ISO/DIS 14116.2:2025(en)

ISO/TC 94/SC 13

Secretariat: SNV

Date: 2024-11-15

Protective clothing — Protection against flame — Limited flame spread materials, material assemblies and clothing

Vêtements de protection — Protection contre la flamme — Matériaux assemblages de matériaux et vêtements à propagation de flamme limitée

© ISO 2024

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Contents

Foreword iv

Introduction vi

1 Scope 1

2 Normative references 1

3 Terms and definitions 2

4 General and design requirements 5

5 Sampling, pre-treatment and ageing 6

5.1 Sampling 6

5.2 Pre-treatment of material 6

5.3 Ageing 6

5.4 Conditioning 6

6 General performance requirements 6

6.1 Limited flame spread 6

6.2 Physical requirements 8

6.3 Tensile Strength 8

6.4 Tear strength 8

6.5 Burst strength for knitted materials and seams 8

6.6 Seam strength 8

6.7 Dimensional change of textile materials 8

7 Classification 9

7.1 Requirements for limited flame spread index 1 9

7.2 Requirements for limited flame spread index 2 9

7.3 Requirements for limited flame spread index 3 9

8 Marking 10

8.1 Final index 10

8.2 Single-layer materials 10

8.3 Material assemblies 10

8.4 Garments 10

9 Information supplied by the manufacturer 11

Annex A (normative) Uncertainty of measurement 12

Annex B (normative) Determination of property values for rating and classification 14

Annex C (informative) Risk assessment 15

Annex ZA (informative) Relationship between this European Standard and the essential requirements of Regulation (EU) 2016/425 aimed to be covered 16

Bibliography 20

Foreword

ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work. ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of electrotechnical standardization.

The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the different types of ISO document should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).

ISO draws attention to the possibility that the implementation of this document may involve the use of (a) patent(s). ISO takes no position concerning the evidence, validity or applicability of any claimed patent rights in respect thereof. As of the date of publication of this document, ISO had not received notice of (a) patent(s) which may be required to implement this document. However, implementers are cautioned that this may not represent the latest information, which may be obtained from the patent database available at www.iso.org/patents. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.

Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not constitute an endorsement.

For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.

This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 94, Personal safety - Personal protective equipment, Subcommittee SC 13, Protective clothing, in collaboration with the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) Technical Committee CEN/TC 162, Protective clothing including hand and arm protection and lifejackets, in accordance with the Agreement on technical cooperation between ISO and CEN (Vienna Agreement).

This third edition cancels and replaces the second edition (ISO 14116:2015), which has been technically revised.

The main changes are as follows:

— number of samples or test specimens required for testing specified in each relevant clause;

— throughout the document ‘zippers’ changed to ‘slide fasteners’;

— tear strength requirement for nonwovens aligned with wovens at 7,5 N;

— dimensional change of textile materials defined for woven materials versus knitted, nonwoven materials and quilted liners;

— correction made to burst strength in 6.5 related to 7,3 cm² test area. Corrected from 200 kPa to 260 kPa based on Pascal's law; a diameter of 50 cm² is 7,98 cm, and a diameter of 7,3 cm² is 3,05 cm. The ratio of the diameter is 2,61;

— expanded guidance on uncertainty of measurement in Annex A;

— risk assessment is described in Annex C;

— addition of Table ZA.2 to Annex ZA;

— updated bibliography.

Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.

Introduction

The purpose of this document is to provide minimum performance requirements for clothing in order to reduce the possibility of the clothing and/or its materials burning when in occasional and brief contact with small flames and thereby, itself constituting a hazard.

For complete protection against exposure to flame, it will be necessary to protect the head, face, hands, and/or feet with suitable PPE and, in some cases, appropriate respiratory protection might also be considered necessary.

Attention is drawn to ISO/TR 2801:2007,^[1] which sets out guidelines for selection, use, care, and maintenance of protective clothing against flame.

Nothing in this document is intended to restrict any jurisdiction, purchaser, or manufacturer from exceeding these minimum requirements.

Protective clothing — Protection against flame — Limited flame spread materials, material assemblies and clothing

This document specifies the performance requirements for the limited flame spread properties of all materials, all material assemblies, and protective clothing in order to reduce the possibility of the clothing burning when in occasional and brief contact with small flames and thereby constituting a hazard. Additional requirements for clothing are also specified, including design requirements, mechanical requirements, marking, instructions and information supplied by the manufacturer.

