4.7 Personal Protective Equipment

Question 1

The Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992 (PPE Regs.) define
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) as

Answer 1

“all equipment designed to be worn or held by a person at work to protect him against
one or more risks, and any addition or accessory designed to meet this objective.”

Question 2

The definition of PPE does not include:

Answer 2

 ordinary working clothes and uniforms not specifically designed to protect the
health and safety of the wearer;
 equipment used during the playing of competitive sports;
 self-defence or deterrent equipment; and
 portable devices for detecting and signalling risks and nuisances.

Question 3

To be suitable PPE must satisfy the following four criteria:

Answer 3

 appropriate for the risk(s), and the conditions where exposure may occur;
 take into account the ergonomic needs and health of the wearer;
 fit the wearer correctly; and
 be effective in preventing or controlling the risk involved without increasing the
overall risk (so far as is reasonably practicable).

Question 4

PPE is the last resort of control measures for the following reasons:

Answer 4

 it does nothing to prevent the harmful event;
 it only protects the wearer, not other persons in the vicinity;
 it relies on the wearer to wear it correctly;
 it may impede movement, visibility or communication;
 it may only be effective for a limited time, e.g. until a respiratory filter or chemical
gloves become saturated.
 It may only be effective in specific circumstances e.g. a respiratory filter is only
effective against specific contaminants;
 The effectiveness of PPE is difficult to assess but maximum levels of protection are
unlikely to be achieved;
 it exposes the wearer to danger should it fail; and
 it requires effective systems for regular inspection and maintenance.

Question 5

There are two broad categories of RPE –

Answer 5

respirators and breathing apparatus (BA).

Question 6

Respirators work by

Answer 6

filtering contaminants out of the air so that the wearer breathes
clean air.

Question 7

BA works by

Answer 7

delivering a supply of breathable air from a uncontaminated

source.