Welding Garment Material Performance
Hand Protection
G-Tek® D3O® Impact Glove Series
UNRAVELING THE DYNAMICS OF ESD
Bouton® FogLess® 3Sixty™ Technology
Addressing AR/FR Pain Points
Specialized PPE for ELECTRIC VEHICLE MANUFACTURING
BioSoft™ Sustainable Bio-Based Ear Plugs
PIP® Field Installable 4-Point Hard Hat Chin Strap Demo
G-Tek® VRX™ ADVANCED PROTECTION
Bisley X-Airflow™ Workwear Shirts
6 Key Facts to Help Understand ARC FLASH RISKS
Head Protection
REUSABLE VS. DISPOSABLEUsing The Right Garment For The Right Job
Experience Barrier Protection and Flexibility With EXTENDED USE GLOVES
Bouton OpticalAdvanced Lens Technologies in Safety Eyewear™
What to Consider When Choosing HIGH VISIBILITY MULTI-SEASON WORKWEAR
What is Double Hearing Protection And When Would You Need It?
Mips®HELMET SAFETY SYSTEM TECHNOLOGY
4 HIDDEN JOBSITE RISKS And How To Avoid Them
SURVIVIVNG THE SUMMER HEAT A Guide to Workplace Safety and Hydration
MULTI-TASK WELDERS GLOVES Offer The Protection And Dexterity Welders Need
WELDING SAFETY SELECTOR GUIDE
HAND PROTECTION SELECTOR GUIDE
Protective Clothing
CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENT SELECTOR GUIDE
EYE PROTECTION SELECTOR GUIDE
INTERACTIVE CROSS REFERENCE
BioSoft™ THE WORLD'S FIRST SUSTAINABLE BIO-BASED EAR PLUGS
NOVAX ELECTRICAL SAFETYNot All Gloves Are Created Equal
Enhancing Workplace Safety in the Construction Industry with MULTI-DIRECTIONAL HEAD PROTECTION TECHNOLOGY
THORZT™ RAPID REHYDRATIONFor the Industrial Athlete
ON-SITE PPE ASSESSMENT
Hand Protection
Specialized PPE for ELECTRIC VEHICLE MANUFACTURING
INTERACTIVE CROSS REFERENCE
Addressing AR/FR Pain Points
Bouton® FogLess® 3Sixty™ Technology
UNRAVELING THE DYNAMICS OF ESD
G-Tek® D3O® Impact Glove Series
JSP Force Typhoon™ 8 Twin Filter Half Masks with PressToCheck™
PIP® Field Installable 4-Point Hard Hat Chin Strap Demo
BioSoft™ Sustainable Bio-Based Ear Plugs
PPE For Emergency Responders
ATA Fiber Technology Strength Meets Comfort
G-Tek® VRX™ ADVANCED PROTECTION
PPE For Emergency Responders
Heated Apparel For Cold Climates
INTERACTIVE CROSS REFERENCE
INTERACTIVE CROSS REFERENCE
Welding Garment Material Performance
Bisley X-Airflow™ Workwear Shirts
ON-SITE PPE ASSESSMENT
3 COMMON TYPES OF COLD STRESS And How You Can Prepare For Them
SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS IN PPE
PROTECTIVE SLEEVE BUYERS GUIDE
MULTI-TASK WELDERS GLOVES Offer The Protection And Dexterity Welders Need
ON-SITE PPE ASSESSMENT
SURVIVIVNG THE SUMMER HEAT A Guide to Workplace Safety and Hydration
HALF MASK RESPIRATORS REVOLUTIONARY FORCE TYPHOON™8
SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS IN PPE
4 HIDDEN JOBSITE RISKS And How To Avoid Them
Mips®HELMET SAFETY SYSTEM TECHNOLOGY
Bouton OpticalAdvanced Lens Technologies in Safety Eyewear™
What to Consider When Choosing HIGH VISIBILITY MULTI-SEASON WORKWEAR
6 Key Facts to Help Understand ARC FLASH RISKS
ON-SITE PPE ASSESSMENT
Head Protection
REUSABLE VS. DISPOSABLEUsing The Right Garment For The Right Job
Experience Barrier Protection and Flexibility With EXTENDED USE GLOVES
What is Double Hearing Protection And When Would You Need It?