When protection against heat hazards is necessary, in addition to protection against flame, this document is not applicable International Standards such as ISO 11612^[2] are used instead.

A classification system is given for materials, material assemblies, and garments which are tested according to ISO 15025:2016, Procedure A.

The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.

ISO 3759, Textiles — Preparation, marking and measuring of fabric specimens and garments in tests for determination of dimensional change

ISO 5077, Textiles — Determination of dimensional change in washing and drying

ISO 9073‑4, Nonwovens — Test methods — Part 4: Determination of tear resistance by the trapezoid procedure

ISO 13688, Protective clothing — General requirements

ISO 13934‑1, Textiles — Tensile properties of fabrics — Part 1: Determination of maximum force and elongation at maximum force using the strip method

ISO 13935‑2, Textiles — Seam tensile properties of fabrics and made-up textile articles — Part 2: Determination of maximum force to seam rupture using the grab method

ISO 13937‑2, Textiles — Tear properties of fabrics — Part 2: Determination of tear force of trouser-shaped test specimens (Single tear method)

ISO 13938‑1, Textiles — Bursting properties of fabrics — Part 1: Hydraulic method for determination of bursting strength and bursting distension

ISO 13938‑2, Textiles — Bursting properties of fabrics — Part 2: Pneumatic method for determination of bursting strength and bursting distension

ISO 15025:2016, Protective clothing — Protection against flame — Method of test for limited flame spread

For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions apply.

ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:

— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https://www.iso.org/obp

— IEC Electropedia: available at https://www.electropedia.org/

3.1

ageing

change of the product performance over time during use or storage

Note 1 to entry: For example

— cleaning, maintenance, or disinfecting process;

— exposure to visible light and/or ultra-violet radiation;

— exposure to high or low temperatures or to changing temperatures;

— exposure to chemicals, including humidity;

— exposure to biological agents such as bacteria, fungi, insects or other pests;

— exposure to mechanical action such as abrasion, flexing, pressure and strain;

— exposure to contaminants such as dirt, oil, splashes of molten metal, etc.;

— exposure to wear and tear.

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023,^[3] 4.6.13]

3.2

cleaning

process by which garment is made serviceable and/or hygienically wearable again by removing any dirt or contamination

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.6.16]

3.3

cleaning cycle

washing plus drying or dry cleaning treatment followed, if required, by ironing or finishing

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.6.17]

3.4

conditioning

one or more operations intended to bring a sample or test specimen into a state of equilibrium with regard to temperature and humidity

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.6.14]

3.5

garment

single item of clothing

Note 1 to entry: The term "garment" is intended for referring to the product.

Note 2 to entry: The garment may consist of single or multiple layers.

EXAMPLE Trousers, jacket, coats, gloves (4.5.5), gaiters (4.5.11), socks, etc.

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.1.2]

3.6

garment assembly

series of garments (3.5) arranged in the order as worn

Note 1 to entry: It may contain multilayer materials, material combinations, or a series of separate garments in single or multiple layers.

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.3.30]

3.7

hardware

non-fabric integral part, object, or the like of a garment (3.5)

Note 1 to entry: Hardware includes those made of metal or plastic, e.g. fasteners (such as buttons, slide fasteners, touch and close fasteners or hook and loop fasteners), rank markings.

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.3.26, with examples of fasteners added in Note 1 to entry]

3.8

hole

break in original structure of the test specimen’s fabric in any dimension and having a continuous perimeter caused e.g. by melting, glowing or flaming

Note 1 to entry: Hole includes particularly any opening, break, or discontinuity of any size in the original structure of the test specimen’s fabric caused by application of the test flame.

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 6.5.11 with Note 1 to entry added]

3.9

interlining

layer between the outermost layer and the innermost lining in a multilayer garment (3.5)

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.3.8]

3.10

limited flame spread index

number indicating that the material (3.11) or material assembly (3.12) has achieved a specific level of performance

Note 1 to entry: See Clause 7.

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 6.5.27, Note 1 to entry added]

3.11

material

substances, excluding hardware (3.7), of which a garment (3.5) is made

3.12

material assembly

component assembly

combination of all materials of a multi-layer garment (including hardware (3.7) presented exactly as the finished garment (3.5) construction

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.3.28]

3.13

material combination

material (3.11) produced from a series of separate layers, fixed together during the garment (3.5) manufacturing stage

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.3.29]

3.14

multilayer material

material (3.11) consisting of different layers intimately combined prior to the garment (3.5) manufacturing stage

Note 1 to entry: Garment manufacturing stages are, for example, weaving, quilting, coating and gluing.

