Attribute Schema Library
Attribute schemasafety & PPE

Hi-Vis Apparel Attributes

High-visibility safety apparel — vests, shirts, jackets, rainwear, bib overalls, Class E pants — sold to road construction, utilities, rail, municipal DOT, and public-safety fleets. Buyers don't browse: 23 CFR Part 634 requires anyone in the right-of-way of a federal-aid highway to wear ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 2 or 3, and the MUTCD extends that to all public-access roadways. They arrive with a Type and Class already on the requisition.

The data is hard because the compliance mark is three independent axes suppliers flatten into one string. Type (O/R/P) is the environment. Class (1/2/3/E) is material area. Level (1 or 2) is retroreflective brightness. Type R Class 2 needs 775 in² of background material; Type P Class 2 needs 450 in². Both ship labeled "Class 2".

And the standard moves. ANSI/ISEA 207 became Type P in 107-2015, but packaging still says "207". 107-2020 dropped max wash cycles from the care label, and the number left catalogs with it. One style then splits into 30+ SKUs across color, dual sizing, mesh vs. solid, and FR vs. non-FR — with the spec that separates them in a PDF.

Core

Every SKU needs these. Without them the record is not a product, it is a row.

Garment Type
enum
Safety Vest

Determines which Class is even achievable — a vest can't reach Class 3 without sleeves, and Class E applies only to legwear, which can't be worn alone.

ANSI/ISEA 107 Type
enum
Type R

O, R, or P sets the use environment. Roadway work requires Type R; Class alone never tells a buyer whether the garment is roadway-legal.

ANSI/ISEA 107 Performance Class
enum
Class 2

Sets minimum background and retroreflective area. Federal-aid highway right-of-way requires Class 2 or 3; Class E only supplements an upper garment.

Background Material Color
enum
Fluorescent Yellow-Green

Daytime conspicuity. Only three fluorescent colors are recognized, and flaggers may not use fluorescent red.

Size
enum
L/XL

Hi-vis is frequently dual-sized, so one SKU covers two nominal sizes. Fleet orders are placed as a size run, not a single pick.

Fabric Construction
enum
Polyester Mesh

Mesh breathes for summer roadwork; solid tricot survives abrasion and sheds dirt. First thing a crew supervisor filters on.

Closure Type
enum
5-Point Breakaway Hook-and-Loop

Breakaway closures release under snag load near moving equipment. Zipper vs. hook-and-loop drives durability and laundering behavior.

Manufacturer Part Number
identifier
8217BA

The only reliable join key between supplier price files, the PIM, and a customer's punchout requisition.

Differentiating

What buyers actually compare on. This is where catalogs win or lose the filter.

Retroreflective Material Level
enum
Level 2

Level 1 exceeds 65 cd/(lx·m²); Level 2 exceeds 330. Two Class 2 vests can differ ~5x in brightness — Class sets area, not performance.

Retroreflective Tape Width
number · in
2

Drives the ANSI area math and perceived conspicuity. 2 in is standard; narrower tape needs more length to reach the Class minimum.

Retroreflective Tape Configuration
enum
Segmented

Segmented and perforated tape flex and breathe; solid tape reads brighter when wet and cleans easier. Buyers ask for one by name.

Fabric Weight
number · oz/yd²
3.3

Proxy for durability and heat load. Suppliers quote oz/yd² or gsm, and buyers compare across both without converting.

Tape Attachment Method
enum
Sewn-On

Sewn-on tape survives industrial laundering; heat-transferred tape lifts and cracks earlier. Decides suitability for a rental program.

Pocket Configuration
text
3 pockets (1 exterior, 2 interior), 1 mic tab

Radio mic tabs, ID window, and pocket count decide the SKU for utility and public-safety fleets. Often visible only in the product image.

Compliance & identifiers

Standards, regulatory data, and the identifiers channels reject you for missing.

