EXAMINATION GLOVES MANUFACTURING UNIT (SURGICAL, DOMESTIC, ELECTRICAL)

A glove is a garment covering the whole hand. Gloves usually have separate sheaths or openings for each finger and the thumb. Gloves protect and comfort hands against cold or heat, damage by friction, abrasion or chemicals, and disease; or in turn to provide a guard for what a bare hand should not touch.

A disposable glove is commonly made from natural or synthetic rubber that covers the whole hand and is used to protect the wearer against harmful environmental influences and/ or used by caregivers in health care to protect themselves and patients from infections. As the name implies, disposable gloves are designed for single use only and should be disposed immediately after use.

MEDICAL GLOVES

Disposable medical gloves are available in Nitrile, latex and vinyl materials. Any gloves worn by health professionals should be free of powder, sterile, textured and coated for extra protection. Nitrile tends to be the most favored glove material for those working in the healthcare industry.

Nitrile Examination Glove is a disposable device intended for medical purposes that are worn on the examiner’s hand to prevent contamination between the patient and examiner.

HOUSEHOLD CLEANING GLOVES

Household cleaning gloves, also known as domestic cleaning gloves and rubber gloves, are exactly what they sound like; gloves to wear while cleaning your house. They can come in variety of materials and, despite the common image of bright yellow marigolds, they can also come in a variety of colors too.

By wearing household cleaning gloves while doing the washing up, you can not only protect your hands against hot water but also use hotter water than you would be able to otherwise. This ensures your dishes are cleaner because higher temperatures help kill more bacteria.

Because of the long-term needs of them, most household cleaning gloves are reusable. While some disposable latex gloves can be used as disposable cleaning gloves, they do not offer the protection that comes from the more hardwearing reusable cleaning gloves.
While disposable cleaning gloves are less common, that doesn’t mean that latex is less common as a material. Many reusable cleaning gloves are made from latex; it is a very tough material which offers a good level of chemical resistance.

PVC is also a common material for household cleaning gloves. It is often used by people who are allergic to latex because of its purely synthetic nature.

And, of course, many household cleaning gloves are made of rubber. This is where the name ‘rubber gloves’ comes from, and offer a great level of dexterity while still giving good protection against household cleaning chemicals.

HAND PROTECTION- ONE OF PPE’S

Appropriate selection of gloves is essential to protecting hands. Chemically protective gloves are one of the most important tools to minimize dermal exposures to chemicals in research laboratories. Gloves should only be used under the specific conditions for which they are designed, as no glove is impervious to all chemicals.

It is also important to note that gloves degrade over time, so they should be replaced as necessary to ensure adequate protection. Laboratory personnel should use the information below, and manufacturer compatibility charts (found under useful resources in the above right menu), to choose the type and style of glove.

CHOICE OF GLOVES

Because the fundamental function of gloves is to protect both the wearer and the patient against the transmission of infectious microorganisms, the most important criterion for selection of gloves for safe use should be barrier performance. With the onset of latex protein allergy affecting certain genetically predisposed individuals, the risk of sensitization and allergy-triggering reactions in these already allergic users should also be considered.

Properly manufactured NR latex gloves are known for their excellent barrier property, high strength, good elasticity, tactile sensitivity, comfort, fit, and durability. This is particularly so with powdered gloves. Over the years, manufacturers of synthetic gloves have attempted to simulate these NR properties. It is not unreasonable to say that today, these properties are still unsurpassed (in full) by any of the synthetic gloves currently manufactured.

Natural rubber latex is the oldest and most familiar material used in disposable gloves. In recent years it has increasingly been supplanted by nitrile and to a lesser extent vinyl gloves, but it remains popular in many uses, especially medical applications.

Natural rubber latex is obtained from the Hevea Brasiliensis tree when it’s bark is tapped. It is a milky fluid comprising 30-40% of rubber hydrocarbon particles suspended in a serum together with a few percent of other non-rubber substances such as proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, sugars and some metals (non-rubber fractions). The remaining major component is water.

Natural rubber latex is obtained from the Hevea Brasiliensis tree when it’s bark is tapped. It is a milky fluid comprising 30-40% of rubber hydrocarbon particles suspended in a serum together with a few percent of other non-rubber substances such as proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, sugars and some metals (non-rubber fractions). The remaining major component is water.