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.3.7]

3.15

outer material

outermost material of which the garment (3.5) is made

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.3.27]

3.16

pocket linings

pieces of fabric that form the inside sections of pockets

3.17

pre-treatment

standard way of preparing items before testing

Note 1 to entry: This might include e.g. a number of cleaning cycles, submitting items (samples, test specimens, garments, etc.) to heat, mechanical action or any other relevant exposure and is finished by conditioning.

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.6.15]

3.18

sample

item or portion of an item taken from a production lot for testing purposes

3.19

seam

permanent fastening between two or more pieces of material by sewing and/or any other methods

Note 1 to entry: The other methods can be welding, taping, etc

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.4.1]

3.19.1

structural seam

seam (3.19) that is necessary for the integrity of the garment (3.5)

[SOURCE: ISO 11610:2023, 4.4.2]

3.20

test specimen

single item or part of an item taken from a sample used for a test

Note 1 to entry: A garment (sample) intended to be tested can be the test specimen itself when tested as a whole. From a garment (sample), pieces of fabric(s) or component assembly can be the test specimens.

4.1 General requirements which are not specifically covered in this document shall be in accordance with ISO 13688.

NOTE The end user should consider to perform a risk assessment according to Annex C.

4.2 Protective clothing may consist of several separate garments or it may be a single garment with one or more layers.

4.3 Single layer garments containing limited flame spread index 1 materials, should be worn over index 2 or index 3 garments and should not come into contact with the skin (e.g. in the neck and wrist area). If an assembly contains index 1 materials, those should not come into contact with the skin (e.g. in the neck and wrist area).

It shall be verified by visual inspection when the garment is worn by an appropriate user.

4.4 Hardware penetrating the outer material of a protective garment or garment assembly shall not be exposed to the innermost surface of the garment or the garment assembly.

Conformity shall be checked by visual inspection.

4.5 Where garments are constructed with pockets, the pockets and pocket linings shall be made of material(s) conforming to 6.1.2 and 6.1.3.

4.6 Closures shall be designed with a protective cover flap on the outside of the garment. The maximum distance between buttonholes/press studs shall be 150 mm.

4.7 If slide fastenings are used, the slide fastener shall be designed in such a way that they completely cover the closure of the pocket it should give access to. The slider shall be designed to automatically lock when no force is applied to the tab pull.

4.8 An outer two piece suit, when correctly sized for the wearer, shall provide an overlap between the jacket and trousers which remains when one standing wearer firstly fully extends both arms above the head and then bends over until the fingertips touch the ground. In addition, the wrists and lower arms shall also remain covered in an upright position with arms hanging down; this shall also apply to one piece suits.

The number of samples or test specimens to be tested shall be as specified in Clause 6. Test specimens for testing shall be taken from the original garment or shall be representative of the component assembly.

Before each test specified in Clause 6, the test materials and test specimens shall be pre-treated by cleaning. If the manufacturer’s instructions and information indicates that cleaning is not allowed, then testing shall be carried out on new material. In addition, 6.1 requires that the limited flame spread tests shall be carried out both before and after the pre-treatment.

The cleaning shall be in line with the manufacturer’s instructions and information, on the basis of standardized processes. If the number of cleaning cycles is not specified, the tests shall be carried out after five cleaning cycles (a cleaning cycle is one wash and one dry cycle). This shall be reflected in the information supplied by the manufacturer. If the garment can be washed and dry-cleaned, it shall only be washed. If only dry-cleaning is allowed, the garment shall be dry-cleaned in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions and information.

NOTE Manufacturer’s instructions and information typically indicates one or several of the various methods and processes of ISO 6330:2021,^[4] ISO 15797:2017,^[5] ISO 3175‑2:2017,^[6] or equivalent as standardized processes for cleaning.

In the case that the garment should be submitted to some treatment to maintain its limited flame spread property as specified in Clause 7, the manufacturer shall indicate in the information supplied the maximum number of cleaning cycles that can be carried out before applying the treatment indicated to maintain the garment protective performance. Limited flame spread test according to Clause 7 shall be carried out after the last cleaning cycles before any treatment as indicated by the manufacturer; before and after any treatment the garment shall comply with the requirement.

