Risk Assessment: A legal requirement and tool for the selection of PPE

If you have been reading some of our other articles, you will have seen that we regularly talk about the need for carrying out a Risk Assessment. In this article we will explain why Risk Assessments are so important and give you some pointers as to how to carry one out.

A risk assessment is a legal requirement and also provides for the effective management of health and safety within your workplace. This is to ensure that no-one gets hurt or becomes ill due to working. Illness or injury have consequences for the person, but also affects your business. Output is lost, machinery is damaged, insurance costs increased and you may have to go to court.

Even if you are self-employed and do not have employees, you still need to assess health and safety risks that may affect you and others such as fellow contractors, office staff and members of the public.

By identifying what hazards arise from your work, who may be harmed and how and what steps you need to take to protect yourself and others, you are complying with the legal requirement to assess risks and also maximising the potential of your business.

HSE inspectors have the power to enter your premises without prior notice, inspect and investigate, take measurements, samples and photographs as they see fit. They also have the power to prosecute employers who contravene the law and also serve Improvement Notices which you have 21 days to comply with and in extreme cases can issue a Prohibition Notice under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 which means that the activity is closed down immediately and cannot be resumed until remedial action is taken.

A risk assessment helps you focus on the risks that really matter in your workplace; the ones with the potential to cause harm. In many instances, straightforward measures can readily control risks, for example, ensuring spillages are cleaned up promptly so people do not slip or there are no objects in the passages that people may trip over. Most of these actions are simple, cheap and effective measures to ensure your most valuable asset; your workforce is protected.

The law does not expect you to eliminate all risk as this would probably mean that you cannot carry out your business, but you are required to protect people as far as is ‘reasonably practicable’

What is risk assessment?

It is simply a careful examination of what, in your work, could cause harm to people, so that you can decide whether you have taken enough precautions or should do more to prevent harm by taking reasonable control measures.

How to assess the risks in your workplace

Many people are concerned that a Risk Assessment is difficult and requires long training, in most businesses in fact it is fairly simple and requires commonsense, simply follow the five steps below

Step 1 Identify the hazards

First step is to work out how people could be harmed. Working in the same place every day it is easy to overlook some hazards; here are some suggestions of ways of identifying ones that matter:

Walk around the workplace and look at what could reasonably be expected to cause harm. Ask your employees what they think they will often have noticed things that are not immediately obvious to you.

Visit the Health and Safety Executive website www.hse.gov.uk. Here you can find practical guidance on where hazards occur and how to control them.

If you are a member of a trade association, contact them. Many produce very helpful guidance.

Check manufacturers’ instructions or data sheets for chemicals and equipment as they can be very helpful in spelling out the hazards and putting them in their true perspective.

Analyse your accident and ill-health records these may help to identify the less obvious hazards. Remember to think about long-term hazards to health e.g. high levels of noise or exposure to harmful substances as well as immediate physical safety hazards.

Step 2 Decide who might be harmed and how

For each hazard clearly decide who might be harmed; it will help you identify the best way of managing the risk. Identify groups of people not individuals e.g. people working in the paint shop or people passing through.

For each group, identify how they might be harmed, i.e. what type of injury or ill health might occur. For example, welders may suffer eye damage from the welding arcs, or warehouse staff may risk foot damage by dropping boxes.

Remember that some workers have particular requirements, e.g. new and young workers and people with disabilities may be at particular risk. Extra thought will be needed for some hazards that may affect cleaners, visitors, contractors, maintenance workers etc, who may not be in the workplace all the time; members of the public, if they could be hurt by your activities; if you share your workplace, you will need to think about how your work affects other people present, as well as how their work affects your staff; talk to everybody who may be involved to see if they can think of anyone you may have missed.

Step 3 Evaluate the risks and decide on precautions

Having identified the hazards, a decision must be made about what to do minimise them. The law requires you to do everything ‘reasonably practicable’ to protect people from harm. You can work this out for yourself, comparing what you are doing with good practice.

So first, look at what you’re already doing; what controls you have in place and how the work is organised. Then compare this with the good practice using information from other companies, or using the internet and see if there other ways you should be moving yourself up to standard.

In asking yourself this, consider: Can I get rid of the hazard altogether? If not, how can I control the risks so that harm is unlikely?

