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EN STANDARDS
Choosing the right standard of glove for the protection you're looking for
Although most gloves appear similar, if not identical, on the outside, they are all designed for different purposes. Gloves that protect you against one hazard, may not protect you as well or at all against another. To distinguish the scale of protection gloves provide, CEN (the European Standards body) has developed a series of standards which can help manufacturers and suppliers understand which glove they need and what purpose they will have.
All protective gloves are tested and graded based on several European standards:
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EN 374 - Gloves under this category can withstand at least 10 minutes of contact with certain chemicals. They are tested based on penetration time, degradation level, and permeation rate.
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EN 1186 - Gloves tested under this category are safe for food contact.
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EN 420 - These are protective gloves which comply with general PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) regulations.
A GUIDE TO EN420 GLOVE SAFETY
EN 420 is the overall general requirement to which all protective gloves are attributed to and covers both disposable single use gloves and reusable gloves. A glove MUST pass EN 420 before it passes any other standard. Other popular standards under this bracket include:
EN 374
EN 374 is a glove standard which classifies the protection they provide against chemicals and micro-organisms.
EN 511
EN 511 is the standard that gloves must meet to offer protection against convective cold, contact cold and water.
