Contributor

Harry Weisberger

Essex Industries is displaying and explaining the uses of its protective breathing equipment (PBE) at Booth No. 4314. The PBE offers eye, head and respiratory protection during emergency conditions in an aircraft at cabin altitudes, both by providing wearers with 60 minutes of protection and also delivering 15 minutes of aviator’s grade oxygen.


The PBE dons in 15 seconds, and its design eliminates the need for an oral/nasal mask, allowing crewmembers to communicate while wearing the unit. The amber-tinted hood provides 270-degree visibility, and the PBE includes an the elastic neck seal that needs no adjustment. This lightweight device takes little stowage space and is currently used in 90 percent of the U.S. commercial airline industry, Essex noted. The PBE holds FAA TSO-C116 and TSO-C99 approvals as well as CAA, EASA, CAAC and ANAC approvals.


Essex, based in St. Louis, manufactures and provides FAA-approved emergency portable breathing and rescue life-support systems that are used in a variety of environments. In addition to the PBE, Essex manufactures the emergency passenger oxygen system as well as the Plus 15 air-purifying respirator, to protect wearers from smoke and fire.