Flame Resistant Clothing Frequently Asked Questions

What does FRC stand for?
It is quite common that safety minded customers refer to Safety Garments or Flame Resistant Apparel simply as "FRC."

Who wears Flame Resistant (FR) garments?
Combustible Dust Explosion. Plus ANY workers who come in contact with energized electrical equipment.

What is ATPV?
ATPV stands for Arc Thermal Protective Value, which is a rating of the Arc burn protection capability of a garment.

Where do I find a garment's Arc Ratings?
Arc Ratings can be found on many garment labels. Typically a Flame Resistant garment is chosen based on the employer's hazard analysis, which determines the potential incident energy in the work environment.

What are Hazard Risk Categories?
Hazard Risk Categories (HRC) are specified in the NFPA 70E safety standard, based on specific job tasks. Older editions of the standard allowed for "layering" solutions using 100% cotton, non-FR T-Shirts worn under rated FRC.

What is Tecasafe® PLUS and why haven’t I heard about it before?
Tecasafe Plus from TenCate Protective Fabrics is the newest fabric innovation in Flame Resistant technology. You get all the benefits of FR cotton, including higher ATPV ratings and softer, more comfortable fabric. Tecasafe Plus is "inherently" Flame Resistant, combining the best features of all fabric options.

Are Indura® and Indura® Ultra Soft™ the same?
Indura® is chemically treated 100% cotton. Indura® Ultra Soft™ is made of 88% FR Cotton and 12% Nylon woven together to make the garment much more durable and comfortable. This makes the garment last longer through industrial laundering and increases the garments’ ATPV.

Is 100% cotton a "safety" fabric?
While 100% cotton offers better protection than 65/35, cotton fabric can and will ignite and continue to burn if exposed to an ignition source.
My company purchases our FRC directly from FR garment manufacturers….why Rent these garments?
Renting FR garments eliminates the capital investment of purchasing FR safety garments. UniFirst will repair damaged garments, reducing costs, manages the procurement and receiving process of these expensive garments.