NFPA 2112/NFPA 70E

NFPA 2112

Standard for Flash Fire Protection

NFPA 2112 provides informative guidelines for specialized flash fire resistant clothing. NFPA 2112 compliant garments protect workers in hazardous industrial occupations where a flash fire (a sudden, intense fire which is short in duration but severe in potential danger) is always a risk. NFPA 2112 states, “The standard shall specify the minimum requirements and test methods for flame-resistant fabrics and components and the design and certification requirements for garments for use in areas at risk from flash fires.”

To comply with NFPA 2112, FR garments must meet the following 4 criteria:

4 NFPA 2112 FR Garments Criteria 1

All flame resistant clothing items must achieve a 50% or less predicted body burn

2

All flame resistant clothing items must defy melting, dripping, or after-flame burning

3

All flame resistant clothing items must have appropriate labeling in an easy-to-see location

4

All flame resistant clothing items must meet each of the NFPA 2112 requirements and tests, and should be UL certified (the UL certification label should either be attached to the flame resistant garment label, or be positioned right next to it)

NFPA 70E

Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace

Updated in 2018, NFPA 70E now uses PPE categories which are based on an incident energy analysis. The standard gives 4 categories of PPE, with each category including the minimum Arc Thermal Performance Value (ATPV) for the required PPE.

PPE Category 1

Clothing

Face & Head Protection

Hand Protection

As Needed Minimum ATPV 4 cal/cm2

ARC-rated long sleeve shirt or jacket and ARC-rated pants or ARC-rated coverall (minimum ATPV 4 cal/cm²)

ARC-rated face shield or ARC-rated flash suit hood

Heavy duty leather gloves

ARC-rated jacket, rainwear, parka, hard hat liner

PPE Category 2

Clothing

Face & Head Protection

Hand Protection

As Needed Minimum ATPV 8 cal/cm2

ARC-rated long sleeve shirt or jacket and ARC-rated pants or ARC-rated coverall (minimum ATPV 8 cal/cm2)

ARC-rated face shield and ARC-rated balaclava or ARC-rated flash suit hood

Heavy duty leather gloves

ARC-rated jacket, rainwear, parka, hard hat liner

PPE Category 3

Clothing

Face & Head Protection Minimum ATPV 25 cal/cm2

ARC-rated long sleeve shirt or jacket and ARC-rated pants; ARC-rated coverall; ARC-rated flash suit jacket and ARC-rated flash suit pants (minimum ATPV 25 cal/cm2)

ARC-rated flash suit hood

Hand Protection ARC-rated gloves or rubber insulating gloves and leather protectors

As Needed

ARC-rated jacket, rainwear, parka, hard hat liner

PPE Category 4

Clothing

Face & Head Protection Minimum ATPV 40 cal/cm2

ARC-rated flash suit jacket and ARC-rated flash suit pants; ARC-rated long sleeve shirt or jacket and ARC-rated pants; ARC-rated coverall; (minimum ATPV 40 cal/cm2)

ARC-rated flash suit hood

Hand Protection Rubber insulating gloves and leather protectors or ARC-rated gloves

As Needed

ARC-rated jacket, rainwear, parka, hard hat liner