Effectiveness of a cooling jacket with reference to physiological responses in iron foundry workers

Personal cooling garments (PCGs) have gained increased attention in recent years due to heat stress and strain in the working environment. The present study was conducted in hot environments of an iron foundry to evaluate the efficacy of a battery-operated PCG. Twenty-four workers were exposed to climatic conditions of 35.89 +/- 1.25 degrees C, 35% relative humidity during 90-min work with PCG and habitual clothing (HC). Mean weighted skin temperature was significantly lower by 4.84 +/- 1.05 degrees C compared with HC 0.38 +/- 1.02 degrees C (p < 0.05). A statistically significant difference was also observed for 0.492+/- 0.26 g mean sweat loss in the PCG group compared with 0.775 +/- 0.42 g in the HC group (p < 0.05). Heart rate, and back and chest skin temperatures were comparatively more reduced in the PCG group compared with the HC group. PCG provides a practical and economical way of alleviating the physiological effects of heat stress when environmental control is not feasible.