S1 Ep13: Mighty Line Minute | ISO vs ANSI Safety Color Standards

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Greetings everyone and welcome to Mighty Line Minute. Our mission is to enhance your understanding of safety, health, and loss control principles. We'll do that by providing up-to-date information that can be applied to modern industrial workplaces. Our aim is to help you achieve a higher level of operational and safety excellence. So stay tuned.
Last week we discussed the more recent 2022 edition of the American National Standard known as Z535.1 Standard for Safety Colors. We also discussed the use of the standard from OSHA, and the context that it takes in light of ANSI, as well as identifying specific ANSI safety colors.
And we discussed colors that are commonly used in industrial environments. Specifically those that are used for the demarcation of machinery, equipment storage, and aisleways where safe travel is necessary.
So today folks we'll be discussing color from a different approach, and that is using the International Standards Organization, otherwise known as ISO, and their standard numbers 3864:2011 edition and 7010:2019 edition.
In these global color and safety sign standards. color really begins to shine, particularly when we talk about its correlation with ANSI.
And that is largely because color is used every day in safety, caution, information and warning signs, as well as the reflective clothing that you see everywhere.
In signage, the color black can be used as an alert symbol, such as when used as an exclamation mark or wording, along with contrasting white or yellow background, and as a signage border. Safety black is a specific color that is identified in both the earlier and later editions of ANSI Z535 and ANSI Z535.1-2022; additionally, the safety color charts found in ISO 3864-4:2011 edition Safety Color Tables.
The color black, which is not a specific OSHA color code, is not commonly used in warehouse or industrial floor striping, although, it has been used to demarcate special machinery or equipment in industrial settings. Black is and can be used outside of OSHA, such as for striping special floor storage areas or equipment areas.
And that's because OSHA accepts the use of ANSI Safety Color Standards, particularly where there are none within the OSHA standard itself.
So, we might ask, in general, where lie the differences between ANSI and ISO color charts and tables? Let's discuss that. Interestingly, ANSI 2022 edition dropped the colors gray and brown from their 2011 safety color chart, as did ISO. ISO 3864:2011 edition does not include the colors orange or purple as a safety color. However, ISO adds the unique safety color “phosphorescent yellow-white contrast.”
Let's summarize several examples of the differences between the ANSI and the ISO Standards with safety colors.
The colors, gray, brown, and purple have seemingly become less important as a safety color with both ANSI and ISO.
However, brown is used by the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) for recreational and cultural interest signage for parks, historical sites and scenic routes. And purple is used by the U.S. National Weather Service (NWS) service to illustrate the most severe weather. Also, by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to illustrate the most intense seismic activity.
The color orange remains an ANSI Safety Color, though not with ISO standards. And orange remains in prevalent use with the U.S. DOT traffic control standards, especially involving work zones.
Phosphorescent yellow-white contrast is a color that has gained importance through ISO. As such, the U.S. Federal Highway Administration has specified high-visibility clothing and PPE for workers in roadway work to enhance their visibility and safety and such zones. And state agencies also have their own requirements for use of “high-vis” and protective clothing. What about safety research in color? The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, known as NIOSH, conducts research on the use of high-vis clothing that affects workers in various industries, such as construction and transportation.
And in recent years, industry and public agencies have heightened use of high-vis clothing while working in high risk environments. The use of fluorescent orange, yellow, or green, combined with retroflective materials, along with additional safety measures, has significantly reduced the likelihood of the most severe accidents in traffic and construction zones. Below we have a full detailed review of ISO standards and safety colors.