Why is High Visibility Clothing Required for Industrial Workers?

by Liza smith Passionate Writer

High visibility clothing is designed to be easily spotted. The human eye best responds to those objects that are bright, large, and have some movement. Due to this reason, high visibility clothing has become necessary when it comes to workplace safety.

Why Is Bright Colour Used?

When the garment is the bright or attention-grabbing colour like fluorescent yellow or green, orange, red, they are visible from a long distance. Further, the strips of reflective material coloured with white and silver are used to enhance visibility. The material is helpful for the workers who are active during the night hours and work in the areas where the lighting conditions are not good. As these garments work in the areas with low-visibility lighting, the person wearing is visible without any effort.

High visibility vests are primarily used to make it easy for the drivers of heavy equipment to sport the workers who are on the road in the construction zones. The location and the configuration of the reflective material allow the driver to find out how the wearer is standing. Is the wearer-facing the driver or his back is visible? The reflective material must provide 360-degree visibility and there should be a gap of 50mm or less.

Reflectivity

Working conditions decide the color of the garment which the workers should be wearing. While working in daylight, the bright colors like fluorescent yellow or green are preferred over the dull colors. When working in low light, fluorescent, and reflective material are used. In the dark areas or night working conditions, glow in the dark material, high visibility clothing is used. It is retro-reflective, has phosphorescence, and comes in bright colors.

Material

The material of the high-visibility vests is light-weight and is easy for the workers to work in the usual way. Mostly the garments are made from the web or net-like mesh material. Mesh is used because of the ability to add some weight to the person, and it dries quickly if it becomes wet.

Fit

The garment should fit the wearer correctly. It should be fit and not too big or small. The improper fit could cause injury to the person wearing the vest. The garment should be fitted to the dress the person is going to wear on that day. It should be able to fit over the bulky clothing. No other clothing should block the high visibility clothing to ensure that the person is easily seen from a distance and is safe.

Safety

High visibility vests also offer a variety of options to make them customizable. It depends on the specific application, which may need that the vests have more pockets and closures than normal. The pockets can be inside and out and maybe designed for different reasons which could be holding a cell phone, tablets and drawings, and blueprints. The closures on the vests range from three different materials to include Velcro, zippers, and other breakaway designs.