Protecting the head, hand, and body from cold weather conditions

The employer is always responsible for keeping their employees safe. Whether an employee is working in the office or on-site, management assures them of their safety. Employees are always exposed to risk from harsh weather conditions. Working under harsh weather conditions can be tedious. Thus, companies are required to provide ample amounts of "personal protective equipment" to employees. This is done to protect them from any kind of occupational risks that can compromise their health and safety.

With the onset of winter, there comes an increased need to adopt safety measures for employees who work on-site. There are additional safety risks that need to be considered. For this reason, many employers take extra protective measures by providing PPE and high-visibility workwear that can protect against cold. When it comes to choosing workwear for employees to protect them from winter, the needs have to be first identified. This is broken down in terms of preserving the employees by keeping them safe, dry, and warm.

Providing head protection

Helmet liners are a type of protective equipment or workwear that is given along with high-vis workwear. This equipment protects the head of a worker, along with the ears, from extreme cold. The design of these helmets is specific and is designed to fit easily under the helmet. So, workers can use their existing helmet over the helmet liner. It has to be taken care that whatever headwear a worker is wearing should be fitted between the helmet and the head with a close fit. Also, it must be adjusted appropriately.

Protection of the body

In a very cold and snowy atmosphere, proper body protection is essential. It is thus important to layer properly to protect the body from cold. It is advisable to make three layers of protective equipment or workwear in winter. The base layer, the middle layer, and the outer layer.

In the base layer, tops and trousers can be included as they will remain closer to the skin. They don't need to be thermals. However, if synthetic materials are used, they would absorb sweat properly. Since cotton retains a lot of moisture, it is generally not recommended.

The middle layer should be the insulating layer. Hence, fleece or wool clothes must be worn. Therefore, workers should be given workwear that keeps the body warm even in cold conditions. Wind-resistant materials such as nylon can be used in the outer layer. These are lightweight and waterproof. Also, they are a bit loose-fitting. Hence, it can also prevent some accidents from occurring. Such an outer layer can be very reflective. It can be used with high-visibility clothing.

Protection of the eyes

For the protection of the eyes from cold weather environment, employers need to provide employees with safety glasses. However, when there are strong winds or lower temperatures, it can cause wind chills. Also, damage to the eyes and face can occur. Blowing wind during winter is also responsible for flying particles getting into the eyes of the worker, making it uncomfortable.

Moreover, the harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun may be high even on cloudy days. Therefore, workers wearing high-vis clothes can be provided with foam-sealed and polarised eyewear. This eyewear should be fog-resistant as well. Safety goggles can be provided to allow the user to protect their eyes from any kind of flying object, such as wind, rain, glare, sleet, or snow.

Conclusion

It can be summarized that for workers working on-site, especially in cold weather, proper protective equipment is needed. This includes wearing proper hi-vis workwear. It is mandatory to protect the head, hand, and eyes properly from harsh and cold winds. Our company, Entire Workwear, is a renowned hi-vis workwearcompany in Perth that supplies protective equipment along with workwear. The employees of our company are professional enough to explain everything about the use of these garments to our customers. Therefore, visit our store now to avail protective workwear for your employees.