ANTISTATIC, INSULATING AND ESD SEEM LIKE DIFFICULT TERMS, BUT DO THEY NEED TO BE? NOT AT ALL! Once you have a better understanding of the differences, you will be able to make better decisions about personal protective equipment for your employees.

What do these terms mean - when are they important and what is the best protection you can offer?

Antistatic

This term indicates that a material cannot become statically charged.

As you move, static charge is mainly caused by friction between clothing and another surface. This can be your body, other garments or even the upholstery of the chair.

You don't want these charges to accumulate. On the contrary, these charges need to be discharged as quickly as possible. It is not the charge itself that is dangerous, but it’s the potential discharge. Just think of when you take off your fleece sweater by pulling it over your head on a winter's day.

Sparks are created by this discharge, which can be life-threatening in explosion-risk areas. For example, the smallest spark could cause a disastrous explosion in explosive atmosphere or ATEX (ATmosphères EXplosibles) environments.

How to protect yourself against the risk of explosion caused by static discharge:

• Wear antistatic work clothing that complies with EN 1149-5. This clothing allows charges to dissipate.This is the reason clothing manufacturers use metal or carbon fibres. In coated materials, an antistatic product is added to the coating layer.
   
• Choose antistatic work shoes. All work shoes from category S1 onwards (including S1P, S2 and S3), have antistatic properties.
   
• Wear an ATEX designated version of head, hearing and face protection. The electronics in this version of PPE are antistatic.

ESD

There are several variations of ESD:

• Electrostatic Sensitive Device
   
• ElectroStatic Discharge

In fact, these all refer to the same thing.

Similar to antistatic, ESD also aims to dissipate charges as quickly as possible to prevent static discharge.

The difference here is that the protection of a product or a production process is foremost, rather than the protection of a person. In principle, an ESD product should not be considered to be PPE.

In companies where people work with microchips or very sensitive equipment, for example, it is best to choose ESD products. Even the smallest discharge could cause damage.

How to protect sensitive products against ESD?

• Wear clothing that prevents electrostatic discharge from damaging components. The antistatic (conductive) fibres in this type of clothing prevent the accumulation of charges. (EN 61340-5-1)
   
• Criteria for the resistance of the soles of ESD work shoes are in the same area as antistatic work shoes, only more stringent (3.5x10⁷ ohm). Make sure your shoes are ESD approved.
   
• There is currently no specific standard for ESD gloves. The products you find on the market have been tested according to EN 1149-5, or the most recent standards for antistatic gloves: EN 16350.

Insulating

In a sense, an electrically insulating material is the opposite of an antistatic material. The properties of the material prevent the dispersion of charges, so that no electric current can pass through the material.

If you are working with electricity, you want to disconnect the electrical circuit you are working on. If this is not possible, you must insulate yourself. In other words, you want high resistance as charges always choose the path of least resistance.

Good examples are an electrician standing on a rubber mat, or the rubber soles of electrically insulating boots.

Please note: A different method applies with live-line working (high voltage under current).

How to protect yourself against electrocution?

• Wear a helmet that protects you from electric shocks. The 440 V A.C. mark indicates that you are protected against this voltage. Some safety helmets protect you against 1000 volts. This is indicated on your helmet by a double triangle.
   
• Wear insulating gloves made of thick latex or composite. Classes 00 to 4 indicate to what voltage they have been tested.
   
• Insulating work shoes prevent charges from passing through your body to earth. Not only is the resistance of the sole tested, but that of the entire shoe. Class 00 shoes are intended for work up to 500 V AC or 750 DC. Class 0 shoes are for work up to 1000 V AC or 1500 V DC.

Conclusion

Although many people confuse these concepts, they have much less in common than you might think.

An antistatic material prevents sparks and explosions, ESD is product protection, and an insulating material protects you against electric shocks.

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