Work clothes 1

[Liftingengineer]

Well Black Friday is coming up and I am thinking and I am thinking it would be the perfect time to buy some sets of work clothes. I am a reliability engineer, so I am looking for some clothes that are both business professional but can also hold up to inspecting equipment. Something in-between the office and the shop. Any suggestions. Jeans are fine for my job.

I've got a PHD is Broscience

 

[TheTick]

I like Dickies for jobs where I need to get dirty but don't want to wear Jeans. Fashion-wise, maybe not the best look for office setting (have been good enough for me), but actually adds a small touch of shop cred with the shop folk.

My brother is a tradesman. He says Levi's Dockers are actually quite durable and suitable for light grunt work.

 

[TehMightyEngineer]

About to go do field measurements in an old boiler building, rocking Dickies as we speak. I do a large amount of limited notice work in heavy industrial areas I would be asked where the funeral was if I came to work in a suit. My usual work outfit is Dickies or cargo pants with polo shirts.

Maine EIT, Civil/Structural.

 

[ctopher]

You don't need to think twice about Black Friday. ;-)

I have worn both Dickies and Dockers in both shop environments. The Dickies seem to hold up the best in the shop.

Chris, CSWA
SolidWorks 14
SolidWorks Legion

 

[BUGGAR]

A fishing vest with all those pockets is ideal for carrying all that crap you need in the field, tapes, field books, thousands of pens, etc. Mine even has a pocket in back that will carry a couple of job files. Easy to put on over a jacket. Keeps all your field gear in one place.

I had a company logo sewed on mine so it doesn't look too dorky. A lot of people ask me who pays me to go fishing.

 

[SPDL310]

personally I prefer Carheartt pants. For shirts I prefer a dark colored polo that is less likely to show stains. The best place to spend your cash in my opinion is in a good pair of steel toed boots. If you go to a redwing dealer they will normally fit the boots for you. I was surprised to find I had been wearing the wrong size of shoes for most of my life.

 

[Signious]

Most of my field clothes are Brooks Brothers shirts & chinos - the shirts stand up well to outdoor wear at tear, and the pants are good, thick material that won't tear like your run of the mill dress trousers.

They are a little on the pricy side - but work well if you are in a formal office and need to go out to the field on a moment's notice. In-office only clothing is your run of the mill suit pants & collard shirts from anywhere in general.

If you don't mind looking like a dork the best thing you can get is a pair of steel toed boots with a long cuff (almost like a rubber boot). They save your pants in mud & water.

 

[TehMightyEngineer]

I feel weird these days wearing anything other than my steel toed boots.

Maine EIT, Civil/Structural.

 

[Signious]

For steel toes:

https://www.acklandsgrainger.com/images/items/zoom/10CW56_AS01.JPG

>>

http://workingperson.com/media/cata...d6e5fb8d27136e95/r/e/reebok-1910st-p_01_1.jpg

 

[Liftingengineer]

Thanks everyone, I am already use to wearing steel toes everyday being I work at a plant. Redwings are the only way to go for steel toes I say. What I was looking for was suggestions on jeans and long sleeve cotton polos. Dickies seems to be a favorite here.

I've got a PHD is Broscience

 

[JMirisola]

I prefer Carhartts when I have to go in the field. For steel toes, I love my Keen's. Never heard of them until I went to buy a new pair of boots this past spring. Most comfortable steel toes I've ever had. Stylish, too. They look more like hiking boots than steel toes.

Jeff Mirisola, CSWE
My Blog

 

[berkshire]

Having worked both in the field and the office I would recommend Dickies
They have the widest sets of uniforms with pants in all colors from polyester to cotton twill, from airline captains uniforms with white oxford shirts with epaulettes and dark blue polyester slacks, to nurses uniforms to boiler suits, and everything in between.
For steel tipped shoes or boots I strongly endorse Redwing.
B.E.

You are judged not by what you know, but by what you can do.

 

[berkshire]

If you do have to go out in the mud, slip a pair of bicycle clips into your pocket. They will keep your trouser cuffs out of the mud.
B.E.

