The makers of structural personal protective equipment (PPE) continue to improve and evolve their turnout gear lines with the aim of providing the best protection for firefighters in gear that is ergonomic, lighter in weight without sacrificing safety, and as protective from carcinogens as possible.
Jeff Fackler, North American business development director of protective apparel for DuPont, says that with fires burning hotter and faster these days, five elements are driving the design of turnout gear to help reduce heat stress on firefighters. The first of these is ergonomic design and the use of stretch in fabrics, while the second is the incorporation of aramid filaments like DuPont™ Kevlar® in outer shells to provide a high level of strength, options to lower weight while keeping excellent flame protection, and DuPont™ Nomex® filament in thermal liner facecloths for improved durability and lubricity.
The third dimension of protection in outer shells is blending it with PBI, PBO, or other fibers with extremely high decomposition temperatures, which Fackler calls “thermally stable fabrics that maintain their integrity after exposure to flame environments and therefore have very good performance in extreme conditions such as our Nomex® Xtreme outer shells.”
The fourth element is improving the durability and strength of outer shell fabrics to sustain them through more frequent washings; DuPont Nomex included in outer shells has proven to provide superior wash durability and esthetics. The fifth dimension is using nonfluorinated finishes on the outer shells. He notes that DuPont Kevlar and DuPont Nomex can be incorporated into all those dimensions, as both ingredients are inherently flame resistant, with DuPont Kevlar optimized for strength and DuPont Nomex for flame-resistant textile applications like more comfort, mobility, and ergonomics.
Jian Xiang, DuPont’s global technology leader for protective apparel, notes that using DuPont Nomex Nano or Nomex NanoFlex in hoods and interfaces gives particulate and viral protective properties and still allows air and moisture to move in and out of the barrier.
Fackler points out that the thermal liner is where turnout gear gets at least 50% or more of the gear’s thermal protection. “The thermal liner facecloth needs to be flame resistant and durable and have high lubricity—that is, low friction so it slides over the body,” he says. “Spunlace Kevlar and Nomex are being used in a thermal liner. These typically have a facecloth with two layers of insulation: one of which is Spunlace and the second being Nomex Nano, which gives an [equivalent to] 30-point improvement in breathability (THL) and [equivalent to] 40% less bulk than a typical liner insulation with only Spunlace layers.”
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1 DuPont’s Nomex NanoFlex fiber is 1⁄100th the diameter of a human hair. (Photo 1 courtesy of DuPont.)
2 Lion offers the RedZone™ Contaminant Control Package on its turnout gear. (Photo 2 courtesy of Lion.)
3 MSA Globe’s structural turnout gear is available with the Globe Guard exposure reduction system. (Photo 3 courtesy of MSA Safety-Globe.)
4 Fire-Dex’s TECGEN71 structural turnout gear uses a Core CXP thermal liner of a Nomex facecloth married to a Nomex Kevlar Spunlace cloth. (Photo 4 courtesy of Fire-Dex.)
5 INNOTEX’s ENERGY turnout gear has a full motion design for an unrestricted range of motion. (Photo 5 courtesy of INNOTEX.)
Fackler adds, “Combining all of these elements together, you get a Nomex Xtreme performance solution that provides essential heat and flame resistance with the benefits of lighter weight, wash durability, abrasion resistance, softness, and comfort.”
Alysha Gray, fire PPE product marketing director for Lion, says Lion has been concentrating its PPE design efforts in dealing with overexertion, heat stress, and contamination while improving the comfort, safety, mobility, and durability of its garments. “One issue with turnout gear has been the hook and loop that starts to fail and fuzz out over time,” Gray says. “We’ve used vibratory waves to fuse their edges and also taken steps to mitigate the use of hook and loop like with our MagneTite™ closures on the storm flap, pocket flaps, collar, and fly.”
Gray notes that Lion also has launched with W.L. Gore an exclusive liner called CenterCut™ Plus. “It combines a moisture barrier and a thermal liner using Gore-Tex barrier technology and our IsoDri® system,” she says. “CenterCut Plus reduces heat stress and provides up to 30% more sustained thermal protection, even when wet, than a conventional liner system in a working fire.”
Lion also offers the RedZone™ Contaminant Control Package on its PPE, including a particulate-blocking hood with StedAir® Prevent to protect the head and neck from particulates, elasticized wrist shields and IsoDri knit wristlets with Nomex Nano Flex, a Nomex Nano composite elasticized band at the coat-to-pant interface, a one-zip closure guard, and an elasticized ankle shield and Nomex Nano Flex calf protector.
Derrick Mitsch, product line manager for MSA Safety, says MSA’s Globe® is continuing to focus on its Athletix® design and is applying key attributes into other PPE models. “Athletix uses a PBI stretch material in the 7-ounce range for its outer shell, where the jacket is composed of seven pieces instead of three as in a traditional jacket,” Mitsch points out. “That allows us to shape the jacket to the contour of the body, hugging it closer, which is offset by the stretch material and the Kevlar mesh thermal lining. These fabrics stretch when they are worked on the bias, which provides breathability and comfort.”
