Enforcement of the Use of Approved Types of PPE
Summary
DOSH had decided to formalize the enforcement of requirement to use approved type of personal protective equipment (PPE) stipulated under various occupational safety and health regulations. All PPE for use in all places of work shall be approved by DOSH. The requirement for supplier/ manufacturer of PPE to comply with testing and certification requirements by SIRIM was first introduced by DOSH in 2016. Enforcement of the use of approved PPE other than head and foot protection will be started on 1st Jan 2021. SIRIM QAS International Sdn Bhd had been appointed by DOSH as the inspection and testing body. The scope of DOSH approval is applicable to all PPE use in the workplaces, including both imported and locally made PPE products.
Approved PPE will have SIRIM DOSH Certification Marks affixed to the product (e.g. head protection and respiratory protection devices) or on the individual packaging and has unique serial number.
Employer must ensure all PPE use in workplaces for compliance with the Factories and Machinery Act 1967, the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 and its regulations have SIRIM DOSH Certification Marks. There are 7 types of PPE that require the approval from Director General which includes respiratory, hearing, eyes, hands, feet, body, and head protection.
Review/ Q&A
What are the existing regulations requiring approved PPE to be used?
| Regulations | Type of PPE |
| Lead Regulations 1984, Reg 21(3) | Respiratory (air purifying respirator) |
| BOWEC Regulations 1986, Reg 15 | Head (helmet), Body (safety harness) |
| Asbestos Process Regulations 1986, Reg 9(1)(b) | Respiratory (air purifying respirator) |
| Mineral Dust Regulations 1989, Reg 18(1)(b) | Respiratory (air purifying respirator) |
| USECHH Regulations 2000, Reg 16(1) | Head (helmet, face shield), Face/ eyes (face shield, goggles, safety spectacle), Respiratory (air purifying respirator), Body (hazardous chemical suit, apron, long sleeve shirt), Hand (chemical resistance gloves), Foot (safety footwear) |
| Noise Exposure Regulations, 2019, Personal Hearing Protector Reg 7(1)(d) | Ear (earplug & earmuff) |
Is there any new regulation related to this to be published?
Yes. The new regulation is currently being drafted by DOSH.
Can those existing PPE without SIRIM certification still being used?
Yes. Employer is allowed to use existing DOSH approved PPE until expiry of the products. The next purchase shall be PPE with SIRIM DOSH Certification Marks.
Is there a list of approved PPE?
Yes. A list of approved PPE is published in the DOSH website [https://www.dosh.gov.my/index.php/recognized-list].
How to get PPE approval from DOSH?
DOSH provides a process flow for the testing and approval application for PPE (refer DOSH website > Enforcement > Approval and Authorisation > Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)). In general, it involves the stages of Product Certification (i.e. evaluation, audit/ sampling, testing, and certification by SIRIM), Product Approval (obtaining approval letter by Director General), and Product Labelling (i.e. application of SIRIM DOSH Label and publishing in DOSH website).
SIRIM will conduct witness test at the factory with complete facilities. In the case if the test is conducted by 3rd party laboratory, testing will be supervised by SIRIM and witnessed by DOSH if needed. If the PPE has CE certification/ mark by overseas 3rd party testing, SIRIM will check on the similarity of the testing. However, currently DOSH only recognizes product certification license and test report from SIRIM Qas International Sdn Bhd.
Product certification licence validity is 1 year and yearly surveillance audit at factory may be required before SIRIM renew this licence; however other method could be used for surveillance instead of audit at factory.
