Testing of High-Visibility Safety Garments - Part IV

FACT SHEET TESTING OF HIGHVISIBILITY SAFETY GARMENTS ­ PART IV NZ FORESTRY OWNERS ASSOCIATION SPECIFICATIONS Background This is the fourth and final article in a series relating to information about high visibility garments. This article provides details relating to the specifications for garments as required by the New Zealand Forest Owners Association (NZFOA). New Zealand's forestry industry is under considerable scrutiny given its health and safety record in recent years. The table below indicates the number of workplace facilities occurring in the forestry sector since 2007. Table 1: Number of Forestry Personnel Killed in Workplace Accidents in New Zealand 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 3 4 5 4 3 6 10 The NZFOA requirements relating to highvisibility safety garments serve to ensure forestry workers are visible in their work surroundings. NZFOA Specifications for HighVisibility Safety Garments The New Zealand Forestry Guidelines for HighVisibility Clothing (FOA:2012) specifies the minimum acceptable design standards for high visibility garments. The guideline is intended for use within New Zealand commercial forestry environments where people may be exposed to the hazards of moving traffic and equipment. Application of the Specification The NZFOA Guideline is based around AS/NZ4206.1:2011 and AS/NZS1906.4:2010 (see Parts I and II of this series). Because of the nature of the garments typically used (knitted tee shirts are common), many designs are achieved by printing of fluorescent inks in distinctive patterns. Compliant garments fall within two categories: Class FID Forest Industries Day Time Class FID garments are intended to provide the wearer with high visibility under daylight viewing conditions and are intended for the bulk of forestry workers operating in daylight hours. This class is similar to Class D of AS/NZS 4602.1:2011. Fig 1: Example NZFOACompliant FID Garments Class FIDN Forest Industries Day Night Class FIDN garments are intended to provide the wearer with high visibility under both daytime and nighttime viewing conditions. This class is similar to Class DN of AS/NZS 4602.1:2011. Fig 2: Example NZFOACompliant FIDN Garments FACT SHEET The specifications of the NZFOA Guideline are however fundamentally different to the AS/NZS Standards in some key areas. These are outlined below: AS/NZS 4602.1:2011 & AS/NZS 1906.4:2010 Two main classes of colour space are specified in AS/NZS 1906.4:2010 yellow and orangered NZFOA Specification Yellow or orange as per AS/NZS 1906.4 :2010, with the same luminance requirements. However only the orange portion of the orangered spectrum is permitted. The red portion of the space cannot be used because of red /green colour blindness. Only fluorescent colours are allowed. High visibility background material must be at least 0.06m2 in both front and back, measured over the whole garment*. * Note 1: The minimum area may be achieved in one single block or several blocks that total the required 0.06m2. * Note 2: Each solid block must be at least 15cm2. Areas of colour within the blocks that taper to a width of less than 1.0cm are not included. * Note 3: Logos, lettering and symbols may be added, although they must be no greater than 15 cm2 and they are not included in the minimum qualifying 0.06m2. There is no specific area requirement for retro reflective tape. There are belt and braces and other configurations allowed. In New Zealand, the tape must be 50 ± 1 mm. FIDN garments must have a minimum of 150 cm2 of Class R or Class RF retroreflective tape on the upper torso, on both front and back. The tape configuration is recommended to be a belt and braces on both front and back. The tape shall be no less than 25 mm ± 1 mm. Fluorescent and non fluorescent colours are allowed. High visibility background material must be at least 0.2m2 in both front and back, measured to the waist only. NZFOA Registration All garments intended for use in New Zealand forestry have to be registered with the NZFOA*. A registration number is issued to compliant garments following independent assessment to the NZFOA specifications. NZWTA Ltd is approved by International Accreditation New Zealand (IANZ) to provide design compliance to the Guideline. * Any garment that complies with AS/NZS 4602.1: 2011 are approved high visibility garments for wear within the Forest Industries environment, provided the orange highvisibility colour conforms to the morerestrictive NZFOA requirements (as described in above table). Garments do not need to be registered under the NZFOA Guideline registration scheme provided they show compliance to AS/NZS 4602.1:2011 on the garment label. Advice on NZFOA Garment Testing and Compliance The New Zealand Forestry Guidelines for HighVisibility Clothing (FOA:2012) and the two key Standards for high visibility garments (AS/NZS 4602.1:2011 for garment design and AS/NZS 1906.4:2010 for background materials and retroreflective tape) provide a significant amount of detail and specification for manufacturers and users. NZWTA Ltd has a comprehensive understanding of the standards involved in highvisibility garment testing and can provide a report on the conformance to these standards. If you are involved with manufacturing, importing or using highvisibility garments and want to ensure the garments are compliant with current standards, contact NZWTA on: +64 6 835 1086 Email: Lorraine.greer@nzwta.co.nz / Christian.judan@nzwta.co.nz