Report summary

Comfort is no longer an optional extra in personal protective clothing and workwear—it is now the defining factor in whether protection is worn correctly and consistently throughout a working shift. The emphasis has shifted from simply meeting performance tests to ensuring garments are tolerated for long periods in real working conditions.

Key barriers to continuous wear include heat stress, fatigue, chafing and restricted movement. These issues can discourage workers from using protective clothing properly, potentially increasing risk and placing employers in breach of standards and regulations.

Research and workplace experience have shown that more comfortable personal protective equipment (PPE) is worn more consistently, helping to reduce incident risks - particularly in high-hazard industries. Comfortable PPE can also support improved productivity and worker retention.

In response, leading manufacturers are increasingly designing for comfort first, integrating protection into fabrics and garments that move freely, breathe effectively and dry quickly enough for all-day wear. This report profiles seven companies whose innovation and R&D efforts have influenced the market’s drive towards comfortable protective clothing and PPE: 3M, Carrington Textiles, DuPont, Milliken & Company, Sioen Industries, TenCate Protective Fabrics and W L Gore & Associates. Each company is pursuing solutions to the core challenge of delivering robust protection without creating garments that are too cumbersome or uncomfortable to wear for sustained periods.

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Publisher: Textiles Intelligence

Report title: Profiles of seven companies in the personal protective clothing and workwear sector: comfort is now the defining metric

Number of pages: 16

Date of publication: January 2026

Report price: Euro 340.00; US $ 445.00

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