Reasons for Personal Protective Equipment

Personal protective equipment is an industrial term that typically refers to any type of protective equipment used to protect the head, eye, ears, hands, arms, legs, feet and respiratory system of an affected worker, according to the Healthy Working Lives website. When used correctly and appropriately, personal protective equipment is efficient in guarding workers from different hazards.

Used as a Last Option

• Personal protective equipment, although extremely effective in protecting workers in most cases, shouldn't be seen as the ultimate solution to a safety problem. Personal protective equipment is only a portion of a comprehensive worker safety program. In fact, Princeton University says that personal protective equipment should be used only as a last resort for protecting workers, after efforts to using engineering or administrative controls to eliminate a work hazard fail to completely protect a worker from the potential for injury.

Eyes

• The use of personal protective equipment for a worker's eyes is common in industry. Safety glasses, goggles and face shields are used when hazards such as impacts to the eye, splashing chemicals, flying debris, or radiation from activities such as welding can't be controlled or avoided by other means.

Head

• The head is a vulnerable part of the body in many construction and industrial applications. Different styles of head protection are worn, but head protection is used mainly for three common hazards. The hazards of being struck in the head by a moving object, striking the head against a stationary object or contact with electricity are all protected by different types and styles of hard hats.

Ears

• Personal protective equipment for ears isn't meant to protect the outer ear, but rather the inner ear and guard workers against occupational hearing loss. Ear protection comes in different styles, but most notably ear plugs or ear muffs are used to protect worker's hearing when exposed to occupational noise at a level of 85 to 90 decibels per eight-hour shift.

Hands

• Hands are protected in the workplace in different ways, but the use of personal protective equipment for hands comes in the form of a glove. Gloves can be used in different ways, depending on the hazard encountered and the style and characteristics of the glove being worn. Gloves can protect against abrasions, lacerations, puncture, heat, cold and radiation.

Respiratory Protection

• Respiratory protection one of the more complicated forms of personal protective equipment. It's dedicated to protect workers from severe dangers in the workplace that may be present from dust, fumes and gasses. When these hazards can't be removed from the workplace by proper ventilation, respirators are used to filter out the contaminants or provide clean air for the worker to breathe.