Work Gloves
Work gloves are a special type of protective equipment that is used in both the heavy duty and the light duty industry. They come in a variety of styles, colors and sizes, and they are made from a wide range of materials. Some gloves even have reflective patterns that aim to ensure increased visibility during night time – these work gloves are especially designed for event control, search and rescue missions, maintenance work, roadside constructions and such.
On the other hand, there are specialized work gloves that are designed for a woman’s hands -they are widely used for landscaping and gardening, them are comfortable and durable and they are usually made from premium leather. Moreover, they can have elastic wrist insertions that ensure a proper fit, and they are very resistant to punctures and cuts, thus being ideal for garden work.
While some types of work gloves are designed for single-use only (like the disposable, powder free nitrile gloves), others can be used and used for multiple times. These are basically single-use exam gloves that are designed to provide increased dexterity and comfort, they feature textured fingertips and they ensure a better fit. These work gloves are usually industrial grade, which means that they are widely used in different industries rather than in the medical field.
Some work gloves are fingerless, and they are used mainly for highly sensitive mechanical tasks where the worker must move his fingers freely, unrestrained by bulky gloves.
Some of the most commonly used materials include professional leather for greater protection, cotton for light duty and dirty jobs due to its comfortable fit coupled with increased dexterity or nitrile, which offers increased protection against chemicals and they are perfect for pharmaceutical and commercial applications. Other popular materials are vinyl, latex or PVC, and all of them are designed to meet the requirements and standards set by the Food and Drug Administration.
The applications vary based on the design of the glove, as well as the material that it is made from. For instance, cotton work gloves are perfect for material handling, general maintenance tasks or food processing, leather gloves are suitable for heavy duty industries (assembling, construction work, farming or product manufacturing), latex is suitable for janitorial services while PVC gloves are used in the mining and automotive industry due to their increased protection from solvents and acids that are widely used in the chemical industry.
In addition to the above-mentioned materials, it must be mentioned that the design and the style of the glove varies from one application to another, and from one manufacturer to another. Gloves that are sewn with Kevlar thread, for instance, are extremely durable as they do not conduct electricity, they do not melt and they provide increased dexterity. However, they are usually very expensive and heavy.
Other common types of gloves are gardening gloves which offer medium protection against cuts and abrasions, welding gloves which are usually made from high-quality leather and the basic work gloves which are multi-purpose, ambidextrous, warm, protective and flexible.