Safety Shoes FAQ

As they saying goes "when in Rome, do like the romans do...." same principles applies when it comes to safety footwear standard to be followed.

In India Safety Footwear, Protective Footwear or Occupational Footwear are governed under IS 15298 Part 2 / Part3 / Part 4 Standard revision 2016. as on date of writing this article.

But don't worry about your compliance on global front as well, because our Indian IS 15298 standard has adopted the same ISO STD or EN ISO 20345 / 346 / 347 global standard for ease of use.

Watch 60 Sec YouTube video on same.

The current global safety footwear standard EN ISO 20345  is updated in 2011 to make it stricter, all products must be manufactured, tested and certified under EN ISO 20345. This safety footwear standard requires all safety shoes to have front foot protection against a 200 joule impact. This is the amount of energy the toe region can absorb before breaking.

Indian Std IS 15298 Part 2 - 2016. requires same clearance on toe protection parameters. 

Watch 50 Sec video on same to get more clarity

The current global protective footwear standard EN ISO 20346  is updated in 2011 to make it stricter, all products must be manufactured, tested and certified under EN ISO 20346. This protective footwear standard requires all shoes to have front foot protection against a 100 joule impact. This is the amount of energy the toe region can absorb before breaking.

Indian Std IS 15298 Part 3 - 2016. requires same clearance on toe protection parameters.

Watch 50 Sec video on same to get more clarity 

The current global Occupational footwear standard EN ISO 20347 is updated in 2011 to make it stricter, all products must be manufactured, tested and certified under EN ISO 20347. This Occupational footwear standard does not requires shoes to have a safety or protective toe cap. This is applicable in case where study has revealed no toe crushing hazrads or Impact Hazards exits in workplace. 

Indian Std IS 15298 Part 4 - 2016 address same category of footwear.

Watch 50 sec video on same to get more clarity

Safety Shoes  should always be chosen after the completion of proper risk assessment study for the job. 

Safety Shoes like other PPE's (Personnel Protective Equipment's ) should be used as last line of defense against common hazards in workplace for foot injury such as impact, compression or puncture.

The Answer to pertinent Question whether to choose between Steel Toe or Composite Toe, lies in understanding the application areas where it makes sense to opt for steel toe or composite toe.

Steel Toe : 

First Used in 1930's, Steel toe are naturally the preferred choice when it comes to toe protection. 

Steel toe's are thinner than their composite counterparts to achieve same strength of Impact Protection.

More economical than Composite Toe Caps.

Owing to Metal they exhibit excellent property of conducting heat, cold and electricity.

Application Industries : Widely used across industry verticals.

Composite Toe :

 Made from non metallic materials such as fibreglass, carbon fiber or plastics.

Composite Toe's are much thicker than their Steel Toe Counterparts to achieve same strength of Impact Protection.

Expensive owing to raw materials costs and limited use.

Slightly lesser in weight when compared to Steel Toe. 

Excellent Insulation property against Heat, cold & electricity.

Application Industries : Suggested in Metal Free work environments airports / metal detectors zones / courts /   electrical hazards area's

No, not all safety footwear come with equal rating on Slip Resistance parameter.

Your workplace is a very dynamic environment. Slips, Trips & Falls are one among the major causes of injuries at workplace. Hence as a safety manager it is very essential to understand slip resistance ratings  for safety footwear. 

Slip Resistance Rating for soles is categorized as follows  

SRA Rated

Soles are tested on a ceramic tile wetted with dilute soap solution for their slip resistance.

SRB Rated

 Soles are tested on smooth steel with glycerol for their slip resistance. 

SRC Rated

Soles that pass both SRA and SRB slip resistance tests. 

Both Anti Static & ESD Footwear are used in environments to prevent,

• either damage to Electrical Equipment's ( in industries such as aerospace, semiconductor manufacturing, electrical & telecommunication engineering, battery manufacturing, computers & cellphone industry, medical & pharmaceutical industry & hospitals) from static charge / shock or spark by grounding the electrical charge built in body.

• or Gas,  Fuel Vapor or Coal Dust Static charge related explosion or fire owing to uncontrolled electrostatic discharges.

Their is common confusion among industry professionals, when using either terms Antistatic or ESD.  

In simple terms the key factor to distinguish between them is based on electrical resistance exhibited.

• Antistatic Footwear have electrical resistance between 0.1 and 1000 Mega Ohms.

• ESD Footwear have even lower electrical resistance between 0.1 and 100 Mega Ohms.

As can be understood from above electrical resistance range, while all ESD footwear can be classified under Antistatic footwear, vice-versa is not true.  

For Better understanding - Click here to Watch our demonstration video. 

Many a times, when you change to a new brand, and see <2mm opening at intersection point of sole & upper, naturally as a customer one would get frightened & team raise alarm bells, whether or not you have made the right choice ? whether or not footwear will last for warranty period ? 

In such cases, don't panic, better try & reexamine the entire procurement process. Broadly risk factors can be classified in two broad categories :

1. Suppliers Side Risk ?

   1. Re-Check for Supplier's Credibility & Commitment towards addressing concerns & warranty terms. 

   2. Incase supplier has not exhibited anything otheriwse, relax  you know that you have chosen the right supplier and he would standby incase of any genuine problem.

2. Product Side Risk ?

   1. It is normal, under robotic ruffing process, that manufacturers tend to set precise margin of underruffing prior to injection, in order to achieve Zero Visual defects, at the same time ensuring for optimum bond strength for promised life duration  of footwear.

   2. Typically under Direct Injection Technology, all Premium brands ensure that product comes out with Zero Visual Defects, and their high end robotic ruffing technology helps them achieve this goal.

   3. Further, you are always covered under standard warranty terms against manufacturing defects for 6 months / 12 months as the case may be.

So to sum it all, it is more of anxiety rather than actual problem, that elevates the pitch between supplier & buyer. Hence it is very important to check for Suppliers credentials in cases like these.