European Standards for protective clothing

The standards for protective clothing for workers or standards for protective clothing define the specifications for clothing required against various hazards such as chemical and biological agents, heat, adverse weather conditions and mechanical hazards (cuts, blows, etc.). This clothing specifically protects the torso/abdomen (e.g. vests) and arms (e.g. jackets) or legs (e.g. trousers) but may also cover the whole body (full body suits).

In case you are interested in standards for wrist, vision, breathing, hearing and head or foot protection see the respective guides we have prepared. There are simply low-protection workwear that do not fall into the category of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and do not necessarily require compliance with a standard. Such garments are for example white lab coats or simple work robes. These work clothes also include simple overalls (unless high visibility or protection against cold etc. is required). Often, however, these garments comply with the basic EN 340 standard.

In contrast, jackets, trousers and overalls as well as high visibility vests with reflective tapes must be produced in accordance with specific European standards. Various disposable items such as coveralls, if they are intended for a specific level of protection (e.g. against liquid chemicals or radioactive agents, etc.) also have to comply with specific standards. Below are the main European standards for protective clothing for workers (EN Standards) relating to mechanical hazards (cuts, punctures, etc.), adverse weather conditions (such as cold, etc.), chemical and biological hazards, flame and electricity and radioactivity.

Mechanical hazards

EN 340:2003 – Protective clothing - General requirements

• identification marking of the manufacturer
• product identification marking
• # – size or size range specification
• EN ### – specific standard number

Protection against a specific hazard (see illustrations below) and performance levels where applicable

• care marking. Possible to include maximum number of washes (up to ## x)
• • disposable PPE to be marked "DO NOT RE-USE"

EN 381-11:2002 – Protective clothing for chainsaw users - Upper body protection garments

EN 471:2003 – Standard for high visibility warning clothing

EN 510:1993 – Standard for protective clothing for use where there is a risk of entanglement with moving parts

EN 1150:1999 – High visibility clothing for non-professional use

• Identification marking of the manufacturer
• Identification of the product type, name or code
• Size according to EN 340
• Standard number (EN 1150)

EN ISO 13998:2003 – Aprons, trousers and sleeveless vests for protection against cutting and piercing by hand knives

Weather/cold/rain

EN 342:2004 – Clothing and sets of clothing for protection against cold

EN 343:2003 – Rain protection

EN 14058:2004 – Protective clothing. Clothing for protection against cold environments

Cold icon accompanied by levels for

• Thermal resistance 1 – 3
• Air permeability 1 – 2 (optional)
• Water resistance 1 – 2 (optional)
• Thermal insulation 1 – 2 (optional) for garments or garment sets - higher values indicate better protection in all cases

Chemical/biological hazards

EN 465:1995 – Clothing for protection against liquid chemicals

Performance requirements for chemical protective clothing with connections between the different parts of the garment that do not allow the ingress of airborne particles (spray-tight) (Type 4 equipment)

EN 466-1:1995 – Clothing for protection against chemical hazards

Performance requirements for chemical protective clothing - Chemical protective clothing with liquid-tight connections between the different parts of the clothing (Type 3 equipment)

EN 467:1995 – Clothing for protection against liquid chemicals

Performance requirements for garments providing protection to parts of the body

EN 943-1:2002 – Clothing for protection against liquid chemicals

Full body chemical protective suits with or without oxygen supply that do not allow the introduction of air molecules 'gas-tight' (Type 1) or that allow the introduction of air 'non-gas-tight' (Type 2)

• Number and date of the standard
• Type of suit:
• 1a gas tight with internal breathing apparatus
• 1b gas tight with external breathing apparatus
• 1c gas tight air-supplied suit
• 2 non-gas-tight air-supplied suit
• Έτος κατασκευής και χρόνος ζωής στο ράφι (μπορεί να είναι και στο πακέτο μόνο) Εύρος μεγεθών
• Markings for other properties as specified by relevant standards (e.g. heat and flame resistance, mechanical impact)

