Safety Standards for Chainsaw PPE

A chainsaw is possibly the most dangerous tool used in the woods, moving at 55-60 miles per hour or about 88 feet per second. However, with the correct protective equipment, any user can be kept safe. 

It is essential that anyone using a chainsaw, either on or off the ground, is provided with and wears appropriate PPE. Non-chainsaw users may also need to wear appropriate PPE, for example, head, hearing, or eye protection as identified in the task risk assessment.

No personal protective equipment can ensure 100% protection against cutting from a hand-held chainsaw. Under laboratory conditions the tested chain saw cutting resistance is required for the front parts of the footwear (tongue and toe-cap area); even in these named areas cutting injuries are possible. Nevertheless, experience has shown that it is possible to design equipment which offers a certain degree of protection. Different functional principles, which may be applied in order to give protection, include:

• Chain slipping on contact, such that it does not cut the material
• Clogging fibres drawn by the chain into the drive sprocket to block chain movement
• Chain braking by use of fibres with a high resistance to cutting which absorb kinetic energy, thereby reducing chain speed. (Often more than one principle is applied)

Different levels of performance are available, denoting different levels of chainsaw resistance.

• It is recommended to select the PPE in line with the chainsaw speed.
• It is important that there is an overlap between the protective material within one garment and another, for instance, in trousers and boots.
• It is essential to complete a risk assessment prior to any work commencing.

Below is a brief outline of the standards cited on this website.

1. CHAINSAW TROUSERS

Designs of trousers:

2. CHAINSAW JACKETS

Designs of jackets:

Design A: 
Protective area the top of the garment, part-way down the front, and down part of the top of the arms.

Design B:
Protective area the top of the garment, all down the front, and down a considerable length of the top of the arms.

3. GENERAL CLOTHING

Protection levels:

The EN343 is a European safety standard set to specify a minimum level of protection required from your workwear and PPE against foul weather. This standard takes into consideration the entire garment, as well as its fabrication to judge the level of protection it provides the wearer.

The certification is split into two categories the first, X judges precipitation, fog, and ground humidity. The second, Y measures the garments breathability in those conditions. Consequently, these categories are then rated from 1-3, with 3 representing the highest level of protection or breathability. Therefore, a garment classified as EN343 3:3 means both the waterproofing and breathability are excellent providing the wearer with the highest level of protection from wind and rain.

4. HI-VIS' CLOTHING

Class 3 garments: Background material: 0.80 m2 Retroreflective material: 0.20 m2 Combined performance material: n/a.

Class 2 garments: Background material: 0.50 m2 Retroreflective material: 0.13 m2 Combined performance material: n/a.

Class 1 garments: Background material: 0.14 m2 Retroreflective material: 0.10 m2 Combined performance material: 0.20 m2

Note:
- The clothing class is determined by the lowest area of visible material.
- BS EN 20471 standard items must have a yellow or orange background. Hi-vis items of other colours will NOT conform to UK and EU standards for high visibility clothing.

5. RAIL APPROVED CLOTHING

Whereas the European standard permits several different colours of high visibility materials, the railway standard specifies an orange colour. These fluorescent garments for night-time visibility feature retroreflective tapes. Railway locomotive headlights pick out retro-reflective materials in high visibility clothing. Again, the railway standard draws on EN ISO 20471:2013 and specifies materials for use that meet the highest level of photometric performance criteria that are specified within the standard.

6. INDUSTRY-APPROVED SAFETY RATINGS

7. BOOTS & FOOTWEAR

BS EN ISO 20345:2022
Personal protective equipment. Safety footwear. Specifies requirements for general purpose. Includes mechanical risks, slip resistance, thermal risks, ergonomic behavior, etc. (Replaces: BS EN ISO 20345:2011).

Safety notice regarding penetration resistance:
Penetration resistant footwear is measured in the laboratory using truncated nail of 3mm dia. and force of 1100 N. Higher forces of nails of smaller diameter increase risk of penetration occurring. In such circumstances alternative preventative measures should be considered.

Note regarding insocks:
Testing was conducted with original insocks in place and should only be used with original insock in place.

8. GLOVES

Example
3142X (Levels for 'abrasion; cut; tear; puncture; extra cut, 'X' if not performed).

Types of gloves:

Type 1: Gloves include cut protection against cutting by hand-held chainsaws in both right- and left-hand gloves.

Type 2: Gloves include protection against cutting by hand-held chainsaws in the left-hand glove only; the right-hand glove doesn't include protection against hand-held chainsaws.

Designs of gloves:

BS EN ISO 21420:2020+A1:2022

Protective gloves. General requirements and test methods. (Replaces EN 420:2003+Al:2009).

This standard specifies the general requirements and relevant test procedures for glove design and construction, innocuousness, comfort, and efficiency, as well as the marking and information supplied by the manufacturer applicable to all protective gloves.