Nomex Flame Resistant Coveralls HRC2
NOMEX® flame resistant coveralls from Bulwark® are used by professionals in high risk occupations such as the Petrochemical industry, and by fire fighters, auto racers, military, and utilities personnel. Pictured here: Deluxe Coverall HRC2 (Product ID CEB2).
NOMEX® coveralls are made from flame resistant 9 oz. 100% cotton twill. They have an arc rating of ATPV 11.2 calories/cm2, meaning they can protect the wearer from an arc flash or arcing faults that pass through normal fabrics. The term HRC2 indicates the risk level of the occupations that typically use this coverall.
The Nomex coverall’s flame resistant property does not degrade, even after multiple washings. The coveralls’ fibers are unaffected by bleaches, solvents, and most acids (as long as it is not exposed for a long time to these chemicals) and generally has good resistance to alkalis. However, the fabric does not provide personal chemical protection to the wearer. Where chemical exposure is a hazard, appropriate specialized barrier garments should be selected.
NOMEX® is highly flame resistant and does not melt. The fiber decomposes between 700°-800°F. Although it is fire resistant and arc resistant, the NOMEX® coverall HRC2 is not recommended for use around any molten substances, welding operations, or in a critical static control application. It is especially important that NOMEX® garments NOT be put on or removed in a hazardous area due to static electricity.
The Bulwark NOMEX® coverall costs about five times as much as conventional 65% polyester/35% cottons, and about two times more than Flame Resistant cotton coveralls. But they also last 2-3 times longer than the conventional polyester cottons and 3-5 times longer than Flame Resistant cotton coveralls.
Flame Resistant Clothing
Flame resistant clothing will not provide significant protection from burn injury in the immediate area of contact with the ignition source. However, flame-resistant garments do provide protection against clothing ignition and sustained flame spread.
However, flame resistant garments should be immediately removed and replaced with clean FR apparel if they become fouled with flammable material. If laundering or dry cleaning cannot remove flammable contaminants, the contaminated garments should be completely removed from service.
Proper cleaning and maintenance of any flame-resistant garment is essential to remove potentially hazardous soils and avoid a build up of materials that could mask performance. This includes flammable soils and greases as well as other contaminants such as build up of hard water ions that can coat fibers with flammable material.
Always follow garment manufacturer’s care label recommendations and other published instructions or recommendations.
For cleaning and care of the specific flame resistant fabric your fr clothing is made of, please review the Bulwark Garment Care Bulletin.
Normal Everyday Fabrics
All fabrics made of untreated natural fibers and most synthetic fibers are combustible. It is normal and expected that they will ignite and continue to burn when exposed to an ignition source such as flame or electric arc. In fact, normal fabrics will continue to burn until they are extinguished or all flammable material is consumed. Yet, these normal fabrics meet flammability requirements.
There is a common misperception that untreated 100% cotton fabric is somehow “flame-resistant”. This is simply not true. While heavyweight untreated 100% cotton fabrics may be more difficult to ignite, they can and will ignite and continue to burn if exposed to an ignition source.
All manufactured garments are required to meet U.S. flammability standards, measuring ease of ignition and flame spread time. All non flame-resistant fabrics fit into one of three classes:
- CLASS 1: Normal flammability
- CLASS 2: Intermediate flammability
- CLASS 3: Rapid/Intense burning
All wearing apparel sold in the U.S. must meet Class 1 or Class 2 category requirements.
Flame Resistant Fabrics
Bulwark Flame Resistant Apparel
When work environments or occupations pose a risk of garment ignition and burning, flame-resistant apparel should be considered. Flame resistant (FR) fabrics and garments are intended to resist ignition, prevent the spread of flames away from the immediate area of high heat, and to self-extinguish almost immediately upon removal of the ignition source, primarily with the use of a flame retardant chemical.
Bulwark® is the leading producer of secondary flame-resistant apparel in North America. Bulwark® garments provide superior flame-resistant protection, comfort, and durability to thousands of workers in electrical utilities and the chemical, oil, gas, mining and petrochemical industries.