When controlling risks, you should apply the principles below

· Try a less risky option e.g. change to using a less hazardous chemical

· Prevent access to the hazard by guarding or putting up barriers

· Issue personal protective equipment e.g. clothing, footwear, goggles helmets and gloves

· Ensure that all employees have the correct training to carry out the work safely

· Put up warning signs

· Provide welfare facilities e.g. first aid and washing facilities for removal of contamination

Step 4 Record your findings and implement them

Write down the results of your risk assessment, and share them with your staff. If you have fewer than five employees you do not under the law have to write anything down, however it is useful so that you can review it at a later date when changes have occurred as they always do.

When writing down your results keep it simple, for example; Risk of tripping over rubbish: bins provided, staff instructed, weekly housekeeping checks, or Fumes from printing: masks provided and exhaust ventilation used and regularly checked.

You need to be able to show that:

· A proper check was made

· You asked who might be affected

· You dealt with all the significant hazards, taking into account the number of people who could be involved

· The precautions are reasonable, and the remaining risk is low

· You involved your staff or their representatives in the process

If you determine that there are many improvements that need to be made, don’t try to do everything at once. Make a plan of action to deal with the most important things first. Health and Safety Inspectors will take into account that the problems have been identified and that you are working on a plan of action to improve.

A plan of action will include a mixture of different things such as:

· a few cheap or easy improvements that can be done quickly, perhaps as a temporary solution

· long-term solutions to those risks most likely to cause accidents or ill health

· arrangements for training employees on the main risks

· what regular checks must be made

· clear responsibilities for action and the time schedule

Remember, prioritise and tackle the most important things first. As you complete each action, tick it off your plan.

Step 5 Review your risk assessment and update if necessary

Few workplaces stay the same, new equipment, substances and procedures that could lead to risks happen. It is sensible therefore, to review what you are doing on an ongoing basis. At least every year review where you are, to make sure you are still improving, or at least not sliding back.

Look at your risk assessment again

· What has changed?

· Have you implemented all the improvements identified?

· Talk to the workers to see if they have thought of anything new.

· Have you had any accidents or near misses that could have been prevented?

· Make sure your risk assessment stays up to date.

During the year, if there is a significant change, don’t wait. Check your risk assessment and, where necessary, amend it. It is good practice to think about the risk assessment when you’re planning your change this gives you flexibility and can reduce cost at a later date.

Don’t overcomplicate the process. In many organisations, the risks are well known and the necessary control measures are easy to apply. You probably already know where some of the more obvious hazards are.

If you run a small organisation and you are confident you understand what’s involved, you can do the assessment yourself. You don’t have to be a health and safety expert.

If you are unsure about what PPE is required the Granite Workwear team is able to help you select the right items; those that will adequately do the job, not necessarily the most expensive or the highest specification, but exactly what it is you require to comply with the law, but most importantly what is right for you and your business

Moisture Management Garments

Moisture management is one of the key performance factors in today’s garment industry, particularly in the past in the performance market; it is also becoming very important in the workwear market as well.

Moisture Management is defined as the ability of a garment to transport moisture away from the skin to the garment’s outer surface, where it can be dissipated by evaporation. This action prevents perspiration from remaining next to the skin. In hot conditions, trapped moisture may heat up and lead to fatigue or diminished performance. In cold conditions, trapped moisture will drop in temperature and cause chilling and hypothermia. Excess moisture may also cause the garment to become heavy, as well as cause damage to the skin from chafing.

In some areas of workwear, particularly where utility vests or bullet proof vests are being worn i.e. armed forces or police, the use of wicking garments under the vests reduces the fatigue and stress that operating in high temperatures or high activity can cause. This also applies to firefighters who benefit from wearing high wicking shirts under their protective equipment.

Moisture is transported in fabrics by capillary action and is commonly known as wicking. In fabrics, the spaces between the fibres effectively form tubes, which act as capillaries, and transport the liquid away from the skin. As a rule, the narrower the spaces between the fibres in a fabric, the more effectively they will draw up moisture. For this reason, fabrics with many narrow capillaries, such as microfibre, are ideal for moisture transport. Cotton has the ability to wick moisture away but also has a relatively high absorbency level that leads to the perspiration being trapped in the fabric.

Cotton can be treated with chemicals in the finishing process to reduce the level of absorbency, but this treatment may not withstand repeated laundry processes. However cotton exhibits very similar drying times as that of many of the fabrics produced from artificial fibre of which the most common in moisture management garments is polyester. The drying rate of one of the leading branded fabrics is 0.028 grams of water per minute and cotton is 0.026 grams of water per minute.

