The Important Use of ESD Garments in the Work Place

When working with sensitive electronic components, even the clothing you wear can be a source of electrostatic discharge. Synthetic fabrics like polyester and nylon are highly triboelectric — they generate static just from movement. A person walking across a floor can accumulate up to 35,000 volts of static charge, far above the damage threshold for most modern ICs. ESD garments are the first line of defense against that charge reaching your products.

What Are ESD Garments?

ESD garments are clothing items made from materials with antistatic or static-dissipative properties — typically carbon-fiber grid fabrics or conductive fiber blends. They are worn over regular clothing to prevent static from building up on the body and transferring to electronic components during handling. Common types include:

• ESD jackets and smocks — the most common garment for bench-level electronics work; worn over street clothes
• ESD coveralls — full-body protection for higher-risk environments or cleanroom/ESD combined requirements
• ESD gloves — protect components from both static and skin oils during handling
• ESD shoe covers and heel grounders — complete the ground path from body to floor when used with an ESD floor mat

How Do ESD Garments Protect Workers?

ESD garments are designed to be conductive or static-dissipative, allowing any static charge that builds up on the body to safely dissipate through the garment rather than accumulating until it discharges suddenly. When properly grounded — through a wrist strap or heel grounder connected to a grounded surface — the garment creates a continuous, controlled path to ground. This protects the worker from unexpected discharges and reduces discomfort from static shocks.

How Do ESD Garments Protect Products?

When a worker is properly grounded through ESD garments, the risk of transferring static electricity to sensitive components drops significantly. ESD damage is responsible for up to 35% of all electronic component failures — and much of it is latent damage that doesn't show up until the product is in the field. ESD garments, as part of a complete ESD control program, help prevent both immediate and latent damage to PCBs, ICs, and other sensitive assemblies.

Why Are ESD Garments Required in the Workplace?

ANSI/ESD S20.20 — the primary standard for ESD control programs — requires that personnel working in ESD Protected Areas (EPAs) wear ESD garments when their regular clothing could generate or hold a static charge. Compliance with this standard is increasingly required by customers in aerospace, defense, medical device, and consumer electronics manufacturing. Beyond compliance, ESD garments are simply good practice: ESD events happen without warning, and the cost of a damaged component or failed assembly far exceeds the cost of proper protection.

For help choosing the right ESD garment for your environment, see our guide: How to Choose an ESD Jacket. Browse our full selection of ESD garments to find the right fit for your ESD control program.