Marudas Uniforms is a preferred distributor of Bulwark FR apparel.
Chef Jacket with Thermometer Pocket
An important part of a chef uniform is the chef’s jacket or coat. It could either be a basic wrap-around smock, single or double breasted, or a simple short sleeved chef shirt. Chef jackets are available in a variety of colors. A chef’s coat could be in a plain solid color, checkered, or striped. You may choose a separate chef jacket for women or just a single unisex coat that would look good and fit well on both men and women. Chef jackets are made of a thick fabric that protects the chef from the extreme heat of the stoves in the kitchen. Long sleeves serve to protect chefs from hot liquid spills and oil spatters. The particular chef coat pictured here includes a specialized pocket on the sleeve to hold a thermometer as well as a left chest pocket.
Women's Chef Jacket
A unique feature of many chef Jackets is that they are reversible. They can be worn “inside out” to hide spills and stains. The buttons on most chef jackets are made of knotted cloth or pearl to withstand many industrial washing cycles. In addition, plastic buttons can melt or be warmed to a temperature where they change shape and become damaged. The chef jacket is highly functional, durable and comfortable which makes it a personal preference for most chefs.
Chefs Bistro Kitchen Apron
One of the most important parts of a chef uniform are kitchen aprons. Chef’s aprons are available in different colors and prints. But appearance should not take precedence over functionality. A “back of the house” cooking apron should sufficiently cover as much of the clothing as possible to protect it from stains and spills. A chef’s kitchen apron might also have deep pockets which could come in handy for keeping notes, orders, and other small items. This style Bistro Apron wraps around the waist with extra long ties across the top of the apron. It’s length falls below the knees to at least the mid-shin area. They are popular not just with chefs, but with servers as well.
Standard Bib Apron
Bib aprons work well in the kitchen area, for cooking or cleaning, as they cover the full front of the body. They have a wrap around the neck and waist. They are easy to wear, and easy to remove so that the wearer can quickly go from “back of the house” to the front where they are visible or even associating with customers. They come with or without pockets. These aprons are durable and feature a soil release finish for industrial wash care with strong, tubular braid ties. One size fits all comes in white, black, royal blue, navy blue, red, dark red, and hunter green. Food manufacturing companies often require their workers to wear aprons such as these for sanitation.
Chefs Bar Apron
Aprons are worn for a variety of purposes in the culinary industry. Not only do they protect clothing from stains and spills; they are worn for hygienic reasons, look professional as a consistent uniform worn by all food service staff, and are extremely functional. They can serve as a towel for hand-wiping, have pockets to hold various accessories, and be adjusted as needed for a comfortable fit.
Work wear uniforms commonly serve the purpose of easily identifying what you do, provide a professional appearance, and need to be comfortable while functional. Chef and kitchen uniforms, lab coats and medical scrubs, security guard and police officer pants and shirts, automotive coveralls, and housekeeping are just a few instances when a work wear uniform is important.
Workwear should also provide protection against the risk factors or occupational hazards of your job. Flame resistant clothing is one example of the protective workwear that saves lives and reduces injury from hazards like flash fire, molten metal splash or electrical arc flash. Bulwark FR is a popular quality brand of flame resistant apparel. Reflective high visibility apparel is another example; a safety measure for jobs in industries like road construction, surveying, forestry, warehouse and manufacturing, utilities and more. LiteFX is a well known “Hi Vis” clothing manufacturer.
Marudas Uniforms is a preferred distributor of the largest clothing manufacturer in United States, VF. We also offer a wide variety of other uniform and workwear apparel via a network of hundreds of manufacturers. But we do more than just sell apparel and uniform programs; we use our extensive knowledge and experience to work with you to help you get exactly what you need. We guarantee that not only will our products be of the best quality, but you will get them at the best prices.
Our goal with this blog is to educate and inform workers and their employers about the latest in safety, protection, functionality, and comfort in uniforms and work wear apparel.
