The Various Kinds Of Safety Vests That Exist

By Amanda Baird


For various outdoor jobs, safety vests are crucial to protect the person working. Such jobs i. E. Construction, emergency response, traffic control have high risks and thereby require workers to put on these protective clothing are created using reflective material. The purpose is to increase visibility of the workers thereby avoiding accidents. It is a legal requirement in a country that workers in these risky environments put on these clothing.

Such vests exist in various colors and can be used to differentiate the risky environments from ones that are not very risky. Employers all over therefore have the responsibility of learning about the various kinds of vests and provide their employees with the most appropriate ones for their jobs. It is important that they are aware of the necessity of such clothing.

Different classes of protective wear exist. The first class are those used in occupations with low traffic and where employees have high visibility of oncoming vehicles or equipment. Vehicles and equipment in such an occupation are moved in a speed not exceeding 25mphs. Employees who wear type 1 material include parking lot attendants, shopping carts retrievers among other people. Color of material used in this category may be orange, lime green or yellow.

Class 2 kind of safety clothing is used in occupations that can be affected by bad weather or where vehicles and equipment movement speed is more than 25mphs. People working in such areas perform tasks that may distract their attention from oncoming traffic or activities happening near where they work. The color of the materials here range from lime, yellow to orange and they are fluorescent. Occupations that utilize this type include traffic police, crossing guards and airport ground team.

The final type is class 3 and these are used in a highly risky environment to offer the highest visibility. The speeds usually in these occupations can be very high and workers have limited visibility because of nature of their jobs. People needed to wear this kind of protective gear include; fire fighters, paramedics, cops, road construction workers and other persons responding to an emergency situation. Vests in this group usually have long sleeves unlike the other two classes to protect arms and chest of user.

Class 3 color code for vests differs. Paramedics respond to urgent situations and they put on color green clothing. As for fire fighters, they are required to put on color red safety gear while for cops responding to a situation wear blue colored protection gear. Because this class provides highest visibility, materials making the gears are highly reflective and have silver or white colored reflective strips. LED and other lighting material can also be used.

For people who may be wondering where to get these protective gears, they can be obtained from any store online or offline. They exist in various colors and textures for different occupations. Their prices are also affordable and one should consider safety and comfort first before picking the most appropriate clothing.

The importance of safety vests cannot be overlooked as they protect people working in such risky jobs. They also increase visibility of such people and therefore productivity is ensured as workers will not have to worry about oncoming traffic at their back. This is not to say that workers should not take caution while working. Also employers should ensure that no employee is working without this gear.




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