People generally bear the wrong idea that as composite toe caps are made of lighter materials than the steel, they are generally less durable and can take less load than their steel counterparts.
This is completely wrong!
And today in this article I am going to tell you the truth about composite toe caps and break the myth with proofs!
Composite toe caps are as good as the steel toe caps and can bear the same load or sometimes even more with even better protection and of course they are even lighter and much more comfortable and with much more benefits!
Just read on….
Are Composite toe boots OSHA Approved?
Want to know what OSHA is?
Well…
I will explain all about it…
The full form of OSHA is Occupational Safety and Health Standards. The Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) section which covers footwear safety and health standards is included in the section of OSHA.
OSHA recommends conducting an assessment either by company’s safety personnel or by a consultant to determine the need for PPE and the types of footwear that the employees should wear.
OSHA requires employees to wear only those foot wears which comply with their standards and issues fine if the standards are not met.
Now, the question is, are composite toe OSHA approved?
The answer is while most composite toes are ANSI and OSHA approved, the cheaper ones are not.
Composite Toe Material:
Composite toe is made of non-metal materials like Kevlar, plastic, fiber glass and carbon fiber. On the other hand, as the name suggest, steel toe caps are completely made of thin sheets of steel.
Therefore, composite toe caps are lighter than the steel toe ones and are more comfortable.
How Strong are Composite Toes?
Composite materials are generally made by mixing of more than one non-metal. Therefore, they are such molded that the final product becomes stronger than their individual counterparts.
Composite toe Impact and Compression:
Footwear manufacturers rate and test their shoes and boots according to the standards set by the ASTM international.
The relevant standards for footwear with a protective toe cap are ASTM F2412 and ASTM F2413. The ASTM F2413 standard specifies that toe cap must be first tested for impact and compression.
The test and methods for impact and compression are specified by ASTM F2412 standard as follows:
1.) Impact test:
It is concerned with the effect of what happens when something very heavy falls on the shoes or boots.
2.) Compression test:
It is concerned with the effect of what happens when something very heavy rolls on the shoes or boots.
So, in ASTM tested footwear, the toe cap will offer the same level of protection irrespective of the material it is made of-whether steel or composite.
And yes composite toe caps pass both the tests effectively and we are going to show you just down below the proofs.
Impact Result of Composite Toe Test:
We are going to share with you the results of a video where they tested the composite toe for 200J (joule) energy impact and the results will shock you!
Yes the composite toe cap is resistant to 200J energy!
Even after the impact of 200J over the composite toe cap, it had no crack on the inside, only a slight denture on the exterior of the cap. That is your toes would be completely safe inside the composite toe cap even if a load of 200J falls on it. Isn’t that superb guys?
How Much Weight can Composite Toes Hold?
Actually composite toes can allow as much weight over it as the steel toes. It can take as much weight as 1.1 metric tons.
We will share a video with you where they tested a composite toe against 4.5 ton folklift truck running over it and the results will shock you.
Did you just see that guys?
The truck was even finding it difficult to run over the composite toe at the first attempt. Even when the truck weighing 4.5 tons ran over the composite toe completely, the composite toe was unturned and remained the same without even any deformity!
This is a complete proof that how strong composite toes are and that they can really bear a tons of weight and are a great saviour for your toes.
Obviously when it could handle the truck just like that, it can even handle heavy loads of your construction site as well.
Benefits of Composite Toe Caps
Well there are a number of benefits of wearing a composite toe cap:
1.) They are generally 30% lighter than their steel counter parts. Even 45% lighter in some cases!
2.) They can pass through metal detectors easily.
3.) They are much more comfortable to wear.
4.) They have cold insulation that is they do not conduct cold to the feet while the temperature outside is freaking!
5.) They protect your feet from electrical hazards.
How much do composite toe boots weigh?
When you compare composite toe boots to steel toe boots, the former weighs much less. To be more precise, they weigh about 30% less than steel toe boots.
Generally, most composite toe boots weigh around 1.75 to 4 pounds. Which in kilograms are 700 grams to 1.8 kgs. This is why they do not weigh you down when walking or moving all day at work. Making it easier by maximizing your mobility and flexibility.
Before we say Good Bye:
So, what are you waiting for guys?
Go and grab one composite toe boot immediately as you know now the level of protection that they offer to the feet.
Just make sure the model number you are choosing, is OSHA or ANSI approved or the level of protections mentioned in this article would not be the same.
Hope the article was useful to you.
See you soon in the next article!
Till then…
Take care, stay safe!
And…
Keep walking!
