Personal protective equipment protection factor

Moran, J. B., Ronk, R. M. (1987). Personal Protective Equipment. In G. Salvendy (Ed.), Handbook of Human Factors. New York Wiley. 

Protection Factor The ratio of the concentration outside the personal protective equipment to the concentration inside the personal protective equipment. Measurement site are critical for proper determination (e.g., for a protective mask, the measurement inside the mask would be made at a subject s breathing zone, and the measurements outside the mask would be made in a corresponding zone). 

Equally important are supplementary safety measures like ventilation devices, personal protective equipment, overalls, etc. The efficiency of ventilation devices depends on the air circulating factor. The necessary air circulating factor is established in each case depending on the amount of harmful substances in air and their toxicity. In the production of silicone monomers and polymers the factor should not fall below 3 for especially harmful workshops, the factor should be as high as 20. 

The IMA, or contract physician, is responsible for establishing and supervising the medical surveillance system. Not all individuals working at the installation, or even in a particular work area, need to be on the same surveillance program. The type of work, work area, and required personal protective equipment are factors in determining the type and frequency of surveillance. 

Research and development in personal protective equipment has yielded vastly improved protection for the military and, to some extent, civilian first responders. However, the use of even the most up-to-date respirator is greatly restricted by the necessity of air monitoring, time of exposure limitations, and relatively low protection factors. Civilian first responders are also hampered by the weight, size, and heat of the protective suits. Aside from issues surrounding the equipment itself, policy and regulation also influence use and effectiveness of personal protective equipment. As listed below, the committee recommends that research and development continue to focus on better and more effective equipment, but also recommends that current policy and procedures be reviewed as well. 

A substantial portion of the budget of most safety and loss prevention professionals allows for the purchase of personal protective equipment for their employees, medical supplies, and professional services, as well as salary and benefits for staff. Virtually all of these costs are fixed but often possess an ongoing expense factor. Additionally, safety and loss prevention professionals are often faced with emergency situations and unforeseen costs requiring specific items on an immediate basis. In essence, safety and loss prevention can be expensive, but methods are available to manage these costs appropriately. 

So, causal factors originate when operations practices are less than adequate concerning work methods persoimel selection supervision personnel motivation training work scheduling management of change maintenance investigations inspections and personal protective equipment. 

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