EN 943-2:2002 – Clothing for protection against liquid chemicals

Chemical protective clothing that does not allow the introduction of air molecules 'gas-tight' (Type 1) for Emergency Teams (ET)

Type of suit:

• 1a-ET gas tight with internal breathing apparatus
• 1b-ET gas tight with external breathing apparatus

– and in addition either Limited use or Reusable
Icon for liquid chemicals

• Year of manufacture and shelf life.
• Size range
• Markings for other properties as specified by relevant standards (e.g. heat and flame resistance, mechanical impact)

EN 13034:2005 – Protective clothing against liquid chemicals

Chemical protective clothing providing limited protection against liquid chemicals (type 6 and type PB [6] equipment)

Type of clothing:

• Type 6 – full body
• Type PB[6] – body part

Note: A performance test against the specific chemicals of use should be carried out - see manufacturer's information.

• Care marking, or "Non Re–Usable" = "NOT TO BE RE-USED" for disposable items
• size
• • if additionally tested for heat and flame resistance, marked according to the relevant standard used

EN 13982-1:2004 – Protective clothing against solid particles

Part 1: Performance requirements for chemical protective clothing providing full-body protection against airborne solid particles (type 5 clothing)

• Manufacturer
• identification or model number –Type 5
• number and date of this standard (e.g. EN ISO 13982-1:2004)
• year of manufacture and, where appropriate, expected shelf life
• size designation
• Icon for chemicals and icon “see instructions”
• care icons
• if tested for heat and flame resistance, marking of the relevant standard used

Note: A performance test should be carried out against the specific chemicals of use - see manufacturer's information.

• Care marking, or Non Re–Usable" = "NOT TO BE RE-USED" for disposable items
• size
• if additionally tested for heat and flame resistance, marked according to the relevant standard used

EN 14126:2003 – Protective clothing

Performance requirements and test methods for protective clothing against infectious agents

EN 14605:2005 – Protective clothing against liquid chemicals

Performance requirements for chemical protective clothing with compounds providing protection against liquids (Type 3 - Type 3) or sprays/aerosols (Type 4 - Type 4) and articles providing protection to individual body parts (Type PB[3] and Type PB[4])

• Manufacturer
• Type of protective clothing:
• Type 3 compounds with liquid protection for the whole body
• Type 4 compounds with spray protection for the whole body
• PB[3] with partial body liquid protection
• PB[4] with partial body spray protection
• Icon for chemical protection and 'See instructions'

Note: it will be necessary to test performance against the specific chemicals used - see manufacturer's information.

• Year and month of manufacture if shelf life is <2 years
• Care instructions, or ‘DO NOT RE–USE’ for disposable items
• Size

Heat, flame and electrical hazards

EN 531:1995 – Protective clothing for industrial workers exposed to heat (excluding garments for firefighters and welders)

EN 533:1997 – Protective clothing - Protection against heat and flame. Materials for limited flame retardancy

Superseded by EN ISO 14116:2008
This standard refers only to materials or assemblies of materials from which flame-retardant clothing with limited flame retardancy is made. This information may appear in the manufacturer's documentation. Typeface markings:
EN 533 Flame retardancy index / Durability
Flame retardancy index 1, 2 or 3 - limited flame retardancy index (3 is best)
Durability:

• A – material with aluminium, or
• L – leather material, or
• X – after an established washing procedure (12 washes at 75 ^oC), or
• #X# – after a non-standard washing procedure, e.g. 5×60 indicates 5 washes at 60 ^oC), or
• R – after a standard soaking and 5 dry cleaning cycles
• For assemblies of different materials:
• Which side was tested and the indicators measured
• • If Index 1 materials are present: use only over EN 533 Index 2 or 3 materials and not next to the skin

EN 1149-1:1994 – Protective clothing - Electrostatic properties. Surface resistivity (test methods and requirements)

