What Does
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Mean?
Personal protective equipment (PPE) is safety apparel or paraphernalia that is used to protect personnel from dangerous conditions or hazardous materials in their work environment. Personal protective equipment is a category that covers a wide range of products. Selection of personal protective equipment used for a job is determined during application conception.
Corrosionpedia Explains Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
Personal protective equipment (PPE) encompasses many different types of safety items and apparel. Common types of PPE include safety glasses, gloves, safety shoes, earplugs and jackets. Less common, more job-specific examples of PPE include Tyvek suits, respirators, leather bibs, welding helmets, harnesses, hard hats and goggles.
The correct assortment of PPE is unique to the job being performed. For instance, a coating operation may require the use of a Tyvek suit, a respirator and latex gloves. While this may keep an employee safe during a coating operation, it would do more harm than good during a welding operation because the Tyvek suit and latex gloves would melt to the skin of the welder when sparks begin to fly, and the welder may also overheat in the suit.