Changes in construction regulations and the widespread use of synthetic material in fittings for housing and professional premises have affected the experimental methods used to fight fire in enclosed and semi-enclosed spaces. Nowadays, firefighters constantly have to adapt their equipment and methods to remain effective. Consequently to dramatic accidents, the Paris Fire Brigade exploits feedback to redefine operational needs and provide fire-fighters with new protective equipment. The protective leather jacket and the two-cylinder, self-contained breathing apparatus have been replaced by a protective textile jacket and a single-cylinder breathing apparatus. Nevertheless, the Brigade judged that compliance with relevant standards alone was insufficient in terms of guaranteeing the firefigther safety when fighting a fire and therefore carried out ergonomic tests to establish the limits of using this new equipment in comparison with the limits of the former equipment. In compliance with the bio-ethic Huriet law, the main stages of the test protocol covered the following steps. a] the comparison of important properties of clothing of both types of equipments (weight, permeability, ...) b] Numerical simulations based on physiological load for estimating recommended fire-fighting duration c] Tests on heat sensing manikins to assess the fire protection afforded by the different equipments d] Human subject's tests performed first in a laboratory then in real conditions in a specific facility designed for fire-fighting training. This research did reveal the new personal protective equipment increase the firefighter's general level of safety. However, the increased air capacity provided by the single air cylinder (about 1 hour) could lead to - if used to its full capacity - intense fatigue, considerable dehydration and even the risk of heat stroke, owing to longer working times and the heat constraints of fire environments. It is proposed to limit firefighting duration to 25 minutes for enclosed or semi-enclosed spaces followed by specific recuperative phase (including hydration, rest ...) if a second working time is necessary. Furthermore, this work proposes a methodology for the evaluation of personal protective equipments based also on firefigheters' physiology and not only based on technical equipment features.