You are judged not by what you know, but by what you can do.

 

[Ron]

I wear Wrangler jeans ($16.99 at Target) and long sleeve, dress shirts of reasonably good quality, either oxford or twill (my favorite color is plaid!), when in the field. Since I'm rarely in my office and when I am I'm usually alone, same "uniform" applies. When I'm teaching, I wear whatever the rest of my day dictates, since I usually don't have time to change clothes.

I've found jeans to be more durable than khakis or chinos of any brand and they don't show stains as badly.

My meeting clothes are usually upscale khakis or lightweight wool in khaki or dark gray, dress shirt and blazer. Same usually for client presentations. For video depositions I usually wear a dark suit, white shirt and subtle tie. Same for court testimony. For non-video depositions, I usually just wear khakis and a dress shirt.

As for shoes, if I'm doing destructive observation where there is heavy stuff involved, standard work boots. Otherwise, I'm partial to Timberland Boat shoes....the ones with an extra lacing eyelet so they don't slide off your feet when climbing around on stuff. Dress shoes are standard engineering stereotype....tassel loafers. I only wear socks when I have to!

Over the years I've ruined many clothes from suits on down....trying to make my "uniform" fit all applications....won't work.

 

[rotw]

I wear jeans all of the time, I rarely wear suit and tie - when it happens I feel very uncomfortable and productivity drops;
only with a jean I give my utmost intellectual performance. strange situation but thats the way it has always been for me.

"If you want to acquire a knowledge or skill, read a book and practice the skill".

 

[Ron]

For clarification....that's $16.99 USD and Target is a retail chain in the US and Canada. Should have put that in the first reply. Sorry.

 

[moltenmetal]

The easiest way to discredit yourself in my business is to show up in a suit and tie.

I wear jeans and a cotton shirt with a collar, every day, meetings or no meetings. The only time you'll see me in a suit IS at a wedding or a funeral- or at the Christmas party.

 

[glass99]

Ron: Man, that description of your wardrobe has brought a new level of color to my understanding of what you do.

I wear Blundstone boots, black skinny Levis jeans, white business shirt, and a navy jacket practically no matter what. This includes site visits where I am crawling around scaffolding, charettes at an architect's studio, lab tests, presentations to billionaire clients, and of course office time. For me this projects the right mix of creativity, boots on the ground practicality, executive strength, and approachability. Perhaps these things a a little bit aspirational in my case, but you dress for the job you want!

moltenmetal: I consider the title "manager" to be a demotion from "engineer", so would not be caught dead in a tie.

 

[rotw]

moltenmetal

Do you also feel that your productivity would drop if you wear suit and tie for regular work?

Just wanted to know if it is just me.


"If you want to acquire a knowledge or skill, read a book and practice the skill".

 

[moltenmetal]

If I wore a suit, I would never kneel down much less lay down on the floor to inspect something or observe something that one of the guys is asking me about,, which I feel totally free to do the way I'm normally dressed. I'd be worried about getting pipe thread sealant (aka "bird sh*t") or antisieze grease on my clothes just by getting up against something. And a suit with a hard hat and steel toed boots seriously isn't a great look anyway- who're you kidding?!

The reality is, if you dress well, you're not going to spend as much time in the shop- and in my business, that actually makes you less competent and WAY less useful to the company.

As to why I don't dress up for meetings with clients, if they're coming here they need to see that even the senior people aren't afraid to get their hands dirty, and that our engineers aren't just CAD station jockeys or pencil-pushers- we're selling finished units, not paper drawings and specs. When I visit clients, they see me the same way they'd see me if they came to visit, although perhaps without quite so much dirt on the knees. Our work day here can't be compartmentalized into "office days" and "shop days"- I'm in the shop every day, whether clients are here or not.

My clients aren't in suits either- they almost never are. If they were, I'd probably have to dress better and put on a boiler suit every time I went into the shop, which would suck in the summer. One of my clients has hundreds of millions in personal wealth and I've never seen him in a tie much less a suit on the job.