There are cases when people wear things simply for how it looks.

I think that applications in industrial safely is rather the opposite of these.

Agree, they should tone down the 80's sci-fi vibe IMHO. But I think you may overestimate the control your average industrial worker has over their work situation. That is, if it helps the bottom line, these will be bought and deployed by the owners/management, and there is little the workers can do about it.

>Is any industrial worker going to be seen dead wearing this thing, given how it appears currently?

Yes.

I worked for two years as an industrial electrician. Industrial workers will generally eschew PPE in general when they think it's an unnecessary burden and that they can get away with it. That's why projects have foremen and companies have internal safety inspectors to police the foremen.

This won't be any different.

On its own, a firefighter's helmet is a ridiculous piece of gear. It isn't particularly good at protecting the entire head, abysmal at protecting the face, and is top heavy.

We wear the helmet as part of an ensemble that could use a makeover for strictly functional purposes, quite frankly. However, tradition and perception have kept the U.S. fire service in this outdated piece of kit for decades. Perception and caring about what others think is silly. It is the equivalent of school age children caring about what "little Tommy" thinks of his/her shoes on the playground.

The fact is we can't control others perception. We can only control our thoughts and actions related to those thoughts. Society will not level up until we stop worrying about the perception others have of our stuff and/or the way we look.

So you are saying industrial workers dismiss good utility because of looks?

As if industrial workers give any thought to fashion hype over utility and tools..?

as if