A guide to wearing the right gloves for the job

Hand Protection and the Law
The wearing of hand protection in hazardous conditions is covered under Regulation 4 of the Personal
Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992, which requires employers to provide suitable PPE to
employees who may be exposed to risks to their health and safety.

Mechanical Hazards EN388

Mechanical Hazards are associated with the handling of rough or sharp objects which could abrade,
cut or pierce the skin, such as glass, thin metal sheet and masonry blocks.  A mechanical hazard
is not associated with moving machinery, in fact, it can be extremely dangerous to wear gloves which could catch in moving parts or serrated blades*.
*Note - gloves should not be used when working with serrated blades. USE GUARDS.

4=Abrasion Performance Index 1-4
1=Blade Cut Performance Index 1-5
2=Tear  Performance Index 1-4
1=Puncture Performance Index 1-4(1 being the lowest performance rating)

Chemical Hazard EN374

Whether total immersion or merely splash is involved, any substance which would irritate, inflame
or burn the skin is classed as a Chemical Hazard.  Some substances can cause the skin to become
sensitised over a long period of time while others have a more immediate and painful effect.
The European Norm covering the performance of Chemical Protective Gloves has been revised and is now identified as BS.EN 374.2003. In order that a more informed and relevant glove section can be made, a list of 12 chemicals, identified by the letters A to L, has been nominated and a manufacturer has to submit gloves to be tested against any 3 of these chemicals before approval is obtained.
Penetration and permeation of the chemical through the glove is measured to determine the reakthrough time.

To gain approval as a "Chemical Resistant" glove, a breakthrough time greater than 30 minutes has to be achieved.
The glove can then carry a revised pictogram together with the identification letters of the 3 chemicals
against which it was tested.

If a glove fails to achieve 30 minutes breakthrough time it can still be classified as a "Low Chemical Resistant" glove and identified by a different pictogram, this time without the identification letters.

It is not necessary for a manufacturer to re-submit gloves already approved under the previous version of BS.EN 374 so you will still see the old pictogram but without the identification letters against some
gloves in this section.

Gloves approved to BS.EN 374.2003 will carry this pictogram which indicates that information is available
about the glove, its instruction and limitations of use.

The micro-organism pictogram can be used where the glove performs to at least level 2 for the permeation test i.e. Greater than 30 minutes

Thermal Hazards - Hot EN407 and Cold EN511
Thermal Hazards come in many forms.  Heat can be radiated and conducted, or it may be actual flames. Cold can be anything from cold water to frozen gases. It is important that we know the type of hazard and the temperature involved in order to recommend
suitable protection.

Thermal Hazards (Heat and/or fire) EN407

a) Burning behaviour
b) Contact Heat
c) Convection Heat
d) Radiant Heat
e) Small splashes of molten metal
f) Large splashes of molten metal

Protection from Cold EN511



a) Resistance to convection cold
b) Resistance to contact cold
c) Permeability to water

Reproduced by kind permission of MWT Ltd