ANSI/ISEA 107 Edition
enum
ANSI/ISEA 107-2020

Specs and RFQs cite an edition. 107-2015 and 107-2020 are not interchangeable on a bid, and "meets ANSI 107" answers nothing.

Flame Resistance Status
enum
FR (ASTM F1506)

107-2020 requires the label to state FR status either way. Non-FR polyester melts and cannot go near arc-flash or flash-fire work.

Arc Rating (ATPV)
number · cal/cm²
8.7

Sets the NFPA 70E PPE category the garment can be worn in. Required on any utility or electrical contractor bid.

Country of Origin
enum
Vietnam

Drives Buy America / TAA eligibility on DOT and federal contracts, plus customs. Public-sector bids reject records without it.

The fields that aren't in the schema at all

What most hi-vis apparel catalogs are missing.

The table above is the schema most catalogs already have. These are the attributes that usually aren't in it — each one surfaced by a signal from the live market rather than by an audit of what's already there. This is what Anglera's Schema Foundry does on a real catalog, in this category.

Supplier signal
+ Retroreflective Material Level (1 or 2)

Level is printed in the ANSI pictogram on the garment label and named in tape datasheets, and buyers ask for "Level 2 tape" — but distributor filter rails stop at Class and expose no Level facet.

Two Class 2 vests quote side by side and the cheaper Level 1 wins on price. The buyer specified Level 2; the mismatch surfaces at inspection, not checkout.

Search signal
+ ANSI/ISEA 107 Edition

Product copy reads "ANSI/ISEA 107 compliant" or "ANSI Class 2" with no year. Search a catalog for "107-2020" and it returns marketing pages, not filterable SKUs.

Bids naming an edition can't be answered from the catalog. Sales rekeys the spec from the supplier PDF line by line, or the quote goes out unqualified.

Supplier signal
+ Rated Wash Cycles

ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 dropped max wash cycles from the required care label. Manufacturers still test to 25 or 50 and publish it on the datasheet — but it fell out of catalog records with the mandate.

Industrial laundry and rental programs buy on cycle life. Without it the SKU loses to a competitor's 50-cycle listing, or returns when tape fails early.

Search signal
+ Retroreflective Tape Configuration

Buyers search "segmented" or "perforated" and get zero results, then scan images by hand. Tape suppliers brand these separately, so the term is already in the datasheet.

A named buying preference is unfilterable. Hot-weather crews asking for segmented tape bounce to a marketplace listing that actually says the word.

Review signal
+ Women's Cut vs. Unisex Fit

Reviews on unisex vests repeatedly report wrong fit through the shoulders and chest for women. Manufacturers publish women's-specific styles; catalogs file them in the same generic size run.

A fleet segment can't find the SKU that already exists. Ill-fitting garments get worn open or not at all — a compliance failure — and come back as returns.

How Schema Foundry finds these

Messy in, governed out.

The same value, spelled every way safety & PPE suppliers spell it. A filter only works once they agree.

Background Material Color
LimeHi-Vis YellowSafety GreenYellow/GreenFluorescent LimeHi Vis Green
Fluorescent Yellow-Green

ANSI recognizes three background colors. Six supplier spellings collapse to one — "lime" and "safety green" are the same color.

ANSI/ISEA 107 Type and Class
Class 2ANSI 2Class IIANSI 107 CL2Type R2R Class 2
Type R / Class 2

Type and Class must be separate fields. "Class 2" alone can't tell a 775 in² roadway garment from a 450 in² public-safety vest.

Public Safety Vest Standard
ANSI 207ANSI/ISEA 207-2011ANSI 207-2011Public Safety Vest207 Vest
ANSI/ISEA 107 Type P

207 was folded into 107-2015 as Type P. The standard is gone; the term isn't. Keep "207" as a search alias, not a stored value.

Fabric Weight
3.3oz3.3 oz112 gsm110 g/m²3.3 oz/sq yd5.5 oz Tricot
3.3 oz/yd²

Suppliers mix oz/yd² and gsm in one feed. 3.3 oz/yd² ≈ 112 gsm; unconverted, a range filter silently drops half the catalog.

