Green may mark the safety inspector on one site and the new worker on the next. A helmet's colour is a code the site sets. It is not a rating, and it says nothing about the helmet's age or whether it has been hit. For those two, the maker's schedule applies, and any impact means a new helmet.
What does each safety helmet colour mean?
Two published guides and Canada's occupational safety centre (CCOHS) give a similar reading for white, yellow and blue, and give green more than one role. CCOHS adds that the standard itself sets no colour per job: each workplace sets its own code.
| Colour | Usually worn by |
|---|---|
| White | Managers and supervisors |
| Yellow | General workers |
| Blue | Technical trades |
| Green | Safety inspectors on some sites, new workers on others |
One of the two guides calls these colours "widely used conventions, not a universal legal code", says the meaning varies by employer, project and country, and puts the site's own policy first. A crew that works for several clients should ask each site for its code in writing, and put it in the induction.
Do not repaint a helmet to change someone's role.
Bullard says not to paint a hard hat, because some paints and solvents may attack and damage the shell, and MSA advises against paint on most of its industrial helmets. To mark a role, ask the maker which stickers suit your model: MSA's helmet instructions say not to attach stickers or labels it does not recommend.
A helmet that has been struck is replaced, even when the shell looks fine
Bullard says that after a forcible blow of any magnitude both the shell and the suspension, which is the set of straps inside, should be replaced. MSA says to replace the helmet after any impact or penetration. In both documents the trigger is a blow to the helmet.
How the shell looks afterwards does not change that.
Without a blow, the maker's schedule and the condition of the shell decide. The suspension goes first, ahead of the shell. These are the makers' recommendations, and they differ by model.
| Part | MSA | Bullard |
|---|---|---|
| Suspension | Every 12 months | Every 12 months |
| Shell | Up to 5 years of use. 4 years for polyethylene shells in the European leaflet | No fixed term. Many large companies replace the whole helmet at 5 years. Replace after 2 years of use where exposure to sun, temperature extremes or chemicals is long |
The figures come from three documents: MSA's care and use guide of May 2016, which gives 5 years, MSA's European helmet leaflet, which gives 4 years for polyethylene shells and 5 for ABS and nylon, and Bullard's user information guide of 2011. MSA's maintenance page for one of its helmets gives the same 12 months and a limit of 5 years.
The age of a shell is easy to misread. MSA says service life normally starts at first use, after storage of up to 2 or 3 years, depending on the shell. The date moulded under the brim only shows when the shell was made, and a helmet can wait a while before it reaches a wearer. Sunlight, temperature extremes and chemicals shorten the life of a helmet shell, both makers say. MSA recommends looking at the shell before and after each use. Both list a chalky surface, a faded or discoloured shell, fine cracking (crazing) and brittleness among the signs to replace it.
Another maker's suspension is no substitute. MSA says its helmets are tested only with MSA suspensions, so fit the one the maker designates for that model and size. Bullard also advises against handing a cleaned helmet to a new worker, and asks for a new helmet.
A crew order should name the DOSH-SIRIM label and a colour per trade
Ask for the DOSH-SIRIM label by name. DOSH is the Department of Occupational Safety and Health, and the label is the Malaysian approval mark for industrial helmets. The helmets page explains what it is.
Send the quantity, the colours, the style and whether DOSH-SIRIM approval is required to sales (at) topborneo.com, or use WhatsApp. Say which colour goes to which trade, so the colours and the numbers match. TopBorneo, an official distributor of MSA and Bullard, replies with a quotation for that list.
When the helmets arrive, MSA recommends writing the date of first use on the sticker supplied with each one and fitting it inside the shell.
Related reading
- Safety helmets and eye protection: the helmets TopBorneo supplies, including DOSH-SIRIM approved versions.
- Safety equipment supplier in Malaysia
- Construction safety equipment
- Safety equipment for oil and gas work