NFPA 701 Fire Resistant Safety Vest Fabric Options Summer Weight "FR" Mesh: Lightweight, cool and popular in summer and for hot climates. The mesh allows free air flow to stay cool, meets the NFPA 701 Standard, but may not have the fluorescent brightness to meet ANSI. Our Vinatronics summer weight FR mesh safety vests may be labeled as ANSI Compliant or ANSI Style, allowing the combination of an ANSI compliant vest design with NFPA-701 compliant FR mesh fabric for use in hot climates and conditions. All Season Breathable NFPA & ANSI "FR" Polyester: A lightweight "All Season" knit fabric that allows air flow in summer and water pass thought in winter. The knit fabric stays cool and can be worn over summer weight shirts or winter jackets equally. A major fabric supplier for our manufacturer, Vinatronics, developed a new NFPA 701 FR coating more compatible with fluorescent dies. Improvements in coatings technology now allows a new all season breathable polyester that meets both the ANSI 107-2004 standard as well as the NFPA-701 standard and allows our manufacturer, Vinatronics, to make combined performance all season class 1, 2, 3, safety vests and other products. Winter Water Repellant Coated FR Nylon/Polyester:  A heavier weight water repellant fabric used for winter safety vests and jackets. This fabric helps keep you dry in both rain and snow. The FR outer shell is typically combined with FR polyester lining in the spring and summer jackets, and with FR arctic quilt linings when used for winter jackets. Water repellant FR polyesters are compliant with both ANSI 107-2004 and NFPA-701 requirements. Water repellant, tear and abrasion resistant Nylon is labeled as ANSI style as products meet NFPA 701 but may not meet ANSI brightness requirements. ASTM, NFPA "Blue Jean Tough" Flame Resistant Cotton: The only demonstrated fabric that meets both ASTM F-1506 FR test requirements and meets NFPA 701 specifications. A tough and durable fabric, products made of this fabric will wear like "Blue Jeans". A Blue Jean look and feel appeals to many customers, especially workers in electrical, utility, metals and construction industries. This cotton fabric, like blue jeans, may be warm in summer and will absorb rain and snow in winter, but holds FR coatings extremely well. Cotton FR was the only trusted FR and arc rated fabric available for many years. As a result, many utilities, electrical, metals and welding companies still specify this fabric despite the fact that Orange FR cotton may not meet ANSI brightness, and the Yellow FR cotton is not the usual Safety Lime color. Safety vests made with this fabric are labeled as NFPA 710 compliant and ANSI style. ASTM, NFPA and ANSI Compliant Modified Acrylic: A high performance fabric designed specifically for use in high visibility apparel. Protected by a U.S. patent, this fabric is designed to crinkle up and flake off when exposed to even small amounts of heat or flame. In burn booth demonstrations, where call 1, 2, and 3 products were exposed to flames, the modified acrylic protected the most surface area of the fabrics used in high visibility apparel. This fabric characteristic provides both high ASTM FR protection and high ANSI fabric visibility for workers at the highest risk. Products are labeled as both ASTM and ANSI compliant. As a caution, this same dual ANSI/ASTM performance makes the fabric difficult to wash, as even small amounts of hot water or dryer heat will cause the product to begin to crinkle. While providing the highest level of FR in fluorescent fabric, this fabric is also the highest priced. The fabric price is reflected in the price of the ASTM high visibility apparel products made with this fabric. See our Fire Resistant Safety Vests Description Of NFPA Code "FR” – Fire Retardant  Fabric that is certified as “FR” has been topically treated in an immersion process with a chemical fire retardant after the fabric has been woven. All cottons and other natural fibers certified as flame retardant are “FR” topically treated. Some synthetic fabrics are also topically treated. Because the treatment is topical, it will wear out in time, and repeated cleanings will cause the flame retardancy to dissolve sooner. Most flame proofing chemicals are water soluble and will also dissipate through dry cleaning. Draperies made from FR fabrics should be re-tested periodically for flame retardancy, as re-treatment may be required. For this reason, “FR” flame retardancy is certified for only one year. A Certificate of Flame Retardancy can be furnished to our customers upon request. “IFR” – Inherently Fire Retardant   “PFR” – Permanently Fire Retardant  Fabric that has been certified as “IFR” or “PFR” has been woven from fibers that are noncombustible for the life of the fabric. For this reason, the fire retardancy of “IFR” and “PFR” fabrics will last for the life of the fabric and will not dissipate after cleaning. A Certificate of Fire Retardancy is furnished upon request. “NFR” – Not Fire Retardant “CBFR” - Can Be Made Fire Retardant “CNFR” – Cannot Be Made Fire Retardant Fabric labeled “NFR” is not fire retardant. If “CBFP” is indicated for a fabric, that fabric can be treated for fire retardancy. Such treatment would include topical treatment in an immersion process, making the fabric “FR.” Some synthetics can be made fire retardant. IF “CBFR” is indicated for a fabric, that fabric cannot be treated for fire retardancy and, as such, should not be used in public venues. Among the types of fabrics that cannot be made fire retardant are certain synthetic and/or metallic fabrics. What is the NFPA 701 Test? Fabrics, such as safety vests, used in most public spaces (including schools, churches, auditoriums, theaters, and more.) is required by law in many states and cities to be certified as flame retardant, according to standards developed by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). NFPA has various standards depending on how the fabric will be used. In the case of draperies, curtains, and similar hanging textiles, the standard that applies is NFPA 701: Standard Methods of Fire Tests for Flame Propagation of Textiles and Films. This test measures the flammability of a fabric when it is exposed to specific sources of ignition. NFPA 701 (Small Scale) testing measures the ignition resistance of a fabric after it is exposed to a flame for 12 seconds. The flame, char length, and flaming residue are recorded. The fabric will pass the test if all samples meet the following criteria: An after flame of less than 2.0 seconds a char length of less than 6.5” the specimen does not continue to flame after reaching the floor of the test chamber Fabric certified as flame retardant is certified to have been tested and passed the NFPA 701 test.  See our Fire Resistant Safety Vests