ANSI 207 PSV Standard Revised for 2011

I received this technical bulletin from Ergodyne last week and thought I’d pass it along…

 

 

On October 17th, 2011, ANSI approved the ISEA revision of the 207 Standard for High-Visibility Public Safety Vests. The official designation is ANSI // ISEA 207-2011. Printed copies will be available for purchase through ISEA before the end of 2011.

 
 

GARMENT DESIGN REQUIREMENTS – SHOULDER AREA

One major change from ANSI //ISEA 207-2006 to ANSI // ISEA 207-2011 is the requirement for vests to have a total of at least 23.25 in² of reflective material on the combined front and back shoulder area. This change mirrors the revision that was made to ANSI 107-2010 and intends to provide visible reflective material even when the wearer bends at the waist. 

 
 

CLARITY REGARDING IDENTIFICATION PANELS, LETTERING AND LOGOS 

The 2011 revision of ANSI // ISEA 207 also seeks to provide clarity regarding ID panels, lettering and logos on pubic safety vests. This information is important as these garments are often logoed to meet the needs of police, fire and EMS personnel. Section 6.2 of the latest revision states that logos and other lettering covering an area less than 72 in² will not subtract from the amount of background material required in Table 1. Logos and other lettering may cover more than 72 in² of the total background material; however any amount over 72 in² will begin to count against the required amount of background material.

Additionally, lettering and logos may not cover more than 22 in² of reflective or combined performance material on ANSI // ISEA 207-2011 compliant public safety vests. 

 
 

GLOWEAR® PUBLIC SAFETY VESTS AND THE NEW ANSI // ISEA 207-2011 STANDARD 

So what does all this mean when it comes to GloWear®? It means that you and your customers can continue to sell the GloWear® 8244PSV and 8245PSV Public Safety Vests just like you have under the 2006 standard. All designs and logo configurations from Ergodyne that were compliant with ANSI // ISEA 207-2006 will continue to comply with the 2011 revision, and we have already begun the process of updating the PSV interior labels to reflect the new standard designation.

 
 

A PDF copy of this standard is available at www.ergodyne.com.

What Class Vest am I wearing?

In yesterday’s post, we talked about what class vest was needed where (see “What Class Vest do I Need?“). Today we are going to look at what makes up the different classes that we are talking about.

At first glance, the answer to the title of today’s post might seem an obvious one… “Just look at the tag in your vest!”. The problem is that what the tag says isn’t always what the vest is. We’ve talked about this in a post back on March 25^th entitled “Counterfeit PPE“. Most often the issue is that the manufacturer of the vest didn’t realize that the amount of background material is reduced when the reflective material is added resulting in a vest that doesn’t have enough background material to meet the class rating that the manufacturer puts on the label. Because ANSI doesn’t have enforcement authority (they only set the standards), many of these vests end up out there with the consumer thinking that he’s got the correct vest when, in fact, he doesn’t.

With that in mind, here’s a chart outlining what is required for each class vest. It is taken from a 3M document that you can download entitled “ANSI/ISEA 107-2004 made easy: A Quick Reference to High-Visibility Safety Apparel”

Which Class Vest do I need?

The title of today’s blog is one of the questions that we hear often here at National Safety, Inc. When do you need to be wearing a Class III vest rather than a Class II? What’s the difference?

Unfortunately there is no fast and set answer to that rule, only some general guidelines. While the speed limit is the most reliable guideline, it isn’t the only issue and, in certain situations you might need to be in a class III vest even when the speed limit on the road that you are working on is low enough to warrant a class II vest. The problem is that if an inspector believes that you should be wearing a Class III and you’re only wearing a Class II, you might be in trouble.

Here are the general guidelines concerning which class vest needs to be worn:

Class I are allowed where:

1. Workers have a very clear and unhindered line of sight on oncoming traffic
2. There is a large enough buffer between workers and the traffic
3. The speed limit on the road in question is 25 MPH or lower
4. Workers in a Class I or Class II vest are easily and clearly visible.

Class II vests are required where:

1. Workers’ attention may not always be on the traffic around them
2. Visibility is hindered because of fog or rain or other weather problems
3. There is a chance that a Class I vest won’t be as visible because of background
4. The barrier between the workers and the traffic is less than in the above instance for a Class I vest.
5. The speed limit on the road in question exceeds 25 MPH.

Class III vests are required where:

1. Workers are working in high speed areas (highways, for example)
2. The workers aren’t easily visible and identifiable as a worker in a Class II vest at a distance of at least 1280 feet
3. The complexity of the job means that the workers will often not be able to pay attention to traffic

Still not sure? You’re not alone. So here’s a piece of advice: When in doubt err on the side of caution. If you aren’t clear about what Class vest you should be wearing, the best thing to do is to step up to the higher class vest, not only to cover yourself in case of inspection but also to increase your safety factor. This general rule should actually apply to all areas of safety. If you aren’t sure if the job you’re doing requires safety glasses, you should probably wear them because there is obviously something about it that caused you to ask the question in the first place.

Is your protective garment providing adequate protection?

The old saying goes “The only thing that you can count on with certainty is change”. This is especially true when it comes to manufacturing processes and the general nature of the way work gets done.

Here’s the problem… Ten years, five year or one year ago when analyzing and assessing the correct PPE for a specific job or process, it was determined that a certain garment, let’s say the Dupont Tychem, was the adequate garment to be used in order to protect workers. Over time, however, the process has changed. New chemicals are introduced or concentrations have changed. More often than not, no one stopped to consider whether the Tychem was still the best garment for adequate protection.