Thickness of the fabric is a key and controlling variable when it comes to moisture management; the thicker the fabric, the more moisture it holds, Most of the synthetic fabrics, like those made from microfibre polyester, were considerably thinner than cotton fabrics. However if the cotton fabrics are knitted using fine yarns then the thickness is greatly reduced.

In terms of feel a polyester fabric can in fact feel damp and clammy after drying for 90 minutes, a cotton fabric feels dry after 60 minutes, this is due to the low moisture regain of polyester of about 0.5%; cotton has a moisture regain of 8%.

Bi-component fabrics composed of a non-absorbent fibre on the inside and an absorbent fibre on the outside, have proved to be an extremely efficient construction for moisture management fabrics. This is because the absorbent material on the outside draws the moisture away from the skin while the non-absorbent material keeps the skin dry.

With this in mind Granite Workwear feature a high wicking Polo shirt and a T shirt that was developed by Texline Ltd to incorporate the best properties of microfibre and cotton.

The shirts use an inner face of Tactel that is used as a moisture transport to remove the perspiration quickly into the outer layer of cotton where it evaporates. The fabric has a very soft feel next to the skin, looks appealing on the outside as it is cotton and therefore looks natural. It also holds its shape well and has a maximum shrinkage of 2% and a 0% spirality. These garments are used as standard issue in a number of Fire Brigades and Police Forces throughout the UK. They are also extremely cost effective compared to many of the garments made using branded fabrics.

Waterproof and Breathable Garments

Years ago waterproof clothes were just that. Waterproof! You put them on to keep out the rain. Unfortunately these mobile saunas soaked you in sweat as soon as you attempted any simple task. So, what is it all about? First, let us clear up the sweat bit, without sweat you're in trouble, a person performing tasks will naturally sweat to cool the body. The idea of a breathable garment is to allow the sweat to dissipate and keep the body dry while maintaining the body's "microclimate” i.e. the body's normal operating temperature and humidity.

These fabrics do not actually breathe. What they do is transfer body moisture vapour between its surfaces using the difference between the temperature and humidity next to the body and that of the cooler outdoors as a driving force. The sweat is picked up by your layering system which transports it to the surface away from your body. Here it evaporates to form a vapour. Because it is warmer and more humid inside your jacket than outside there is a difference in pressure across the fabric. In an attempt to equalise this difference vapour is driven across the fabric to the outside.

Garments which are waterproof and breathable help to provide wearers with greater comfort. This is obviously of benefit to the people wearing these whether for leisure activities or in their work. In terms of the provision of PPE by the employer it is also very important as this ensures that the safety of the wearer is not impacted by the introduction of excessive fatigue factors that have a negative impact on safety.

Waterproof garments are regulated by the safety standards of EN343. The standard is subdivided into three classes; Class 3 affords the highest level of foul weather protection, Class 2 provides intermediate foul weather protection and Class 1 provides the lowest level of foul weather protection. It is also divided into three classes of water vapour permeability (breathability) again Class 3 the highest to Class 1 the lowest.

The EN 343 Standard also has requirements for the tensile strength, tear strength, seam strength and resistance to dimensional change of the material. The mechanical strength requirements apply not only to the outer layer but also to all the layers that may be bonded to it. The dimensional stability is to ensure that the clothing does not lose its shape or fit.

The selection of the right Class of both water resistance and breathability can only be identified by a proper assessment of the conditions in which the garments will be used, the duration of the exposure and the precise activity involved.

Water resistance and water vapour permeability would appear to be mutually contradictory. It has proved to be a major challenge for manufacturers to produce a material which has both these properties. In the past, fabrics which offered protection from wind and rain did not breathe, and this made them uncomfortable to wear. Advances have been made in waterproof breathable technology over the past 30 years, there have been a number of fabrics developed using a laminate technology combined with close weaving techniques and coatings to achieve fabrics that exhibit the correct properties and also are light-weight and supple.

What is a laminate? A laminate is where a waterproof/breathable film is bonded by a special gluing process to a fabric. This could be to the outer fabric known as 2 layer and, in some cases, have a protective scrim bonded to the back of the film to create 3 layer lamination.

The introduction of these new waterproof breathable fabrics has greatly increased the range of choice for consumers. It has also led to greater market segmentation, as technologies have been developed for specific end uses and weather conditions.

