UniFirst Corporation this week announced the addition of the Bulwark® iQ Series® of safety apparel to its core uniform service offerings of flame resistant (FR) and high visibility personal protective equipment (PPE). In partnership with Bulwark, UniFirst is now offering business customers a selection of Bulwark iQ Series FR work shirts, pants, coveralls, and more. This collection contains National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Category 2, 2112-compliant arc-rated safety garments that are addressing long-standing issues of garment weight, breathability, and comfort that are often commonplace when wearing more traditional FR protective workwear in warmer climates.
Billed as FR apparel that “breaks the comfort barrier without compromising your level of protection,” the iQ Series from UniFirst represents an entirely new way of FR thinking:
- Innovative woven shirts and coveralls with new TenCate EVOLV™, an ultra-lightweight, comfortable 5.5 oz./yd. blended FR fabric with Nomex® by DuPont®.
- iQ Series work shirts and coveralls with 360° enhanced visibility striping for workers in low-/no-light environments.
- Endurance work pants featuring advanced Westex G2™ fabrics by Milliken, “where comfort meets functionality.”
iQ Series FR products are exclusive to Bulwark and are redefining how FR garments look, feel, breathe, and perform. In industries such as oil and gas, electric utilities, drilling and welling, and others where potential flame risk hazards exist, FR uniforms and other PPE can often make a difference in helping to protect wearers from debilitating burns, blindness, dismemberment, and even death. Depending on the wearer’s industry and line of work, any number of hazards may be encountered on the job: from arc flash, flash fire, and combustible dust risks to extreme weather and high heat conditions, to low- or no-light environments, and more.
Contending with heavier, motion-restricting, non-breathable workwear can add unnecessary layers of complication to already hazardous situations. The iQ Series is designed with the latest-generation technologies to help combat industry-specific hazards, all in a highly functional, breathable, lightweight construction that enables workers to focus on their work and not on their workwear.
“We’re excited to be expanding our offering of FR protective workwear with such a highly regarded, sought out, and forward-thinking line of safety apparel as the Bulwark iQ Series,” said Adam Soreff, UniFirst’s director of marketing and communications. “For years, we’ve heard concerns from Category 2 FR wearers in warmer environments that their workwear was heavy, uncomfortable, and simply not breathable. The new iQ Series answers the call with very lightweight, breathable construction along with protective properties that are changing how people think about FR apparel.”
Available via UniFirst rental services, the Bulwark iQ Series of FR shirts, pants, and coveralls can be tailored specifically to each employee’s job function. And with regularly scheduled uniform services, all items are picked up, delivered, hygienically laundered, repaired, and replaced as needed, ensuring that all employees are never left without the proper on-the-job protection they require and deserve.
For more information on the iQ Series, PPE, FR garments, high visibility workwear, and UniFirst’s rental uniform rental services, please visit UniFirst.com.
About UniFirst
Headquartered in Wilmington, Mass., UniFirst Corporation (NYSE: UNF) is a North American leader in the supply and servicing of uniform and workwear programs, as well as the delivery of facility service programs. Together with its subsidiaries, the company also provides first aid and safety products and manages specialized garment programs for the cleanroom and nuclear industries. UniFirst manufactures its own branded workwear, protective clothing, and floorcare products; and with 260 service locations, over 300,000 customer locations, and 14,000 employee Team Partners, the company outfits more than 2 million workers each business day. For more information, contact UniFirst at 800.455.7654 or visit UniFirst.com.
