Tagged with 'ANSI'

If you work in a dangerous or risky environment, you're probably no stranger to high visibility gear. At the very least (and depending on your job requirements), you probably don a simple safety vest on the job. Alternatively, if you're working with certain chemicals or in hazardous environments, you might be required to wear non-ANSI protective gear.
 
Regardless of what you're protecting yourself from on the job, there's always certain standard requirements that must be met. This could be reflectivity, chemical resistance or fire retardant properties - and along with these requirements comes different levels of protection (depending on the work environment) and therefor different standards that are required to maintain compliance.
 
As an example, ANSI Class 2 requires a certain level of reflectivity which is rated by the actual amount of reflective material the garment contains. ANSI Class 3 uses the same principal, yet requires a higher amount of reflectivity meaning an increased amount of reflective material is required to meet compliance.
 
The concept is pretty easy to understand, especially if you've been working in your field for a while and are familiar with the specific safety requirements of your job. But what about when those requirements change?
 
In some fields, there are multiple standards of compliance depending on the duty being performed. Many times these are ignored or met with confusion and while it may not be intentional, many workers risk their safety each day without actually realizing it.
 
A common situation is when certain areas of a job site require a lower standard of protection than other areas, yet there are many workers who travel throughout the site performing different duties. They might be required to wear high visibility or non-ANSI safety vests in one area, while workers in higher traffic areas require ANSI Class 2 gear to meet compliance standards. The misconception in this situation is that workers from the lower traffic areas might assume they're protected for their specific job description, but their safety gear doesn't actually meet the requirements for the higher traffic area of the job site, regardless of the duty they're performing. While this sort of scenario might not seem to be a big deal, it puts the workers at greater risk by decreasing their safety and increasing the chances of an accident.
 
Road workers are another one of the many professionals whose safety requirements change on the job. If they're working long hours into the night, they're going to have to meet the ANSI requirements for night time road work, regardless of whether or not they normally work at night. So in a situation where construction is running behind and long hours or overnight shifts are required, you might have workers out there who aren't used to wiring after dark and aren't equipped with gear that meets the minimal safety standards.
 
What about your job? Are there certain times when your duties, even if rarely, require a different level of safety than the typical or most commonly performed duties that you partake in? Are there times when even if for a shirt period, you're in a situation where your safety gear doesn't meet the standards for that particular task or environment? If so, you're only putting yourself at risk.
 
Think about it, and think about the importance of safety on the job. After all, it's a job. Do you really want to risk serious injury or death while at work? The whole point of work is to be able to support yourself so you can enjoy life, and neglecting safety on the job is like neglecting the importance of your life.
 
If you work in changing environments, consider picking up the extra gear to ensure that you can always meet the minimal safety standards. If possible, consider purchasing gear that meets the highest requirements available or gear that's a level above what's required to ensure that you're always meeting and exceeding the standards instead of occasionally falling below them.
 
HiVis Supply carries a complete line of high visibility safety gear and apparel from the top brand names to meet any level of compliance necessary. From safety vests, hard hats and gloves to rain gear, winter gear and more. We have the top quality products you need to remain visible, safe and comfortable on the job, including all classes of ANSI/ISEA 107 compliant gear. Visit our website now to check out our massive inventory and save with our guaranteed everyday low prices. Your safety can't afford to wait, it should always be the top priority.
 

 

 

The Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria Guideline (MMUCC) is a minimum, standardized data set for describing motor vehicle crashes and the vehicles, persons and environment involved. The Guideline is designed to generate the information necessary to improve highway safety within each state and nationally. This data set, originally published in the MMUCC Guideline, 1st Edition (1998), has been revised three times, most recently in the 4th Edition (2012), in response to emerging highway safety issues.

The Charger safety glasses, from Bobster, feature anti-fog, polycarbonate lenses and a clean wrap around design. The durable, high-gloss, black nylon frame fits securely and comfortably, even on smaller faces. The Charger safety glasses come with a microfiber pouch for easy cleaning and storage when not being worn. ANSI Z87.1 approved.

 
Black Series Windbreaker

 


 

Black Series Heavy Duty Class 2 Vests are made of Ultra Cool™ polyester mesh and are ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 2 Compliant. Class II safety vests are designed for workers who need greater visibility in poor weather conditions, and who are exposed to roadways with traffic that exceeds 25 miles per hour.

 

 

According to ANSI standards, class II vests must have 775 square in. of background material, and 201 square in. of reflective material.

