Steel-toe boots
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Steel-toe boots (or sometimes safety boots) are durable boots made of leather, rubber, or pleather (which may be made from a durable microfibre such as Lorica). Safety boots have a reinforcement in the toe usually combined with a sole plate, which protect the foot from falling objects and punctures from below. The reinforcements can be steel (STSP = steel toe steel plate), a composite material (CTCP = composite toe composite plate), or a plastic such as TPU (thermal polyurethane).
Steel-toe boots are important in the construction industry and in many industrial settings. Occupational safety and health legislation or insurance requirements may require the use of such boots in some settings, and may mandate certification of such boots and the display of such certification directly on the boots. (For example in Canada, certified boots have a Canadian Standards Association green triangle on them.)
Safety footwear now comes in many styles, not just as boots but also as shoes, trainers and clogs. Some are quite formal, for supervising engineers who must visit sites where protective footwear is mandatory.
Many urban legends about steel toe boots hold that the inserts actually create a more dangerous environment, as a significant weight will cause the steel to act like a blade, severing the toe instead of the weight simply crushing it. However, it appears that the weight needed to induce such a failure would result in catastrophic damage to the toe that would necessitate amputation anyway. For protection from standard falling weights and tools, the protection of a pair of steel toed shoes is unmatched by any other piece of safety equipment, and anyone working in a hazardous job setting would do themselves a favor by investing in a pair.
