Safety Requirements

Potential Hazards

Choosing the right shoe for the specific demands of the job is essential to ensuring that a safety shoe provides proper protection. Safety shoe must be chosen judiciously based on nature of industry and potential hazards.

Industrial safety boots and shoes Impact Injuries
cement work shoes Spills and Splashes
Engineering or Manufacturing Safety Shoes Compression Injuries
Electrical Safety Shoes Electrical Shocks
Antique Safety Shoes Slipping
Temperature-Extremes Temperature Extremes

Common causes of injuries at work

InjuriesCommon Causes
Lacerations and CutsUnguarded machinery
Electric ShocksStatic electricity, Contact with sources of electricity
BurnsHot metal or chemical splashes
Ankle Sprain and foot fractureSlippery and Oily floors

Characteristics of Acme Shoes

Safety shoes demonstrate some properties to overcome the potential hazards of various industries:

Safety Shoes Symbol

Anatomy of Safety Shoe Image

Anatomy Shoe

The Right Fit

Right Fit

Sole of a safety shoe

Antomy Safety Sole

Antistatic & ESD Shoes

Acme Shoe Sole Resistance
  • Our body continuously accumulates electrostatic charges while performing everyday activities.
  • This accumulation of charges on the human body is often lethal to static sensitive electronic components and can lead to electrical hazards or cause ignition of chemicals/explosives.
  • It is very important to discharge undesired electrostatic charge in certain industries where employees come into contact with processes, materials or objects which are sensitive to electrostatic charge.
  • In these industries it is necessary to use safety shoes that conduct electrostatic charge and thereby maintain the body at zero charge.

Standard Labels

Footwear symbols for industrial usage

Basic requirements/additional requirements/ categories e.g. for leather shoesSafety footwear
EN ISO 20345
or EN 345-1		Protective footwear
EN ISO 20346
or EN 346-1		Occupational footwear
EN ISO 20347
or EN 347-1
Basic requirements for shoes and impact resistance of toecapsSB
200 Joule		PB
100 Joule		OB
No requirement
Additional requirements:
Closed heel
Antistatic
Energy absorption around heel		S1P1O1+
fuel-resistant sole
Additional requirements: as above, plus
Water penetration
Water absorption		S2P2O2
Additional requirements: as above, plus
Penetration resistance
Cleated outsole		S3P3O3
The choice of a particular shoe depends on the type of occupational risk. As with all the footwear, additional requirements may exist (e.g. in terms of heat and cold insulation, penetration resistance or electrical resistance via ESD). These shoes are then mark accordingly.

The testing principles for all basic and additional requirements are specified in DIN EN 344-1/-2 and EN ISO 20344.
Basic requirements/additional requirements/ categories e.g. for shoes made from PVC or PU
Basic requirements for shoes and impact resistance of toecapsSB
200 Joule		PB
100 Joule		OB
No requirement
Additional requirements:
Antistatic properties
Energy absorption of seat region
Fuel resistance
Penetration resistance
Cleated outsole		S5P5O5
One of the three following requirements must be met and labelled in the shoe for all newly certified models from December 2007
LabelCharacteristics testedTest conditionsFriction coefficient
SRASlip resistance on ceramic tile floors with sodium lauryl sulphate solution (SLS)Forward slip of the heel
Forward slip on a flat surface		No less than 0.28
No less than 0.32
SRBSlip resistance on steel floors with glycerolForward slip of the heel
Forward slip on a flat surface		No less than 0.13
No less than 0.18
SRCSlip resistance on ceramic tile floors with sodium lauryl sulfate solution and on steel floors with glycerolIncludes all test conditions cited under a. and b.

Additional requirements for special applications with corresponding symbols

SYMBOLICONRISK COVEREDEN ISO 20345:2004 or EN 345 or (IS 15298 Part2)
SBS1S2S3
– Basic✓✓✓✓
PPenetration resistance✓✓✓✓
AAntistatic footwear✓✓✓✓
EEnergy absorption around heel✓✓✓✓
HIHeat insulation✓✓✓✓
CICold insulation✓✓✓✓
WRUWater resistance of upper✓✓✓✓
HROHeat resistance of outsole (+300 °C/min)✓✓✓✓
WRWhole shoe waterproof✓✓✓✓
MMetatarsal protection✓✓✓✓
FOResistance to oil and petrol✓✓✓✓

Requirement Met - ✓

Requirement can be met but is not stipulated - ✓

* Penetration resistance – Warning - Please note that the penetration resistance of this footwear has been measured in the laboratory using a truncated nail of diameter 4.5 mm and a force of 1100 N. Higher forces or nails of smaller diameter will increase the risk of penetration occurring. In such circumstances alternative preventative measures should be considered.

Download our  Basics of Safety Shoes  Brochure.