PPE Supplement: 8 Steps to Specifying PPE for Firefighter Health and Mobility

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The number one killer of firefighters is sudden cardiac events resulting from stress and overexertion, with the majority of these events taking place during and/or shortly after fire suppression. But burn injuries and fatalities are also a constant threat, so how do you minimize the occurrences of both? 

1. Revisit your current PPE specifications

For many departments, PPE specifications are a series of historical accidents, sometimes going back as far as 20 years. Is there anything else that hasn’t changed in 20 years? NFPA standards have been revised many times during this period. Department priorities and standard operating procedures (SOPs) have likely changed. The tools firefighters carry to perform their duties have changed. PPE materials, technologies and ensemble designs have certainly changed. Solutions to address these changes should be reflected in PPE specifications—and those specifications should be reviewed regularly. 

Look at the many new materials and technologies recently made available to the fire service, and learn how they can improve the firefighters’ ability to work with less stress on their bodies, and still provide the protective envelope necessary to do the job.

2. Acknowledge that firefighters are tactical athletes

You may not think of yourself as an athlete, but you punish your body in exactly the same way that athletes do during training and in the skillful performance of your duties. Like any sports athlete, when you are pushed to perform, your heart rate and respiration rate increases, and your body will try to cool itself by sweating as much as possible. But a host of factors conspire to put physiological stress on your body; that includes wearing protective and insulated clothing.

Just like it would be for any athlete, it’s a lot easier to perform at your best and expend energy longer when your clothing is lighter in weight, fits properly and can allow for a full range of motion. It’s what we call a “balanced” garment.

What sets you apart from sports athletes is the diverse and often dangerous environment in which you are working. It may be working a structural fire with dramatically elevated interior temperatures, or out on the highway in the blazing sun or during a howling blizzard. These variables, and others, are major considerations when selecting your PPE ensemble.

3. Investigate new technologies that enable greater performance

Today’s turnout elements are better than ever, and the wise selection of each element will allow a firefighter to perform better than in the past—and with an increased safety factor. There are new materials available for the three-layer composite—outer shell, moisture barrier and thermal liner—along with new materials being used in hoods, boots and gloves.

New outer shell and thermal liner materials from Safety Components and TenCate Protective Fabrics are using NOMEX and KEVLAR filament in place of spun yarns. Using filament allows the shell to be more flexible and drape—or hang—on your body much like the everyday clothing in your closet that you find most comfortable. When combined with a thermal liner also using filament, a system is created that allows the firefighter to work with less effort and, therefore, lessen exertion and reduce heat buildup inside the gear.

In high-heat stress situations, the body can produce more heat than it is able to lose, which increases the body core temperature. Studies have shown that what might seem like small increases in body core temperature can impair decision-making, muscle control and hearing accuracy, eventually leading to heat stroke, all of which can compromise firefighter safety and effectiveness.

4. Get familiar with turnout gear performance test methods

For years, thermal protective performance (TPP) and total heat loss (THL) have been the measuring yardsticks for evaluating how well a turnout jacket and pants will deliver protection from heat (TPP) and breathability (THL) when working.

Recently, we have heard more about the Resistance to Evaporative Heat Transfer (RET) test, which measures the ability of the jacket and pants to allow the heat and sweat your body creates to evaporate out and away from your body in more real-world conditions. The RET test is unique in that it can measure performance at different temperatures and humidity levels than the THL test. While the RET test is not required by the 2013 edition of NFPA 1971, it is a well-known test method used in studies performed by the military.

5. Rethink weight factors

Misconceptions about the weight of turnouts are still common, with many people assuming the lighter the turnouts, the better. Maybe, maybe not. Balance and ergonomic design are much more important considerations than just the net weight. 

Making lightweight, balanced gear that delivers stress-reducing flexibility and range of motion requires a designer to add the curves and flex points where needed. Ergonomic garment designs will allow the jacket and pants to not only interface with one another, but also with your boots, hoods and gloves. Gear that causes restriction or compression when moving can lead to hot spots and potential burns. 

