Are Oberon TCG™ fabrics lighter weight than fire resistant treated cotton?
Yes, absolutely. For example, an Oberon TCG40™ garment, which is constructed of Oberon’s proprietary Inherently/Permanently Flame Resistant (IFR) fabric (a fabric specifically designed for the Arc Flash marketplace) and which has an arc rating of 46 cal/cm2, has a fabric weight of 10.9 ounces per square yard. A comparable chemically flame retardant treated (FRT) cotton product, with a similar arc rating, would weigh nearly twice as much. Additionally, Inherently FR garment is less bulky and more comfortable to wear. Garments manufactured with Inherently Flame Resistant fabrics like Oberon TCG™ Series and its LAN™ Series are permanently flame resistant. Unlike some FRT cotton fabrics, you cannot impact the flame resistant characteristic with washing. Really, the only benefit to an FRT cotton product is the low price. For the infrequent user, an FRT cotton garment can be a good solution. But for the industrial electrician, who will be using the garments frequently, the superior comfort and durability offered by an Inherently Flame resistant garment makes it the preferred choice. Oberon does offer a low cost FRT Cotton product (CAT™ Series) in addition to our IFR products (Good-Better-Best).
