaired and delivered within seven days.

A tracing system effectively monitors the life of each specialist garment from “cradle to grave” and is an important part of the service. A barcode identifies each garment currently in use within the customers’ service. it also identifies to whom the garment is allocated and their standard site location so complying with health and safety guidelines.

All garments are manually inspected for damage. A customer may request that any minor repairs are completed automatically or that they are contacted to authorise repairs. Garments suffering from a significant amount of damage, including, but not restricted to, missing reflective tape will be classed as condemned and the garment wearer informed that their garment is no longer acceptable in terms of health and safety.

Hiviz provides a full decontamination service .If a customer only has a few contaminated garments from time to time, the company provides plastic isolation bags for such items. These bags are then placed in a collection container along with non-contaminated garments, and are allocated to the correct wash cycle at the laundry.

Garments that were originally purchased with fireproof properties are treated in one of two ways: the older style garments are sprayed with a fire proofing chemical at the end of the cleaning process, while newer garments that have the property inherent within the fabric do not require any special treatment as the Hiviz process does not damage the garment properties.




Privacy Policy
We have updated our privacy policy. In the latest update it explains what cookies are and how we use them on our site. To learn more about cookies and their benefits, please view our privacy policy. Please be aware that parts of this site will not function correctly if you disable cookies. By continuing to use this site, you consent to our use of cookies in accordance with our privacy policy unless you have disabled them.