Light-Weight Indigenously Developed Firefighter Suit

The role of firefighters is very extensive in our society. Firefighters not only play a pivotal role in rescuing human lives during fire accidents but also save properties from extensive damage by extinguishing hazardous fires. It is one of the life-threatening occupations that require intensive physical work in a hazardous environment. No significant work is done to develop firefighter suits for firefighters indigenously. Under this study, an indigenous lightweight firefighter suit is developed as per the standard IS 16890 and EN 469. The developed suit has been made using four layers (outer, moisture barrier, thermal barrier, and lining). The flame spread index of the component assembly was found to be 3 when tested as per ISO 15025 and the heat transfer Index (HTI24) at 80 Kw/m2 heat flux of the component assembly was found to be 13.7 s. The Radiant Heat Index (RHTI24) at 40 kW/m2 of the component assembly was 27.3 s. There was no water or chemical penetration observed through the suit when tested as per EN 20,811 and ISO 6530, respectively. The water vapor resistance (Ret) was found to be 27.6 m2Pa/W. The total weight of the large-size suit was found to be 3 kg only.