What is a reflective vest? Criteria for choosing the best reflective protective vest

Reflective workwear is widely used when performing community-related jobs such as rescue, fire fighting, traffic, construction, and environmental sanitation,… They are used to protect and ensure the life safety of workers when working in the dark, or in bad weather to minimize the dangerous effects that may occur during the working process.

What is a reflective vest?
A reflective protective vest is a type of personal safety equipment (PPE), made of reflective materials with striking colors such as green, and orange, … and attached to the main parts of copper clothing. clothing such as the chest, arms, sides of knees,…
In addition to reflective vests, there are other types of protective equipment such as helmets, safety shoes, and gloves, they are all basic items in occupational safety.

History of the shirt
In 1964, in England, the shirt was first put into use for railway workers. The shirt is used as a jacket to wear outside, If in favorable weather, we can still see people from a distance of 800m back.
Initially, the shirt was made orange, which made it easy for the managers here to keep an eye on the Pollokshields workers on their way to the subway. After a period of testing here, they have conducted safety tests in many other places and fields, thereby ensuring safety before mass production.
By 1965, the shirt was used by engineers as well as staff on London’s tram lines. Today, thanks to reflective-specific standards such as EN510, EN471, and display standards EN ISO 20471: 2013 have made reflective clothing safer and more comfortable to wear.

Working principle of Reflective vest
Now we will find out when the reflective vest will glow. The main application principle is Retro, A method of reflecting light thanks to micro-glass beads. Most reflective vest fabrics are made from raw fabric, which is then used with an adhesive to attach micro-glass beads.
These glass beads are coated on the surface with a layer of aluminum, which makes the reflection of the shirt very highly reflective and effective. This type of particle normally only reflects light in places where the light source is darker than it.

You can simply imagine that when you enter my shadow you hold something different in color with dark tones such as red, yellow, orange green… then it is not difficult for you to see these colors. Now you choose the color that is the complete opposite of black, which is white (silver) which is the best self-luminous color according to the color contrast method.
Now you can see many types of reflective vests are green. According to the law of blood coordination, green is one of the three colors that make up white, so when we combine blue with silver-coated glass beads, this will increase the ability of the shirt to glow. . The above is how to make it reflective vests glow in places with poor lighting conditions.

What are the types of reflective workwear?

Reflective waistcoat
Waistcoats are extremely popular in the reflective vest market. This shirt is designed in the shape of a waistcoat, with no sleeves. They are used to cover normal workwear, whose main effect is reflective in the dark. This shirt has the advantage of being lightweight, and extremely comfortable to wear thanks to cotton and polyester materials. In addition, they also have excellent breathability, helping workers always feel comfortable when working outdoors. They are easy to recognize by their distinctive shape and dominant color.

Reflective jacket in the form of a jacket
Another very good type of protection is a reflective vest. Unlike a waistcoat, this shirt is designed like a regular shirt, with long sleeves to protect the arms from outside impacts. Wearing this jacket, you don’t need to wear too many layers underneath. They also have the full protective function of a regular work shirt, helping to prevent dust, prevent cold and breathe. Therefore, this type of shirt protects the body in a superior way, and still works as a luminous signal in the dark.

Reflective letter shirt
In addition to the above two common types of shirts, letter-shaped reflective vests are also widely used. The shirts produced are usually in A, H, and V shapes. The common feature of these shirts is that they are made of 100% reflective mesh fabric, which has a very good luminous effect. Construction workers and engineers can put them on overprotective clothing and take them off easily. In addition to being lightweight and durable, these reflective vests also provide optimal protection for the wearer in dense night conditions. They are also very popular with backpackers with their simplicity, convenience, and effective reflective effect, ensuring their safety when going through unfamiliar dark roads.

How to choose a reflective vest?
Given the importance of reflective vests in ensuring worker safety, we need to choose them carefully. When choosing reflective protective gear, people should pay attention to the following points:
Attention should be paid to the quality of the fabric and the seam of the shirt: The quality of the product is extremely important no matter what type of protection. With reflective vests, we should identify the material as luminescent fiber, the seam needs to be sure to ensure that the thread does not burst or fray when encountering different types of weather.
Pay attention to the size of the shirt: No matter how well a shirt protects if it is not comfortable to wear, it will not be effective. A shirt that is too wide will cause problems when it is windy and rainy. The shirt is too tight, which will affect the flexibility when moving. Therefore, buyers need to choose the right shirt for their size, to provide the most comfortable protection.