The development history of PPE

Early PPE, such as armor, boots, and gloves, was designed to protect the wearer's body from harm. In the 16th century, European plague doctors, to prevent infection when dealing with plague patients, would wear protective clothing consisting of coveralls, helmets, glasses goggles, gloves, and boots for PPE. This garment is made of thick material wrapped in wax, which is waterproof. The beak-shaped mask is filled with fragrant flowers, herbs, and spices, which can be used to dispel the rancid smell that pre-science believes is the spread of diseases in the air, that is, miasma. In modern times, it is generally believed that high-tech personal protective equipment began with cloth masks promoted by Wu Liande during the Northeast Plague in 1910-1911, although some Western medical scientists doubted the effectiveness of masks in preventing the spread of diseases. So what is the development history of PPE?

This is the content list:

l Brief overview

l Respirator

l Hearing protection

Brief overview

With the development of PPE, PPE can be classified according to the body parts it protects, the types of disasters used, and the types of devices or accessories. Individual accessories, such as boots, can provide different types of protection: steel toe caps and insoles can protect your feet from being crushed or punctured, impermeable rubber and lining to prevent water and chemicals from intruding, high reflectivity, and heat resistance the performance can block and prevent radiant heat, and the high conductivity can prevent electric shock. The protective properties of each type of armor must be compared with the hazards that may occur in the workplace. More breathable armor may cause more pollution, but it will give users greater comfort.

Respirator

A respirator is a kind of PPE, used to protect users from inhaling pollutants in the air, and then protect the health of the respiratory tract. There are two types of respirators. A type used to filter chemical substances, poisonous gases, or suspended particles in the air inhaled by the wearer. The filter can be passive or electric. Gas masks and masks (such as N95 masks) fall into this category. Another type of respirator will provide clean, breathable air from other sources. Flight oxygen masks and self-contained breathing apparatus fall into this category. PPE needs to rely on respirators to work in environments with poor ventilation or other engineering control systems that are not feasible or inadequate. Surgical masks also belong to PPE, but because they cannot block the passage of sub-micron particles and the airflow at the edge of the mask is not restricted, it is not a respirator.

Hearing protection

With the continuous development of the economy and the development of PPE, industrial noise is generally regarded as an occupational hazard because it is invisible to the naked eye. Overall, approximately 22 million workers in the United States are exposed to potentially harmful noise levels each year. Occupational hearing loss accounted for 14% of all occupational diseases in 2007, and about 23,000 cases were enough to cause permanent hearing impairment. About 82% of occupational hearing impairment cases occur among workers in the manufacturing industry. In the United States, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has established occupational noise exposure standards. The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health in the United States recommends that workers' noise exposure levels within eight hours should be reduced to a level equivalent to 85 dBA, and PPE hearing protection can reduce the hearing loss caused by occupational noise. Hearing protection equipment in PPE includes earplugs and earmuffs. Workers who have long accepted noise exceeding the level recommended by the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health should be provided with hearing protection by their employers, which is also a low-cost intervention. The hearing protection adaptability test system can objectively measure the personal attenuation level. The effectiveness of PPE hearing protection differs depending on how it is used in training.

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