NFPA
(National Fire Protection Association)
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is a global non-profit organization, founded in 1896, dedicated to eliminating deaths, injuries, economic and property losses due to fire, electrical and related hazards. The NFPA 1983 standard defines the minimum requirements for the design, performance, testing and certification of equipment for emergency personnel, dividing it into three categories:
"E" Escape: immediate self-rescue of a single person in charge of emergency or fire services from a fatal emergency situation, generally above ground level, using components of systems or assembled systems designed for evacuation by self-rescue.
"T" Technical use: designation of a piece of equipment or an assembled system designed for technical use loads and evacuations based on calculated and known design loads.
"G" General use: designation of a piece of equipment or assembled system designed for general-purpose loads, technical uses, and evacuations based on calculated and known design loads.