The Difference Between Antistatic & ESD Footwear

The Difference Between Antistatic & ESD Footwear

Electrical resistance is an important characteristic of safety shoes. Movement and friction causes a build-up of electrostatic charge in the body. Shoes and clothing that are not conductive enough can increase this charge. At a certain point a discharge will occur. A discharge that is too high or uncontrolled can result in serious consequences such as an explosion due to spark formation or damage to electronic products and components in a working environment.

What do they protect against?

Anti-static footwear protects the user from medium levels of electricity that could cause serious injury whereas ESD (Electrostatic Dissipative) footwear protects the product i.e. electronic devices and circuitry from a build-up of static that can cause damage.

Which to use in different workplaces

Anti-static footwear can be worn in many different work environments whereas ESD footwear is ideally suited for the electronics industry, laboratories and other workplaces where delicate, electronic components are used.

The difference in electrical resistance

Anti-static shoes have an electrical resistance between 0.1 and 1000 Megaohm (MΩ), measured according to EN 20344: 2011 whereas ESD have an extremely low electrical resistance between 0.1 and 100MΩ.

Antistatic and ESD footwear at Total Workwear

At Total Workwear, we have 137 antistatic and ESD footwear products. Below are best sellers on our website, the first of which is antistatic and the second is ESD.

Base Cloro/CloroN Safety Hygiene Shoe- B0507 S2 Rating SRC Slip Resistant 200 Joules Steel resistant toe-cap Electronic devices protection from electrostatic discharges Anti-static footwear Water resistant upper Shock absorption in the heel region Hydrocarbons resistant Sole Antifatigue AirTech Orthopaedic made to measure footbed complying with european norms DGUV112-191   Click Here To View The Product

Portwest Compositelite Protector Safety Boot S3 ESD HRO - FD37 Suitable for use in ESD environments Heat resistant outsole 300ºC Enhanced tread pattern for a better traction on uneven terrain Angled top line for better fit and leg flexibility Padded collar for added comfort Protective scuff cap Bellow tongue construction for better resistance to water penetration Composite toe cap Pierce resistant composite midsole Energy Absorbing Seat Region Fuel and oil resistant outsole Water resistant upper to prevent water penetration 100% non-metallic SRC - Slip resistant outsole to prevent slips and trips on ceramic and steel surfaces Dual density sole unit   Click Here To View The Product

S U M M A R Y

If you weren't aware of the differences between antistatic and ESD footwear, accidentally wearing antistatic footwear instead of ESD could have been a very easy mistake to make. To give a brief summary of the three main differences: ESD protects electronic devices from a build-up of static, ESD footwear is ideally suited for electronics industries and antistatic footwear can have much larger electrical resistance.

to view our large range of antistatic and ESD footwear.