Mitsch says the Athletix pants also have an ergonomic design to allow them to move with the firefighter and are made of the same PBI stretch material. “The material is oriented so that it allows for a stretch across the knee, where a typical fabric might bind,” he notes. Globe PPE also is available with the Globe Guard™ exposure reduction system, Mitsch says, which is a two-layer material system that helps eliminate entry points for particulates, such as at the hem of the jacket and the pants, the hem of the cuff and the boot, the jacket cuff and gloves, the fly of the pant, and the torso of the jacket.
Michael Laton, vice president of global strategy and innovation for TenCate Protective Fabrics, says TenCate has launched Nomex Advanced TrueColor™ technology that delivers rich, dark shades for navy and other dark colors that stand up better to repeated launderings. TenCate also has developed a Titanium thermal liner facecloth that has inherent wicking technology to pull perspiration off the body. “Titanium is evaporative, softer, more flexible, doesn’t pill as much, and has better wicking ability,” Laton points out.
He says that TenCate does a lot of textile development in collaboration with PBI. “With PBI Peak 5, we incorporate a high-strength ENFORCE™ yarn that allows us to take the weight of outer shell material down from 7 ounces per yard to 5.6 ounces with the equivalent thermal performance and high strength,” Laton says. In addition, he says, PBI Flex 7 outer shell uses ENFORCE yard in a heavier weight outer shell where the weave structure was modified to make the fabric smoother and more flexible yet still rendering it stronger and more comfortable.
Todd Herring, vice president of product innovation and strategy for Fire-Dex, says Fire-Dex has been focusing on the materials that go into PPE as well as ergonomic design. “We’ve launched new composite combinations in thermal liners to drive heat loss numbers way down,” Herring observes. “Our TECGEN71 turnout gear uses a Core CXP thermal liner from Milliken, which is a one-layer Nomex facecloth married to a Nomex Kevlar Spunlace cloth. We also have the Safety Components Glide Ice one-layer thermal liner that marries the Spunlace cloth with Gore CrossTech™.”
Herring notes that Fire-Dex’s design of its FXR turnout gear also offers a wide range of contaminant protection, with particulate blocking options at the interface of the coat and the pant, the boot and cuff interface, and the cuff and glove interface. “We are in the R&D stages of the next generation of turnout gear using more advanced materials concepts,” Herring says. “We are looking at a completely new design to improve fit and mobility as well as significant improvement in breathability. We are in the early stages of testing and anticipate a product launch in the first half of 2023.”
6 Veridian uses the Max Shield system of particulate barrier protection, shown here at the cuffs of the turnout jacket. (Photo 6 courtesy of Veridian.)
7 Lakeland Fire’s Stealth turnout gear contours the sleeves in the shape of a human arm to allow movement without restriction. (Photo 7 courtesy of Lakeland Fire.)
Doug Dafler, director of sales for Veridian, says Veridian uses the Max Shield system to incorporate particulate barrier protection in its turnout gear. “Max Shield uses a gaiter made of Nomex with a StedAir 4000 moisture barrier encased in it with elastic sewn in,” Dafler says. “The gaiters are located in the cuffs of the coat and pant, and we also are designing a waist gaiter for our turnout gear. We also designed a radio cord protector flap that protects where the cord comes out from under the gear, exposing only the speaker mic.”
Eric Baker, director of sales for Lakeland Industries, says Stealth is Lakeland’s top line of turnout gear. “Many manufacturers are using lighter weight material, but we use design to take weight out of the gear,” Baker says. “We contour our coat so it turns in at the waist and back out at the hip for a more ergonomic design. Our sleeves are in the shape of a human arm, which allows the firefighter to move without restriction, and pleats in the upper arm, shoulder, and across the back allow for greater mobility and reach.”
With the Stealth pant, Lakeland has a radial pleated knee that curves across the top for greater range of motion and less wear fatigue, Baker says, a beveled waist design with higher back than front for more comfort, and no seam on the inside or outside of the pant lower leg. Stealth also uses Black Ops suspenders that have five adjustment points for various body types.
Lollie Gagnon, director of communications marketing and customer experience for INNOTEX, says her company’s ENERGY™ turnout gear has a full motion design for unrestricted range of motion, an enhanced mobility knee that minimizes climbing effort, and knee displacement during motion. The gear also has Durahem™ leg and sleeve hems made of polymer-coated aramid to lessen wear and tear, Airflow™ that’s a padding system providing a cushioning effect against the pressure of a SCBA, and an optimized outer shell and thermal barrier to provide increased comfort and reduce heat stress.
ALAN M. PETRILLO is a Tucson, Arizona-based journalist, the author of three novels and five nonfiction books, and a member of the Fire Apparatus & Emergency Equipment Editorial Advisory Board. He served 22 years with the Verdoy (NY) Fire Department, including in the position of chief.
