UNIQUE CHALLENGES OF WORKING IN LOW TEMPERATURES AS A DRIVER

And How RefrigiWear Can Help You Address Them

Working as a driver you deal with all kinds of conditions. When your job is driving perishable goods that are picked up from, stored in, and delivered to refrigerated or frozen locations, you have an extra set of concerns to worry about. Whether you have to deal with the Florida heat in your cab but subzero temps at locations, or you drive the ice roads up north, you need the right gear to stay protected and get the job done.

Layer Up

When your day includes a roller coaster of temps and conditions, you need to layer to stay comfortable. Start with the base layer (closest to the skin) but choose wisely - a proper base layer will help keep you comfortable while the wrong one will make you miserable, either too hot or too cold.

Choosing the right jacket, vest or insulated sweatshirt is vital to your overall warmth and your vital organs. Keeping your core warm helps keep up blood flow to the rest of your body. From pants and bibs to rain and wind protection, the right combination exists so you can adjust layers throughout the day to match the changing conditions you face. Keep movement in mind as well—you don’t want to be too constricted by your protective gear.

Stay Visible with HiVis Gear

High traffic areas, bad weather, low light – all of these things reduce visibility and hinder safety. Wearing ANSI certified HiVis gear helps keep you safe in low-visibility environments. Whether it is a mesh vest you put on when needed or a HiVis jacket you wear at all times, HiVis gear helps keep you safe. It is especially important to have an insulated HiVis jacket for very cold temperatures so that you can be visible and warm.

Don’t want to risk misplacing a HiVis vest? Choose insulated HiVis jackets with built-in safety and warmth. Don’t need ANSI rated gear but want some added visibility for safety? Check out our Enhanced Visibility gear.

Footwear is the Foundation

You need to build safety, comfort and warmth from the ground up, so start with your footwear. Slips, trips and falls are the cause of most workplace injuries.

Proper footwear helps prevent these injuries by reducing the chance of slipping in hazardous conditions, such as black ice or slick floors. Proper footwear also provides cushioning and support for the feet and legs, reducing the likelihood of feet, leg or lower back injuries. Cumulative injuries are the most common in drivers – so the footwear you put on every day is one of the most important choices you can make.

Gloves Help You Beat the Cold

Making deliveries often means handling cold products, which results in cold transfer from those products to your hands. Insulated gloves provide protection against the cold in the air and against cold transfer. While insulated gloves help with cold, options likes palm coatings or silicone dot patterns help with grip, and impact protection on gloves helps prevent injury from handling boxes or finger pinches. You can also opt for gloves with touchscreen fingertips or RefrigiWear’s Key-Right and Touch-Rite nibs so you don’t have to remove gloves and expose your hands in cold conditions.

Don’t Forget Headwear

No, heat doesn’t just escape from your head. But if you protect every part of your body but your head, it will. Use the proper headwear to keep vulnerable areas like the ears and face protected, as well as trap heat.

Embroidery Keeps Teams Connected

When your team includes drivers who spend their days away from your HQ, it can sometimes feel like the team isn’t really connected. Keep the team feeling the love with embroidered gear. Our in-house team can add your logo, names, and more to most of our products to create a uniform look that keeps the team feeling present, even when the drivers aren’t.