Insulating Footwear for Live Working

Insulating (dielectric) Footwear Classes

Insulating boots or overboots are an essential item of personal protective equipment for safeguarding workers against electric shock, ensuring that those working on, or close to, live electrical equipment are adequately protected. Dielectric footwear is used in environments including electrical power distribution equipment maintenance and repair (powerlines, substations etc), renewable energy installations, electrified railway maintenance, industrial high voltage plant and equipment, construction and utilities. The current European standard for insulating footwear for high voltage live working is EN 50321-1:2018, which standard includes six performance classes (see below) for working at up to 36 thousand Volts (36kV). 

For electrical testing the boots are filled with water and placed in a water tank, with the water inside the boots connected to one terminal of the test voltage source and the water in the tank to the other. This setup ensures a uniform electric field and accurate measurement of the insulating properties of the boot. 

For boots with a penetration resistant mid-sole there is an electrical test after perforation of the sole by a nail, to ensure boots still give electrical protection after perforation. 

The table below lists the classes and the test requirements:

(Overboot requirements are in brackets where they are different from knee high boots)

The new standard also includes requirements for DC current; all boots used for DC must be tested for DC according to the new standard and this is available as an option (contact us for details).