According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over a third of workplace hand injuries involve cuts or lacerations. Most of these injuries are entirely preventable if employees wear the correct glove. Learn more about the different ANSI Cut Levels, abrasion levels, liner materials, liner gauges, coating materials and EN388 in the below guide. For a downloadable pdf, visit our Resources Page on VanguardSafety.com and click on the All About Cut Resistant Gloves Guide.
Liner Materials
• Ultra strong. HPPE is 15 times stronger than steel on an equal weight basis.
• UV resistant. Can be bleached.
• Durable. Aramid is 5 times stronger than steel on an equal weight basis.
• Naturally heat and flame resistant. Ideal for applications requiring both cut and
heat resistance.
• Superior comfort, flexibility, and breathability. Cooling on the hand.
• Excellent dexterity and sensitivity. Dries quickly.
• Excellent dexterity and sensitivity. Dries quickly.
Liner Gauge
Gauge is defined as the number of stitches included in each inch of material. The lower the gauge, the heavier the glove. The higher the gauge, the lighter the glove.
Coating Materials
NITRILE
• Provides a high resistance to puncture, tearing, and abrasion.
• Good chemical resistance.
Flat Nitrile
• Tough coating that provides super tacky dry grip.
• Excellent abrasion and puncture resistance.
Foam Nitrile
• Channels oil and liquids away from the hand for a better grip.
• Excellent abrasion, puncture, and snag resistance.
Sandy Nitrile
• Suction cup-like texture provides a non-slip grip in heavy
oils and liquids.
• Good abrasion, puncture, cut and snag resistance.
Micro-Foam Nitrile
• Ultra breathable.
• Super abrasion resistant coating provides good dry grip.
POLYURETHANE
• Lightweight, strong and durable coating provides high resistance to abrasion.
• Offers great flexibility.
• Good for dry grip, handling small parts, and effective in light oil conditions.
LATEX
• Highly elastic material with good puncture resistance.
• Best overall dry grip.
• Adding a finish texture such as foam or crinkle also helps enhance grip.
ANSI Cut Levels
The cut resistance standard from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA) was updated in March of 2016. The updated ANSI/ISEA 105-2016 standard, based on the ASTM F2992-15 testing method, measures cut resistance for industrial work gloves. Measurements are based on a 9-level scale from A1 to A9.
The previous standard, ANSI/ISEA 105-2011, only had 5 levels. The newer, current standard with 9 levels allows for more accurate identification of protection.
The level of cut resistance ranges from 0 to 6,000 grams based on tests completed by a Tomodynamometer (TDM) Method. In this method, a blade is dragged across the glove material taken from the palm. The higher the weight required to cut the material, the higher the cut resistance rating. A higher rating provides the user with better protection and performance.
ANSI Abrasion Resistance
Abrasion Resistance refers to how long the glove will last, or the glove life. The higher the ANSI abrasion level, the longer the glove will last. The number of revolutions needed to break through the liner and the coating determines abrasion level. This is based on a test conducted by rotating a piece of the glove’s palm under two abrasive, weighted wheels that scrape against the material.
All VGuard® gloves are tested to the ANSI abrasion standard. As noted above, the higher the ANSI abrasion level, the longer the glove will last.
EN388 Badge Anatomy
EN388 is a European standard that tests gloves against mechanical risks such as abrasion, cut, tear and puncture.
Up until 2016, EN388 only included one method for cut resistance testing, the Coup test. This test determines the material’s cut resistance rating through the counts of rotations needed for a circular blade, moving laterally, to cut through the material. However, the blade would dull quickly when testing yarns with high levels of glass and steel fibers, which resulted in unreliable cut scores. The newest EN388:2016 standard includes the TDM test, which is the same method of testing cut resistance as ANSI 2016.
The shield icon has four numbers underneath that represent the Abrasion, Cut (Coup Test), Tear, and Puncture testing results. The last letter in the sequence represents the new cut resistant testing results (Based on the TDM machine).
All VGuard® gloves are tested to the EN388 standard and list the applicable ANSI abrasion level and EN388 icons on the back of the hand and on the insert tag.
