Services

Awareness

The toxins in your gear

During fire interventions, PPE is exposed to high concentrations of carcinogenic compounds such as PAHs and VOCs. Studies show that fire turnout gear can retain contaminant levels up to 15 times above regulatory limits for professional textiles, even after use and basic cleaning. This highlights the need for effective decontamination to reduce long-term exposure risks. 

World Health Organization

The World Health Organization (WHO) highlights the risk of secondary exposure, where hazardous substances enter the body through insufficiently decontaminated gear.

IARC

The IARC shows that toxic compounds stored in textile membranes can be released during wear, absorbed through the skin, and enter the bloodstream, contributing to internal exposure.

ECHA

The ECHA highlights that modern materials such as composites, advanced insulation, and lithium-ion batteries significantly increase the complexity and hazardous nature of fire smoke compared to traditional materials.

NIOSH

The NIOSH recommends implementing best-practice controls to reduce firefighters’ exposure to carcinogenic substances and minimize long-term cancer risk.

What is our service

Fully Managed PPE Decontamination Solution

DECONTEX Service is a fully managed decontamination service and total solution for the secondary exposure problem, combining advanced CO2-based technology with controlled, validated processes to remove toxic contaminants from all PPE after use.
Full protocol

10 Steps to a Complete Certified Maintenance Cycle

The 10-step maintenance process of DECONTEX rapidly restores firefighting PPE to fully operational condition through a complete protective reset and advanced decontamination treatment.


The process also includes certified annual maintenance and inspection in accordance with ISO 23616, ensuring maximum safety, hygiene, compliance, and long-term performance of the equipment.

Step 1: Fast Transport

Fast and fully traceable transport solution ensuring rapid turnaround : max. 1week 

Step 10: Packing & Logbook

Sustainable packaging with individual component allocation per user, combined with QR and RFID-enabled scanning for seamless digital logbook integration and full PPE traceability.

Step 9: Attestation

Professional attestation through a clear colour-coded system, indicating PPE status as GREEN (“checked and ready for use”), ORANGE (“action required”) or RED (“rejected – replacement required”).

Step 8: Certified Repair

Professional PPE repairs are performed by certified specialists using only equivalent high-quality replacement components, with all repair operations carried out exclusively within the European Union.

Step 7: Advanced Quality Control

Advanced optical and analytical quality control ensures that all PPE is thoroughly inspected and verified for full compliance with applicable safety and performance standards. 

Step 6: Re-impregnation

Advanced CO2 PFAS-free re-impregnation restores the protective performance of firefighting PPE in full compliance with EN469 requirements.

Step 5: Disinfection

Advanced CO2 disinfection guarantees the elimination of vegetative bacteria with a 10⁶ kill reduction factor, as well as the inactivation and removal of all relevant viruses.

Step 4: Deep Decontamination

Advanced CO₂ decontamination ensures the complete removal of chemical contaminants (VOCs and PAHs) and physical contaminants (heavy metals and asbestos) from all PPE layers.

Step 3: Advanced Cleaning

Advanced stain and soil removal effectively eliminates visible and macroscopic contamination without any negative impact on the integrity or performance of the PPE.

Step 2: RFID Scan & Inspection

Advanced RFID scanning and inspection ensure full traceability, automated identification, and precise condition monitoring throughout the entire PPE maintenance cycle.

The application

Full Gear Decontamination Service

DECONTEX provides a comprehensive service for the decontamination of all PPE used during emergency interventions. The process is designed to treat the complete equipment set as a single contamination system, ensuring effective removal of hazardous residues across all protective layers after exposure.

Difference between Laundry and Decontex

Why washing isn’t enough

Washing is a surface cleaning process that removes visible dirt and general soiling, while decontamination is a validated process designed to eliminate hazardous chemical, biological, and toxic residues across all PPE layers, including embedded contaminants that standard washing cannot remove. 
The result

Decontex Dual Action

Decontex is unique in its ability to deliver complete decontamination of firefighting PPE, ensuring the full removal of both visible and invisible contamination, including polar and non-polar substances across all material layers.

 

This unmatched dual-action cleaning capability guarantees a truly comprehensive reset of PPE performance, restoring safety, hygiene, and material integrity to the highest possible standard.

Our standards

Decontex Guarantees

Decontex Services guarantees a fully standardized and validated end-to-end process for firefighting PPE, ensuring consistent, repeatable, and reliable results during every treatment cycle.

Operating under strict ISO-controlled procedures, including ISO 9001 quality management principles and ISO 23616 verified maintenance processes, the service also complies with EN ISO 14001 environmental management and EN ISO 50001 energy management standards. Decontex therefore guarantees the same highest standard in safety, hygiene, traceability, environmental responsibility, and performance – every single time.

Health & Hygiene

DECONTEX guarantees the complete removal of chemical, biological, and physical contaminants from all gear layers, restoring PPE to a verified clean and safe condition below REACH and OEKO-TEX thresholds.

Safety

DECONTEX ensures maximum PPE safety through advanced analytical quality control and certified inspection procedures, guaranteeing that every garment remains compliant, fully functional, and safe for operational use.

Systainability

DECONTEX guarantees a low-impact maintenance and decontamination process that fully preserves the integrity and protective performance of firefighting PPE, while delivering a proven extension of equipment lifetime and reduced total cost of ownership.

Decontaminated suits
Environment

DECONTEX guarantees an environmentally responsible decontamination process through advanced green CO2 technology, featuring low-energy operation, waterless processing, minimal chemical consumption, 99% reusable CO2, zero contaminated wastewater, and a completely PFAS-free treatment approach.

CSR

DECONTEX is committed to protecting not only firefighters, but also every employee involved in the PPE maintenance process. To prevent hazardous contamination from being transferred to laundry and service personnel, all critical handling and decontamination activities are performed under controlled ISO 7 cleanroom conditions, ensuring maximum worker protection and responsible operational standards throughout the entire process.

Visit our centre

Request a visit

Firefighters are always warmly invited to visit one of Decontex Services’s ISO-controlled cleanrooms. During the visit, they can experience the full CO2-based decontamination process for firefighting PPE, from intake and inspection to cleaning, repair, and final quality control. The facility operates under strict standards, ensuring full transparency, safety, and traceability throughout the entire lifecycle of the equipment.
Trusted by the front line

What they say

DECONTEX helps fire departments maintain the highest safety standards through advanced decontamination of firefighter PPE and equipment. Their innovative supercritical CO2 cleaning technology removes hazardous contaminants while extending the lifespan of protective gear in a sustainable and circular way.

Frequently asked questions

Everything you need to know about DECONTEX.

Browse our most frequently asked questions and discover how our technology and services help protect those who protect others.

Yes. All procedures are performed according to validated and standardized processes, including ISO 23616 and ISO-controlled quality systems.

Yes. Professional repairs are carried out by certified specialists using equivalent high-quality replacement components.

Typical turnaround times are designed to be fast and fully traceable, with most PPE returned within one week.

DECONTEX Services can process firefighter PPE, helmets, gloves, hoods, boots, and other intervention equipment.

Yes. The technology is designed to preserve the structural and functional integrity of PPE while effectively removing contaminants without causing degradation.

The system targets a broad spectrum of hazards, including toxic combustion products, carcinogenic compounds, biological agents, and particulate contaminants such as asbestos.

DECONTEX Services provides a fully managed maintenance solution for PPE, including logistics, inspection, cleaning, decontamination, repair, traceability, and lifecycle management.

Global presence

Decontex centers

Protecting firefighters across the globe. Click a pin to view location details. In case there is no center, contact Decontex Headquarters.