Fireworks, after a brief stint of playing an active role in warfare, have spent the upwards of the past millennia being utilized for their original use: celebration. Around the world, people gather together to witness spectacles of explosions and flashes in the sky in observance of different holidays throughout the year. However, as anyone who has ever seen a fireworks show or made use of the more-available products can attest, fireworks pose serious threats to human health and property. Standardization plays an important role in assuring the safety of these illuminating and booming products. Standards in the ISO 25947 series address an assortment of considerations associated with this issue.
The ISO 25947 series is split into five distinct documents, each of which covering a different topic related to fireworks. All of these documents have been bundled together as the ISO 25947 – Fireworks Collection:
ISO 25947-1:2017 – Fireworks – Categories 1, 2 and 3 – Part 1: Terminology
ISO 25947-2:2017 – Fireworks – Categories 1, 2 and 3 – Part 2: Categories and types
ISO 25947-3:2017 – Fireworks – Categories 1, 2 and 3 – Part 3: Minimum labelling requirements
ISO 25947-4:2017 – Fireworks – Categories 1, 2 and 3 – Part 4: Test methods
ISO 25947-5:2017 – Fireworks – Categories 1, 2 and 3 – Part 5: Requirements for construction and performance
According to the ISO 25947 series, there are four categories of fireworks:
Category 1: Fireworks that present a very low hazard and negligible noise level. These are intended for use within confined areas.
Category 2: Fireworks that present a low hazard and low noise level. These are intended for use outside in confined areas.
Category 3: Fireworks that present a medium hazard. These are intended for outdoor use in large open areas.
Category 4: Fireworks that present a high hazard. The handling and use of these requires specialist knowledge.
The ISO 25947 series is applicable to Categories 1-3. Category 4 is covered separately within the ISO 26261 series.
The ISO 25947 – Fireworks Collection is available only on the ANSI Webstore.
If you’d like to learn more about fireworks standards, developed by either ISO or the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), as well as the general topic of fireworks, please refer to: Fireworks