Above and beyond ANSI: Performance begins where standards end

Just a guess, but it’s unlikely that the federal regulatory codes from ANSI, ISEA, NFPA, etc. — like ANSI/ISEA 107‑2020, for example — make it onto many summer beach reading lists. On the other hand, our copies are practically dog-eared.

Seriously, at Safe Reflections, we keep a close eye on reflective visibility standards because we see them as just the starting point for product development and refinement. While ANSI/ISEA 107‑2020 sets a necessary baseline for high-visibility safety apparel, real-world performance doesn’t stop at minimums. That’s where design, durability, and the extra ingenuity of SRI Labs come in.

Because when lives depend on gear that performs in the dark, in the rain, in the heat, and under pressure over months of hard use, “compliant” isn’t enough. Workers need apparel that outlasts, out reflects, and outperforms — and that’s where Safe Reflections really shines.

Our white paper, The Bright Side of Safety- A Guide to Mastering ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 Standards, explains in detail what’s behind the regs, and our recent blog Lighting the Way offers a solid primer on the topic.

In today’s blog, we’ll take a look at how the standards apply to High-Visibility Safety Apparel (HVSA) in the real world.

1. Reflectivity is about detectability

ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 establishes brightness thresholds for retroreflective materials, but those numbers don’t tell the whole story. In the lab, materials are tested under fixed angles and ideal lighting conditions. In the field, that control obviously vanishes. Vehicle headlights don’t hit reflective tape in textbook-perfect alignment. Workers are constantly moving. Weather rarely cooperates.

That’s why Safe Reflections focuses on how light behaves across a range of real-world conditions: oblique angles, uneven surfaces, poor weather, and movement. Detectability isn’t about reflectivity in isolation, but making sure reflective elements are positioned and designed in a way that helps operators instantly recognize a human form in motion.

Not that experienced workers need a reminder, but reflectivity works. As an example, in 2022, a farmworker was fatally struck by a front-end loader while wearing dark clothing and no visibility gear. The operator, driving with a raised bucket, never saw him. The difference between being compliant and being seen can be life or death.

This is where Safe Reflections focuses on making our trims stand apart. With innovations like Triple Trim, we create visual signatures that enhance recognition even when a worker is turning, crouching, or partially obscured in both daytime and low light conditions. It’s about making sure that workers are seen as unmistakably human in the places and moments when it counts most.

2. Segmentation: Getting comfortable with ANSI standards

Segmented reflective trims have rapidly moved from innovation to frontline necessity, especially for workers in high-heat, high-mobility roles. And while ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 doesn’t require segmented designs, SRI understands that anyone who’s spent a summer on a job site or 10 minutes in a foundry knows why reflective segmentation matters.

Traditional solid reflective tape can trap heat, reduce garment flexibility, and cause discomfort during extended wear. Safe Reflections addressed these issues head-on with AIREX® segmented trims, which strategically separate the reflective material to improve airflow, evaporative cooling, and mechanical stretch without sacrificing ANSI brightness requirements.

The result is retroreflective trim that’s not only comfortable but also enhances visibility by conforming to body movement, maintaining its position and performance even through constant flexion and friction. Whether on construction crews, aviation ground teams, or industrial facilities, high-visibility clothing using AIREX® segmented trims help workers stay visible and stay cool without compromising safety.

3. Enhancing the viability of visibility

As we mentioned above, it’s one thing to achieve a minimum coefficient of retroreflection in a lab. It’s another matter completely to maintain that performance after months of wear, exposure, and laundering. ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 mandates specific durability tests — including rainfall, flexing, laundering — but those tests are designed around product acceptance, not endurance.

That’s why Safe Reflections goes well beyond required cycles. We submit our trims to intensified versions of these tests, such as higher abrasion counts, harsher wash conditions, and extended UV exposure.

This is another example of how we use ANSI standards as a starting point, then work to uncover material weaknesses before they show up in the field by using everyday conditions.

Safe Reflections Trims, in particular, are built to last where others fade and their construction is purposefully engineered for repeated stress: industrial laundering, bending, folding, and continuous abrasion from tools, safety harnesses, and daily activity. That’s beyond ANSI-ready, it’s ready for a long shift in the real world.

4. Balanced reflective safety design is more than front-and-back

The 2020 revision of ANSI/ISEA 107 included an important design update: garments must now have balanced reflectivity, with at least 40% of reflective and background material visible from both front and back. It’s a meaningful improvement.

But like many ANSI standards updates, it merely raises the floor, it doesn’t elevate the ceiling.

At Safe Reflections, we think in 360°. Our trims are designed to wrap and articulate around the contours of a wide range of garments, especially around the arms, legs, and shoulders where motion happens. This placement isn’t just about checking visibility boxes but enabling faster recognition through biomotion — the subtle visual cues our brains pick up when we see another human move.

So, whether it’s a sleeve band that catches a glancing beam from a passing truck, or a segmented trim along the calf that flares under headlights, Safe Reflections trims are laid out to work with the way people move, not just the way standards are written.

5. Compliance is a requirement; reliability is a core value.

Again, ANSI compliance is our starting point. It tells the world (or at least, the regulators) that our high-vis gear meets the high-visibility safety apparel standards and is ready for use. But a work crew doesn’t spend their shifts in a test lab. They’re out on the freeway, the tarmac, the train yard—environments where conditions change quickly and reflective safety equipment needs to stay ahead of things.

This is where reliability comes in. Safety is better ensured when products perform consistently, and that gives workers peace of mind to focus on critical tasks. Safe Reflections trims are developed with repeatability and ruggedness at their core.

That includes our Flame-Resistant Reflective Trim configurations, which aren’t just ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 compliant, they’re also engineered to meet NFPA 1971 requirements for firefighter turnout gear. It’s proof that visibility and protection can coexist, even under the most demanding conditions. We don’t believe in trade-offs between compliance and performance. We build trims that deliver both.

From those FR solutions designed for emergency responders to long-run segmented trims that retain reflectivity through industrial laundering, our product portfolio is built on knowing what can go wrong—and designing to help ensure it all goes right.

The bottom line: what does ANSI miss—and how do we solve for that?

There’s no question ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 is critical. It provides a consistent, reliable framework to ensure HVSA meets visibility expectations across industries. But for safety apparel that’s used in the most demanding environments, compliance is just the baseline.

With Safe Reflections trims, whether segmented, flame-resistant, triple trims, true product performance means going beyond the standard. That’s comfort in the heat, high visibility through a complete range of motion, bright reflectivity even after the 50th industrial wash. It’s safety that doesn’t fade when conditions get tough.

At the end of the day, our job is to help make sure everyone goes home safe by starting with ANSI and designing smarter from there.

Explore Safe Reflections trims engineered to exceed ANSI standards, and discover high-performance options for segmented, flame-resistant, and motion-enhancing visibility at SafeReflections.com/products