OSHA starts to streamline safety equipment standards.(Occupational Safety and Health Administration)

Purchasing, September, 1995 by Murphy, Elena Epatko

Making the right personal protective equipment (PPE) buy still is complex, but under OSHA's revised (1994) standard some of the confusion has been lifted, health and safety experts say.

A little more than a year after OSHA's revised general industry standard for PPE went into effect, buyers can choose more freely from products incorporating new technology that has developed from the time of the agency's original standard nearly a quarter century ago. OSHA put its stamp of approval on standards for eye and face, head, and foot PPE shaped by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). A separate standard for respirators is expected out late this year (see box). Governed by guidelines alone, hand protection is left to employers, with the suggestion that they...

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