In any garment there are areas that in construction can reduce the water resistance, for example the seams where the needle and thread puncture the fabric leaving small holes. In this case the seams are sealed using a special tape to eliminate this weakness. Also zips can leak water so it is important that to maintain integrity these be covered. The design of the hood and collar are also important to ensure that water cannot easily enter via the neck.

Staying dry is not just about keeping the rain out, it’s also about letting water vapour escape. The human body can expel over 4 litres of moisture a day; you just don’t notice it until you wear a significantly less breathable material over your skin. The best breathable yet waterproof barrier is perhaps human skin; it stops fluids getting in, yet opens up when fluid needs to get out. The higher the activity level and outside temperature the more the body sweats, so the more breathable your garment needs to be.

In this context, breathability is the ability of the fabric to transfer moisture vapour (not air) and is generally stated in terms of: Resistance to moisture vapour transfer (Ret) where the resistance is expressed as a number from a mathematical equation. The lower the value the less resistance there is and therefore the more breathable the garment is. Class 3 has a value of less than or equal to 20, Class 2 greater than 20 but less than or equal to 40, Class 1 greater than 40.

The standard also includes a summary table with recommended maximum wearing times, this takes account of the ambient temperature and a constant physical effort. It is required that the overview is reproduced in the manufacturers information leaflet for all garments with Class 1 protection. This is to inform the user about possible restrictions in the use of the garment; also marking in the garments must contain a restricted time warning.

For example at 10° C the time should be no longer than 4 hours, at 15°C 1.5 hours, at 20°C no longer than 1.25 hours and at 25°C no longer than 1 hour. As a comparison a Class 3 garment can be worn for 12 hours at 20°C.

Granite Workwear offer a range of garments in the Waterproof section manufactured in Flexothane ® these comply with EN 343 Class 3 waterproof and Class 2 breathable. In the Hi Viz Yellow Workwear and Orange Workwear sections garments of the Pulsar® and Pulsarail® ranges comply with EN 343 to both Class 3 waterproof and Class 3 breathability giving the maximum protection and comfort.

Forest and Woodland Firefighting

The UK is classed as a low fire risk area, as we have a fairly regular rainfall pattern and no designated dry season unlike many other countries, particularly those in the tropics. However in the event of a prolonged hot dry spell we do have the potential for wildfires and these can have drastic results.

Heather particularly has the potential to be combustible as it dries out rapidly in all seasons and is what is known as a “fine fuel”.

There are three types of fires that can occur in forest and heathland, these are:

• Surface fires where the fuel burns at or near ground level, these are the most common fires in the UK.

• Ground fires where in dry conditions the organic soil layers themselves catch fire, these are difficult to detect and extinguish.

• Crown fires where the surface fires ascend into the tree canopy, which can move very quickly and become very intense, this is often caused where “ladder fuels“ which are vegetation linking the ground to the crown of the trees lets the fire spread upwards. These are not very common in the UK.
  

There are various ways of tackling the fires including the use of water and or chemical foams to put out the fire and also dampen the surrounding areas preventing the fire spreading. Also fire breaks can be made by using shovels or mechanical diggers to remove the vegetation and make a bare earth barrier across which the fire cannot spread. The oxygen supply can be interrupted by the use of beaters.

Beaters can be broken down into three basic classes; Short handled approximately 1.9m to 2.2 m with a belt head, the head is manufactured from conveyor belt material; Long handled approximately 2.8m with a wire mesh head and Long handled with a flat metal plate sometimes these have additional chains attached. The long handle obviously keeps the person further back from the heat, but can sometimes be difficult to handle and unwieldy to transport.

Fatigue

Firefighting is a strenuous activity which normally takes place in difficult conditions, and can lead to heat stress, heat exhaustion and possibly heat stroke.

Everyone involved should be aware of heat-induced illnesses and know how to treat the symptoms and call for help when necessary.

The symptoms of heat stress are weakness, dizziness and nausea. Where a firefighter is removed from the fire front and given water, rest and shade, recovery will usually take place quite quickly.

Medical treatment may be required for these heat-induced illnesses and the patient should be given water and kept cool. Often firefighters may fail to sufficiently replace body fluids even when they have drunk sufficient to quench their thirst.

