Safety Footwear Standards

You use them for probably 8 hours a day so what you wear on your feet really matters. Getting the right footwear will make life safer and easier. Wearing the wrong footwear can distract you with the pain or make you prematurely tired which has direct implications on safety and efficiency. Saving a few pounds by buying safety boots and shoes is frankly bonkers.  Employers are legally responsible for providing the correct footwear so get it right. Not only will your employees thank you for it and feel more valued, the boss should also be impressed with lower accident figures due to fatigue and better productivity.

EN345 / EN ISO 20345:2007

The safety footwear standard is referred as EN345, EN ISO 20345:2004, and EN ISO 20345:2007. All footwear designed before 2004 and still manufactured up to today carries EN ISO 20345:2004. However, there have been a lot of material and design improvements in the last 8 years so make sure that footwear carrying this standard is up to the mark. EN ISO 20345:2007 is the latest standard for footwear designed or retested after 2007 and this standard sets out minimum requirements that safety footwear must be successfully tested against.

The standard specifies all safety footwear must have toe protection. All Safety Footwear in this standard is at least SB which means it has toe protection against a 200 Joule impact.

Please note that there is another standard, EN346 which requires protective footwear to withstand a minimum impact of 100 Joules but we will not be dealing with this here as the majority of safety footwear being sold is EN345 compliant.

In addition to this there are different protective features for footwear that are represented by a combination of letters.

Rating Features:

SB 
SB-P P
S1 A + FO + E
S1-P A + FO + E + P
S2 A + FO + E + WRU
S3 A + FO + E + WRU + P
S4 A + FO + E + Waterproof
S5 A + FO + E + P + Waterproof
 


Toe protection (SB):

Toe protection must withstand a 200 joule impact. A joule is the unit of energy and this standard is very specific. A heavy weight falling from a low height could have a lot less energy than a lighter weight falling from a much higher height. As well as impacts the toe area must withstand a resting mass of well over one metric Tonne.

It is important to note that the protection does not have to be steel. In fact, alternative non-metallic protection, sometimes referred to as composite or even aluminium can be equally as strong but lighter. Lighter boots can be significantly more forgiving on your lower back over long periods of time.

The rating SB indicates that the safety footwear has a minimum 200 joule toe protection, it can have additional features but it is the most basic and essential for safety footwear.

SB-P:

SB-P has the same features as the SB rating with the addition of the midsole penetration protection.

S1:

S1 in addition to the 200 joule toe cap, is classed as antistatic footwear and the sole is also resistant to fuel oil and has energy absorption in the heel area.

S1-P:

S1-P has the same features as the S1 rating with the addition of the midsole penetration protection.

S2:

S2 in addition to the 200 joule toe cap, is classed as antistatic footwear and the sole is also resistant to fuel oil and has energy absorption in the heel area. It also has a water resistant upper.

S3:

S3 has the same features as the S2 rating with the addition of the midsole penetration protection.

S4:

S4 in addition to the 200 joule toe cap, is classed as antistatic footwear and the sole is also resistant to fuel oil and has energy absorption in the heel area.

S5:

S5 has the same features as the S4 rating with the addition of the midsole penetration protection.

All safety footwear can have more features than are listed above but these are the minimum requirements to meet each of the safety ratings. So you could have a S1 CI or S1 HI. We have listed the main ratings above. There are more but these are the most common.

Key Description:

Antistatic protection (A):

Clothing, seating materials, and climate factors can cause a build up a static charge of electricity in the body. Some materials in footwear can over insulate the body causing the charge to be held. When you then touch something the charge can rush from your body quickly causing a spark and a small uncomfortable shock. Antistatic footwear will significantly reduce this effect but does not offer full protection for exposure to electronics and explosives work. You will need Electro-Static protection, often referred to as ESD, for this.

Electro-Static Discharge (ESD):

ESD footwear is designed for the electronics, gas and explosives industry and has to meet ESD CEI EN61340-5-1 standard. This footwear has a significantly lower resistance and allows the current to pass to earth more easily. Please note however that there are other factors that need to be taken into account when kitting out your personnel working in such industries. What other clothing are they wearing in order for the charge to earth through the footwear and, as odd as this may sound, we have anecdotal evidence that suggests that ‘larger’ personnel wearing ESD footwear can sometimes fail an overall earthing test.

Midsole penetration protection (P) - SB-P, S1-P, S3, S5:

Sharp objects where we walk and stand are significant risk not only in the workplace but also outdoors and at home. Midsole protection will guard against nails and other objects. To meet this standard the footwear must be able to resist a penetration force of 1100 Newtons.
Midsole protection is provided by using one of several methods:

Stainless steel or Aluminium insert in the sole.

Kevlar / Lenzi  or other flexible fabric insole.

The Aluminium and fabric solutions are the most flexible and lightest and cover the greatest area of the foot and the fabric insoles also offer much higher thermal insulation.

Insulation against heat (HI):

Insulation against heat: tested for 30 minutes at 150°C.

Insulation against cold (CI):

Insulation against cold: tested for 30 minutes at 1 -20°C.

Energy Absorption (E):

Energy Absorption in the heel region.

Heat Resistant (HRO):

Heat resistant Outsole: To resist 300°C for 60 seconds.

Resistance to fuel oil of outsole (FO):

Water Resistant Upper (WRU):

Water resistant upper, not used on all rubber or polymeric footwear.

Metatarsal (M):

Safety boots or shoes with metatarsal protection.

Cut Resistance (CR):

Safety shoes or boots with cut resistance.

Non-metallic footwear:

Safety footwear containing no metal parts are ideal for workplaces with metal detectors like airports eliminating the hassle of removing them and remember, lighter boots can be significantly more forgiving on your lower back.

There are several other classifications which need to be considered such as:-

BS4676:2005 for use in molten metal environments.

EN13832-2 (&) 3: 2006 Footwear protection against chemicals.

EN15090: 2006 Footwear protection for fire-fighters.

EN ISO 17249:2004 Safety footwear for use with chainsaws.

EN5321:2000 Electrically insulating footwear for working on low voltage installations.

BS7971-5:2004 Footwear protection for use in violent or training situations.

Notes:
CEN/ISO TR 18690:2006 Guidance for the selection use and maintenance of safety, protective and occupational footwear.

For information on how the various performance levels and classifications are assessed and their relevance to practical situations, contact:

HSL-Personal Safety Unit in Buxton on: 01298 218329.