BS EN IEC 61482-1-1:2019

What is BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1 - Protective clothing for thermal hazards about? 

BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1 is the first part of an international standard that focuses on protective clothing against the thermal hazards of an electric arc. 

BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1 specifies test methods and procedures to determine the arc rating of flame-resistant clothing materials and garments or assemblies of garments intended for use in clothing for workers if there is an electric arc hazard. 

An open arc under controlled laboratory conditions is used to determine the values of ELIM, ATPV or EBT of materials, garments, or assemblies of garments. 

Note 1: BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1 is not dedicated to classifying the arc protective performance of the material and clothing into arc protection classes. 

Note 2: BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1 is not intended and not appropriate to evaluate whether materials or garments are flame resistant or not. 

Note 3: Other effects than the thermal effects of an electric arc like noise, light emissions, pressure rise, hot oil, electric shock, the consequences of physical and mental shock or toxic influences are not covered by BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1. 

Note 4: Protective clothing for work intentionally using an electric arc, e. g. arc welding, plasma torch, is not covered by BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1. 

Who is BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1 - Protective clothing for thermal hazards for? 

BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1 on protective clothing for thermal hazards is useful for: 

• Textile companies and manufacturers of protective clothing 
• Dealers and distributors of protective clothing 
• Designers of protective clothing for thermal hazards 
• Test providers for protective clothing  

Why should you use BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1 - Protective clothing for thermal hazards? 

Harmonized European standards for protective clothing have been developed as the preferred means of demonstrating equipment conformity with the basic health and safety requirements (BHSRs) of the EC Personal Protective Equipment Directive (89/686/EEC). 

BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1 specifies the determination of the arc rating (ELIM, ATPV and/or EBT) of clothing materials and of protective clothing using an open arc. It gives the minimum requirements for compliance for full-body personal protective ensembles, which need to be worn to avoid thermal hazards in the event of contact with an electric arc. 

As a result, BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1 is vital for European compliance if you are a manufacturer of electrical protective clothing. It helps you to ensure trust in the reliability of these protective suits by demonstrating their safety and effectiveness, and ultimately the protection of the emergency teams who use them.  

What’s changed since the last update? 

BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1:2019 supersedes BS EN 61482‑1‑1:2009, which is withdrawn. 

BS EN IEC 61482‑1‑1:2019 includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous edition: 

• Replacement of char length requirement in the scope by the indication that Procedure A is applicable for testing of materials meeting the limited flame spread requirements of IEC 61482-2, addition of the Incident energy limit (ELIM) as a further arc rating performance property value 
• Clarification of the definition and the meaning of the Stoll curve, modification of specification of the positioning of monitor sensors with respect to the electric arc as a function of intended high incident energy exposure of test specimens 
• Modification of specifications of monitor sensor construction, specification of black paint; elimination of calorimeters from the chest of the mannequin; specification for possible positioning of mannequin(s) at a height different from the centre of the electric arc and possible turning in order to adequately expose all parts of the garment or clothing which would affect performance 
• More explicit description of requirements for data acquisition system; preconditioning of the samples; modification of requirements for apparatus and arc exposure verification by bare shots 
• More explicit description of test procedures A and B, in particular, the subclauses dealing with “sequence of test”, “test parameter” and “test criteria”, the addition of determination of arc rating values of garments and/or garment assemblies.