Test specimens shall be conditioned for at least 24 h in an atmosphere having a temperature of (20 ± 2) °C and a relative humidity of (65 ± 5) %. Testing shall be carried out within 5 min of removal from this atmosphere.

6.1.1 Limited flame spread index quoted shall be the lowest value determined either before or after pre-treatment specified in 5.2.

6.1.2 All single layer materials used in a single layer garment claiming compliance with this document shall achieve a limited flame spread index of 1, 2, or 3 (see Clause 7) when tested in accordance with ISO 15025:2016, Procedure A (surface ignition), before and after the pre-treatment in accordance with Clause 5.2. The flame shall be applied to the outer face.

6.1.3 All material assemblies and multilayer materials claiming conformity with this document shall achieve a limited flame spread index of 1, 2, or 3 (see Clause 7) when tested in accordance with ISO 15025:2016, Procedure A, before and after the pre-treatment.

a) The material assembly shall achieve a limited flame spread index of 1, 2, or 3 when tested in accordance with ISO 15025:2016, Procedure A with the flame applied to the outer face and index 2 or index 3 with the flame applied to the inner face of the assembly (in this case, additional sets of test specimens are needed).

b) Or, each layer of a material assembly shall comply with index 1, index 2 or index 3 when tested with the flame applied to the outer face, except the innermost layer which shall comply with index 2 or index 3.

c) When the assembly is a clothing assembly, the materials of each garment of the assembly shall comply with 6.1.2 or 6.1.3, as applicable. Clothing worn close to the body shall correspond to index 2 or index 3.

6.1.4 For seams, three test specimens containing a structural seam shall be tested in accordance with ISO 15025:2016, Procedure A. Test specimens shall be oriented with the seam running up the centreline of the test specimen so that the burner flame impinges directly upon the seam. Test specimens containing a seam shall meet, respectively, limited flame spread index 1, index 2 or index 3 requirements and for limited flame spread 2 or 3, the test specimen shall not separate at the seam. Seams shall be tested only after pre-treatment according to 5.2.

6.1.5 Labels, badges, retro-reflective materials, transfers, etc., which are applied to the outer surface of the garment, shall be tested only after pre-treatment according to 5.2, in combination with the outer layer to make it possible to take test specimens with the dimensions, as indicated in ISO 15025:2016, Procedure A. Three test specimens containing the item shall be tested. The items shall be oriented with the longer dimensions running up the centreline of the test specimen so that the burner flame impinges directly upon the middle of the surface of the item, not the edge. The combination with the fabric with labels, badges, retro-reflective materials outermost layer of the garment shall have the same limited flame spread index as the material to which they are applied. This requirement is not applicable for labels, embroideries, or other added decorations with a surface area of less than 10 cm².

6.1.6 Hardware, including slide fasteners, whether it is exposed or covered when all closure systems in the garment are in the closed position, shall be tested separately using ISO 15025:2016, Procedure A after the pre-treatment specified in Clause 5.2. Samples shall be taken in combination with the garment layer(s) to make it possible to have samples with the dimensions as indicated in ISO 15025:2016, Procedure A. Three test specimens containing the hardware shall be tested.

When the hardware is covered, the flame shall be applied to the outer surface of the component assembly containing hardware exactly as designed in the garment so that the burner flame impinges directly upon the place where the hardware is located. When the hardware is exposed, the flame shall be applied directly upon the hardware.

When the hardware is covered when all closure systems in the garment are in the closed position, the assembly shall meet the same limited flame spread index as the material to which they are attached. At least 5 min after completion of the test, it shall be verified that the closure system can be opened at least once.

When the hardware is exposed or covered, it shall comply with the requirements of Table 1 for flaming debris, afterglow and afterflame and in addition no test specimen shall melt. The hardware shall meet the same limited flame spread index as the material to which they are attached, except that the hole formation and the spread of flame to the outer vertical edge or lower edge of the hardware does not apply.

All tests in Clause 6 and Clause 7 shall be evaluated in accordance with Annex A. Wherever in Clause 6 and Clause 7, the requirements for a property value are expressed in terms of a minimum or maximum value and wherever a minimum or maximum value is to determine a Level or Class for that property, the resultant property value shall be determined in accordance with Annex B.

