High-visibility vests are under-appreciated and underestimated—especially in an industry such as construction.

Often, one of the biggest reasons why workers do not wear PPE is due to the simple fact that it does not fit their needs—either in overall comfort or functionality. When it comes to PPE, one size does not fit all, so with all the options available, it is more important than ever for safety managers to do their homework when identifying the PPE solutions that they will use to outfit their crews.

When it comes to PPE in the construction industry, many of the biggest manufacturers’ practices include copying the designs of safety products already on the market. This does nothing to help workers. Safety managers need to seek out solutions that are addressing user needs head-on through thoughtful, innovative product design matched with the right materials.

While all types of construction site PPE—from hearing protection to eye protection—have suffered from lack of innovation at one time or another, one category that stands out is high-visibility vests.

High-Visibility Vests & Workwear: Three Things to Watch Out For

Low visibility can be a serious danger on jobsites, which makes it especially important for companies to invest in high-quality vests and workwear. The ability to be seen is critical for worker safety, especially on construction sites where moving equipment is common. Despite their importance, though, the high-visibility vest space has been quite stagnant until recently when it comes to meaningful design updates for wearers. To make sure you are equipping your workers with the best high-vis vests that fit their needs, pay attention to these three areas of focus:

Overall Functionality. Now, more than ever, users expect more functionality than they ever did in the past. Previously, vest manufacturers were not designing their solutions with the features that wearers need most. This was in huge part, as we noted above, because they were simply copy/pasting designs already on the market or only making small, incremental updates to those designs. However, some newer manufacturers to the space are starting their research at the most important source—the wearer—and introducing solutions that directly address the needs of those wearers.Look for the following:

This article originally appeared in the September 2020 issue of Occupational Health & Safety.

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