The fluid replacement taken in may be only half of what is actually required. Plenty of water should be drunk as soon as sweating occurs, before fire suppression starts and often more than is felt necessary. The recommended amount is 1 litre of cool (not chilled) plain (sugar free) water per hour.

To reduce fatigue carbohydrate foods such as bread, pasta and cakes are recommended.

Managers should ensure that teams have sufficient suitable food and water on site during prolonged fire suppression.

Awareness

When working in these conditions it is absolutely essential for all involved to remain aware of what is happening around them. Be particularly aware of moving around on terrain whilst visibility is reduced because of poor light smoke and water sprays.

Watch out for changes in conditions for example shifts of wind direction and speed, look out for the fire moving onto steep slopes or circling behind you, look out also for changes in the type of vegetation.

Always maintain line of sight and communication with your colleagues.

Remember the following safety aid “WATCH OUT” that can be found on the AFAG leaflet 803
Weather dominates fire behaviour
Actions must be based on current and expected fire behaviour
Try out at least two safe escape routes
Communications must be maintained with your crew leader and adjoining crews
Hazards to watch for are steep slopes and the amount of fuels
Observe changes in wind speed and direction, humidity and cloud
Understand your instructions
Think clearly be alert and act decisively before your situation becomes critical

Personal Protective Equipment

As with any activity where there are safety issues the correct PPE must be worn:

• A brightly coloured Flame Retardant cotton boiler suit i.e. Proban complying with EN 531, is recommended do not use non FR synthetic clothing particularly nylon.

• Also recommended is the use of a protective neck cloth.

• Protective boots with good grip and ankle support complying with EN ISO 20345. It is suggested that these should also be heat resistant.

• Suitable protective gloves, non-synthetic e.g. leather.

• Safety helmet complying with EN 397.

• Eye protection complying with EN 166, to prevent eye damage from particles and embers. Helmet mounted face shields can also protect from radiant heat.

• Hearing protection complying with EN 352 where the noise level exceeds 85 dB.

• Respiratory masks where there is a danger of dust or particles.

As well as these essential items each person should carry water for personal consumption and to wash any burns, also a personal first aid kit, not specifically for burns. A specialised burn first aid kit must be available on site.

Granite Workwear offer a number of items that are suitable for use in these conditions including Proban Cotton Overalls in Orange, Sip Protection Firefighters Chainsaw Protective Trousers, Peltor Hearing Protection, Fortec Boots that are Heat Resistant to 300° C, Hard hats, Venitex Respiratory Masks, Bolle Eye Protection, fire retardant neck tubes & balaclavas and Venitex gloves.

Rail Industry Standards for Personal Protective Equipment

PPE generally covers a wide range of clothing and equipment that can be worn by a person at work to protect them from one or more risks to their health and safety. PPE can include; eye protection, safety helmets, hi-vis vests or jackets, gloves or safety footwear.

For the Rail Industry however there are certain items that have specific requirements, for example Network Rail basic PPE Requirements for persons working on or near the track shall wear as a minimum:

• High visibility upper body clothing with reflective tape which complies with BS EN 471: 2003 class 2 and Railway Group Standard GO/RT3279.
• A safety helmet which complies with BS EN 397: 1995.
• Safety footwear which complies with BS EN ISO 20345: 2004, providing effective support to the ankle, mid-sole protection and a protective toe cap.
• Network Rail have also introduced a ’Full Orange Policy’ where high visibility trousers must also be worn.

Particular requirements

The outer layer of the upper body clothing must be clearly marked between the vertical retro-reflective bands on the back with the name or logo of the individual’s Sentinel sponsor or other name or logo agreed with Network Rail (e.g. project, sponsor’s parent company or trade association). This can be in colour or black and either screen-printed or incorporated within a panel, which may be retro-reflective although this is not mandatory.

Safety helmets shall be provided with chin straps where there is a risk of them falling off, short peak helmets may be provided where close or hot work is required.
Holders of a Track Visitors Permit (TVP), a person with a Track Safety (PTS) card with a ‘green square’ symbol on it, or those people involved in the Network Rail Standard Maintenance Procedure NR/PRC/MTC/SE0089, New Starters Mentoring (Passport Scheme) must wear a blue helmet so that all workers can see that they may be inexperienced. All other workers must wear white, any other colours are not allowed.

The name or logo of an individual’s Sentinel Sponsor (or other name or logo agreed with Network Rail) may be marked upon a safety helmet. These markings must not exceed 10% of the safety helmets visible surface area.

