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Editorial
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Dear reader,
This Spring has, once again, seen the launch of a few brand-new industrial gloves. Visiting Préventica in Strasbourg, you might have already come across the new HyFlex® 11-624 and our new Vantage® models. We kindly invite you to discover these newcomers in this Ansell InTouch newsletter.
As is the case with all Ansell solutions, the new HyFlex and Vantage gloves are in keeping with our mission: to lead our markets, as the provider of superior quality and innovative solutions to better protect people and products.
Further proof of that mission statement are our technically innovative programs, like the
Ansell Cytostatics Permeation Program (ACPP). Originally devised to evaluate the dynamic permeation levels of our medical gloves, the ACPP is also used, these days, to analyze the performance of our industrial glove range in high-risk environments. With nothing but positive results.
Of course, there are more novelties in the pipeline for next autumn. While many of you were out
sunbathing on a some far-away beach, conquering a challenging mountain-top or expanding your
cultural horizons, we have been getting ready for the A+A trade fair in Dusseldorf, from the 18th - 21st September next, among many other things. We hope to see you there. For now, enjoy the reading.
Werner Heintz
Sr Vice President & Regional Director Europe, Ansell Healthcare
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Product launches: NEW Vantage® and HyFlex® 11-624
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Excellent cut resistance (EN 5!) without compromising flexibility, sensitivity or dexterity: these are the unique promises of the NEW Vantage® range, a series of six enhanced Vantage versions. In addition, this spring saw the launch of a new member to the popular HyFlex® family: the lightweight HyFlex® 11-624.
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What makes the NEW Vantage range so unique? Well, primarily the ingenious combination of its excellent tear and cut resistance with exceptional dexterity. The lightweight design provides greater comfort and a better fit for the wearer.
The flexibility, comfort and mechanical performance of the gloves ensure complete user acceptance while the operators are fully protected, at a reasonable Total Cost of Ownership. As the range includes six types of gloves, there’s sure to be a Vantage to match everyone’s protection profile.
Marriage of dexterity and comfort
In addition to the NEW Vantage, there's also a HyFlex newcomer: the HyFlex 11-624. Like its other family members, this lightweight model is a trendsetter in the areas of dexterity and flexibility. The glove fits perfectly and ensures secure grip on dry to slightly oily pieces. It smartly combines these comfort levels with optimal protection from cuts and abrasions.
The HyFlex 11-624 allows the safe handling and assembly of sharp pieces and is ideal when flexibility is a must.
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A+A 2007!
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From the 18th - 21st of September, we'll gladly welcome you at A+A 2007 in Düsseldorf, the industry highlight of the year for PPE
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Discover Ansell's new product, solutions and technologies at A+A in Hall 6, booth J31.
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SDL: leading the way with major brands
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Safety Distribution Ltd (SDL), better known as Protec, is widely acknowledged as one of the UK’s leading distributors of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and workwear. The company provides a wide range of PPE from top manufacturers, and for over 25 years now, Ansell has been one of them.
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A member of the dynamic multinational SIG Group, SDL is a forward-thinking business that takes quality seriously. Substantial investment in operations, technology and infrastructure enable SDL to provide the highest levels of service and efficiency and respond fluidly to the ever-changing customer and market demands.
Market-leading partners
When it comes to selecting reliable partners, SDL sets very high standards. “The key to our success is strong partnerships with market-leading brands,” said Paul Roche, Managing Director. “We acknowledge Ansell as being a market leader. That is why we have been working closely with them for many years.”
Premier service and support
SDL praises Ansell for innovative product development combined with good customer support. Chris Flavell, Commercial Manager: “Service and support are high on SDL’s agenda. Our staff receive ongoing training to ensure they are up to speed with product performance and legislation. Ansell are always happy to support us, whether it be at a sales, purchasing or technical level. They keep us up to date with the latest product developments, provide first-class training and lend technical support to our salesforce. In return, we give them structured feedback on customers’ needs and wants.”
First-rate products
Of course, this would count for nothing if the products were not to the high standards SDL's customers require. “The high levels set by Ansell in their product innovation and service ensure our customers are more than happy with their purchase. It is also the catalyst behind us being an approved distributor of Ansell products for such a long period of time,” concluded Paul Roche.
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Ansell helps prevent dermatitis in the workplace
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Accounting for 20 % of all work-related health problems, occupational skin diseases and injuries are a real headache in the workplace; with operatives’ hands worst affected. Through its Derm seminars, the UK Health and Safety Executive (UK-HSE) hopes to raise awareness of this issue and foster a more proactive approach. Ansell is privileged to sponsor the event.
