Clothing passes tough field test

In 2012 Versalis, which has 6000 employees on 14 production sites, produced more than 6.1 million tonnes of chemical products for the consumer and medical markets

The company, part of the ENI group, is underpinned by high ethical principles, and continuously seek to improve safety at work. This means that it prioritises health and safety, with particular emphasis on ensuring that its workers are supplied with appropriate protective clothing.

The 4000 employees working in and around chemical plants, pipelines and tanks, need to be equipped with multifunctional work clothes that protect against wind, rain, cold and the specific dangers associated with production sites. The protective clothing must satisfy strict requirements: to be as light, impermeable and breathable as possible for comfort and health of wearers; to satisfy the new protection criteria regarding open flames and sources of heat, and to ward off the hazard of electrically charged clothing. 

Francesco Del Litto, who heads up the safety division of QHSE management at Versalis says: "If we look at the specific technologies for the protective clothing to be used in future, we must aim at getting from them the best performance it is possible to achieve today.”

A comprehensive training regime alongside an integrated management system, has combined to greatly reduce accidents at work. The company worked in close collaboration with Gore to design innovative, multifunctional protective clothing and has implemented more than 100 specific techniques to enhance protection. These techniques make it possible to monitor the performance of safety materials in different ambient conditions and operations and they generate crucial data which help increase employee comfort and safety. Importantly, the company puts their in-house specifications ahead of economic considerations, the primary aim being to incentivise use by workers.

Testing

The company conducted a field test based on a careful analysis of the market and technological advancements in the selected materials in order to provide clothing meeting technical specifications. The test was carried out with real users in an everyday work environment, so it was possible to ascertain the quality of the work gear in terms of mandatory safety measures. 

The test was performed at the Versalis plant at Porto Marghera near Venezia, between early December 2012 and late January 2013, in difficult weather conditions: 23 employees wore light rain jackets made using GORE-TEX Heat & Flame with GORE PYRAD Fabric Technology, over thermal jackets for warmth. 

The field test results demonstrated the superior performance and reliability of this garment compared to the type of outfit that was used previously. Moreover, they demonstrated superior comfort, even in conditions where highly demanding outdoor work was performed. 77% of the test participants felt highly protected against bad weather, and the remaining 23% said the jacket offered sufficient and adequate protection; 66% of those surveyed confirmed that they felt perfectly dry even while conducting sweaty work. Of those surveyed, 82% classified the clothing as 'extremely comfortable' to 'comfortable'; and 96% maintained that the new type of clothing was better than the clothing they had been given previously.

Confirmation of specifications

Gore says its GORE-TEX Heat & Flame with GORE PYRAD Fabric Technology used in the jacket has been selected because the material is more effective in specific applications thanks to its many different functions: it grants protection against sources of heat, flames and electrostatic discharge, and offers a high degree of protection against atmospheric influences, a crucial property for people working outdoors. The tested garment meets European standards: EN 340 (Protective clothing, general requirements), EN 343, EN 342, EN 11612, covering protection against cold, heat and flames, and liquid chemicals, and EN 1149, for clothing with electrostatic properties. 

The field test has given Versalis solid confirmation of the technical specifications of the new work clothes, thus providing the company with a firm and lasting basis for making long-term investments in these innovative work clothes.