ISO 11611 Protective Clothing for Welding and Related Processes

The "ISO 11611 Protective clothing for welding and related processes" standard, developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), describes the minimum safety requirements and test methods for protective clothing, including hoods, aprons, arm guards and gaiters, designed to protect the body of the user, including the head and feet, and to be worn during welding and related processes with similar risks.

Designed to protect the user's head and feet, this standard applies only to hoods and gaiters. This standard does not include requirements for foot, hand, face or eye protection. This type of protective clothing is designed to protect the user against the following hazards:

• Risk level 2: spatter (small splashes of molten metal), short contact time with flame, radiant heat from an electric arc used in welding and related processes
• Harmful artificial optical radiation (UV-A, UV-B and especially UV-C) in 3 risk levels during welding and related processes
• Minimizes the possibility of electric shock from brief, accidental contact with live electrical conductors at voltages up to approximately 100 V direct current (DC) under normal welding conditions. Sweat, dirt or other contaminants may affect the level of protection provided against brief, accidental contact with live electrical conductors at these voltages.

The main manual welding processes are illustrated and classified into process groups according to the maximum effective total radiation intensity measured and evaluated for these types of welding processes. For adequate general protection against the risks to which welders are likely to be exposed, personal protective equipment covered by other standards should be worn in addition to those covered by other standards to protect the head, face, hands and feet.

This standard does not apply to laser welding processes (coherent, monochromatic radiation sources). Guidance on the selection of protective clothing for different welding activities is detailed in the annex to this standard (Annex B).

For the purposes of this standard, the following terms and definitions apply:

• Aging refers to changes in product performance over time during use or storage. Aging results from a combination of factors. For example, cleaning, maintenance or disinfection, exposure to visible or ultraviolet radiation, exposure to high or low temperatures or changing temperatures, exposure to chemicals including humidity, exposure to biological agents such as bacteria, fungi, insects or other pests, exposure to mechanical effects such as abrasion, flexing, pressure and strain, exposure to contaminants such as dirt, oil, molten metal splash or wear and tear.
• Allied processes refer to processes of similar types and risk levels to welding.
• Artificial optical radiation refers to optical radiation from artificial light/radiation sources over a wide range of wavelengths across the total electromagnetic spectrum, from the deep ultraviolet (UV) through the visible spectrum (VIS) and into the infrared (IR) range. The classification is made into coherent radiation sources (narrow-band monochromatic radiation from lasers) and incoherent radiation (broad-band multichromatic radiation from all other artificial light sources except lasers).
• Cleaning is the process of making an item of personal protective equipment reusable or hygienically wearable by removing dirt or contamination. A cleaning cycle is usually a wash plus drying or dry cleaning process, followed by ironing or other finishing if necessary.
• A clothing assembly is a series of garments arranged in the order they were worn. They may include multi-layered materials, combinations of materials, or a series of individual garments in single layers.
• Component assembly is the combination of all materials and hardware presented in the same manner as the completed garment structure.
• Conditioning is the holding of samples at standard temperature and relative humidity conditions for a minimum period of time.
• Gaiters are removable covers designed to protect the leg part below the knee, and can also cover the upper surface of the shoe.
• Welding refers to the process used to join metal components and involves localized melting of the metal.
• Welding time refers to the effective time during which the arc burns during the welding process (active arc time) or the time during which people are within the working range of the burning arc (exposure time).

General requirements not specifically addressed in this standard shall comply with the standard “ISO 13688 Protective clothing - General requirements”. Welders' protective clothing shall be designed to prevent electrical conduction from outside to inside, for example through metal fasteners. Compliance shall be checked by visual inspection.

Welders' protective clothing must cover the upper and lower body, neck, arms to the wrists, and legs to the wrists. This clothing must consist of:

• A single garment, such as a jumpsuit or a pair of overalls
• A two-piece garment consisting of a jacket and a pair of trousers

Pleats on the outer surface of the garment can act as holding points for hot/molten materials. If the garment has pleats, the undersides of the pleats should include a means of preventing the retention of molten metal, such as by adding cross stitching or other features.

Garment sizes shall comply with the requirements of ISO 13688. When protection conforming to the requirements of this standard is provided by an outer two-piece suit, it shall be determined that, when correctly sized for the wearer, there is overlap between the jacket and trousers when the wearer, standing, first fully extends both arms above the head and then bends over until the fingertips touch the floor. Fit shall be checked by visual inspection, including fit assessment and physical measurement when the wearer is wearing the appropriately sized garment. The wrists, lower arms and ankles shall also remain covered in an upright and raised arms-up position. This also applies to one-piece suits.

Welders' protective clothing may be designed to provide additional protection against heat and flame, harmful UV radiation and electric shock for certain body parts when worn in addition to a suit in accordance with this standard. Aprons shall cover the front torso of the wearer at least from side seam to side seam. In the case of hoods, manufacturers shall specify special visors to be built into the hood. Performance testing of additional protective clothing shall be carried out on an assembly consisting of the suit plus additional protective clothing.

Our organization, which has been trying to support businesses from every sector with its testing, measurement, analysis and evaluation studies carried out in a wide range for years, has a strong staff that closely follows the developments in the world in the field of science and technology and constantly improves itself. In this context, testing services in accordance with the "ISO 11611 Protective clothing used in welding and related processes" standard are also provided to businesses.