This is exciting news. Originally developed for windmill techs, Purnell’s new line of performance workwear is targeted at a new audience; the Industrial Athelet. What I find fascinating about this is that we are beginning to refer to the Soldier and LE Officer as Warrior Athletes. The concept of an Industrial Athlete parallels the Warrior Athlete movement. Hopefully we’ll also see an emphasis on functional fitness as well as the development of performance clothing and equipment.
Let’s face it. Many construction and industrial jobs require the workers to face hazardous conditions and extreme weather. Items like this FR Harness Hoodie are designed to be worn by those who find themselves suspended in a harness. Also, I’d hazard a guess that this is the first time that features like bicep pockets have been integrated into industrial clothing. They’ve also introduced a lightweight as well as a non-FR version of the garment.
Purnell has developed an entire line of clothing and I’d say it’s worth a look. I’ll be sure to follow up during next week’s OR Summer Market.
Tags: Purnell
Thank you! Finally someone gets it!
I’ve been using Purnell workwear as a wind tech for a while. I never knew it was designed by wind techs for wind techs. Makes sense now. 🙂
Cool. I especially like that they include a little section showing some of the thought processes that went into the evolution of one of their garments.
http://purnellworkwear.com/product-evolution/
Having worked construction for a while, I was always disappointed by the limited choices of workwear available in North America. Clothes that really hadn’t evolved in decades. Pants that no one had given any thought to how, say, a framer moved in them, or how to more comfortably incorporate knee pads, etc. Jackets that might be fine if you worked in a saw mill in 1900, but not so good if you were on a roof with a fall harness on in 2000. Sweden has a few brands that show someone is really putting some thought into how people work in clothes. Nice to see someone in North America giving some thought to specific career fields and their needs.
Although I fear a lot of the guys I encountered on construction sites will continue to just wear whatever free T-shirt comes in a two-four of beer, and whatever cheap jeans they find at WalMart.
Not to bring question to their quality, but is their stuff made in the US?