What buyers ask

Every one of these should be answerable from the attributes above. If it isn't, that's a gap.

  • Is Class 2 enough for a crew on a state highway, or does the spec force Class 3?
  • Is the tape Level 2, or is this the cheap Level 1 stuff?
  • Does this vest actually break away if it snags on the loader?
  • Can my linemen wear this near an arc flash, or will the polyester melt?
  • Is this the 2020 edition? Our DOT spec calls out 107-2020 by name.
  • How many washes before the reflective stops meeting spec?
  • Do you have this in a women's cut, or is it unisex only?
  • Can flaggers wear the orange, or does it have to be yellow-green?

What channels require

The same SKU, different mandatory fields per destination.

Amazon Business
GTIN / UPCBrandManufacturer Part NumberGarment TypeSizeCountry of Origin
Distributor line card (Grainger / Zoro / Fastenal)
Manufacturer Part NumberANSI/ISEA 107 TypeANSI/ISEA 107 Performance ClassBackground Material ColorSizeCountry of Origin
GS1 GDSN data pool
GTIN / UPCGPC brick codeBrandNet ContentCountry of Origin
DOT / public-sector e-procurement RFQ
ANSI/ISEA 107 EditionANSI/ISEA 107 TypeANSI/ISEA 107 Performance ClassFlame Resistance StatusCountry of Origin (Buy America / TAA)Manufacturer Part Number

Hi-Vis Apparel data, in practice

What's the difference between Type R and Type P at the same Class?

Area. Type R Class 2 requires at least 775 in² of fluorescent background material and 201 in² of retroreflective material. Type P Class 2 requires only 450 in² of background, with the same 201 in² of retroreflective. Type P allows the reduced background because public-safety vests carry cutouts for body armor, radios, and duty belts, and are typically short and open-sided. Both garments are labeled "Class 2", so a record storing only the Class cannot distinguish a roadway garment from a public-safety one. Type and Class have to be separate governed fields — flattening them into one string destroys the distinction permanently.

Does the Class rating tell me anything about reflective brightness?

Only indirectly. Class sets the minimum area of material in square inches. Photometric performance is a separate axis: Level 1 vs Level 2. The initial retroreflection coefficient for Level 1 material must exceed 65 cd/(lx·m²); Level 2 must exceed 330 cd/(lx·m²) — roughly five times. Two vests can both be legitimate Type R Class 2 and carry very different tape. Level appears in the pictogram on the garment label and in tape datasheets, but almost never as a catalog field, which is exactly why buyers who care about it have to ask a rep instead of using a filter.

Do I still need to publish maximum wash cycles?

ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 removed the requirement to print maximum wash cycles on the care label. The rationale was that the count described the service life of the retroreflective material, not the garment, and was being read as a garment expiry date. The number didn't stop mattering, though. Manufacturers still test to 25 or 50 cycles and still publish it on datasheets, and industrial laundry and rental programs still buy on it. What changed is that with the label mandate gone, the value quietly stopped flowing into catalog records — a spec that disappeared because a standard changed, not because buyers stopped needing it.

Why do listings still say "ANSI 207" if the standard doesn't exist?

ANSI/ISEA 207 was the separate American National Standard for High-Visibility Public Safety Vests. It was consolidated into ANSI/ISEA 107-2015 as Type P, alongside the old 107-2010 requirements, to create one document covering all occupational tasks. The standard is no longer maintained on its own, but the term survived: manufacturers still print "ANSI 207" on packaging, police and fire procurement specs still call it out by name, and buyers still type it into search. Treat "ANSI 207" as a synonym that resolves to Type P and keep it as a searchable alias. Deleting it costs you the traffic; storing it as a value costs you the governance.

More safety & PPE schemas

Fall Protection HarnessesHard HatsRespiratorsSafety FootwearSafety GlassesSafety Gloves

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