EN 1149-5:2008 – Protective clothing - Electrostatic properties. Material performance and design requirements

As EN 340, as well as:
Icon – for electrostatic discharge

EN 11612:2008 – Protective clothing - Clothing for protection against flame and heat

As EN ISO 13688 (now EN 340), and:
Icon – for heat or flame hazard as well as, in a horizontal line below the symbol, in order:

• A# – limited flame retardancy (# = 1 or 2 for front or bottom edge ignition test respectively), and at least one of:
• B# – switching heat resistance (# = 1 to 3)
• C# – radiant heat resistance (# = 1 to 4)
• D# – molten aluminium drips (# = 1 to 3)
• E# – molten iron droplets (# = 1 to 3)
• F# – contact heat (# = 1 to 3)

In all cases, from B to F, the highest number = best. Without a number, there is no protection claim
Optional:

• W## – garment water repellency (1 to 3) and water vapour resistance (1 to 3) respectively

If the claimed performance level A to W is achieved by using a combination of garments, each garment shall be marked accordingly

EN ISO 14116:2008 – Protective clothing - Protection against heat and flame - Materials, assembly of materials and garments with limited flame retardancy

Single layer materials

• Manufacturer's identification marking
• 'the material complies with ISO 14116 indexes 0/0/0', as appropriate
• limited flame retardancy index (1 to 3 with 3 being the highest flame resistance)

And a cleaning index:

• [number of cycles] H / [household washing temperature]
• [number of cycles] I / [industrial washing temperature]
• [number of cycles] C/ [international dry cleaning symbol], for example

-3/5I/75 indicates a material with a flammability index of 3, with 5 industrial washes at 75 °C
-2/5H/60 indicates a material with a flammability index of 2, with 5 domestic washes at 60 °C
-3/5C/P indicates a material with a flammability index of 3, with 5 dry cleanings with perchloroethylene
-2/0/0 denotes material with aluminium, leather or single use material with a flammability index of 2 that has not been pre-treated
-2/25H/75 denotes material with a flammability index of 2, with 25 household washes at 75 °C

• for materials that cannot be washed or dry-cleaned the cleaning index is 0/0
• instructions for care and cleaning and any precautions to be taken

Material assemblies
As for those of a single layer and:

• "the material combination shall comply with ISO 14116 external and x/x/x internal indicators or
• 'each material in the combination complies with ISO 14116", with x/x/x indices for each layer

The presence and location of any material with index 1 shall be indicated.
Garments
As EN 340 for both single layer/material combination materials and "Do not re-use" for disposable garments

EN 50286:1999 – Electrically insulated protective clothing for low voltage installations

EN 60895:1997 – Conductive clothing for work at nominal voltages up to 800 kV a.c.

Superseded by EN 60895:2003

• manufacturer's name or mark
• type and size
• year of manufacture
• dark blue triangle on a light blue background

EN 60895:2003 Conductive clothing for work at nominal voltages up to 800 kV a.c. and + 600 V d.c.

• producer
• type and size
• year of production
• symbol with double triangle
• standard number and year

Radioactive contamination

EN 1073-1:1998 – Protective clothing against radioactive particle contamination

In addition to the basics mentioned above, there are of course many more standards for protective clothing for workers. For example, there are specific standards aimed at categories such as firefighters or motorcyclists.

In any case, we are always available to discuss your needs and share our expertise. If you have any questions about Standards for Protective Clothing, please contact us.

---

Resources

General information on protective clothing standards (in English):
- http://www.hse.gov.uk/foi/internalops/oms/2009/03/om200903app7.pdf

Legislation and information on health and safety at work (in Greek):
- http://www.elinyae.gr

Further resources on Personal Protective Equipment (in English):
- Directive 89/656/EEC – use of personal protective equipment of 30 November 1989 on the minimum health and safety requirements for the use by workers of personal protective equipment at the workplace, OJ L 393 , 30/12/1989 P. 0018 – 0028.