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The one-day Derm seminars are part of the Disease Reduction Program of the UK-HSE, a new campaign to help reduce work-related illnesses from exposure to hazardous materials or physical agents. The series of seminars, ten in all, are in association with local Health and Safety Groups. The East Anglia Health and Safety Group, for example, co-organized one of the first seminars, in Peterborough.
Correct glove selection and use
On the agenda was a good mix of exhibitions and seminar presentations addressing many key issues, such as latex allergies, chemical protection, and the various levels of protection afforded by gloves of different makes and types. Specific enquiries and discussion ensued during the exhibition viewing times. At the Ansell booth, delegates from widely-separated industries met with the wide range of Ansell gloves. Chemical resistance proved to be a very hot issue.
“The purpose of the Derm seminars is to deliver a better understanding of work-related dermatitis, hand injuries and control processes. This includes the correct selection and use of gloves – something we are anxious to support and partner,” concluded Jim Wakerly, Territory Sales Manager - South East at Ansell UK.
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Meet us at Health and Safety '07 in Bolton
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On the 10th and 11th October, the UK's leading suppliers of PPE will showcase their product innnovations at the 2nd regional 2007 Health and Safety event, sponsored by DuPont. New this year is the free conferences and seminar program - including an Ansell contribution!
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In the Ansell keynote address, David Staniforth will explain how combining safety, productivity and standardisation can positively impact your bottom line. The Ansell products and solutions aimed at improving workplace safety are on display at our stand at Health and Safety '07: booth 40-42. Wish to know more? Surf to our website for more details.
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European Glove Standards: Ansell has its say
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Years of experience in the protection market have made Ansell a true ‘barrier protection’ expert. And much of that expertise resides in our staff. Take Guido Van Duren, for example, our Technical Services director. Besides his day-to-day job, Guido is an active member of the Expert Work Group TC 162 / WG8 within CEN (Centre Européen De Normalisation) that develops and reviews European glove standards, including the EN388 group, which he chairs.
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A qualified chemical engineer with over 17 years’ experience at Ansell, Guido Van Duren knows the needs and developments in the hand protection market better than most. For quite some years now, he has been applying that experience and know-how as a member of the CEN Expert Work Groups that set the standards for hand protection (TC 162 – WG8). Until the 1st of January 2007, Guido chaired the EN374 working group, studying the standard determining the chemical protection criteria of gloves. He swapped that post to chair the group responsible for the EN 388 standard, which currently specifies four tests to assess the mechanical resistance of mechanical protective gloves.
Continuous improvement
“Every five years, all EN standards in theory need revision,” Guido explained. “So a group of people from notified bodies, glove manufacturers or regulators convene regularly to evaluate the existing standard and to report any problems or hurdles to overcome. Based on their experience, feedback from laboratories and clients and emergent market trends, they formulate recommendations to enhance the existing standard.”
Since the EN 388 standard, for example, aims for a revision by 2008, the work group convened in January (Paris) and April (Gent) to discuss how they could improve the existing tests to better assess abrasion, blade cut, tear and puncture resistance. The changes are not revolutionary but do further the quest that typifies Ansell: the quest for continuous improvement. To ensure better protection still of the people wearing our gloves.
8.5 or 9? Check out your optimal glove size!
Ansell has developed a handy glove-sizing chart for glove wearers who are in doubt about the size of gloves they need.The chart is a simple drawing of a hand, with lines indicating the glove sizes. Just place your right hand palm down on the figure, with your fingers together and read off your size! Want to try it? If so. Click here and you will find it on our website.
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Ansell: protection you can build on!
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The construction sector has the highest level of exposure to occupational risk factors. This is one of the striking conclusions of the 4th European Working Conditions Survey (2005). Good news from the survey is that personal protective equipment (PPE) is gaining in importance. Still, more than ‘simply’ protecting their workers, companies should invest in protection which is expressly tailored to specific tasks and risks. Which is where Ansell can help comes in.
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In construction, like in many other industries, the "upper extremities" are the parts of the body most injured. In other words, hand protection is a must. Too frequently, however, Ansell sees that the gloves provided to workers do not offer optimal protection against the risks they are exposed to. If you issue comfortable gloves with the correct grip and appropriate mechanical and chemical protection to your workers, you win twice: you improve worker safety while enhancing worker performance.