The sampling procedure shall be in accordance with 5.1 and ten (five machine and five cross direction) test specimens shall be tested.

When tested in accordance with ISO 13934‑1, woven outer materials shall have a minimum tensile strength of 150 N for lengthwise and crosswise direction.

When tested in accordance with ISO 13934‑1, nonwoven outer materials shall have a minimum tensile strength of 30 N.

The sampling procedure shall be in accordance with 5.1 and ten (five machine and five cross direction) test specimens shall be tested.

When tested in accordance with ISO 13937‑2, woven outer materials shall have a minimum tear strength of 7,5 N.

When tested in accordance with ISO 9073‑4, nonwoven outer materials shall have a minimum tear strength of 7,5 N.

The sampling procedure shall be in accordance with 5.1 and five test specimens shall be tested.

When tested in accordance with ISO 13938‑1 or ISO 13938‑2, the burst strength of knitted outer material and main structural seams, shall have a minimum strength of 260 kPa using a 7,3 cm² test area, or shall have a minimum strength of 100 kPa, when using a 50 cm² test area.

The sampling procedure shall be in accordance with 5.1 and five test specimens shall be tested.

When tested in accordance with ISO 13935‑2, structural seams of woven outer materials shall have a minimum seam strength of 75 N.

When tested in accordance with ISO 13935‑2, structural seams of nonwoven outer materials shall have a minimum seam strength of 30 N.

Dimensional change shall be measured before and after the samples have undergone five cleaning cycles according to 5.2. Three test specimens from one sample shall be tested.

Sampling procedure shall be in accordance with ISO 3759:2011 (referred to in ISO 5077:2007).

The change in dimensions of woven materials shall not exceed ±3 % in either length or width direction when measured in accordance with ISO 3759 and ISO 5077.

The change in dimensions of knitted and nonwoven materials and also quilted liners comprising of a layer of nonwoven materials shall not exceed ±5 % when measured in accordance with ISO 3759 and ISO 5077.

Dimensional change shall be measured after the test specimen has been uncreased and flattened on a plane surface.

Dimensional change does not apply to single use garments.

Requirements for limited flame spread index 1 are given in Table 1.

Table 1 — Requirements for limited flame spread index 1

Requirements for limited flame spread index 2 are given in Table 2.

Table 2 — Requirements for limited flame spread index 2

Requirements for limited flame spread index 3 are given in Table 3.

Table 3 — Requirements for limited flame spread index 3

The final index to be marked shall be in the following form:

— limited flame spread index.

All single-layer materials claiming compliance with this document shall be supplied with the following information:

a) manufacturer's name, address, trade mark, or other identifying mark;

b) statement material that complies with ISO 14116:2024 index 1, index 2, or index 3, as appropriate;

c) instructions for the care and cleaning of the material with particular emphasis on any special precautions to be taken.

All material assemblies claiming compliance with this document shall be supplied as described in 8.2 but with the statement required under 8.2 b) modified to

— “material assembly complies with ISO 14116:2024 index 1, index 2 or index 3 for outer face and index 2, or index 3 for inner face”, if the requirements of 6.1.3 a) are satisfied or

— “each material in the assembly complies with ISO 14116:2024”, with indices given for each layer, if the requirements of 6.1.3 b) are satisfied.

The presence and position of any index 1 material in the assembly shall be indicated.

8.4.1 Garments conforming to this document which do not conform to any other standard for heat and flame protection shall not be marked with a graphical symbol or pictogram to depict heat and/or flame protection.

8.4.2 Garments shall additionally contain data as described in 8.2 or 8.3.

8.4.3 For garments intended for single use only, the garment marking shall indicate “Do not re-use” (or the equivalent term in the language of the country of destination) and in addition, the graphical symbol ISO 7000‑1051 shown in Figure 1 shall be used.

Figure 1 — Graphical symbol: Do not re-use (ISO 7000‑1051)

8.4.4 The final index(es) shall be marked as described in 8.2 or 8.3.

8.4.5 For clothing assemblies, each assembly shall be marked that they should always be worn together.

9.1 Garments shall be accompanied by manufacturer's information according to ISO 13688.

The manufacturer shall indicate if protective clothing contains index 1 flame spread materials or if parts of the clothing are manufactured from thermally conductive hardware that are likely to be exposed to flame and warn that those materials and parts shall not be worn next to the skin. It shall also be indicated that single layer garments which contain index 1 materials shall only be worn over index 2 or index 3 garments.

