Aluminized PPE

Fire protection or flame retardant: see standard EN 11612

This standard, which replaced the EN 531 standard, specifies the performance requirements for materials and protective clothing against heat and flames (except clothing for firefighters and welders). These requirements are applicable to articles of clothing which can be worn in a wide range of uses, where there is a need for clothing with limited flame spread properties and where the wearer may be exposed to heat emitted by radiation, by convection, by contact or by projections of molten metal. In fact, the international standard EN ISO 11612 applies to clothing (PPE category 2 or 3) made with flexible materials, designed to protect the human body except the hands, against heat and / or flame.

Compared to the old standard EN 531, it is that, from now on, the lining must be flame retardant, like the outer fabric of code A (see in the following paragraph), without igniting, without melting and without hole. Likewise, flame retardancy is also tested after a maximum number of washes (50), and requirements regarding seam strength and flame retardancy have also emerged.

New standard EN 11612: instructions for use

The purpose of the EN 11612 standard is simple: to reduce the risk of clothing catching fire and causing further injury to the wearer. The performance of clothing meeting this regulation is indicated by six ratings (from A to F), which respectively test flame spread, resistance to convective heat, radiant heat, resistance to splashes of molten aluminum, resistance to splashes of molten iron, and resistance to contact heat. This is why you may sometimes see designations such as: 11612A, 11612B, 11612C, 11612D, 11612E, 11612F.

In addition, the model must always comply with the flame propagation code A1 or A2 and at least one of the codifications from B to F. The garment label finally indicating the classification obtained. Also note that the material must be covered on one side and that there should be sufficient overlap between the jacket and the pants.