Targeted solutions
Ansell offers a wide range of gloves that have been designed for hand protection against occupational hazards specific to the building and construction sector. Gloves that protect against chemicals, for example, because the hands of bricklayers, roofers, plasterers or tile-layers, come into contact with alkaline concrete or solvent-based sprays. Or gloves that keep hands warm as they work outdoors in winter. Dexterity and adequate protection against cuts and abrasion are equally important, as are gloves that ensure good grip.
Ansell Grip Technology™
‘Gloves ensuring good grip’ are gaining in importance in many industries. Indeed, the most recent European Working Conditions Survey shows a significant rise in repetitive hand or arm movements, which may result in Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS). In cases where protective gloves succeed in reducing the need for exertion, they help reduce the onset of occupational injuries, such as CTS.
And that’s what Ansell’s gloves incorporating the Ansell Grip Technology™ do: they require 34-69% less grip force to lift an oily object. An impressive statistic, not in the least for building and construction workers.
Visit our web site for more information on our offering for the building and construction sector.
Come see us at Batimat!
Discover our targeted solutions for your industry at the 28th Batimat, the biggest and most international construction exhibition, at Paris Expo, from the 5th to the 10th of November (hall 5.2, stand A2).
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Product shortcut
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A new packaging, an added ‘‘colour’, different sizes and/or improved characteristics: from now on, you’ll read it all in our new ‘product shortcut’. Here are the most important product changes of the past few months:
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Safe-Knit® Guard slot width narrowed
Following some customer remarks, a new manufacturing specification has been introduced for the thumb slot Safe-Knit Guard sleeves 59-416 and 59-417. Since February, its width has been narrowed from 51 to 63 mm to 55 to 63 mm.
AccuTech® 91-210: changed polybag
The polybag and the label of the sterile Accutech Sterile Ultra-Clean 91-210 have been modified since April last to comply with CE Technology. The 10 pairs polybag label has been updated to include the barcode per size and the polybag itself has been given an extra heat seal and an easier tear: the tear notch is now positioned higher up on the polybag.
proFood® 34-425: available from September
As you may know, there was a temporary allocation plan for our single-use proFood 34-425 due to certain issues surrounding our new manufacturing site. These teething troubles are now solved and product orders have been replaced. The new shipment will arrive soon. For those who can't wait: as an alternative, we can propose the proFood 35-405, 69-440 or 69-455, which are now available at a temporary discount.
The performance and properties of the new proFood 34-425 will be identical to those of its predecessor, except for a slight difference in the finger length. The changed dimensional parameters will be outlined in the gloves’ outer case.
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Ansell Cytostatics Permeation Program:
the testing continues
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Remember the Ansell Cytostatics Permeation Program (ACPP) we introduced in last summer’s In Touch? Back then, we started an initial set of tests to assess the dynamic permeation levels of a couple of Ansell industrial gloves. In the meantime, three new gloves have been put under the microscope.
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Ansell is eager to protect the safety of everyone wearing its gloves. To find out to what extent these models protect against cytostatics, Ansell and the Université Catholique de Louvain developed the unique ACPP testing protocol, which assesses the dynamic permeation levels of gloves for the most widely used types of cytostatics.
True-to-life simulations
The core of the ACPP is its testing device with true-to-life simulations: the device tests the gloves under the design constraints and worst-case scenarios that gloves commonly endure, such as rubbing, tension or high levels of cytostatics. These realistic simulations make the ACPP really unique. Thanks to this novel approach, the Ansell protocol provides more accurate and safer guidelines to ensure the safety of workers who handle cytostatics in labs and in the pharmaceutical industry.
Passed with flying colours
Originally, the ACPP was introduced as a benchmark to test our range of medical gloves against but our industrial glove range soon followed. Ansell first used the proven protocol to test its powder-free polychloroprene DermaShield®, the powder-free Touch N Tuff® and the latex AccuTech® Sterile Coated gloves. Since then, the AccuTech® Sterile Ultra-Clean, the AccuTech® Gammex®, and the powder-free nitrile Nitrilite®, too, have been tested at temperatures of 25 and 37 degrees. The test results are favourable this time as well: the permeation level detected for all our gloves was between 1 000 and 100 000 times below the EN374-3 limit requirement for most of the cytostatics.
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We will regularly update the permeation tables to include the gloves that were last tested. For more details on the ACPP and a current overview of test results, check out our new version of the ACPP brochure.
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