Industry News

Feb 5, 2010

ANSI 107 FOR HIGH-VIS GETS UPDATED FOR 2010

January 8, 2010 marked the date for the new highly anticipated revision to the 107-2004 High Visibility Standard. The Standard is updated every 5 years and is now labeled ANSI/ISEA 107-2010. The ANSI Standard specifies performance requirements for high visibility safety apparel and headwear PPE. Performance requirements are included for color, retroreflection, and minimum areas, as well as the recommended configurations of the materials and design. The following outline highlights the primary differences between the new, ANSI/ISEA107-2010, and the previous ANSI/ISEA 107-2004 Standard.

GARMENT DESIGN AND REFLECTIVE PLACEMENT

The amount of background and reflective material remains unchanged for all 107 Classes. However, a class 1 or a class 2 garment must now have reflective material in the shoulder area. The objective of this change was to provide greater visibility when a worker is bending over, or at angles that could be potentially missed on a garment without “vertical” reflective material over the shoulders. All of ML Kishigo’s stock garments comply with this configuration. If you are considering a custom garment, this change will affect your decision.

FLAME RESISTANT (FR) LABELING

The 107-2004 Standard did not address FR. This led to a high level of confusion regarding what differentiates one FR garment over another.

ANSI 107-2010 takes on a different approach and requires all FR garments to fall within at least 1 of 7 ASTM or NFPA test methods. It includes a description of flame resistance criteria and intended application for the various test methods referenced. If a manufacturer wants to mark high visibility apparel as being FR, the garment must meet one of the FR tests in the 107-2010 Standard and certify its conformance to the FR requirement. For specific test methods, a copy of the new 107-2010 Standard can be purchased directly from the ISEA.

RAINWEAR

New testing requirements have been added for rainwear. There are three test methods that define rainwear as water repellant, water resistant or water proof.

GARMENT SERVICE LIFE GUIDELINES

The Standard also attempts to help users determine garment service life. Areas to consider are garment use, type of garment, environment, laundering methods and exposure to the environment. In addition, it references the U.S. Federal Highway Administration statement about high-visibility life expectancy. (Federal Register/Vol. 71 No. 226/Friday, November 24, 2006/rules and regulations/p. 67798)

LET US KNOW HOW WE CAN HELP

M.L. Kishigo continues paving the path of innovation and quality control to ensure proper ANSI compliance in all of our garments. We pride ourselves on our comprehensive understanding of the standard and will be glad to answer any questions you have. Contact Greg Hayward at 800-338-9480 or email ghayward@mlkishigo.com. Copies of the ANSI/ISEA 107-2010 Standard will be available in February and can be purchased directly from the ISEA by calling 703-525-1695 or emailing www.safetyequipment.org.