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Protective and safety footwear for work is usually associated with something uncomfortable, heavy, hard and unaesthetic. However, all this is a thing of the past and today we can find safety footwear that, in addition to protecting the well-being of workers, is also comfortable and ergonomic.
In today's article we will review the different types of industrial safety footwear that we can find. Let's start!
What is a safety shoe?
Safety footwear is a type of special shoe used in different work tasks as personal protective equipment. Therefore, safety footwear is part of the personal protective equipment (PPE) that employees must wear in their workplace.
The purpose of occupational safety footwear is to protect workers' feet from possible risks, injuries and accidents in the work environment: trips, chemicals, falls, blows, electric shocks, cuts...
Features of safety footwear
Any safety footwear must…
- Include a safety toe to protect the front of the foot.
- Be resistant to impacts, perforations, compression and cuts.
- Include non-slip soles on slippery surfaces.
- Be impermeable to water, chemicals and solvent products.
- Isolate electricity.
- Have resistant soles that insulate against extreme temperatures.
Classification of safety footwear
We can classify professional safety footwear according to two variables: the characteristics of the footwear and the type of material with which they are made.
Safety footwear according to its properties
In all classifications, footwear incorporates elements to protect the worker from risks that could lead to accidents. Besides…
- Safety footwear ( S ). It is equipped with a safety stop to protect the forefoot against impacts of at least 200 J and against compression with a load of at least 15 kN.
- Protective footwear (P). It is equipped with a safety stop to protect the forefoot against impacts of at least 100 J and against compression with a load of at least 10 kN.
- Work shoes (O). In this case, it does not have a safety toe cap and does not guarantee protection against impact and compression in the forefoot.
Safety footwear according to manufacturing material
- Classification I. Footwear made of leather and other materials, excluding rubber or polymer footwear.
- Classification II. Footwear made entirely of rubber or polymer.
Standards for safety footwear (UNE-EN ISO 20345)
The UNE-EN ISO 20345 standard is the regulation that regulates safety footwear throughout the European Union. This standard includes a series of symbols or pictograms to classify occupational safety footwear by designation codes depending on the degree of protection.
- S : safety footwear.
- P: protective footwear.
- Or: work shoes.
- B: The footwear meets the basic toe protection requirements.
- SB: safety footwear with protective toe resistant to 200 J.
- 1: meets the requirements of the SB category and also has a closed back, is antistatic (A), absorbs energy in the heel area (E) and is resistant to hydrocarbons (FO).
- 2: meets the requirements of category S1 in addition to offering resistance to penetration and absorption of water in the upper area (cut of the shoe).
- 3: the footwear meets the requirements of category S2 in addition to offering resistance to puncture of the sole.
- 4: meets the requirements of category S3 and also has antistatic properties and energy absorption in the heel area.
- 5: meets the requirements of category S4 and is also resistant to sole penetration and has a lugged sole.
Best safety footwear
After seeing the different types of industrial safety footwear that we can find on the market, which safety footwear is the best for each case?
Each professional has different needs, so the work activity carried out must be taken into account as well as the risks to which one is exposed in the workplace.
Elements such as temperature must also be considered (safety footwear for winter is not the same as safety footwear for summer), exposure to chemical substances, type of floor, hours spent standing, contact with water and other safety factors. importance as the worker's own needs. Did you know that you can also find safety footwear for delicate feet?
Once you have all this information, you can choose the perfect safety footwear for you. At Impotusa you will find a wide range of comfortable safety footwear for all types of sectors and needs. If you have questions, our team of experts will advise you so that you can buy the most appropriate safety footwear for your business.