CUSTOM LOGO SERVICES FAST, EASY & PRECISE
SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS IN PPE
WELDING SAFETY SELECTOR GUIDE
3SP ONLINE TRAINING
BisleyPREMIUM MULTI-SEASON WORKWEAR
Natural Disaster Relief PPE EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED
MADE-TO-ORDER SLEEVES Custom Options for Enhanced Performance
Enhancing Workplace Safety in the Construction Industry with MULTI-DIRECTIONAL HEAD PROTECTION TECHNOLOGY
ON-SITE PPE ASSESSMENT
THORZT™ RAPID REHYDRATIONFor the Industrial Athlete
Protective Clothing
BioSoft™ THE WORLD'S FIRST SUSTAINABLE BIO-BASED EAR PLUGS
NOVAX ELECTRICAL SAFETYNot All Gloves Are Created Equal
INTERACTIVE CROSS REFERENCE
CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENT SELECTOR GUIDE
3SP ONLINE TRAINING
3SP ONLINE TRAINING
EYE PROTECTION SELECTOR GUIDE
HAND PROTECTION SELECTOR GUIDE
For years, the United States has been the second largest manufacturer of motor vehicles, manufacturing over 1.5 million cars and 7.6 million commercial vehicles annually due largely to leading companies like General Motors, Ford, Stellantis and others. Today, these same automakers, along with EV giants like Tesla and smaller startups like Rivian and Lucid Motors, have shifted their sights towards the future with major investments in EV and Hybrid Vehicle Manufacturing.
Billion-dollar investments in new US-based state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities are set to create thousands of new jobs that demand different skill sets from production workers compared to the traditional motor vehicle supply chain. With these new technologies and facilities come new safety risks, calling for the correct PPE to protect the components used to manufacture EVs and the workers that craft them. So, what should safety managers be aware of to keep workers safe, comfortable and productive throughout the manufacturing process?
Motors in traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, otherwise known as gas powered engines, use over 2,000 moving parts to ensure proper operation. EVs are manufactured with only 18 essential internal parts that are made with extremely sensitive components and processes, all aimed to emit zero emissions and boost the intelligence of the car.
First, let’s discuss what the term “sensitive” means in the manufacturing world. For decades, we have heard of microchips being used more frequently in manufacturing processes. “Microchip” is another term for a semiconductor, which is an extremely static sensitive and essential component that controls the electrical current within smart devices. Semiconductors are what allow smart electronic devices to communicate and compute properly. These semiconductors and other sensitive electronic components have traditionally been manufactured overseas, but companies like Marsh Electronics, Syscom Tech, Ebara Technologies and others are bringing manufacturing back to the US.
Semiconductors are used in just about all 18 of the parts of an electric vehicle to ensure it operates properly. Semiconductors are very static-sensitive and are manufactured in specialized environments that ensure static electricity doesn’t build up to the point that it discharges and damages the product. These environments also require workers to wear specialized PPE to handle semiconductors safely. Wearing the incorrect garments or hand protection can lead to an electrostatic discharge that can cause the product to fail, costing a company time and money.
Humans generate static, but we also shed contaminating particles like dust, dander, skin cells and even respiratory droplets and bacteria that can damage sensitive semiconductor components. In order to avoid damage to these sensitive components, almost all gigafactories and controlled environment manufacturing facilities have mandated the use of cleanroom-rated and ESD Safe PPE. Cleanroom and ESD Safe PPE allows workers to operate in these environments by containing any shedding contaminants (also called bioburden) while also safely directing electrical charges to ground, preventing static buildup and discharge. The low current flows through the ESD Safe components of the PPE to protect the product as opposed to electrical insulating materials, which protect you from completing an electrical circuit to the ground.
PIP® offers ESD Safe hand protection in the forms of gloves and fingercots with styles that provide multi-hazard protection, including particulate protection for cleanrooms, extreme temperature handling, cut protection and chemical protection depending on the hazards and applications within the environment.
In addition to gloves, garments are also necessary to protect sensitive manufacturing products and processes from bioburden contaminants and electrostatic discharge. This complete line of Uniform Technology® branded garment solutions from PIP® offer cleanroom-rated particulate protection, and added protection from electrostatic buildup and discharge. Whether it is silicone wafer production, wire bounding/mounting, etching, or anything else related to automotive semiconductor, trust PIP® to provide the right PPE when working in controlled environments.
