Vanessa Sirima explains why appropriate head protection is more than just a hard hat
When it comes to personal protective equipment (PPE), hard hats are sometimes seen as a box ticking exercise. However, it is critical to consider workers’ unique role demands to provide them with appropriate PPE. Effectively reviewing what additional helmet enhancements would help to protect the workers and improve their productivity could increase your PPE compliance on a day-to-day basis.
There are numerous hard hat variances and configurations, and selecting the appropriate helmet is just the beginning. There is also a wide range of accessories and branding options available, allowing a hard hat to be adapted to enhance functionality for a range of different scenarios.
In this article, we suggest a three-step process in selecting, accessorising, and branding an appropriate hard hat for your specific requirements.
Step 1: Choosing the appropriate helmet
Firstly, consider whether it is important that your safety helmet is CE marked, and meets the standards required for your specific working environments.
Primarily, there are two key industry standards to be aware of:
#1 – EN 397: industrial safety helmets EN 397 is concerned with adequately protecting against falling objects. To achieve this certification, key performance requirements include appropriate shock absorption, penetration resistance, flame resistance and chin strap anchorage.
#2 – EN 50365: electrically insulated helmets
EN 50365 is concerned with ensuring protection against electric shocks and dangerous electric currents. This is typically an additional standard required for safety helmets when working on low voltage live electrical installations up to 1000V A.C. Therefore, helmets in this bracket need to comply with both EN 397 and EN 50365.
Step 2: Appropriate accessories you might consider
Once you have considered your working environment, you can begin to optimise your PPE by applying accessories you deem appropriate.
Hard hats should not hinder workers but help them focus on the job at hand. To achieve this, MSA Safety aims to deliver hard hats that are comfortable to wear and complementary to specific jobs, whilst enhancing performance.
Accessories can help to achieve this, including:
Sweatbands: Offering an additional layer of comfort, consider options with a larger width for greater comfort and moisture-absorbing and respiring materials that can be washed, reused, and eventually replaced.
Winter liners: Winter liners can help protect workers from the cold, contributing to improved comfort. Check whether the liner has been tested and certified for use with the helmet.
Eye and face protectors: Many environments call for helmet accessories to protect an operative’s face and eyes. When selecting a visor, consider whether it has anti-fog and anti-scratch coatings and whether it is suitable for use with or without spectacles.
Lamp brackets: Lamp brackets can be attached to your helmet’s shell, often essential for working in dark and confined spaces.
Chinstraps: Consider whether chinstraps can help enhance worker safety and the overall fit and comfort of a helmet.
Ear defenders: Noise cancelling ear protection can be added to your helmet to protect against loud obtrusive noises, whilst still enabling face-to-face communication.
Step 3: Customising helmets with branding
While adding accessories can enhance functionality and safety on an individual level, other changes can also be made to strengthen company-wide performance.
Hard hats are often required in industrial settings where hundreds of workers may be operating. In such scenarios, multiple sub-contractors are likely to be working in tandem, with each requiring specific hard hats with the right accessories. Electricians may need helmets compliant with EN 50365, while scaffolders may need EN 12492 certified models with four-point chinstraps for an improved fit.
To improve differentiation, hard hats can be customised with different colours and logos, making it easy for workers to immediately identify those models tailored to their specific needs when they arrive on site. Additionally, further customisation can be added to enhance visibility or promote safety practices.
Company branding can be added to helmets which enhances professionalism, while also providing subtle marketing and brand awareness. This can also serve to foster a greater sense of pride and belonging within your workforce.
Once you have settled on exactly what you want, you don’t want to be held up by the customisation process. At MSA Safety, our Logo Express service means that you can have branded hard hats manufactured within as little as five days.
If protecting one of the most vital organs in your body is a top priority for your workforce, consider whether you can make that decision easier by starting with these three simple considerations.
For a list of the sources used in this article, please contact the editor.
Vanessa Sirima is Marketing Manager, HEFH, EMEA at MSA Safety. Established in 1914, MSA Safety Incorporated is the global leader in the development, manufacture and supply of safety products that protect people and facility infrastructures. Many MSA products integrate a combination of electronics, mechanical systems and advanced materials to protect users against hazardous or life-threatening situations.