With the supply of standard nitrile gloves being prioritised towards the medical sector by all suppliers, coupled with an increasing cost for nitrile gloves due to heightened global demand, the food industry has been asked to consider alternative hand protection for their employees’ essential PPE. Savings can be realised through not over-specifying disposable Nitrile gloves where a suitable alternative would suffice, says Khurram Akhtar, Director – Sales & Products at Supertouch.
He explains: “When purchasing teams are specifying disposable gloves for large production facilities, one of the most common mistakes we see them making is ordering mass quantities of the same product for all workers across the line. For many businesses, this could be a completely unnecessary expenditure.
“Initially it may seem easier and simpler to specify and order just one type of disposable glove, however, it’s important to stop and consider ‘does everybody require the same, or am I over-specifying for large parts of the operation?’ The decision should ultimately be made based on the level of protection each job requires.”
“The cost-saving potentials here are great. In the food industry, for instance, simple food handling tasks, where glove usage is to protect the product, will not require the same robustness as those working further up the production line manhandling bulky raw meat. Careful and accurate specification in these types of scenarios can mean the difference between specifying something like Supertouch’s food approved
Ultra Nitrile gloves, or the more robust and heavy-duty protection of standard Nitrile gloves.”
In addition to cost savings, Ultra Nitrile gloves offer a number of benefits, such as enhanced dexterity through a close fit and increased comfort, which can ultimately increase productivity. Ultra Nitrile gloves come in a variety of colours, which is ideal for colour coding in production.
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Nitrile gloves are suitable for many roles on the production floor, but there are plenty of tasks that could safely and comfortably use Ultra Nitrile instead, especially as the Nitrile shortage is continuing to cause price hikes in the short term.” Khurram continues.
Ultra Nitrile is also more environmentally friendly, for those who are conscious about the carbon footprint of their plant. Thanks to its thin and lightweight qualities, less packaging is required, with 2000 gloves packed into each dispenser.
Khurram concludes: “The message here is to optimise your purchasing and stop specifying from a ‘one style suits all’ perspective. Not only could this save the business money, but also means workers are better equipped to do their job.”
