ALL Gloves
Editorial | 13 December 2021
On the 24th December Santa will fly around the world, putting in a full 24hr shift. During that time, he is bound to encounter hazards of all kinds including flying geese, fires, snow and ice.
We thought we would make sure Santa is properly prepared for his busiest night of the year.
Whilst his sleigh would be fun to analyse, we will just be focusing on his personal protective equipment (PPE).
Flying around the globe at what MIT calculated to be 650miles per second, let’s assume that Santa already has measures in place to help him cope with the G-force he will encounter at that speed and focus instead on his eye protection.
On this occasion we have chosen our indirect vent goggles which offer all round protection of the eyes. Designed to protect against liquids and airborne dust, they prevent will any foreign objects hitting his eyes. Important box ticked here: Santa can see what he’s doing.
It’s late December and very cold. Santa is also flying around at altitude so it will be even colder, therefore we’ve taken no chances and fitted Santa out with our Watertite Thermal Gloves.
The 10 gauge brushed terry liner will help Santa keep control of his sleigh and ward off any frostbite. As they’re also waterproof, any snowy weather shouldn’t be a problem. Unfortunately, they only come in orange which isn’t exactly in keeping with Santa’s classic red, so a potential colour clash. Safety first though!
This is a tough one. For a respirator to be worn correctly the wearer should be clean shaven. However, Santa without a beard just wouldn’t be the same.
On this occasion we’re advising Santa’s employer that he request Santa wears a respirator when entering homes he thinks may contain asbestos. This way we won’t rid Santa of a beard and be accused of ruining Christmas.
It’s dark, visibility is poor and if something did happen to Santa there would be a tough conversation needed with some soon to be very upset children. For this reason we’re giving him a sleeveless hi vis vest.
Due to the low light conditions and the unlikely event of him encountering another vehicle, we’ve kitted him out in Class 2 hi-vis. Any more coverage and he would lose his trademark red and any less he would be at risk of injury.
Traditionally Santa wears black boots but that doesn’t mean they’re safety boots. Santa is constantly on the move, carrying heavy objects, working a 24hr shift and it’s icy outside. Therefore, he needs comfortable footwear with high levels of protection and very high slip resistance.
It’s a toss-up between the Lincoln Waterproof Metatarsal Boot and the Trooper Safety Hiker. Due to the high slip risk and the frequency of slips, trips and falls in the workplace we’ll kit him out with the Tactical Trooper Safety Hiker due to its excellent slip resistance.
Another iconic Santa feature is his hat. As he spends so much time on roofs there is a distinct possibility of him dislodging tiles, which then become a hazard, so Santa should be wearing a hard hat to protect himself from falling objects. The good news is we have one in red and surely he would be able to find a hat that can fit over the top of it.
Santa is well known for descending chimneys, so here are some extras that we advise him to carry with him.
With all these items of PPE on his person we’re sure that Mr. Claus will be able to complete his shift in a safe manner. Merry Christmas from everyone at Blackrock!
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