Hand protection is a critical part of workplace safety in any industry.
Oil & Gas is a complex and messy industry. No worker must be around the oil & gas worksite without the required personal protective equipment (P.P.E). And every worker should be equipped with high-quality safety gloves.
Safety Gloves are the most effective Personal Protective Equipment (P.P.E) for hand protection.
Safety gloves keep your hands warm & safe. They offer excellent comfort & flexibility for tasks & tool handling. They are the perfect defense against cuts, burns, extreme temperature, heat & chemical exposure, etc.
Hand injuries are common in the oil and gas industry. According to the International Association of Drilling Contractors, hand and finger injuries are 43% of incidents on drilling rigs.
Due to the physically demanding nature of the work, which often involves drilling, extracting, refining, operating & handling heavy equipment, tools, and machinery, oil & gas workers may regularly experience cuts, burns, and strains, or more severe injuries such as fractures, crush injuries, etc. In Dubai, an expat mechanic’s thumb had been amputated in an accident. He was setting up the machine and saw his thumb getting chopped off and blood gushing out of his hand.
Therefore, equipping your workers with high-quality safety gloves is essential.
Fortunately, there are a variety of safety gloves available in the Dubai market. When visiting a reliable safety equipment supplier, remember that these gloves vary in design, materials & durability and serve different purposes. Be sure to select the ones that best suit your specific requirements.
In this blog, I’ll walk you through 4 glove designs most effective for specific operations in the Oil & Gas Industry.
Impact-Resistant Gloves
Oil & gas workers are expected to perform various physically demanding tasks.
They would often be engaged in drilling, extracting, refining or operating & handling heavy equipment and machinery. All these tasks significantly impact their knuckles, palms, and fingers.
Any strong impact & pressure causes strain on workers hands, resulting in discomfort, fatigue, and painful injuries – Never perform a task with bare hands.
Impact-resistant gloves come to your rescue by providing protection against any pressure, painful blows, and impacts. You need padding around knuckles, palms, and fingers. Padding is nothing but a strong extra layer, strategically placed to distribute pressure & absorb the impact of shocks, blows, or vibrations etc.
Impact resistance gloves are made from materials like thermoplastic rubber (TPR) or silicone, foam or gel padding, which provide excellent shock absorption, comfort & flexibility, thereby reducing the risk of injury to the wearer’s hands.
The best advantage of impact-resistant gloves is their ability to protect against blunt force trauma, making them ideal for oil & gas workers involved in the following tasks:
- Rigging
- Lifting heavy objects
- Handling heavy tools and equipment during drilling operations
- Working in confined spaces
- Tight grip while climbing
- Tasks with high exposure to oil and grease is common
Chemical-Resistant Gloves
Oil and gas operations rely heavily on the use of chemicals.
Some chemicals can hurt you. Few may be really poisonous. Others can quickly damage or burn your skin.
Oil & gas workers are regularly exposed to acids, solvents, oils, greases or other harmful chemicals. They may be exposed to these while handling substances, performing tasks, or cleaning equipment etc.
So how to keep your hands safe from these harmful chemicals? – The answer is Chemical-Resistant Gloves
Chemical-resistant gloves are essential for hand protection against every harmful chemical commonly encountered in oil & gas worksites. These gloves prevent your hands from coming in direct contact with acids, solvents, oils, greases, chemicals, and other hazardous materials that can cause skin irritation, burns, dermatitis, and other hand injuries. Riyadh resident Aline Fleihan suffered some burns on her skin after liquid nitrogen was accidentally spilled on her. Such unfortunate incidents can happen anywhere. Therefore, it’s safe to equip oil & gas workers with high-quality chemical-resistant gloves.
Types of Chemical-Resistant Gloves available in the Dubai market:
- Latex Gloves
- Nitrile Gloves
- Neoprene Gloves
- Butyl Rubber Gloves
- PVC Gloves
Find a reliable safety equipment supplier in Dubai and select high-quality chemical-resistant gloves available in a variety of types, each offering specific features, premium quality material and perfect comfort & protection.
Heat-Resistant Gloves
Heat-resistant gloves are essential personal protective equipment for any industrial worker.
They are very useful for oil and gas workers too.
Oil & gas workers are frequently exposed to heat, flames, hot temperatures, etc. Any direct exposure to Intense heat or flames can be harmful for hands, enough to cause skin burns, painful injuries & impairing workers ability to perform a task with hands.
Any normal gloves would be ineffective against the heat and flames encountered in oil & gas worksites. You need heat-resistant gloves that provide insulation and protection against burns.
These gloves are typically made using heat-resistant materials such as leather, Kevlar, or aluminized fabrics etc. Heat-resistant material, insulation & reflective coatings make these gloves an ideal choice in extreme heat environments.
Heat-resistant gloves can be super useful for the following tasks:
- Welding
- Cutting metal
- Handling hot pipes, valves, and equipment
- Working around furnaces, boilers, and flares
- Working in outdoor environments
Cut-Resistant Gloves
If you’re an oil and gas worker, then you’re expected to perform various risky and challenging tasks.
However, any task in the oil and gas industry is physically demanding. That requires a lot of physical hard work. Enough to drain workers physically and mentally. Even result in burns, cuts or severe injuries.
Oil & gas workers are expected to operate heavy machinery & equipment. Do welding work. Cut materials. Handle sharp objects etc. Without (P.P.E) these tasks can result in cuts, slashes, and punctures. Only cut-resistant gloves can provide the best hand protection against these hazards.
Cut-resistant gloves are made from high-performance fibers such as Kevlar, Dyneema, or stainless steel mesh and provide:
- Exceptional strength
- Durability
- Comfort
- Flexibility
- Added palm and fingers protection against sharp edges
- Tight grip
Wrap Up - 4 Glove Designs Most Effective for Specific Operations In Oil and Gas Industry
You’ll find a variety of safety gloves in the Dubai market. But not every design will meet your specific needs. However, if you need gloves for specific oil and gas operations, these following glove designs are the most effective and useful for oil and gas industry workers. These are impact-resistant gloves, chemical-resistant, heat-resistant, & cut resistant gloves. Whether you require protection against cuts, heat, chemicals, or other workplace hazards, these 4 glove designs best suit your requirements. Based on the nature of your tasks and the level of protection required, find a reliable safety equipment supplier & invest in high-quality gloves. By equipping your oil & gas workers with these 4 specialized glove designs, you can ensure the safety and well-being of workers, comply with safety standards & promote a culture of workplace safety.