Lithium-ion(“Li-ion”) batteries are the main components that generate the power behind all EV’s. The process to manufacture these batteries includes electrode production, cell assembly and cell conditioning and battery activation. These processes can expose workers to harmful chemicals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel and more during tasks like electrode paste mixing. It is important that proper protection is used around these types of harmful chemicals to avoid injuries.
Many safety managers in Li-ion gigafactories have implemented the use of cleanrooms or near-clean environments to avoid particulate contamination within battery cells. Why are particulates like dust bad for battery cells? Any particles or contamination within a battery cell can drastically affect performance and cause issues like internal short circuit, voltage drop and other issues to occur. Aside from the lint and dust that traditional garments shed, humans shed about 600,000 skin cells every day which is a major source of contamination. For these reasons, it is critical for workers to use the correct PPE to reduce the risk of particulate contamination and protect the integrity of these extremely complex and expensive components.
Similar to the OEM sector of EV manufacturing, aftermarket care and maintenance is in many ways different than traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle maintenance. Overall, EVs require far less maintenance than traditional motor vehicles, however, technicians must be certified to perform the necessary steps of EV service and maintenance. Sure, some EV vehicle parts will still require traditional service and maintenance such as break replacements, tire rotations, tire alignments, break fluid checks and more… but what is the key difference that requires an advanced approach to safety?
Unlike motor vehicles, EV’s have high voltage Li-ion batteries located in the front or rear of the vehicle. Today’s typical EV Li-ion batteries range from 400-800 volts and in almost all cases will require a disconnect in order to conduct safe aftermarket work. The master disconnect, also knows as a “service jack,” is what generates a circuit to the battery when plugged in and is required to be removed by technicians to achieve a proper power down.
To do this, it is essential that technicians are equipped with the right electrically rated insulating gloves (at the very least) to avoid an electrical shock, or worse, electrocution. Electrical insulating gloves are classified 00-4, each class rated to provide a specific level of dielectric protection to the specific voltage level being worked on. As a leader in electrical safety to automotive, manufacturing, utility and other markets, PIP® has created the reference chart below to identify what voltage level each class of NOVAX® electrical insulating glove has been tested to.
Depending on the voltage of the battery being used, glove selection should be determined based on the maximum voltage output of the battery technicians are working with. Each class of gloves is clearly marked with the maximum use voltage on the permanent color-coded label. So, if the average battery voltage rages from 400-800 volts, it is safe to assume that a pair of class 0 gloves will provide the adequate amount of protection necessary to power down the battery. Voltage levels should always be identified by the end-user prior to glove selection.
Under most circumstances, leather protectors should be worn over an insulating unless the dexterity required to perform the task requires that rubber insulating gloves are worn alone. OSHA has specific requirements associated with the use of protectors and the end-user is responsible for making sure they comply. It is critical to note that a leather protector alone does not provide any electrical insulating protection.
Fully understanding the intricacies of EV manufacturing from start to finish is a daunting task. Learning the key safety demands of workers in OEM, Mainline Assembly/Fabrication and Aftermarket Service/Maintenance can help safety managers provide the right solutions that keep workers comfortable, efficient and most importantly, safe. No matter the sector of manufacturing, PIP® has the right head-to-toe solutions to protect against the advanced hazards associated with EV and Hybrid Vehicle manufacturing. Contact PIP® to see how our team can help yours!
The Importance of Providing Proper Fitting PPE For Women
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is vital in ensuring worker safety across all trade industries. However, when PPE doesn't fit correctly, it can be just as dangerous as not wearing any protection at all…
READ MORESpotlight on Safety - Trends from NSC Safety Congress & Expo
Last September, safety professionals worldwide gathered in Orlando, FL, for the NSC Safety Congress & Expo, where the latest industry advancements and ideas took center stage. Our team arrived wi…
READ MORENitrile vs. Latex Coated Gloves – Which is the Best For Your Workforce?
When it comes to choosing work gloves, selecting the right coating can make all the difference in safety, comfort and performance. Nitrile and latex coatings both offer unique benefits, making them su…
READ MOREProposition 65 | Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Full Site
© 2012-2024 Protective Industrial Products, Inc. All rights reserved.
CALL US TODAY: (518) 861-0133
CUSTOMER SERVICE DIRECT: (855) 284-6800