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Sizing and fit for protective clothing 307

In designing different types of fastenings, it is important to reflect on factors such
as the presence of fastening elements in terms of nonloss of resistance and functional
properties, as well as restoration or repair options. The various elements of the fasten-
ings, such as zippers, plastic fastenings, push buttons, lines, etc. are designed to be
sufficiently robust, for example, to be easily grasped with gloves that are particularly
essential when wearing clothing in cold weather and without giving the worker pro-
tective gloves (McCann and Bryson, 2009a). Individual solutions may be used to
improve the compatibility of protective clothing with PPE products, such as sticking
hooks, loops, buttons, saws, belt loops, etc. in the required areas.
The standard of general protective wear requirements states that the design must
promote proper positioning of PPE on the user and ensure that it stays in its place
for the intended period of use, taking into account environmental factors along with
movements and poses that the wearer can take during work or other activities. For
this purpose, appropriate means adequate size ranges and adequate adjusting sys-
tems, so that protective clothing would be adjustable to a user’s morphology
(ISO 13688:2013, 2013).

11.5 Fabric parameters affecting the fit

Recent studies show that comfort in wear is the most important property of clothing
demanded by users. Comfort in wear is especially important for athletes, physical
workers, rescuers, etc. A fundamental understanding of human comfort and knowl-
edge of how to design textiles and garments to maximize comfort for the wearer is
therefore essential in the clothing industry (Song, 2011b). In addition, comfort of
clothing can be described in several respects, for example, heat balance (increase
or decrease in the heat content of the human body caused by an imbalance between
heat production and heat loss; EN 13921:2017, 2017), energy metabolism, tactile
comfort, body movement comfort, etc. This understanding reflects the demands of
a human body: anatomical (morphology, locomotor system, abnormalities), physio-
logical (water regulation, thermal regulation, physical sensation), as well as psycho-
logical considerations (duration of use, wearability) (McCann and Bryson, 2009b).
The standard for PPE (EN 13921:2017, 2017) contains guidelines not only for char-
acteristics of ergonomics, associated with anthropomethylene and biomechanical
effects between the PPE and human body, but also on thermal works and human sensory
interactions with the PPE, such as vision, hearing, smell and taste, and skin contact.
The choice of suitable textiles is largely crucial for best protection, while ensuring
the best level of thermal comfort at the same time. General thermal comfort may be
defined as total subjective satisfaction with the thermal environment, based on whole
body sensation (EN 13921:2017, 2017). The materials chosen for clothing, their
design, and the PPE system may make it difficult to exchange heat between the wearer
and the external environment, thereby increasing the thermal insulation and/or evap-
orative resistance (EN 13921:2017, 2017). The choice of materials should be guided
by a variety of factors, such as the nature, level, and duration of physical activities to
be carried out on a day-to-day basis as well as external environmental conditions.