Rigger boots do not meet the requirements for ankle protection and must not be used.

In addition to the above, foul weather clothing must be provided to any person whose duties require them to hold Personal Track Safety certification and shall comprise at least the following:

• High visibility jacket or coat which meets the requirements of BS EN 471:2003 class 3 and GO/RT3279 for colour and visibility and of BS EN 343: 2003 class 3 for water vapour resistance and water penetration.
• High visibility over-trousers or leggings which meet the requirements of BS EN 471: 2003 and GO/RT3279 for colour and visibility and of BS EN 343: 2003 class 3 for water vapour resistance and water penetration.

General work wear and sunglasses

Any employee or contractor of Network Rail who goes on or near the line or on the lineside shall be required to wear full-length trousers to protect against the risks from lineside vegetation and the consequences of slips, trips and falls.

Upper body clothing must not be sleeveless, garments such as singlets or vests are prohibited. Full length sleeves are recommended to protect from risks of injury from vegetation and sunburn.

Sunglasses or photochromic lenses may be worn, but care should be taken when using photochromic lenses as they can take a long time to clear when going into darker conditions.
Heavily tinted lenses may reduce the ability to accurately distinguish colours.

Ear Defenders should be worn where there is any risk of noise that reaches levels that could cause damage to hearing.

In certain conditions that will be apparent from the Risk Assessment gloves to protect from chemicals, cold or vibration also need to be worn. Also where there is a danger of fumes or dust the correct respiratory masks are needed.

If operating chainsaws or brush cutters then the correct protective clothing must be worn, all these of course must conform to the GO/RT3279 standard. Also the safety boots worn must achieve the EN ISO 17249:2004 Class 1 standard as a minimum.

Accessories

In certain situations there is a need for particular accessories for example; warning flags chequered and plain, rail incident armbands (8 different wordings), Lookout Bags and Rail Handsignal Bags.

Duties and responsibilities

Requirements for PPE and workwear shall be documented in work activity risk assessments and safe systems of work. Any PPE identified as necessary through work activity risk assessments must be provided by the employer, this may include hearing protection, eye protection, masks and gloves. They must also ensure that this equipment is worn.

Employees are responsible for using PPE and workwear as required, for keeping it clean and maintaining it in a reasonable condition and for requesting its replacement if it becomes ineffective.

A full range of the items mentioned above can be found on the Granite Workwear site, under the Hi Viz Railway (Orange), Safety Boots, Forestry Footwear, Hardhats, Safety Glasses, Ear Protection, Gloves and Respiration categories.

Chainsaw Boots from Arbortec

Granite Workwear has recently added a range of Arbortec® forestwear chainsaw protective boots. These boots have been designed to incorporate a number of technical and comfort features, that we believe make them an outstanding addition to our range.

They are designed to exceed CE standards in Class 1, Class 2 and Class 3 giving a full range of protection.

The range includes the brand new Lightning boot that importantly gives Class 2 protection all round the boot even at the back; this boot is especially good for heavy duty use but is also extremely comfortable thereby reducing fatigue which is important to improve safe working. This also comes in X Large sizes 13, 14 and 15.

Also in the range are the Aquafell® Xpert™, Hydrofell®, Fellsman® Xpert™, Fellsman® Basic and the Challenger™ which is a Class 3 Wellington boot.

The Fellsman® Basic is particularly aimed at the more casual user with a very competitive price but does not compromise safety still giving full Class 1 protection.

Chainsaw Protection Standards

The EN ISO Standard 17249:2004 is specifically designed for Forestry Footwear and tests for three levels of protection:

Class 1 - the footwear has to withstand a chainsaw blade moving at 20 metres per second.
Class 2 - the footwear can withstand a blade moving at 24 metres per second.
Class 3 - the footwear can withstand a blade moving at 28 metres per second.

This protection can be afforded in a number of ways; obviously if the boot has a steel toecap then this gives a very good protection in that particular area. On the rest of the boot there is normally a padding inside made up of multiple layers of synthetic fibres that when the blade touches them causes snagging that clogs the blade and stops it. In a number of the boots in the Arbortec® range these are made of polyester.

In the Aquafell® Xpert™ and the Fellsman® Xpert™ the clogging system is the use of six layers of Kevlar® fibre which has a very high strength and is often used in body armour.
Comfort and Safety

Comfort is a very important part of a quality boot as they are worn for long periods of time and often in less than ideal weather conditions. If the boots are not comfortable then fatigue will happen quickly and this then causes loss of concentration which significantly increases the risk of accidents.

