Sun protection to wear.
Textiles with UV protection effectively protect the skin from harmful sun radiation or UV rays. If suitable materials and designs are used, they offer particularly good protection from more intensive sun radiation. They provide extensive, simple and long-lasting protection for the body.
To determine the extent of the UV protection, the Hohenstein Institute uses different methods to test the UPF = Ultraviolet Protection Factor.
Protection is primarily achieved through the correct material and suitable design of the clothing or shading devices. In addition, the usage condition, body covering or age of the material must also be taken into account. Why? The UPF can change significantly as a result of stretching the shirt on the body or by opening out the sunshade.
How much sun can my skin tolerate?
It depends on your skin type
Because every skin type reacts different to solar radiation, the self-protection time of the skin is also very different.
An overview of the most sensitive skin types using UPF 20 as an example:
Very fair skin
Red or blonde hair
Blue eyes
Always severe and painful sunburn
Self-protection time of skin is 5-10 minutes
Protection with a textile of UPF 20
100-200 minutes (approx. 1-3 hours)
Pale skin
Blonde or brown hair
Blue, green or grey eyes
Frequently severe and painful sunburn
Self-protection time of skin is 10-20 minutes
Protection with a textile of UPF 20
200-400 minutes (approx. 3-6 hours)
Light brown skin
Light brown or brown hair
Green or brown eyes
Rare and moderate sunburn
Self-protection time of skin is 20-30 minutes
Protection with a textile of UPF 20
400-600 minutes (approx. 6-10 hours)
Brown to olive skin
Dark brown or black hair
Brown eyes
Almost never burns
Self-protection time of skin is 40 minutes
Protection with a textile of UPF 20
800 minutes (approx. 13 hours)
Very fair skin
All hair colours
All eye colours
Burns very quickly
Self-protection time of skin is 5-10 minutes
Protection with a textile of UPF 20 100 - 200 minutes (approx. 1-3 hours)
Depending on the regulation, textile products can achieve UV protection factors of up to UPF 80. This means that the user of UV protection textiles can stay protected in the sun up to 80 times longer than permitted by his self-protection time.
Also observe the following points:
- Identify your skin type
- Consider your planned time in the sun
- Identify shady places nearby
- Select sufficient textile UV protection
- Always schedule time buffers
- Use sun cream with a high sun protection factor for exposed parts of the body
- Do not forget a head gear and suitable sunglasses
The protection must live up to its claim.
The need to protect the skin and eyes from harmful UV-A and UV-B rays from our sun has also been recognised by the European Union. With regulation (EU) 2016/425 on personal protective clothing, it is now mandatory for clothing that clearly states in any way or form that it can protect the human body from critical UV rays to have a CE mark. This reassures people that they have a proper and reliable product.
Safeguard your products and comply with the regulations, but most importantly, with human well-being.
A threshold value with protective function.
The UV index provides useful information to the consumer about the necessity of sun protection or, to be more precise, the UV protection.
The UV index (UVI) is an internationally standardised measure for the solar irradiance which can cause sunburn. In general, the UV index is a measure for the strongest solar radiation at midday.
For us, UV protection comes as standard.
Because the UV protection factor can neither be seen nor felt on textiles, we carry out independent tests and certifications for you on the basis of international standards and then offer you the opportunity to advertise the resulting UPF in the form of our Hohenstein label on the item of clothing.
The UV protection factor (UPF) specifies how much longer the user of sunscreen textiles or the wearer of UV protection clothing can stay in the sun without causing skin damage.
Possible UPFs must be differentiated according to the regulation applied:
- UV STANDARD 801: UPF 10, UPF 15 UPF 20, UPF 30, UPF 40, UPF 60 and UPF 80
- AS/NZS / 4399: UPF 15, UPF 30, UPF 50 and UPF 50+
- DIN EN 13758-1: only in private law, Hohenstein quality label with UPF 15, UPF 30, UPF 50 and UPF 50+
- DIN EN 13758-2: UPF 40+
- AATCC TM 183: UPF 15 (good), UPF 30 (very good), UPF 50 andUPF 50+ (excellent)
To determine the UV protection, we determine the UPF for textiles using spectroscopy based on different regulations and then certify according to the results:
UV STANDARD 801
The UV STANDARD 801 hangtag
Depending on requirements, a hangtag can also be ordered for the certified product in addition to the label included with certification.
The UV STANDARD 801 hangtag attached to the product includes additional information on textile UV protection. It enables the consumer to determine their own skin type and the “adequate” UV protection factor for it via a table.
The valid certificate is a prerequisite for both promotional UV STANDARD 801 labels.
EUROPEAN STANDARD (DIN EN 13758-1)
AUSTRALIAN / NEW ZEALAND STANDARD (AS / NZS 4399)
AMERICAN STANDARD (AATCC TM 183)
To determine the UV protection, we calculate the UPF of textiles using spectroscopy