2007, Piran, Slovenia

Clothing
DEVELOPMENT OF THE “WEAR“ INDEX
Daniela Z. Pavlinić 3 , Andreja Rudolf 2 , Jelka Geršak 2 & Igor B. Mekjavić 1
1
Jožef Stefan Institute, Ljubljana;
2
Department of Textile Materials and Design, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering,
University of Maribor, Slovenia
3
Biomed d.o.o., Ljubljana, Slovenia;
Contact person: daniela.z-pavlinic@uni-mb.si
INTRODUCTION
The aim of the present study was to establish a system, by which soldiers’ clothing
ensembles and personal protective equipment could be chosen on the basis of the
anticipated region of deployment, the prevailing weather conditions in the region, and
activity level.
METHODS
An archival system was developed, which contains all characteristics of each clothing
item presently used by the Slovene Armed Forces. The definitions proposed by
NATO Standardisation Agreement STANAG 2895 were used to define the world
climate and marine regions, and specify appropriate clothing ensembles for each of
these regions.
RESULTS
According to STANAG 2895, Slovenia is a “mild cold” region, thus one would not
anticipate the requirement for many different clothing combinations. However, field
studies conducted in January/February of 2005 and 2006, revealed that in the Alpine
region, weather conditions change substantially, and that subclassifications of each
STANAG 2895 region are needed, taking into account also the weather conditions.
For this reason, we developed a clothing index, whereby for any given weather in a
particular environment (region), appropriate articles of clothing are chosen, for each
region of the body. We termed this the WEAR index. During winter conditions we
suggest that the STANAG 2895 “mild cold” region needs 7 subcategories to
accommodate the range of anticipated weather conditions. For each of these
subclasses, a different combination of clothing articles is recommended, to ensure
adequate protection and thermal comfort. The clothing combinations were also chosen
to accommodate a range of outdoor activity levels.
DISCUSSION
The present study developed a strategy for choosing appropriate clothing ensembles
based on weather conditions in a particular climate region. Future development
includes incorporation of a thermoregulatory model, which could provide information
regarding the adequacy of chosen ensembles in terms of comfort and thermal injury
protection.
179