Besides choosing a suitable type of safety shoes or boots appropriate for the work task, it is important to choose safety shoes or boots which meet safety shoes protection standards to protect against the various workplace hazards.

Understanding EN ISO 20345 Safety Standards

All Safety footwear must meet the minimum standards set out by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The current standard for Safety Footwear across Europe (EN) is EN ISO 20345:2011.

It specifies that ALL safety footwear must have toe protection against a 200-joule impact (equivalent to a 20kg weight dropped 1,020mm onto the toes) and a 15KN compression test (equivalent to 1.5 tonnes resting on the toe area).

EN ISO 20345 Safety Ratings Explained

Under the EN ISO 20345 standard, Safety footwear is divided into different protection classes depending on the features.

The table below outlines the features of each rating under EN ISO 20345:

EN ISO 20345 Slip Resistance Ratings Explained

SRA: Tested on ceramic tile with sodium lauryl sulphate (a diluted soap solution)

SRB: Tested on steel with glycerol

SRC: Tested under SRA and SRB conditions

EN ISO 20345 Additional Ratings Explained

C – Conductive

A – Antistatic

I – Insulation against electricity

HI – Insulation against heat

CI – Insulation against cold

E – Energy absorbing seat region

AN – Ankle protection

HRO – Heat resistant outsole

WR – Water-resistant

WRU – Water-resistant upper

M – Metatarsal protection

CR – Cut resistant upper

Maintaining Compliance with your local Safety Footwear Regulations

Providing your workers with the appropriate safety footwear is essential to ensure you remain compliant with the regulations in your region. Check out KPR’s range of EN ISO 20345 & SS 513 (Identical adoption of  ISO 20345) compliant safety shoes and boots.