It's that time again, a new pair of safety shoes is needed. The old shoes are broken, worn out for too long, or simply no longer liked. And now you have the agony of choice. The selection of safety shoes in stores and especially in online shops is huge, and you have to find the right work shoe first.
Since safety shoes are often worn for 8 hours or longer a day, they must fit well, be comfortable, and also look good. In addition to these properties, the safety aspect must not be neglected. With so many points, it's easy to overlook things. To avoid 5 common mistakes when buying safety shoes, we're giving you 5 tips today!
1. The right protection class for safety shoes
Safety shoes are offered in different protection classes, such as S1, S2, or S3. The protection class depends on the safety elements that have been incorporated into a work shoe. A shoe is tested by a certification body and then certified according to CE. The protection class and the CE mark must always be on the product and clearly indicated in an online offer.
To protect you properly at work, the professional association (BG) or the safety officer dictates which protection class must be worn at the workplace. For example, if a protective cap and a penetration-resistant sole are required, safety shoes of protection class S1P or S3 must be purchased. Always ask exactly which protection class is needed so that you always choose the right protection class for your safety shoes.
2. The right size for safety shoes
Should you buy safety shoes with a protective cap one size larger? Absolutely not! It is very important that safety shoes fit really well. The shoes are usually worn all day, so the safety shoes should be neither too big nor too small. Shoes that are too small can pinch and cause blisters. If safety shoes are too big, this can even lead to (work) accidents, as the risk of tripping is much greater.
Manufacturers of work shoes already take the steel toe cap into account when specifying the size. In most cases, you can therefore choose the size you normally wear for your street shoes.
3. The right width for safety shoes
Safety shoes must be comfortable, and that depends on the size and width. The foot must have enough space in the shoe so that it literally "doesn't pinch anywhere". After you have decided on the right size, the right width is also important. The standard width for safety shoes in Germany is width 11. This width is suitable and very comfortable for about three-quarters of people. For people for whom width 11 is not wide enough, many manufacturers have safety shoes in their range with width 12, width 13, or even width 14.
Even though the width is unfortunately not uniform among manufacturers, as a guideline, you can assume that the difference in circumference between a width 11 and a width 12 is approximately 3 millimeters.
Our tip: Some safety shoes from high-quality brands are also available in different widths. This way, every employee in the company can be equipped with the right width for them.
About the >> Size guide from Omniprotect << you can easily determine the right width for your foot yourself.
4. Pay attention to high-quality safety shoes
For the latest sneakers, we're happy to spend several hundred euros. Quality should also be allowed to cost something! And what about safety shoes? A cheap model should be bought as quickly as possible.
But be careful! A safety shoe is often worn much longer than a stylish sneaker. And the work shoe also has to do heavy-duty work and protect you from workplace hazards all day long. So do your feet and your joints a favor and don't skimp on high-quality when buying safety shoes. After a long and hard workday, you'll be grateful if your safety shoe has an anatomical footbed, is made of high-quality, water-repellent, and breathable material, and the sole has optimal cushioning that has protected your joints.
So invest in your health and buy high-quality, comfortable safety shoes.
5. Do without looks for safety shoes
The best safety shoe will only protect you if it is worn. This sounds so logical, but it can be a big problem. If cheap and very clunky safety shoes are bought, people will quickly prefer to wear comfortable sneakers on the construction site. However, these offer no safety at all.
Optics therefore have a lot to do with acceptance. It is very important that work shoes are not only comfortable and convenient. The appearance of the shoes must also be right. If you feel comfortable in the shoes and like to wear them, they offer you optimal protection.
You can now find sporty safety shoes in all sizes, colors, and styles.
At omniprotect.de, you have a wide selection of high-quality brands and sporty safety shoes that you can hardly distinguish from normal sneakers.
