Safety shoes Standards

Standards and Directives

Of course, based on regulation (EU) 2016/425 on personal protective equipment (PPE) our products meet all the necessary standards, and not just that – we always require that little bit more from our products. This ensures the extra safety that our customers – rightly – expect from us.

EN ISO 20345 – Personal protective equipment, safety shoes

The standard EN ISO 20345 defines both the basic and additional requirements for safety shoes for commercial use. Footwear in accordance with EN ISO 20345 is intended to protect the wearer from bumps, crushing, falling or rolling objects, from walking into sharp or pointed objects, heat or cold, and hot substances.

Examples of aspects dealt with in the standard are handling mechanical risks, slip resistance, thermal risks and ergonomic properties. Additional standards relating to individual activities deal with risks in relation to footwear with electrical insulation, for example, and shoes to protect against chemicals, etc.

All changes to the DIN EN ISO 20345 standard can be found here:

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The basic requirements described in EN ISO 20345 include:

  • height of the upper
  • heel area on boots
  • minimum length, pressure and bump impact resistance of the toe cap
  • water vapour permeability and water vapour number of the upper
  • outsole thickness and abrasion resistance of the outsole

Safety footwear is divided into different protection classes depending on the requirements fulfilled. The safety footwear in protection class SB fulfil the minimum requirements in accordance with EN ISO 20345. Safety footwear with additional requirements are divided into protection classes S1 to S5 depending in the properties

Labelling

The labelling on the shoe contains the following information:

  1. Manufacturer
  2. CE symbol
  3. Manufacturer’s type designation
  4. Article number
  5. Size
  6. Number of European standard
  7. Symbol for protection
  8. Date of manufacture
  9. Country of Manufacture
  10. Postal address of the manufacturer
  11. UKCA symbol

Footwear symbols for industrial usage

Basic requirements/additional requirements/categories e.g. for leather shoes Safety footwear
EN ISO 20345
Occupational footwear
EN ISO 20347
Basic requirements for shoes and impact resistance of toecaps SB
200 Joule
OB
no requirement
Additional requirements:
Closed seat region
Antistatic properties
Energy absorption of seat region
Fuel resistance
S1 O1
(without resistance to fuels)
Additional requirements: as above, plus water penetration and absorption S2 O2
Additional requirements: as above, plus
Penetration resistance*
Cleated outsole
S3 O3
Basic requirements/additional requirements/categories e.g. for shoes made from PVC or PU    
Basic requirements for shoes and impact resistance of toecaps SB
200 Joule
OB
no requirement
Additional requirements:
Antistatic properties
Energy absorption of seat region
Fuel resistance Penetration resistance*
Cleated outsole
S5 O5
The choice of a particular shoe depends on the type of occupational risk. As with all footwear, additional requirements may exist (e.g. in terms of heat and cold insulation, penetration resistance or electrical resistance via ESD). These shoes are then marked accordingly. The testing principles for all basic and additional requirements are specified in EN ISO 20344.

One of the three following requirements must be met and labelled in the shoe:

Label Characteristics tested Test conditions Friction coefficient
SRA Slip resistance on ceramic tile floors with sodium lauryl sulfate solution (SLS) Forward slip of the heel
Forward slip on a flat surface
No less than 0.28
No less than 0.32
SRB Slip resistance on steel floors with glycerol Forward slip of the heel
Forward slip on a flat surface
No less than 0.13
No less than 0.18
SRC Slip resistance on ceramic tile floors with sodium lauryl sulfate solution and on steel floors with glycerol Includes all test conditions cited under a. and b.  

Additional requirements for special applications with corresponding symbols

Symbol Risk covered EN ISO 20345 EN ISO 20347
SB S1 S2 S3 S5 OB O1 O2 O3
Basic
P Penetration resistance*
A Antistatic footwear
E Energy absorption around heel
HI Heat insulation
CI Cold insulation
WRU Water resistance of upper      
HRO Heat resistance of outsole (+300 °C/min)
WR Whole shoe waterproof  
M Metatarsal protection
FO Resistance to oil and petrol

 

=> Meets the specific requirement
=> Requirement can be met but is not stipulated

* Penetration resistance

Warning – Please note that the penetration resistance of this footwear has been measured in the laboratory using a truncated nail of diameter 4.5 mm and a force of 1,100 N. Higher forces or nails of smaller diameter will increase the risk of penetration occurring. In such circumstances alternative preventative measures should be considered.
Two generic types of penetration resistant insert are currently available in PPE footwear. These are metal types and those from non-metal materials. Both types meet the minimum requirements for penetration resistance of the standard marked on this footwear but each has different additional advantages or disadvantages including the following:

Metal: Is less affected by the shape of the sharp object/hazard (i.e. diameter, geometry, sharpness) but due to shoemaking limitations does not cover the entire lower area of the shoe.

Non-metal: May be lighter, more flexible and provide greater coverage area when compared with metal but the penetration resistance may vary more depending on the shape of the sharp object/hazard (i. e. diameter, geometry, sharpness). For more information about the type of penetration resistant insert provided in your footwear please contact the manufacturer or supplier detailed on these instructions.