And let’s talk about tools. Firefighters often carry tools in their turnout gear that weigh more than 10 pounds, often exceeding the weight of their jacket and pants combined. Do yourself a favor and start by laying out on the floor everything you keep in your turnout gear pockets. Then pick up each piece and see if it really still speaks to you about how essential it is for you to have it with you at all times. If you don’t absolutely have to have it, don’t put it back in your pocket! By carrying tools that are not absolutely necessary, you are not just stressing your gear, you are stressing yourself as well.

6. Conduct a PPE field wear test

Insist upon a wear test. Well-designed gear is tailored to fit and move with your body. You want the arms and legs to move easily! To do so, the torso of the jacket and seat of the pants need to be designed to allow for body movement. The gear that is most comfortable will often be perceived as lighter in weight when, in reality, it is just a better balanced garment and a superior ergonomic design.

Your wear-test protocol should mimic the real scenarios of firefighting—swinging an axe, climbing a ladder, crawling and overhauling with a pike pole, to name a few examples. By performing these routine duties, you will be able to evaluate which materials and designs meet your specific needs best.

7. Aim for consistent protection across ensemble elements

Take a long, hard look at the continuity of your PPE ensemble. Are you selecting a turnout outer shell with high resistance to flame impingement? Are your hood and wristlets comparable in their ability to resist that level of impingement? And with carcinogens finally ascending to the level of concern they deserve, it might be time to look at hoods that have a greater ability to filter some of the carcinogenic particulates that have been passing through the layers of the knit hood.

NIOSH studies have shown that boots make a difference in firefighters’ agility and how much energy they expend when working a call. Boots that are lighter and more flexible and really fit take much less effort to work in, deliver a greater degree of surefootedness, and lessen the likelihood of trips and falls.

8. Enlist the services of industry experts

We are at a juncture where gear is finally allowing firefighters to perform like the tactical athletes they are. Especially for those individuals on PPE and safety committees who are evaluating and selecting gear, dive in and dive deep. Don’t be intimidated by the jargon and the science. Enlist the services of your local dealer, garment manufacturers and material suppliers. They are valuable resources to help you evaluate how technological advances may benefit your department and improve firefighter safety and protection. Take the time to review with them any issues, trends or problems with your current turnout gear.

In sum

Now is a good time to update your specifications with new material choices, new technology and new levels of ergonomic designs that can really make a difference to your department, your team and you. 

Sidebar: Designing PPE with an Eye to Athletic Wear

“This is a really exciting time in the development of PPE because there is all new technology and materials and material science that is now enabling new design.

Historically, the way we reduce restriction and make less strain on the firefighter when they are doing their activities is to add fullness and length where the body bends so you aren’t restricted when you are moving, when you’re pulling a ceiling, when you’re crawling, when you’re going up stairs. That’s because materials didn’t stretch, so the only way to allow you to make those kind of movements and get less restriction was to make sure that we’re patterning them in ways that allow freedom of movement. But what if your materials could stretch? How would that change how you could design gear?

When you think about firefighters being tactical athletes and how they do their job, you want gear that’s going to move with you and that’s closer fitting and that would be more like what you would be using for all of your other fitness and outdoor activities. And with the availability of some new stretch fabrics that we’re just introducing to the market, now we don’t have to add all of that extra bulk. We can make turnout gear that is closer fitting to the body. And by being closer fitting to the body and adding stretch, we are now able to reduce the restriction, without having to add all of the excess and, consequently, we can make gear that is significantly lighter and that moves with you because the fabric moves as well as the way the garment is designed. This is something that enables a completely fresh approach to how you are going to dress to do your job. And it’s a whole different silhouette, which is more body contoured, more athletic and less bulky. When you see firefighters today wearing their SCBA and all of that excess material, where does that go? It all bunches up underneath your SCBA because it has nowhere to go, so stretch is very exciting from a design standpoint.”

— Mark Mordecai, director of business development, Globe