{"id":22773,"date":"2016-11-02T11:41:02","date_gmt":"2016-11-02T15:41:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.atlantictraining.com\/blog\/?p=22773"},"modified":"2016-11-02T11:41:02","modified_gmt":"2016-11-02T15:41:02","slug":"trends-womens-ppe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.atlantictraining.com\/blog\/trends-womens-ppe\/","title":{"rendered":"Trends in … women’s PPE"},"content":{"rendered":"

(retrieved from Safety+Health Magazine<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Historically, PPE has been designed with a man\u2019s body size and shape in mind. But when\u00a0Safety+Health<\/i> reached out to the International Safety Equipment Association regarding progress on designing personal protective equipment for women, manufacturers\u2019 representatives were quick to respond.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it comes to safety equipment, one size and style does not fit all,\u201d said Katie Mielcarek, marketing manager for Cleveland-based Gateway Safety Inc. \u201cWith women making up a greater share of the workforce, manufacturers who are tailoring PPE products to the fit and style preferences of women are ahead of the game.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here, PPE manufacturing insiders describe the risks female workers face when asked to wear PPE designed for men, what manufacturers are doing to answer the call for women\u2019s PPE, and what safety professionals and workers should know.<\/p>\n

Risks<\/h2>\n

\u201cIn the past, it was common practice for women to be given the standard PPE that was originally developed for the predominately male industrial workforce,\u201d noted Melissa Gerhardt, product manager for FR work wear and arc flash PPE for Cleveland-based National Safety Apparel.<\/p>\n

This can put women at risk of injury. \u201cPPE traditionally designed for the dimensions of an average male worker means that female workers are apt to rely on PPE that is too large or disproportioned,\u201d Shari Franklin Smith, senior technical service specialist for food, beverage and agriculture\/oil and gas, petrochem industries for 3M; and Laurie Wells, senior regulatory affairs specialist at the St. Paul, MN-based company, wrote in a joint email to S+H<\/i>. \u201cLiterally, from head to toe, ill-fitting PPE can cause safety hazards: reduced dexterity from oversized gloves, baggy coveralls catching on equipment, tripping because footwear or shoe covers are too large.\u201d<\/p>\n

Women often have issues regarding the fit of hard hats, according to Mary Padron, MarCom and event specialist for Memphis-based Radians. Padron pointed out that hard hats can be too big for the heads of most women, and that a loose-fitting hard hat can obstruct a woman\u2019s vision if it slips off her head. In addition, \u201cIf it falls off, it puts the female worker in danger of getting hit by a falling object,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Exclusively for women<\/h2>\n

Manufacturers have taken note of the need for PPE designed exclusively for women. \u201cMore women are working in the safety industry than ever before, and as we continue to advocate for all people with special fit and function needs, we can continue to push innovation and make the workplace safer for everyone,\u201d Stacy Klausing, PPE project manager, and Jill Kirby, laboratory manager for Louisville, KY-based ArcWear, wrote in a joint email to S+H<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Klausing and Kirby noted that most \u201cmajor players\u201d in the flame-resistant market offer a selection of PPE for women, including stretch FR jeans, ballistic vests and FR bras.<\/p>\n

Additionally, standards are being revised to reflect the needs of smaller-sized people.<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo recently revised ANSI\/ISEA PPE standards have included changes to requirements that previously hindered access to well-fitting PPE by smaller people,\u201d said Jud Crosby, technical director at Woodstock, GA-based ERB Safety. Crosby added that, by making standards less design-restrictive, \u201csuppliers are given the ability to provide more appropriately sized products for women who tend to be smaller than their male counterparts.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Tamatha Jefferson, garment product manager for MCR Safety of Collierville, TN, when manufacturers make more color- and size-friendly options for women, women benefit. \u201cReductions of injury rates for women can be reduced by simply taking advantage of more functional and fashionable PPE,\u201d Jefferson said.<\/p>\n

Tips<\/h2>\n

When women don\u2019t have properly fitting protective equipment, they may be tempted to alter the PPE they\u2019re using. This should never be done. \u201cIf PPE is certified to a particular standard, the garment is tested in the way it is intended to be worn,\u201d cautioned Megan Tansom, senior product specialist for Ergodyne in St. Paul, MN. \u201cIf women are manipulating a garment to improve its fit \u2013 perhaps by tying or cutting the extra fabric \u2013 the garment may no longer be AtlantcTrainingt, which puts their safety at risk.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important that employers keep all workers in mind when selecting PPE, said Brad Witt, director of hearing conservation at Smithfield, RI-based Howard Leight by Honeywell. \u201cSafety programs are so immersed in systems and processes that it can be easy to forget that the first \u2018P\u2019 in PPE still stands for \u2018personal,\u2019\u201d Witt remarked, adding that workplaces that offer only one size or style of protection as a way to streamline their safety processes undermine their own protection efforts.<\/p>\n

Joe Milot Jr., senior product manager for Latham, NY-based Protective Industrial Products Inc., echoed Witt\u2019s opinion. \u201cFinding the appropriate sizes of PPE to properly outfit the entire workforce should be a key component of any safety program,\u201d Milot said.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, offering PPE that accommodates all workers is the right thing to do. \u201cAll workers, male or female, deserve PPE that fits properly,\u201d Tansom said.<\/p>\n

Compiled with the assistance of the International Safety Equipment Association<\/p>\n

This article retrieved from Safety and Health Magazine<\/a><\/p>\n

Related Training:<\/h1>\n\"women's<\/a>\"women's<\/a>\"women's<\/a>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(retrieved from Safety+Health Magazine) Historically, PPE has been designed with a man\u2019s body size and shape in mind. But when\u00a0Safety+Health reached out to the International Safety Equipment Association regarding progress on designing personal protective equipment for women, manufacturers\u2019 representatives were quick to respond. \u201cWhen it comes to safety equipment, one size and style does not …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":22774,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[83],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nTrends in ... women's PPE - Atlantic Training Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When Safety+Health reached out to the International Safety Equipment Association about women's PPE, representatives were quick to respond.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.atlantictraining.com\/blog\/trends-womens-ppe\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trends in ... women's PPE - 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