Good and well made workwear is the best investment anyone in the building trade can make. Far more important than your tool-set, your ass sorted hammers, screwdrivers, pliers, wrenches, picks and shovels is your clothing. This can be likened to the military where uniform and especially footwear are considered the prime factors in allowing a soldier to function.

Proper work clothing should do many things, but here is a summary of the main purposes and functions that it will provide:

• Naturally the prime area of concern must be safety. It is imperative that sensitive and vulnerable areas are protected. Hence sturdy work boots or even rigger boots are a must to protect feet from impalement or crushing. It is also important that these boots afford a good level of grip and moveability so that the wearer has a suitable freedon of movement. Trousers/ Overalls, Gloves and Headwear should also be worn in keeping with the specifics of the industry involved to protect areas most likely to be at risk.
• A secondary, yet imperative requirement of workwear is that it provides comfort. Clothes should not restrict movement and should provide a good level of protection from the elements. Most workclothes now have padding and reinforced areas to protect the wearer. They also have brought into the industry new materials such as GoreTex and other water resistant finishes which simultaneously allow the body to breate and provide protection.
• Of course far less important than the above reasons, but one, nontheless a contributory factor in choosing workwear is one of fashion. Workwear in now made by some leading brands who also have a foothold and influence on the highstreet such as Caterpillar, Timberland and Helly Hansen. Simply workwear, an online retailer of workwear and apparel have good selection of just such workwear in the section : work jackets, similarly a thorough selection of work boots is to be found in their safety footwear section. It is interesting to note how the fashion industry has been influenced by both military and other such rugged trades’ work uniforms.

In summary, a builder or other such tradesman needs to equip himself just like a soldier, with military precision. Careful thought needs to be applied with regards to protection, mobility and style ( even soldiers care about how they look you see. )

Builders need to wear decent safety or rigger boots during the course of their work. Theirs is one of the most hazardous professions when comes to feet.

There are all manner of menaces out there which can be broken down into three main areas of danger:

• Sharp Objects
• Slippery or uneven surfaces
• Heavy Materials

Sharp Objects

One of the nastiest injuries commonly affecting builders, or construction workers is impalement. Commonly this is a protruding nail of piece of metal. For this reason many specialist safety boots include a metal midsole as standard.

Heavy Materials

Crushing injuries are also a common occurrence on sites where heavy materials are transported. Bricks, Pipes, Furniture , even girders. Of course well made safety shoes will not protect you from all injury, but well constructed, well made shoes with good padding, steel toecaps and a rigid exterior.

Slippery or Uneven Surfaces

As, in a place like a building site, even with the best project management, it is likely that you will find discarded materials, or be forced to climb over piles of gear to get somewhere, it is important the footwear you choose will not only protect your feet from the dangers described above, but allow a reasonable amount of nimbleness and agility to prevent you from other potential hazards such as tripping or slipping.

So you will see from the information above that good care should be taken. Some shoes such as have specialised structures aimed at protecting feet from

Rigger boots are a safety boot used by tradesmen and construction workers generally in heavy construction work and strenuous working conditions. Rigger boots are superb safety footwear for any weather as they go nearly a third of the way up the leg and are, hence, able to keep ones feet dry and the bottom of your trousers protected and clean by tucking them into the work boot.

In general most rigger boots have similar distinguishing features such as breathable water resistant leather, fur lining, pull-on loops, steel toe cap and mid-sole ( to prevent impalement type injuries ) and are shock absorbent and oil and chemical resistant. All of these rigger boots are a standard S3 and comply with EN345-1

The very best in safety boots from Online are covered by the top brands such as Dewalt, Dickies, JCB, Dr. Martens, Makita, Sterling Safety and PSF - these offer comfort, protection and durability.

It is also a very good idea to check that whatever boots you buy are European standards for safety footwear EN 345-1, EN347-1.

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