Finding the right fit

Uniforms and custom work wear can meet safety, motivation and contractor image requirements

So what’s wrong with a T-shirt, a pair of jeans and steel-toed shoes as proper attire for work on today’s busy jobsites?

Not much, unless you are a contractor that wants to to present a quality image, be able to readily identify your workers on a jobsite or must meet specific safety requirements.

Today, enterprising professionals in construction have found exciting ways to turn work wear into a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

From product utility to marketing, from safety and security to promotional incentives and overall uniform program management, WearGuard Corp. offers these tips on how you can develop a program that’s the “perfect fit” for your organization.

Construction work is hard on apparel, so durability and functionality are among the top priorities with work wear selection. Comfort ranks as important as strength and durability.

Look for shirt and pant styles that will hold up to the daily grind and grime. The type of fabric is an important part of that equation.

Fabric blends best
Natural fabric fibers such as cotton, wool and linen are absorbent, cool and static-free, but they tend to shrink and are less durable than synthetic options. Synthetic fibers, like polyester and nylon, are more durable and resist shrinkage and abrasion.

To get the best of both worlds, choose a fiber blend. Work shirts and pants made with polyester and cotton blends are best for warm seasons and climates. A 65 percent polyester/35 percent cotton blend is durable, absorbent and cool – perfect for working under the hot summer sun. Another advantage to the 60/40 blend is that it holds up better after multiple washings without shrinking or fading.

Since the work doesn’t stop when the weather gets cold, you need work wear that will help you stay warm on the job.

Layering is a popular option because it allows you to start the day bundled up and peel away layers as the temperature rises.

Shirts, jackets and coveralls with insulation or lining like Thinsulate, polyfill or fleece, along with a water-resistant outer shell, help keep warmth in and wetness out.

Beyond product utility, work wear customized to your company can be an important part in a company’s marketing or image program. From embroidery to screen printing, many options are available for applying a company logo on apparel in a colorful and creative way.

Adding a custom quality logo to employee clothing provides a consistent image and identity within the company and enhances the company’s branding message. It also indicates stability – that the company is here to stay.

Company logo improves recognition
Many consider custom clothing as “mobile advertising,” a marketing benefit of logo wear. Although most construction workers spend their time on jobsites, having all employees wear the company’s logo on a daily basis helps spread your marketing message and your advertising dollar.

A New York City-based contractor that restores old buildings, primarily in Manhattan, provides company T-shirts and hats to all crew members. “We like the unified image that is presented when all employees are wearing similar clothing,” says Arthur Tabaka of Nova Restoration. “It’s a cost-effective way to make sure our name is present on every job.”

One of the biggest safety issues for construction workers is visibility. The right work wear can literally mean the difference between life and death for those who work on roadways or at night.

Other potential hazards vary from jobsite to jobsite. Steel-toed boots are often required for individuals operating heavy equipment. Working around flammable materials may require clothing made with fire resistant material such as Nomex or Indura (see sidebar).

Reflective material helps increase visibility at night. Strips of highly reflective tape can be added to shirts and jackets.

Uniforms can also add to the security of a jobsite. Requiring all crew members to wear similar clothing makes it easy to keep tabs on who belongs on the jobsite and who doesn’t. It also identifies employees to customers and clients during off-site meetings or visits.

Incentives and promotions
Many contractors use incentives to help focus employee’s attention on safety and other issues or behavior that the company wants to promote. At Dalton Builders, a North Attleboro, Massachusetts, contractor, each employee accrues 10 cents for every hour he or she works without an accident or injury on the job.

Then, on a quarterly basis, employees have a chance to shop in a catalog, using the amount they have accrued to purchase shirts and jackets that bear the company logo.

“Typically, employees earn between $50 and $75 each quarter,” says Jackie Armitage, Dalton Builder purchasing agent. “It’s a great way to get people excited and focused on safety.”

Work wear as rewards
Other promotional uses for custom work wear range from attendance prizes at company events to employee service awards. Hats and golf shirts embroidered with a company’s logo are often used for client appreciation gifts and corporate outings. Specially designed logos can commemorate a company anniversary or milestone on jackets and shirts.

Sorting through the details of a work wear program can be challenging. First, make one person responsible for coordinating the work wear program.

Second, decide what you want to get from the work wear program beyond product utility. Will the work wear be used for marketing, safety, promotional incentives, or all of the above?

From there, set a budget, select the right work wear that meets your needs, measure employees and collect sizes, and make sure each employee gets what they order.

Consider professional help
You can attempt to handle all of the details, or you can choose a vendor that will provide the support and expertise to implement your work wear program. these professionals can keep your work wear program from turning into a management nightmare.

Side Bar:
Work wear must meet arc hazard rating
New clothing regulations affect apparel selection for those working on or near electrical sources that pose electrocution or burn hazards, according to sources at Carhartt, a work wear apparel company.

The National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) published NFPA 70E, a Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace, 1979. It is a comprehensive national consensus standard for electrical safety issues covering work practices, installation, maintenance and special equipment.

Over the years, NFPA 70E has been updated. The 2000 edition was the first to include electric arc flash hazard and required flame-resistant clothing (FRC) to protect workers against it. The most recent edition, approved on February 11, 2004, added sections on personal protective equipment (PPE). OSHA recognizes NFPA 70E as an industry practice and refers to it in citations.

Flame-resistant clothing is addressed in the standard, and it states that all equipment must be de-energized before being worked on unless the employer can demonstrate that de-energizing introduces additional or increased hazards or is not feasible due to equipment design or operational limitations. 

If de-energizing the equipment is not feasible, the employer must establish a “flash protection boundary” as the minimum distance from an arc source where a person could receive a second degree burn if an arc flash occurred.

Employers must determine the appropriate PPE including FRC required for all employees who cross the flash protection boundary. A hazard risk assessment will determine what arc hazard level must be completed.

After arc hazard levels have been assigned for job tasks, required protective clothing may be determined.  The table above, adapted from NFPA 70E-2004 (Table 130.7(C)(11)) gives the five hazard risk categories, corresponding required minimum arc rating of PPE.

Carhartt recommends that layering FRC increases thermal protection and should be considered when evaluating required PPE.

This article was published in the November/December 2005 issue of Contractor Tools and Supplies magazine.

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