1.1 Scope. 1.1.1 This standard shall specify requirements for the design, performance, testing, and certification of nonprimary protective station/work uniforms and the individual garments comprising station/work uniforms. 1.1.2 This standard shall also specify requirements for the thermal stability of textiles used in the construction of station/work uniforms. 1.1.3 This standard shall also specify optional requirements for flame resistant textiles where such textiles are specified or claimed to be used in construction of station/work uniforms. 1.1.4 This standard shall not specify requirements for clothing that is intended to provide primary protection from given hazard exposures. 1.1.5* Certification of station/work uniforms to the requirements of this standard shall not preclude certification to additional applicable standards for primary protective clothing where the clothing meets all requirements of each standard. A.1.1.5 Station/work uniforms that are certified as compliant only with NFPA 1975 are not primary protective garments and cannot be relied on to provide protection from specific hazards, such as those encountered during structural or wildland fire fighting. Other standards are written for garments that provide primary protection for specific hazards to which fire fighters can be exposed while participating in emergency operations or training. However, compliant station/work uniforms could also be certified to another standard for primary protective garments and thus be both a primary protective garment for the specific hazard that the other standard addresses and a station/work uniform that is compliant with NFPA 1975. Station/work uniforms that receive such dual certification (to NFPA 1975 and to a primary protective garment standard) would always exceed the minimum requirements of NFPA 1975. Examples of primary protective garment standards include, but are not limited to, NFPA 1951, Standard on Protective Ensembles for Technical Rescue Incidents; NFPA 1977, Standard on Protective Clothing and Equipment for Wildland Fire Fighting; NFPA 1994, Standard on Protective Ensembles for First Responders to CBRN Incidents; and NFPA 1999, Standard on Protective Clothing for Emergency Medical Operations. 1.1.6 This standard shall not be construed as addressing all of the safety concerns associated with the use of compliant station/work uniform garments for their personnel. It shall be the responsibility of the persons and organizations that use compliant station/work uniform garments to establish safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use. 1.1.7 This standard shall not be construed as addressing all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with the use of this standard by testing facilities. It shall be the responsibility of the persons and organizations that use this standard to conduct testing of station/work uniform garments to establish safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to using this standard for any designing, manufacturing, and testing. 1.1.8* This standard shall not specify requirements for any accessories that could be attached to the certified product but are not necessary for the certified product to meet the requirements of this standard. A.1.1.8 Emergency response organizations are cautioned that accessories are not a part of the certified product but could be attached to the certified product by a means not engineered, manufactured, or authorized by the manufacturer. Emergency response organizations are cautioned that if the accessory or its means of attachment causes the structural integrity of the certified product to be compromised, the certified product might not comply with the standard for which it was designed, manufactured, and marketed. Additionally, if the accessory or its attachment means are not designed and manufactured from materials suitable for the hazardous environments of emergency incidents, the failure of the accessory or its attachment means could cause injury to the emergency responder. Because the aftermarket for certified product accessories is so broad, fire and emergency response organizations are advised to contact both the manufacturer of the accessory and the manufacturer of the certified product and verify that the accessory and its means of attachment are suitable for use in the intended emergency response environment. Emergency response organizations should seek and receive written documentation from both the accessory manufacturer and the manufacturer of the certified product to validate the following information: (1) The accessory for a certified product, and its attachment method, will not degrade the designed protection or performance of the certified product below the requirements of the product standard to which it was designed, manufactured, tested, and certified. (2) The accessory, when properly attached to the certified product, shall not interfere with the operation or function of the certified product, or with the operation or function of any of the certified product’s component parts. Users are also cautioned that the means of attachment of the accessory that fail to safely and securely attach the accessory to the certified product can cause the accessory to be inadvertently dislodged from the certified product and create a risk to the wearer or other personnel in the vicinity. 1.1.9 Nothing herein shall restrict any jurisdiction or manufacturer from exceeding these minimum requirements.

Report on Proposals (ROP) (PDF, 682 KB)

Report on Comments (ROC) (PDF, 686 KB)