ISO 18640-2:2018/Amd 1:2019

Overview

ISO 18640-2:2018/Amd 1:2019 is an important international amendment to the ISO 18640-2:2018 standard, focusing on protective clothing for firefighters and its physiological impact. This amendment specifically addresses the determination of physiological heat load caused by the protective garments worn by firefighters. Recognizing the critical role of protective clothing in firefighter safety, this amendment refines environmental conditions and testing parameters to improve the accuracy and reliability of physiological impact assessments.

Maintained by the ISO technical committee ISO/TC 94/SC 14, which specializes in personal protective equipment for firefighters, this amendment enhances the original document by incorporating precise tolerances for environmental conditions and adjusting test temperature profiles for heat load determination.

Key Topics

• Physiological Heat Load Measurement
  The amendment provides updated guidelines for assessing how firefighter protective clothing influences the body’s heat stress under operational conditions.

• Environmental Condition Tolerances
  Precise tolerances are introduced for:

  • Ambient temperature: (20 ± 0.5) °C
  • Relative humidity: (50 ± 5) % HR
  • Wind speed: (1 ± 0.1) m/s
    These tight controls ensure consistent and reproducible testing conditions.

• Temperature Profile Adjustment
  The amendment revises the testing protocol by changing the steady-state temperature used during a 60-minute phase from 30 °C to 35 °C, reflecting more realistic heat stress scenarios firefighters encounter:

  • Prior: 60 min at 30 °C without sweating
  • Revised: 60 min at 35 °C without sweating

• Standard Development Process and Intellectual Property Notes
  The amendment was developed following ISO/IEC directives, emphasizing voluntary use and protection of intellectual property rights. It underlines the commitment to international collaboration and technical rigor in firefighter safety equipment standards.

Applications

• Firefighter Protective Clothing Design
  Manufacturers can utilize the amendment to better design garments that minimize physiological heat strain, improving performer comfort and safety during active firefighting operations.

• Safety Testing and Quality Assurance
  Testing laboratories can apply the updated environmental tolerances and temperature profiles to consistently evaluate and certify firefighter clothing, ensuring compliance with international safety requirements.

• Research and Development
  Researchers studying thermal stress in protective clothing can refer to this amendment to align experimental setups with internationally accepted testing protocols, enhancing study comparability.

• Firefighter Training and Health Monitoring
  Insights from physiological heat load measurements can inform training regimes and operational guidelines to reduce the risk of heat-related illness in firefighters during heat-intensive activities.

Related Standards

• ISO 18640-1 series – Covers additional aspects of firefighting protective clothing and physiological impact assessment.
• ISO/TC 94 standards – Broader set of international standards governing personal protective equipment for various hazardous environments.
• ISO 7933 – Ergonomics of the thermal environment-Analytical determination of heat stress using the predicted heat strain model, relevant for understanding physiological impacts.

Keywords: firefighter protective clothing, physiological heat load, ISO 18640-2 amendment, heat stress, thermal protective equipment, fire safety standards, environmental tolerances, protective garment testing, ISO standards for firefighters, heat strain assessment