 
Class 2 vests:

• are designed for moderate risk


• school crossings, parking lots, traffic direction


• less stringent requirements


• smaller than Class 3 vests

 

Class III vests are designed to provide the highest level of visibility in extreme weather situations and around traffic going more than 50 mph. They are required to have 1,240 inches of fluorescent background fabric and 310 inches of reflective material. That much fabric is going to make one heck of a big vest. That’s why the typical garment that meets the minimum Class 3 requirement is actually a short sleeve shirt with reflective tape. The difference? About 465 square inches of fluorescent material and about 109 inches of reflective tape.

 
Class 3 vests:

• visibility in bad weather such as hurricanes or blizzards


• worn by emergency personnel and traffic teams working on freeways and highways


• larger than class 2 vests

 
ANSI Class 3 DOT Vest

The ANSI Class 3 DOT vest, from Vinatronics is a breathable solid polyester with combined performance 2" 3M Scotchlite reflective material. The vest is built to be durable and includes nylon webbed, reinforced snaps. Other features include: cell phone pocket; pencil pocket; two lower oversized kangaroo pockets; snap front closure; and a mic tab. Available in high visibility Orange or Yellow; sizes Small through 5XL. Made in the USA. ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 3 compliant.

FHWA Mandates High-visibility Safety Apparel Meeting ISEA Standards for All Workers in Highway Rights-of-Way, Workzones

 

The 2009 revision to the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), published by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) yesterday, requires workers, including emergency responders, along highway rights-of-way or in workzones to wear high-visibility apparel whenever they are exposed to moving traffic, work vehicles or construction equipment. The apparel must meet Performance Class 2 or 3 requirements of ANSI/ISEA 107-2004, the American National Standard for High Visibility Safety Apparel and Headwear. This requirement also applies to firefighters, emergency responders and law enforcement personnel working within the right-of-way. As an option, emergency responders and law enforcement personnel may wear garments that meet the standard for high-visibility public safety vests, ANSI/ISEA 207-2006. A separate section of the MUTCD, which covers specific requirements for flaggers, also requires the use of ANSI/ISEA 107-compliant apparel, and specifies that background material must be fluorescent orange-red, fluorescent yellow-green "or a combination of the two as specified in the ANSI standard."

 

Previously, the FHWA only required workers in federal-aid highway workzones to use these garments.

 

The revised MUTCD states: "All workers, including emergency responders, within the right-of-way who are exposed to traffic (vehicles using the highway for purposes of travel) or to work vehicles and construction equipment within the [Temporary Traffic Control] zone shall wear high-visibility safety apparel that meets the Performance Class 2 or 3 requirements of the ANSI/ISEA 107-2004 publication entitled ‘American National Standard for High-Visibility Safety Apparel and Headwear’ (see Section 1A.11) or equivalent revisions, and labeled as meeting the ANSI 107-20004 standard performance for Class 2 or 3 risk exposure, except as provided in paragraph 5… Emergency and incident responders and law enforcement personnel within the [Temporary Traffic Control] zone may wear high-visibility safety apparel that meets the performance requirements of the ANSI/ISEA 207-2006 publication entitled ‘American National Standard for High-Visibility Public Safety Vests’ (see Section 1A.11) or equivalent revisions, and labeled as ANSI 207-2006, in lieu of ANSI/ISEA 107-2004 apparel…"

 

The revised MUTCD takes effect January 15, 2010. Workers on non-federal highways will have to be in compliance with the high-visibility safety apparel requirements by December 31, 2011.

The accumulation of combustible materials in coal mines leads all violations in the last 90 days with 2,197 violations, or 11.52% of all violations.

From the Mine Safety and Health Administration, www.msha.gov, 30 CFR § 75.400:

Coal dust, including float coal dust deposited on rock-dusted surfaces, loose coal, and other combustible materials, shall be cleaned up and not be permitted to accumulate in active workings, or on diesel- powered and electric equipment therein.

[61 FR 55527, Oct. 25, 1996]

For an explosion to occur, there are five necessary elements which must occur simultaneously: fuel, heat, oxygen, suspension, and confinement. These form the five sides of the Explosion Pentagon. Like the fire triangle, removing any one of these requirements would prevent an explosion from propagating. For example, if fuel, heat, oxygen, and confinement occurred together in proper quantities, an explosion would still not be possible without the suspension of the fuel. However, in this case, a fire could occur. If the burning fuel were then placed in suspension by a sudden blast of air, all five sides of the explosion pentagon would be satisfied and an explosion would be imminent.

