Glove Safety Ratings
Selecting the correct glove for the application at hand is of great importance for yourself and your staff, however finding the right glove can prove to be a difficult task at times, this is due to the numerous safety ratings different gloves may carry. Below is a short guide to the different ratings gloves may carry, and the relevant EN ratings.
This is a brief guide only. Always consult your H&S representative or the HRC website when deciding which gloves are appropriate.
EN388:2016 - Protective Gloves Against Mechanical Risks
EN388:2016 is a rating that is found on almost all gloves, it includes the core areas of protection safety gloves are expected to follow. Each category will have a number ranging from 1-4, or 1-5, the higher the number the better protection the glove offers.
The categories that fall under EN388 are:
Abrasion resistance (0 to 4)
Cut resistance (0 to 5)
Tearing strength (0 to 4)
Puncture resistance (0 to 4)
The 2016 amendment added a new ISO (TDM) cut rating - Ranging from X (untested) / A (lowest) to F (highest).
This amendment also added an Impact protection rating, which if tested is shown as a "P".
| EN388:2016 |  4121X |
We can see from the example rating above that this glove offers good abrasion resistance and moderate puncture resistance, however it does not offer a high level of cut resistance. Based off these ratings we can decide if this glove is appropriate and safe for the purpose intended.
EN511:2006 - Protection Against Cold Environments
The EN511 standard is focused at protecting hands against cold and is based on thermal resistance to convective and contact cold, with an optional test for water permeability (waterproofing).
The categories are as follows:
Resistance to connective cold (X/0 to 4)
Resistance to contact cold (X/0 to 4)
Water impermeability (X/0 to 1)
| EN511:2006 |  02X |
EN407:2004 - Protection Against Thermal Risks
This standard specifies demands and test methods for protective gloves that shall protect against heat and/or fire. The numbers given besides the pictogram indicates the gloves performance for each test in the standard. The higher number the better performance level.
The categories are as follows:
Burning behaviour (0 to 4)
Contact heat (0 to 4)
Convective heat (0 to 4)
Radiant heat (0 to 4)
Small splashes of molten metal (0 to 4)
Large splashes of molten metal (0 to 4)
| EN407 |  X13144 |
EN374 - Protective Gloves Against Dangerous Chemicals and Micro-Organisms
This standard specifies the demands of the requirements for a glove to protect against dangerous chemicals and micro-organisms. This covers a wide range of different demands and chemicals which simply cannot be summarised briefly due to the potential hazards of chemicals, we strongly suggest consulting the Guide Gloves website for more information.
EN1149 - Electrostatic Properties
This standard specifies the requirements and test methods for materials used in the manufacturing of electrostatic dissipative protective gloves to avoid electrostatic discharges. This may be done in three different tests.
Part 1 defines the test to measure surface resistivity/resistance between two specified electrodes (resting on the test specimen and a potential of 100±5V.
Part 2 defines the test to measure vertical resistance between two electrodes placed on opposite surfaces of the test specimen and a potential of 100±5V.
Part 3 defines the test to measure the half decay time T50 (s) = the time it takes for a material to achieve a 50% decay of a charge induced on the material via an electrode.
Part 5 defines the criteria to claim antistaticity for gloves:
- Surface resistance < 2.5x109 (ohm) (or Surface resistivity < 5x1010 (ohm) OR
- Charge decay time T50 < 4s
- For vertical resistance (ohm), there are no set criteria defined.
| EN1149-1:1995 |  |
Food Tested
Gloves that are safe to use while handing food will be highlighted with the following icon.
