Importance of ESD flooring and ESD footwear for electronics production

ESD floors and ESD shoes are particularly important in the production of electrostatically sensitive electronic components in order to prevent damage caused by uncontrolled discharges. This article explains what these special floors and shoes are all about, why they are so important for ESD protection in electronics production and what needs to be considered when selecting the respective ESD products.

Electrostatic sensitive electronic components

People can generate charges of up to 35,000 volts simply by walking across a carpet, provided the humidity is below 20 percent. But even at a humidity level in the range of 65 to 90 percent, charges of 1500 volts can still be generated. For sensitive electronic components such as microchips, however, just 5 volts is enough to damage them.

Deleting information on a data carrier requires 100 volts. But even if there is no carpet in the respective work area, such values can be reached. This is because even working at a table leads to charges of 100 volts at a humidity of 65 to 90 percent. Charges of 6000 volts can even occur at a humidity of 10 to 25 percent.

This is why it is so important to take ESD measures when manufacturing electrostatically sensitive components.

ESD protection zone

For electronics production, it is best to define an ESD protection zone in which special ESD protection measures are taken to protect electrostatically sensitive components from uncontrolled discharges. These protective measures should include wearing ESD shoes and installing ESD flooring, as people are among the main sources of electrostatic charges. In addition, the respective ESD protection area should be marked accordingly.

ESD protection is all the more important in electronics production, as damage to electrostatically sensitive components caused by discharges often only becomes apparent after these components have been assembled with other components. This makes the removal of the damaged component many times more expensive.

ESD floors

An ESD floor or ESD floor covering is used to dissipate electrostatic charges in a controlled manner. In this way, for example, employees in an ESD protection zone can be earthed. To ensure that the charges that have built up on an employee can discharge properly via an ESD floor, the employee in question should wear ESD shoes or at least overshoes with ESD straps. This ensures that the charge is discharged into the floor via the shoe or the earthing strap. If disposable earthing strips or ESD overshoes are used, these should always be worn on both feet to ensure that there is always contact with the floor.

What should you consider when choosing ESD flooring?

When choosing a good ESD floor, you should pay attention to the following points:

Leakage resistance of the ESD floor covering of less than 3.5 x 10^7 Ohm, provided that the respective persons are earthed exclusively via ESD shoes or ESD straps
Noise absorption
Anti-fatique properties
Anti-slip properties
Suitability of the floor covering for the expected loads

For more in-depth information on ESD flooring, we recommend reading our article “ESD flooring – material, installation, marking and earthing“.

ESD shoes

When selecting ESD shoes, you should consider the area for which they are to be used. There are a variety of shoe types available as ESD versions, including sneakers, mules, low shoes, clogs, sandals, cleanroom shoes and safety shoes. Anyone working in an ESD-protected warehouse, for example, will generally need to wear ESD safety shoes. In the field, you should make sure that the ESD shoe looks like a normal shoe, for example by choosing a sneaker or a dark low shoe. In electronics production, on the other hand, the comfort of the ESD footwear will be the focus when selecting it.

In addition to wearing ESD shoes as an ESD protective measure, it is also advisable to wear ESD clothing, which ensures that electrostatic charges are better dissipated from the wearer’s body.

Also read our article “ESD shoes – what are they and when are they necessary?“.

Advice on ESD flooring and ESD footwear

In the abovo online store, you can buy ESD floor coverings as well as a wide range of ESD shoes – including sneakers, low shoes, clogs, sandals, cleanroom shoes and safety shoes – online.

We would be happy to advise you on which ESD shoes and ESD floor coverings are best suited to your needs.

Do not hesitate to contact our experts by e-mail or telephone without obligation.