HiVis Supply is proud to offer high visibility apparel for a variety of job duties like roadside construction, manufacturing and mining. We offer great savings and product selection for helping you maintain a safe and OSHA/ANSI compliant work environment.

Safety is an important issue for everyone, but an often overlooked occupation where workers put their lives on the line every day - well, one every school day - is the often un-noticed, and under-appreciated, school crossing guard.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) defines a crossing guard as someone who directs traffic (both pedestrian and vehicular) on streets, at schools, and at railroad crossings and construction sites. In 2007, there were an estimated 70,000 school crossing guards employed nationally, and in the years between 1993 to 2006, there were 97 school crossing guard fatalities, or almost 7 a year. This may not seem like a lot of deaths, but these men and women put their lives on the line each day to keep our children safe.

Additionally, the state of Florida reports that in 2006, 39% of all 16 and under pedestrian fatalities occurred between 3 and 7 pm. Of the 516 fatalities, 104, or (20%) were pedestrians - usually children. In an effort to lower these numbers, the state trains crossing guards to:
• Use proper crossing techniques consistently
• Encourage patterns of proper crossing behavior by students
• Deter students from committing unsafe/unlawful acts
• Recognize and report hazardous conditions
• Take proper actions in an emergency
• Know their responsibilities and limitations of authority
• Exhibit professionalism and instill confidence
• Earn students’ respect

In a New Jersey report, other factors attributing to motor-vehicle related injuries include among school crossing guards include:
• Unsafe driving
• Parents rushing to and through the school zone
• Distracted driving including cell phones, eating, drinking and smoking

As parents, let's respect school crossing guards, the men and women who serve our children every day and make sure they get to cross the street safely. As drivers, let's start paying attention to school zones, and wait to send that text message, or wait to eat the fast food when we get home.

At HiVis Supply, we are proud to resell high visibility apparel including incident command vests, safety vests, and traffic vests, as well as traffic safety accessories and ANSI compliant vests for crossing guards, pedestrian crossing and speed limit signs.

3. January 22, 2018: Overhead and Street Name signs must meet retroreflectivity requirements. If street name signs meet retroreflectivity requirements and are all CAPITAL letters, they may remain in service for the remainder of their useful life. They never have to be changed out only because of the capital letter/mixed case issue.

FHWA estimated the cost for making these retroreflectivity improvements throughout the entire United States to be $37 million dollars over a 10 year period. The reason that this figure is lower than some estimates reported in the media is that the implementation timetable detailed above was designed to roughly coincide with the useful life of existing signs. Thus, it is likely that most of them would have been replaced anyway.

For more information, check out the Sign Retroreflectivity Toolkit.


Fleece Lined Bomber Jacket

John Makely / msnbc.com

One World Trade Center, the monolith being built to replace the twin towers destroyed in the Sept. 11 attacks, claimed the title of New York City's tallest skyscraper on Monday, as workers erected steel columns that made its unfinished skeleton a little over 1,250 feet high, just enough to peek over the roof of the observation deck on the Empire State Building.

"This project is much more than steel and concrete. It is a symbol of success for the nation," said David Samson, chairman of the Port Authority, the agency that owns the World Trade Center.

The milestone is only a preliminary one. Workers are still adding floors to the building once called the Freedom Tower. It isn't expected to reach its full height for at least another year, at which point it is likely to be declared the tallest building in the U.S., and third tallest in the world.

Excluding its antenna, the Empire State Building's total height to 1,250 feet. That was still high enough to make the skyscraper the world's tallest from 1931 until 1972.

One World Trade Center would still be smaller than the Willis Tower in Chicago, formerly known as the Sears Tower, which tops out at 1,451 feet (not including its antennas).

As for the world's tallest building, the undisputed champion is the Burj Khalifa, in Dubai, which opened in 2010 and reaches 2,717 feet, Not counting about 5 feet of aircraft lights and other equipment perched on top, of course.

HiVis Supply salutes the men and women who have worked tirelessly to rebuild New York City's One World Trade Center, along with the hopes and dreams of the people who lived through - and lost - loved ones in the tragedy that was 9/11.

Economy Series Class 3 T-Shirt

These ANSI Class 3 economy series t-shirts, from ML Kishigo,
feature Ultra-Cool microfiber polyester material with 2" wide silver reflective
stripes and (1) left breast pocket. The microfiber polyester material wicks away
moisture - helping to keep you both dry and cool. Available in both high
visibility Lime or Orange; M-5XL. ANSI/ISEA 107-2004 Class 3 compliant.