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“Head-to- foot” Personal Protection from A J Charnaud & Co (Pty) Ltd

A. J. Charnaud & Company (Pty) Ltd has, since 1975, been at the forefront of the development and manufacturing of personal protective clothing.

The company was founded in 1975 by Fiona and Andrew Charnaud to manufacture industrial rainwear for the South African market. The organisation has since expanded its range of products considerably over the years and now supplies advanced personal protective clothing and equipment to various sectors of the global economy.

The company supplies products to numerous industries dealing with elements including hot metal smelting, fire fighting, shaft sinking, electrical safety (arc flash) operations, mining and recently live-line work (high voltage distribution lines) and specialised footwear.  With a complete head-to-foot range of certified products, supported with advanced professional and technical assistance, A. J. Charnaud & Company (Pty) Ltd is regarded as a leading global supplier of personal protective clothing for flame, heat, molten metal and electric arc protection.

Today the Charnaud Group exports its expertise, personal protective clothing and systems worldwide to protect workers across five continents.

Envisioning a safer future

The company’s long standing commitment to ensuring the safety of their customers has led to the development to revolutionary technology in personal protective clothing over the years. The company is constantly looking for innovative ways to improve safety through personal protective clothing. Their slogan "Your last line of defence" encapsulates this commitment towards absolute safety. Their newest product to enter the market place is the Charnaud E20300®.

The Charnaud E20300® is the newest innovation for safety shoes and forms part of the Survive-ARC® personal protection kit against electric arc flash. The unique light weight, full leather safety boot is metal free and water resistant with a heat and electric shock resistant outsoles. The work boots have a breathable lining, in-sock antibacterial treatment and ergonomic design for continuous comfort.

When an electrical current passes through air between ungrounded and grounded conductors, the temperatures can reach up to 20 000 °C in a fraction of a second, with tremendous pressure blast and shrapnel hurling at high velocity. Charnaud's Survive-ARC® comprises of a comprehensive range of arc flash protective clothing and equipment designed to protect the electrical worker against these hazards of an electric arc flash.

The range consists of switching garments, casual daywear for electricians and matching head-to-foot accessories, which includes a high energy ArcGoggle, balaclava and hard hat/helmet, the only system that provides an alternative to the use of Bee Keeper style hoods for electric arc safety up to 45 cal/cm². Garments are made of world leading popular cotton and high tenacity nylon blend fabrics, which are ideal for moderate to warm climates and can be worn directly against the skin.

Certified Protective Clothing

A. J. Charnaud & Company (Pty) Ltd places a high premium on brand consistency and product quality. Products are certified in South Africa, with all exported products carrying international certification.

The company is a permanent member of the South African National Standards Committee on electric arc flash who prepared the national standard “SANS 724:2010 Personal Protective Equipment – Protective Clothing against the thermal hazards of an Electric Arc”, incorporating the NFPA 70E,  IEC 61482-2-2 and IEE 1584 standards. 

Putting your safety first

CHARNAUD’s holistic approach to PPC and PPE, brought to live the "Head to Foot" concept of protection. The company further communicates this concept through their wide range of protective clothes.

Aluminised®: Aluminised garments that protect against radiant heat and molten metal splash.

ALu-SAFE®: A head-to-foot range of specialised protective garments for the aluminium industry.

Charnaud Smelter Boot®: Ultra high resistance towards molten metal splash, acid, punctures, electrical hazards with an ultrahigh heat resistant outsole.

Aqua-TECH®: Industrial rainwear made from coated yellow PVC used for light to heavy duty industrial use.

Fire-TECH®: Full range of head-to-foot products for structural, veld and industrial fire fighting.

Fire-SAFE®: A full range of flame resistant work wear designed for a variety of applications.

Survive-ARC®: Electric arc flash protective clothing designed for the electrical worker.

Wool-SAFE®: Garments made from treated pure new wool to protect against flames and heat.

Zero-TECH®: Designed to protect and enhance worker’s performance in cold conditions.

Shaft-TECH®: Designed to withstand various fuels in a high abrasion work areas typically found within the mining industry.

All of the product features have been thoroughly tested in order to ensure consistency and the safety of our customers.

Apart from ensuring quality products, the company goes the extra mile by offering pre-sales advice, custom design and after sales services including: product care/ maintenance, washing programmes and laundry set up.

Going into 2013, the A. J. Charnaud & Company (Pty) Ltd team will continue to uphold the spirit of innovation and excellence in personal protective clothing and equipment.

Most electric arc injuries can be prevented when workers wear the appropriate personal protective equipment. The best reason for increased awareness and understanding of arc flash hazards is to prevent injuries. In order to achive this, the first thing organisations need to do is determine if a danger exists.

The National Electrical Code, also known as NFPA 70E, states in Article 130.3: "A flash hazard analysis shall be done in order to protect personnel from the possibility of being injured by an arc flash. The analysis shall determine the flash protection boundary and the personal protective equipment that people within the flash protection boundary shall use."

The greatest number of nonfatal electrical injuries occurs in the construction industry, followed by manufacturing, and in these two industries the leading cause of injury is electrical burns. In all other industries the leading cause of injury is electric shock. The utility industry has the highest rate of nonfatal electrical burn injury. From utility workers, mechanics and machine operators to those working in telecommunications, construction and heavy industry, nearly anyone who works on or near electrical equipment is at risk for arc flash exposure. (http://ehstoday.com/ppe/protective-clothing/steps-protect-arc-flash-hazards-1211). 

“When I looked back and saw that I had no pants on the back of my legs, and literally, the skin was hanging off my arms and my legs, I just knew something horrific had happened.”  This was the comment made by an electrical worker seriously injured by an electrical arc flash as can be seen in the Arc Flash Awareness video series.

Arc flash explosions occur when an electric current passes through air between ungrounded and grounded conductors. The temperatures can reach 20 000°C in a fraction of a second, with a tremendous pressure blast and shrapnel hurling at high velocity. Exposure to these extreme temperatures burns the skin directly and causes ignition of clothing, which adds to the burn injury.

For a look at the personal protective equipment (PPE) needed to protect workers from arc flash injuries, read “Taking Steps to Protect Workers from Common Arc Flash Hazards.”

To protect specifically against the thermal effect of electric arc flash, AJ Charnaud has developed a range of personal protective clothing and accessories called Survive-Arc^®.