ASTM Int'l Releases Protective Clothing Standard ASTM F 2621; Proposes ASTM WK 14247, ASTM WK14442
July 3, 2007 // Published as a news service by IHS
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ASTM International released one standard for protective clothing and proposed two others.
ASTM F 2621 - Practice for Determining Response Characteristics and Design Integrity of Arc Related Finished Products in an Electric Arc Exposure
ASTM F 2621 is the latest in a series of standards developed by ASTM Subcommittee F18.65 on Wearing Apparel to reduce the number of fatalities and injuries caused by electric arcs.
ASTM Practice F 2621 provides procedural guidelines for conducting arc testing on finished products intended for use as thermal protection by workers who may be exposed to electric arcs.
Thomas Neal, president, Neal Associates Ltd. and F18 member, said that ASTM F 2621 was developed because of a need within the protective equipment industry to determine the qualitative arc exposure performance of arc resistant garments and other personal protective equipment (PPE) tested on a mannequin to simulate the way the garments and PPE are used by a worker in a real hazard situation.
"A standard was needed that would show how the garment closures, sewing thread, buttons and pant jacket overlap areas perform in an arc exposure in order to improve protective clothing design," said Neal, who added that arc flash demos or accident simulations were being conducted without a standard and consistent way of conducting the exposures.
According to Neal, ASTM F 2621 will be used by both manufacturers and large end-users of personal protective equipment, as well as by companies that have had arc flash accidents and want to recreate the exposure conditions for analysis.
The standard will be used for the improvement of protective clothing design, for dealing with problems related to closures, labels and sewing thread in protective clothing and for the assessment of overlap areas when more than one protective garment is worn.
Neal said that other standards developed by subcommittee F18.65 to protect electrical workers include:
Subcommittee F18.65 is under the jurisdiction of ASTM International Committee F18 on Electrical Protective Equipment for Workers.
ASTM WK14247 - Specification for Air-Fed Protective Ensembles
ASTM International Committee F23 on Protective Clothing is developing ASTM WK14247, which would establish design, performance, documentation, labeling and certification requirements for protective ensembles that rely on principal air supply to the wearer via an air line or air filtered directly into the ensemble.
ASTM Subcommittee F23.30 on Chemicals invites users and manufacturers of air-fed protective ensembles to participate in the development of this standard.
Air-fed protective ensembles include clothing and equipment items needed for dermal and respiratory protection, including protective suits, gloves, footwear and eye/face protection. However, unlike other protective ensembles, air-fed ensembles do not use respiratory protective devices such as self-contained breathing apparatus, air-purifying respirators and supplied air respirators.
Despite their use in a variety of applications, performance criteria and specifications for air-fed protective ensembles do not exist, according to ASTM International. The objective of ASTM WK14247 is to develop specifications for air-fed protective ensembles that address both inhalation and dermal performance criteria.
The proposed specification will combine National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) certification criteria for respirators with separate criteria for suit, glove, footwear and eye/face protection items, materials and components. ASTM WK14247 will also provide detailed labeling and certification requirements.
ASTM International and the NIOSH's National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory (NPPTL) have an approved memorandum of understanding to facilitate cooperation involving the determination of performance requirements and development of test methods, product specifications, practices, guides and terminology related to worker and emergency responder protective clothing and equipment.
NPPTL conducts NIOSH's longstanding program for testing and approving respirators. NPPTL is working to establish respirator certification criteria for air-fed protective ensembles under the Code of Federal Regulations. While the respirator certification criteria will be the responsibility of NPPTL, the proposed ASTM specification will incorporate the physical performance and design criteria for air-fed protective ensembles, said ASTM International.
In addition, the proposed specification will include certification criteria that will require ensembles to be approved to the NIOSH respirator requirements before certification to the ASTM specification can be obtained.
ASTM WK14442 - Antimicrobial Activity of Textiles Following Launderings with Bleach
Antimicrobial treatments often are applied to textiles to impart durable efficacy, reducing the survival and growth of microorganisms on the textile. ASTM WK14442, under the jurisdiction of F23's biological subcommittee, F23.40, would ensure these antimicrobial agents would continue to work throughout a garment's life span.
"Over the last 10 years, the industry has developed many antimicrobial solutions for textiles from a variety of different technologies," said Tom Tantillo, director of development, Milliken & Co. Workwear Fabrics and F23.40 member.
"These solutions are often deficient in two very important areas: 1) durability over the life span of the product and 2) compatibility with industrial laundry processing."
Tantillo said that the developments of more durable antimicrobials, as well as those that are compatible with high pH conditions and small amounts of caustic chlorine bleach, created a need to show effective performance of the life of a product under conditions that are typical in actual use.
ASTM WK14442 would propose testing antimicrobial efficacy after 25, 50 and 75 standard washes. There would be two types of wash standards, one for industrial use and one for home use; both would incorporate the use of bleach as an option to simulate the treatment that is typically found in most industrial laundries.
Performance textile suppliers, industrial laundries, security and emergency personnel, trade organizations, consumer groups and other end-users are among those who would be able to use ASTM WK14442 to assure that the products they manufacture, distribute and use are effective for durable protection against microbial growth on their textile products, said ASTM International.
"We believe the participation of those interested in durable antimicrobials for textile products and in raising the bar for performance standards will be necessary for the successful creation of this standard," said Travis Greer, senior business developer, Milliken and Co. and F23.40 member.
Source: ASTM International.