ISEA's draft standard for air-purifying respiratory protective smoke escape devices (RPEDs) is available for public review.  The ISEA is seeking comment on its revision to ANSI/ISEA 110-2003.   RPEDs are intended for use by persons to escape from fire-generated products of combustion. Such devices provide head, eye and respiratory protection from particulate matter, eye irritants, carbon monoxide and other toxic gases commonly produced by structural fires. The standard provides minimum requirements for these products that provide limited protection for 15 minutes for adult civilian escape from the byproducts of fire.

This edition seeks to update the initial US standard, ANSI/ISEA 110, first promulgated in 2003, by including updated methodologies and procedures to provide criteria that will allow testing laboratories to generate reproducible results, while at the same time removing restrictive language that could impede the testing process. In consultation with testing laboratories, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and the NIOSH National Personal Protective Technologies Laboratory, the revision includes language to ensure that user needs are being met with the addition of criteria for ocular leakage, changes in sizing parameters based on current anthropomorphic studies, and giving consideration to current and emerging technologies in RPED product development.

It was drafted by the ISEA RPED Group, and is now being reviewed by a consensus group to become an American National Standard.  Public review copies of the draft are available for $30. Contact Cristine Fargo at ISEA, 703-525-1695.