Request for information about Personal Protective Equipment Information (PPE-Info) Database

The National Protective Technology Laboratory (NPPTL) of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) announced a request for information and comments on the Personal Protective Equipment Information (PPE-Info) Database Docket (NIOSH Docket 293). The comments and information submitted to the docket informed database contents.

Background Information: The purpose of the PPE-Info database is to serve as a compendium of national PPE information. The database provides standards developers, manufacturers, suppliers, purchasers, and end users of PPE with a comprehensive tool which allows general- or advanced-criteria searches of (1) relevant standards, (2) associated product types, (3) target occupational groups, (4) basic conformity assessment specifications, and (5) an abundance of additional pertinent information. Currently, there is no single public or private entity in the U.S. that compiles, tracks, updates, and amends national PPE standards and select product information. The PPE-Info database aims to fill this gap.

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, Certifying Personal Protective Technologies: Improving Worker Safety, focuses on conformity assessment for occupational personal protective technologies (PPT) as a means to ensure that PPT are effective in protecting workers from workplace hazards. Because respirators already have an extensive testing and conformity assessment process in place, this report specifically addresses conformity assessment processes for other types of PPT, including eye and face protection, gloves, hearing protectors, and protective clothing. The recommendations included in the IOM report were the basis for the creation of the PPE-Info database and continue to serve as an informational resource in its development.

The PPE-Info website was developed in 2012 and is available for use and review. Additionally, users can access a tutorial on the use and features of the current PPE-Info database .

To view the notice and related materials, visit http://www.regulations.gov and enter CDC-2017-0001 in the search field and click “Search.”