Personal protective equipment, on which your health and safety depend, and sometimes even your life, must meet extremely stringent manufacturing and performance criteria. The objective of the European standards (EN) is to define these criteria: following is a brief summary of the standards that you will find in our catalogues...

EN 341 This standard defines the general requirements to be met by technical clothing. The garment must bear a label with information, including company name, name of the product, size, standard number, maintenance label and instructions for use).

EN 343 A standard defining the obligatory requirements for protective clothing against foul weather. It defines the impermeability of the garment to water (from the outside inward) and to water vapour (from the inside outward).

EN 342 Sets out the requirements for protective clothing against temperatures below -5°. The tests measure the garment's air impermeability and its thermal insulation capacities.

EN 471 This standard complements standard EN 340, and applies to high visibility clothing and articles. This standard covers two points: the type and the surface area of the reflective material used on the clothing. The materials (retroreflective, fluorescent or combined materials) must be clearly visible in all hazardous environments and in all light conditions.

Reflective clothing is divided into 3 categories:
- Class1
The least demanding category, lowest visibility (reflective belt or shoulder strap). 14 cm² of fluorescent material or 10 cm2 of retroreflective material, 20 cm² of combined material.
- Class 2
Medium level of requirement in terms of visibility, a good portion of the body must be covered (waistcoats, for example). 50 cm2 of fluorescent material or 13 cm² of retroreflective material.
- Class 3
Strictest visibility requirement, most, or all of the body must be covered (parka coats, jackets with sleeves, and matching trousers.