Manufacturers shall give clear information on the design of index 2 or index 3 garments so the contact of index 1 garment with skin is avoided.

Explanation of any symbols used in the marking shall be in the language of the user in the country of destination.

9.2 Instructions shall be given to advise the user on cleaning procedures, the maximum number of cleaning cycles, maintenance, inspection, and repair of the garment where practical.

Manufacturers shall include the information that limited flame spread garments should be cleaned regularly in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations and that after cleaning, the clothing should be inspected.

9.3 In case that applying a finish can maintain the protective properties, the maximum number of cleaning cycles before re-application of the finish and the procedure for re-application shall be clearly indicated in the information notice.

1. 
   (normative)
   
   Uncertainty of measurement
   1. General

For each of the required measurements performed in accordance with this document, a corresponding estimate of the uncertainty of measurement shall be evaluated. This estimate of uncertainty shall be applied when it might affect the rating or classification of a property.

• 1. Expression of results

All of the test methods called-up in this standard require that several test specimens are tested. In some cases the number of test specimens called for in this standard differs from the number specified in the test method. In such cases this standard shall take precedence.

Some of the test methods called-up in the standard include details on how the final result shall be calculated from the results from the individual test specimens. In such cases the final result shall be calculated in this matter and this value alone shall be reported.

Where the test method does not detail how the final result shall be calculated, the result shall be expressed as the arithmetic mean (average) of the results from the individual test specimens. In addition, the result for the lowest-performing test specimen shall also be reported.

NOTE The lowest-performing test specimen is that which gives the least-favourable result. In cases such as tensile strength, this is the test specimen which gives the lowest numerical result (i.e. the lowest breaking force). In cases such as resistance to liquid penetration this is the test specimen which gives the highest numerical result (i.e. the highest amount of liquid penetration).

• 1. Outlying data

When testing a series of test specimens taken from a homogenous sample any test method can, from time to time, generate a single inconsistent result. These inconsistent single results shall be termed “outliers”. Such outliers are significantly higher or lower than the results for the other test specimens. The responsibility for deciding whether a result is significantly higher or lower than the results for the other test specimens shall rest with the test house. Typically results are considered outliers when their distance from the mean value is greater than three standard deviations. However, this can depend on the test method concerned.

It is quite possible that an outlier can lie within a different classification-band from the band in which the other results lie. Having said that, the lowest-performing result is not automatically an outlier. If this result is close to the results from other test specimens within the sample, then the lowest-performing result is not an outlier.

Some of the test methods include details on how outliers shall be treated. In such cases the test method shall be followed. In cases where the test method does not include details on how outliers shall be treated the following procedure shall be followed:

— A second set of test specimens shall be tested

— If there is no outlier in this second set of tests the result of the tests on this second set of specimens shall be reported.

If there is an outlier in the second set of tests the set of results that includes the lower-performing outlier shall be reported.

EXAMPLE 1- If the first set of results from a tensile strength test is: 200 N, 198 N, 210 N, 195 N, 126 N, 212 N, then the figure of 126 N is clearly an outlier. In this case a second set of test specimens is tested. If the second set of results is 201 N, 212 N, 197 N, 195 N, 205 N, 201 N, then there is no outlier in this second set of figures. The final result is therefore calculated from this second set of figures.

EXAMPLE 2- If the first set of results is 200 N, 198 N, 210 N, 195 N, 126 N, 212 N, and the second set is 201 N, 212 N, 197 N, 195 N, 118 N, 201 N, there is clearly an outlier in both sets of results. The final result is therefore calculated from the second set of data because the figure of 118 N is lower tensile strength performance than 126 N.

• 1. Uncertainty of measurement

The uncertainty of measurement associated with every test result shall be reported. The uncertainty of measurement for a specified test method shall have been evaluated for example by help of one of the two following approaches:

— a statistical method, e.g. that given in ISO 5725-2^[7].

— a mathematical method, e.g. that given in ISO/IEC Guide 98-3^[8].

The expanded uncertainty of measurement reported shall correspond to at least a 90 % confidence limit and should ideally correspond with a 95 % confidence limit.

NOTE For further information on uncertainty of measurement, see for example JCGM 100:2008.

• 1. Classification of results

Classification shall be based upon either:

— the lowest single value, if the test method only requests to report all the measured results, or

— the lowest result should be accepted and all results should be above the minimum performance requirement.

