IC-MAYJUN23-PG26+27_Layout 1 24/04/2023 10:22 Page 27
PPE CHOOSING THE RIGHT HELMET
With so many helmet designs on the market, it is understandable that project leaders don’t know what to look for when choosing for your team. Some of the key questions to be asking include:
Does it comply with the relevant standards? Complying with standards is not just about safety – failing to be compliant can result in large fines and reputational damage for your organisation. Check whether you need to meet ANSI, CSA and EN standards or other grades for specific applications.
Is it comfortable? A comfortable helmet is more likely to be worn than one that does not fit properly. Look for features like a fast- dry sweatband, intuitive and full adjustability, ventilation systems and a lightweight design.
Does it look good? While safety should never be compromised for style, a more attractive helmet can increase the likelihood that it will be worn.
Can accessories be added? Extra accessories may be needed to add extra protection for workers’ faces, eyes, hearing and breathing.
Can you choose application specific features? For example, working at heights or in confined spaces you want to choose a helmet with a chinstrap and that is brimless and compact, while working in electrical environments or around chemicals you want the option to choose helmets that are non-vented, have an integrated face-mask, is made of anti-static materials and is gutter free.
WHY YOU SHOULD CHOOSE TO BRAND YOUR HELMET On a project site, with dozens or even hundreds of workers, hard hat customisation, with different colours or logos, is absolutely critical. Managing a busy project, with multiple sub- contractors, can be challenging – and it is important to remember that sub-contractors may be relative strangers to the workplace and
unfamiliar with an organisation’s procedures and rules. Customised hard hats provide a useful reminder of who’s who, and what workers’ positions and responsibilities are. Other, more fundamental, safety features can also be added on, including retro-fitted stickers that enhance the visibility and safety of workers, and the promotion of potentially life-saving safety messages and reminders. Furthermore, in an increasingly competitive market, customisation, including the printing of companies’ logos, is an invaluable marketing tool, enabling companies to stand out from the crowd. It can also unify workforces and foster a greater sense of collective teamwork and pride.
TOP TIPS TO CONSIDER WHEN CUSTOMISING: You have decided that helmet customisation is a valuable tool for your company? Great. Now here are some things to consider when branding up your hard hats:
Check that what you have in mind conforms to your company standards before ordering
Think about what safety procedures you adhere to – could some of that messaging be placed on the hard hat for visibility?
Think about the colours and sizing of logos and messages, and how they would change when applied to the finished product.
How quickly can the product be turned around? At MSA Safety we can have logoed hard hats manufactured within as little as five days.
THE TEAM TO HELP
MSA Safety is the designer, manufacturer and supplier of industry-leading safety products – including its iconic V-Gard head protection range, used by millions of workers in the toughest environments. The company’s team help make purchasing high quality, customised hard hats, quick and hassle-free.
MSA Safety
gb.msasafety.com
SATRA LAUNCHES NEW THERMAL RATING SYSTEM FOR FOOTWEAR
C
onsumers are very familiar with the ‘Tog’ rating for bedding duvets – the higher the number, the warmer the duvet will be. This simple indication of thermal performance is easily understood for comparison purposes. For many applications, footwear is designed while considering thermal performance to keep the wearer’s feet warm. However, it is often a challenge to easily communicate this performance level to the customer at the key point of sale setting. SATRA has developed an equivalent to the bedding Tog for footwear – a simple scale to demystify thermal performance called the ‘Footwear Effective Tog’ (FET).
The FET level number is identified by the
SATRA TM436 whole shoe thermal insulation and cold rating test. This measures the thermal performance properties of footwear, generates both an ‘R’ value and a cold rating to evaluate the insulation performance, and calculates an effective FET value. The R value – along with others, such as ‘K values’ – are often used to determine insulation performance.
While R and K figures are valuable scientific units, consumers are generally not familiar with these numbers, nor do they understand how to apply them. Being a simple number supported by the same science and mathematics used in this cold rating test method, the Footwear Effective Tog is calculated using the same principles and is far easier to communicate performance levels at a consumer level.
The FET scale runs from one to 20 – the higher the number, the more thermally insulating the product is, thus allowing the customer to select footwear suitable for a specific end use. The FET level required by the wearer depends on the activity for which the footwear is worn. For example, when working in a freezer at -15°C, a worker driving a forklift truck (a low-movement activity) is likely to require footwear with a FET rating of no higher than 15, whereas another, who is walking around picking or moving stock (a high-movement role) would require footwear with a FET rating of no more than 10.
SATRA
www.satra.com
INDUSTRIAL COMPLIANCE | MAY/JUNE 2023 27
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46