Especially in the wake of an economic downturn where workers often have to wear more than one hat, no one has taken the time (or even thought about the fact that it needs to happen) to properly evaluate the adequacy of the PPE being used.

With a New Year starting, this might be a good time to take the time to do that. Most manufacturers have permeation guides available online now. Dupont for example has the permeation guide for all their garments available here. Find your chemical and it’ll let you know permeation times. Who knows, you might even find that you don’t need the level of protection you are presently providing and you can step down to a less expensive garment and be a hero to your boss?

What’s the difference between reflective and retroreflective

Not all Hi-Vis tape is created equal. It’s one of the main reasons why there is often such a price discrepancy between the vests that sales reps show you.

So what’s the difference between reflective tape and retroreflective tape?

Let’s let Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman of Mythbusters explain it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5BRdtCK1xc&feature=player_embedded

What the various levels of protection mean

Level A, Level B, Level C or Level D? What do these levels mean?

A brief summary of each of these levels, ratings that are important if you are handling hazardous materials, are as follows:

Level A (see examples here)

Level A suits provide protection against vapors and gases and are the highest level of protection available. This suit is fully encapsulated and built to accommodate the necessary SCBA (Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus). Level A suits need to be test to make sure that they do not leak using a Pressure Test Kit.

Level B (see example here)

Level B suits are designed for protection against liquid splash. Gloves are generally separate and need to be taped with a special Chem-tape to ensure a waterproof seal. Supplied air must be provided but the SCBA (if that is the source of supplied air) can be worn externally.

Level C (see examples here)

Level C suits are designed to provide protection against particle and/or light to moderate liquid splash. Similar to a level B suit, the major difference has to do with the level of respiratory protection needed. Air purifying respirators (half mask or full-face) can be used. This type of suit is usually all that’s needed when skin absorption is not a factor.

Level D (see examples here)

This level is mostly used for particulate or chemicals that are not hazardous. No respiratory protection is required at this level though additional PPE (head protection, eye protection, hearing protection, etc…) may be used as the situation dictates.

A thorough analysis and evaluation of the situation needs to be done in order to determine the level of protection needed. If a doubt exists, the worst is always to be assumed and the level of protection determined accordingly.

Public Safety Vest Standard

ANSI 207-2006 Public Safety Vest Standard

• What is “ANSI 207″?
  

• Who should wear an ANSI 207 vest?
  

• What is the difference between ANSI/ISEA107-2004 and the PSV standard?
  

• Does ANSI/ISEA 207-2006 require a breakaway design?
  

• Does ANSI/ISEA 207-2006 require the use of colors to identify emergency personnel?
  

 

Want the answers to these questions? Download Ergodyne’s Technical Bulletin on the ANSI 207-2006 Public Safety Vest Standard from their website here.

NIOSH Chemical Database helps you select the right clothing

We hear it here in the office almost daily; someone comes in complaining that a glove or a garment isn’t holding out and lasting as long as they thought that it should. The reason is usually fairly simple… the user simply hasn’t done his or her homework.

The truth is that all garments aren’t created equal. You can’t just select a protective garment based on comfort or visual appeal.

The search for the right garment must begin with an understanding of what you are trying to protect yourself against by donning the protective garment.

NIOSH has created a database designed specifically to help you do just that. Identify that chemical(s) and/or substance(s) that you are going to be exposed to find out what is recommended for optimal protection against it.

The database is available online at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/ncpc/ncpc1.html

Taking Sulphuric Acid as an example, we find the following recommendation:

Chemical	CAS No.	Recommendation for skin protection†	Recommended protective clothing barriers*
Sulfuric acid	7664-93-9	Prevent skin contact	(solution >70% only) 8 hr: Butyl, PE, Teflon, Saranex, PE/EVAL, Barricade, CPF3, Responder, Trellchem, Tychem or 4 hr: Viton

 

Do the same for all the chemicals that you are trying to protect against in order to get the right garment.

Beware of misleading FR labels!!!!

Are you in the market for Flame Retardant safety vests or garments for yourself or for your workers?

There is something important to be aware of before you make your purchase because not all FR ratings are created equal. What you will often find when you look at the label of the garment is that the FR rating referenced is NFPA 701.

You might be asking “So what? Why is this a problem? It’s NFPA isn’t it?” The reason that it’s a problem is because NFPA 701 is a standard that was developed years ago to test hotel draperies and curtains, not clothing! Check it out on the NFPA website.

The problem is that this standard isn’t strict enough to apply to clothing. Some Clothing manufacturers, however, are using it to sell polyester garments. All polyester will melt and drip. You do not want to be wearing polyester if you are going to be exposed to flames, no matter what the manufacturer tries to tell you about its FR properties.

At issue is the fact that other fibers that have inherent FR qualities are more expensive than polyester and, in the battle to sell more FR vests and garments, cheaper often wins the bid, particularly when the buyer doesn’t know the difference between the various standards.

So before you purchase a FR garment, make sure you know what standard is being referenced. It makes a world of difference!

ANSI / ISEA 107-2004 vs. 207-2006 Standards

Do you know what the difference is between the ANSI / ISEA 107-2004 and the 207-2006 standards?

Greg Hayworth from M. L. Kishigo (www.mlkishigo.com) recently sat down with us here at National Safety, Inc. and went through a PowerPoint explaining it. He has graciously agreed to make this PPT available to everyone.

You can download a PDF version of the powerpoint presentation here.

This is important stuff! There are a lot of vests out there that claim to need one or the other standard (or both) and yet don’t.

Because ANSI only sets the standard, they don’t enforce compliance. The result is that there are several companies out there sewing garments that don’t meet the requirements in spite of the fact that the labels claim that they do.

Buyer Beware!