The need for safety gloves can arise in almost any workplace, no matter how low-risk the environment. From cleaning to food preparation, to working alongside chemicals and other hazardous materials, safety gloves not only protect workers from potentially harmful materials, but can also protect the people, products and materials from contamination by the worker themselves. In some instances, gloves can also make the working environment more comfortable for workers and third parties. This is where black nitrile gloves are particularly useful.
Unigloves have been producing disposable safety gloves for over three decades, constantly innovating to provide our clients with industry-specific gloves which keep hands safe and make jobs easier. Our gloves ranges come in a variety of colours and materials to suit a wide range of industrial applications. Our black nitrile gloves products are a popular choice for those in the tattooing, printing, painting, automotive and manufacturing fields.
Testing for black nitrile gloves
Unigloves nitrile gloves, including our black nitrile gloves ranges, are tested against three major European standards to ensure their suitability for contact with certain materials. These standards include:
- EN374: These gloves are certified to withstand 10 minutes or more of contact with certain chemicals, including sodium hydroxide, sulphuric acid and hydrogen peroxide. Their suitability is tested according to penetration time, degradation level, and permeation rate. (See our recent article, What Do Nitrile Gloves Protect Against, for more information on chemical resistance.)
- EN1186: Gloves meeting this standard are deemed safe for contact with food.
- EN420: All protective gloves must comply with general PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) regulations.
It is important to understand these standards when purchasing disposable safety gloves for the workplace, as not all gloves are created equal. Whilst it may be possible to purchase extremely low-cost gloves online from the likes of eBay, some of these gloves are unsuitable for use in even low-risk environments, as they do not meet basic safety glove standards. Another important standard to take into consideration is the AQL score of gloves.
All Unigloves disposable gloves are tested for AQL, or ‘Acceptable Quality Level’, which determines the percentage of pinhole defects that may be present in a batch of disposable gloves. The lower the AQL score (for example, AQL 1.5 or AQL 0.65), the lesser the likelihood of pinhole defects. AQL is an important standard to consider when workers are likely to come into contact with hazardous chemicals or biohazards such as blood-borne pathogens.
Applications for black nitrile gloves
As well as being latex-free, black nitrile gloves offer an excellent level of protection against chemicals, biohazards, tears and abrasions. This makes disposable nitrile gloves a superior disposable glove solution for almost any workplace, including higher-risk environments like medical settings, chemical handling, manufacturing and more. It also means they’re a preferred solution over latex gloves, due to the latex allergies which might affect a small percentage of workers or those they encounter. It is important to note that no disposable safety glove will provide perfect protection against punctures and tears from sharp or abrasive materials, and that proper risk assessments should be done in all workplaces.
For some workplaces, however, protection against chemicals or other hazards is only part of the equation. Black nitrile gloves are ideal for workers in the tattooing, printing and painting, agriculture and mechanical fields, where contact with blood, bodily fluids, or staining materials like inks and oils are expected. Black gloves not only protect the hands from staining or becoming contaminated but offer an added bonus over lighter coloured gloves in that they mask the colour of blood, ink and more. This makes for a more pleasant workplace and a much more pleasant experience for tattoo clients, for example. Black gloves can also be easier on the eyes of workers when being worn for extended periods of time.
Black nitrile gloves also allow for ease of detection of light fluid colour changes, which is beneficial in the dairy industry for example, where workers may have to manually detect mastitis by the changed colour of milk from animals. The powder free varieties in our nitrile gloves ranges also help to reduce the risk of contamination.
Unigloves black nitrile gloves
Unigloves PRO.TECT heavy-duty range is the UK’s leading automotive glove range. However, the applications for these robust gloves go well beyond the automotive industry.
PRO.TECT Black: These powder free, latex-free and silicone-free black nitrile gloves are heavy weight and manufactured with textured palms and fingertips. As well as being resistant to a range of chemicals, these black gloves’ silicone-free formula means no finger marks on metal or glass surfaces. The textured sections of the gloves offer improved grip, whilst their beaded cuffs provide extra strength and protection against roll-back of liquids. These gloves are a favourite in the automotive industry, as well as for tattooists, printers, painters and those working in chemical use and manufacturing.
PRO.TECT Black HD+: These black nitrile powder free, latex-free and silicone-free gloves are manufactured with an extended-cuff, offering the wearer the benefit of enhanced chemical splash protection. Meanwhile, Unigloves’ unique formulation also means a softer, more comfortable wear, perfect for extended use.
Since 1988, Unigloves has been committed to creating industry-specific safety gloves which not only protect their wearers but prevent cross-contamination in the workplace. Our unique formulation means our nitrile gloves are easier to don and remove, and more comfortable for extended wear – making it easier to get the job done. For those jobs where colour masking of liquids is a factor, there is no superior disposable glove solution than our black nitrile gloves.
Request a sample to try out Unigloves black nitrile gloves in your workplace today.
