Maspica is gradually updating its collections to adapt them to the standard which is moving from the 2011 version to 2022 and obtaining the certifications issued by notified bodies.

Creator and owner of the Sixton Peak® brand, Maspica, part of the Delta Plus group, has been a national and continental point of reference in the field of safety footwear for over forty years. Engaged daily in research and innovation, it boasts superior products in terms of quality and performance, studied and designed to ensure comfort, well-being and maximum safety for workers active in the most varied sectors and in the most diverse environmental and climatic conditions.

All-round certifications

Maspica does not limit itself to manufacturing the highly reliable Sixton Peak® branded PPE, but pursues a philosophy of excellence proven by significant collaborations and a series of important certifications. Sixton Peak® is a member of the SATRA Technology Centre, a global centre for tests and controls on the footwear production chain.

Maspica's internal laboratory, certified by Ricotest as a member of RPN (the Ricotest Proficiency Network), checks its capabilities with annual audits. It also satisfies the safety requirements of footwear with the introduction/replacement of orthopaedic insoles as required by the German DGUV 112-191 rule and, since 2015, it has been CSA certified for the production of safety footwear intended for the Canadian market.

Notice to users and those responsible for occupational safety and purchasing

Maspica has always been attentive to the evolution of standards to ensure maximum safety for customers/end users; the one that more than the others to date at the base of its activities is EN ISO 20345:2022 (published in the European Official Gazette since 11/05/2023).

It is a mandatory step, based on EU Regulation 2016/425, i.e.the European law that regulates the PPE market and which defines and allocates the responsibilities of the various economic operators, for ever greater protection of workers and entrepreneurs. Footwear manufactured according to the EN ISO 20345:2011 standard will remain valid as PPE until the expiry date of the certificates issued by the notified bodies.

Safety footwear certified according to EN ISO 20345:2011 can continue to be placed on the market until the end of the validity (expiry date) of the certificates issued by the notified bodies. 

EU certificates (Regulation 2016/425) based on EN ISO 20345:2011 will remain valid even after the introduction of the new EN ISO 20345:2022 as the new standard does not provide a significant increase in protection compared to the previous version. 

So end users and safety and purchasing department managers can safely continue to purchase EN ISO 20345:2011 footwear with the certainty of being able to count on Sixton Peak® safety performance.

What is new in EN ISO 20345:2022?

The new EN ISO 20345: 2022 provides for the introduction of new requirements and markings, with the aim of facilitating the application of the standard by the manufacturer, creating equivalent conditions in all member states and effectively simplifying the circulation of goods in Europe.

As regards the basic requirements (SB), the shoes can have leather, microfibre or fabric uppers, guarantee ergonomics, comfort, harmlessness and performance of the materials, and also have a toe cap resistant to 200 joules, i.e. the fall of a weight of about 20 kilos from one metre in height, and ensure non-slip protection. The slip resistance requirements have changed, there will be no more markings: SRA, SRB and SRC but it will be essential to have a basic requirement and a supplementary requirement marked with SR.

The puncture resistance:

• - marked P: Metallic puncture resistant inserts, tested for nails with a diameter of 4.5 mm
• - marked PL: Non-metallic puncture resistant inserts, tested for nails with a diameter of 4.5 mm
• - marked PS: Non-metallic puncture resistant inserts, tested for nails with a diameter of 3mm.

Here are some of the new major classifications, such as SB, S1, S2, S3, S6 and S7.

• • Starting from SB, which is the only level of protection that allows open heels, we move on to S1: closed heel with energy absorption, antistatic properties and sole resistance to hydrocarbons (FO). The level of protection from nails, which was previously only marked S1P, may be integrated by the suffixes S1PL (4.5 mm nail) and S1PS (3.0 mm nail).
• • S2 adds to the S1 performance the upper resistant to water penetration and absorption.
• • S3 adds to the S2 performance the tracked sole and three-level spike

protection: S3, S3L and S3S.

• • S6 and S7 offer the same protections as the S2 and S3 levels but with

additional requirements for water resistance marked WR.

• • Other additional requirements are, in addition to the already seen SR,

PL, PS and WR, the HI for heat insulation, the CI for cold insulation, the M for metatarsal protection.

• • Among the innovations we also mention the SC requirement for the

resistance of the toe cap to abrasion and the LG for the ladder grip system which ensures grip on a ladder, a requirement derived from the standard for footwear intended for firemen.

Important but not substantial innovations, therefore, which allow those who have to buy a Sixton Peak® shoe to do so with peace of mind even if marked UNI EN 20345:2011, with the certainty of being able to count on an absolutely up-to-date and highly reliable PPE for at least another five years.

For those who want to know more, Sixton Peak® has created three easy tools for quick reading or to expand their knowledge on the new legislation.