Drilling, workover and refinery work puts hands between heavy steel and inside hydrocarbon streams on the same shift. The gloves below cover back of hand impact, chemical contact and the cut and abrasion of daily tool handling.
Tubulars, tongs and elevators move under power and hands sit in the pinch line. Crush and pinch injuries on the fingers and back of hand are the signature injury of the drill floor. Specify a glove carrying the EN 388 P designation with thermoplastic rubber moulded across the knuckles, finger bones and thumb saddle.
Crude, condensate, drilling mud additives, corrosion inhibitors and amine sweetening chemicals all contact the hand during sampling, hose making and filter changes. A general handling glove offers no barrier. Use an EN ISO 374 certified glove selected against the specific product and concentration, not against the word chemical.
Wireline, slickline, frayed sling wire and burrs on threaded connections cut through unrated fabric quickly. A TDM level C to E liner handles most rig floor and plant handling without the stiffness that makes valve work slow.
Once a coating loads with oil it stops gripping, and the operator compensates by squeezing harder. Nitrile foam and sandy nitrile finishes channel oil away from the contact surface and hold grip on wet steel, which reduces both dropped object risk and hand fatigue.
Night shift on an exposed deck or a high altitude inland site drops hand temperature enough to cost dexterity long before it causes injury. An insulated glove tested to EN 511 keeps finger function through the shift rather than forcing operators to remove gloves to work.
Most oil and gas hand injuries are impact and pinch, not laceration, so start with the EN 388 impact designation and work outward from there.
Run two or three glove types rather than one. A single glove that satisfies impact, chemical and dexterity at once will be a compromise on all three.
Not automatically. Impact protection and cut protection are tested separately under EN 388. If the task is handling tubulars and tools rather than wire or sheet metal, a moderate cut level with a strong impact back is the better and cheaper specification.
No. EN ISO 374 breakthrough times are measured against named test chemicals, and a glove that resists one solvent may degrade quickly in another. Select against the actual chemical and concentration in use, and change the glove selection when the process changes.
TDM level C to E covers most rig floor, workshop and plant handling. Higher levels are worth specifying where the hand contacts cut wire, sheet steel or blades directly, but they add stiffness that slows precise work.
Send the tasks, sizes and quantities you need and we will come back with a written quotation. Contact Knight Safety Gear.