The Arbortec® range has shock absorbing properties built in and the soles have an anti-twist steel insert so that there is less danger of damage to the foot. Apart from the Challenger™ which is made from rubber the range has breathable properties and in most cases moisture absorbance to reduce the build up of sweat. For ease of use they all have speed lacing systems and padded collars.

The soles all feature specially designed tread patterns to reduce the risk of slipping and all the leather boots have a specially defined heel to fit spikes.

All the boots have steel toecaps and conform to the EN ISO 20345:2004 standard for Safety Footwear.

We at Granite believe that these boots are of exceptional standard and worthy of inclusion in our Forestry range in line with our philosophy that we offer the best products that we can find for use by professionals who are discerning in their choice of equipment.

Slip Resistant Soles

Statistics show that slips, trips and falls on the same level are a major cause of workplace accidents in the UK - almost 11,000 are reported each year to the Health and Safety Executive, they account for 39% of non-fatal major injuries. It has been estimated that these accidents cost the UK economy as much as £750 million per annum, £300 million of which is directly attributable to UK employers.

Employers use a variety of control measures to reduce the risk of slips, however due to the working conditions there may be cases where a significant slip risk remains. Introducing footwear with slip-resistant properties may be the only effective way they can further reduce the risk.


There are many safety boots and shoes that claim to have slip resistant soles; however are they truly slip resistant and what standards are they tested to?

Footwear marketed as 'slip resistant' may not perform as well as expected, so care has to be taken when choosing footwear from brochure descriptions alone.

Although footwear may be marketed as 'slip resistant', some have not been tested for this. Check with your supplier if the footwear has actually been tested for slip resistance then request the test details and results. Although the footwear may have been tested, the results from the test may not be an accurate guide as to how footwear will perform in the conditions that you want to use it in.

BS EN 13287 is the current European standard for footwear slip resistance.
This standard is a simple pass/fail test. However most footwear tested will pass testing and can therefore be marked as slip resistant. But the marking system used does not distinguish between footwear with low slip resistance and very good slip resistance. Simply passing this standard does not guarantee that the footwear will be effective in a particular workplace.

Depending on the test conditions chosen, footwear tested according to the EN standards is now marked with one of the following codes, SRA, SRB, or SRC.

The codes indicate that the footwear has met the specified requirements when tested as follows:
SRA – tested on ceramic tile wetted with dilute soap solution
SRB – tested on smooth steel with glycerol
SRC – tested under both the above conditions

Footwear products once tested and certified are stamped with the CE mark. The manufacturer also provides user information indicating the applications for which the footwear is suitable.

To provide more detailed information, the Health and Safety Laboratory have carried out a series of tests for the Health and Safety Executive, on soles that are claimed to be slip resistant and those that don’t. They use a ramp test that does not give a pass/fail but classifies footwear as exhibiting poor, average or good slip resistance where there is a particular contaminant on a given surface.

The tests were carried out on five different surface/contaminant conditions; water on steel, glycerol on steel, glycerol on quarry tile, water on 5 bar aluminium chequer plate and glycerol on 5 bar aluminium chequer plate.

The feedback from the end users is that the footwear that performs well on the test also performs well in the workplace. The study also showed that some footwear marketed as slip resistant gave a high slip risk when tested on the HSL ramp, further demonstrating that no one product will be suitable in all situations - a risk assessment should always be carried out when selecting footwear.

The detailed results of this testing can be found in the Research Report RR780. This project is a continuation of previously published work by HSE. When significant new safety, protective or occupational footwear is marketed as slip resistant or becomes widely used in the work place, HSL procures and tests it in order to assess its slip potential. This combined report now includes 86 pieces of footwear as a further 30 items were tested.

The report and the work it describes were funded by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Its contents, including any opinions and/or conclusions expressed, are those of the author alone and do not necessarily reflect HSE policy. The HSE considers that by publishing this information there is an increased likelihood that buyers will obtain good slip-resistant footwear on the basis of informed choices.

This testing focuses on slip resistance on hard indoor flooring surfaces; it does not mean that these findings can be extrapolated to show the slip resistance of footwear on the variable outdoor surfaces that can be encountered, where other factors may come into play.