— if the test method provides a method to combine the results, the result of this calculation shall be used for the purposes of classification.

In cases where the result is very close to a lower-performing class boundary it can be prudent to either claim a lower level of performance or carry out additional testing to further increase confidence in the performance level claimed.

1. 
   (normative)
   
   Determination of property values for rating and classification

All the individual results of the test specimens of a test shall meet the performance requirement.

The average result shall be given.

If a material exhibits differing behaviour for a property in the length and cross directions of the material, the resultant property value shall be the value obtained in the lesser performing direction.

In the event that only one test specimen fails, another set of test specimens shall be tested and all the individual results of this second set of test specimens shall meet the requirements. Otherwise, the sample is considered to have failed the requirement.

1. 
   (informative)
   
   Risk assessment

Risk assessment is the responsibility of the user, not of a product standard, and in many countries legislation clearly establishes that this responsibility rests solely with the employer of the user.

This document specifies the performance requirements for the limited flame spread properties of all materials, all material assemblies, and protective clothing in order to reduce the possibility of the clothing burning when in occasional and brief contact with small flames and thereby constituting a hazard. Additional requirements for clothing are also specified, including design requirements, mechanical requirements, marking, and information supplied by the manufacturer.

When protection against heat hazards is also required this document is not appropriate and International Standards such as ISO DIS 11612:2024 should be consulted.

The user of the protective clothing covered by this document should be issued with clothing that will protect them from limited flame spread to which they are likely to be exposed in their place of work. This should be achieved by carrying out a risk assessment before making the decision to purchase and the type and level of protection of the clothing chosen should be based on the results of this risk assessment.

There are a number of known methods for carrying out risk assessments and others are currently being developed.

It should be remembered that operational procedures and different concepts of safety also play a major part in leading to the levels of performance chosen and, therefore, risk assessments should be a starting point for action, not an objective in themselves.

The user should ensure before use that the type of garment within the scope of this document is certified to the level of protection required by the user risk assessment.

Annex ZA
(informative)

Relationship between this European Standard and the essential requirements of Regulation (EU) 2016/425 aimed to be covered

This European Standard has been prepared under the Commission’s standardization request M/571 to provide one voluntary means of conforming to essential requirements of Regulation (EU) 2016/425.

Once this standard is cited in the Official Journal of the European Union under that Regulation, compliance with the normative clauses of this standard given in Table ZA.1 confers, within the limits of the scope of this standard, a presumption of conformity with the corresponding essential requirements of that Regulation, and associated EFTA regulations.

Table ZA.1 — Correspondence between this European Standard and
Annex II of Regulation (EU) 425/2016

Table ZA.2— Applicable Standards to confer presumption of conformity as described in this Annex ZA

The documents listed in the Column 1 of table ZA.2, in whole or in part, are normatively referenced in this document, i.e. are indispensable for its application. The achievement of the presumption of conformity is subject to the application of the edition of Standards as listed in Column 4 or, if no European Standard Edition exists, the International Standard Edition given in Column 2 of table ZA.2.

WARNING 1 — Presumption of conformity stays valid only as long as a reference to this European Standard is maintained in the list published in the Official Journal of the European Union. Users of this standard should consult frequently the latest list published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

WARNING 2 — Other Union legislation may be applicable to the product(s) falling within the scope of this standard.

Bibliography

[1] ISO/TR 2801, Clothing for protection against heat and flame — General recommendations for selection, care and use of protective clothing

[2] ISO/DIS 11612:2024, Protective clothing — Clothing to protect against heat and flame

[3] ISO 11610:2023, Protective clothing — Vocabulary

[4] ISO 6330:2021, Textiles — Domestic washing and drying procedures for textile testing

[5] ISO 15797:2017, Textiles — Industrial washing and finishing procedures for testing of workwear

[6] ISO 3175‑2:2017, Textiles — Professional care, drycleaning and wetcleaning of fabrics and garments — Part 2: Procedure for testing performance when cleaning and finishing using tetrachloroethene

[7] ISO 5725‑2:2019, Accuracy (trueness and precision) of measurement methods and results — Part 2: Basic method for the determination of repeatability and reproducibility of a standard measurement method

[8] ISO/IEC Guide 98‑3, Uncertainty of measurement — Part 3: Guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement (GUM:1995)