The pandemic has created an unforeseen scenario in the glove production world. The rapid increase in demand of gloves has been a challenge for seasoned glove manufacturers to provide quality hand protection in time. This situation made way for inexperienced glove suppliers that are new in the market to fill the gap with inferior nitrile gloves. Glove manufacturers are increasing capacity, but much of the new supply coming online is of substandard quality, driven by two primary factors: inexperienced new entrants and low-grade raw material. The lack of priority given to the quality of the gloves produced leads to risks that could be life altering for the users.
Ansell upholds an unwavering commitment to safety. We don’t compromise the quality of our raw materials, experiment with fillers, or take risky shortcuts. As a global company with 125 years of experience, our quality control systems are designed to protect the 10 million workers around the world, across 25 medical and industrial industries, who wear our gloves each day. We continue to comply with the highest level of quality standards in the world. When you trust in Ansell, you can be assured that we proudly stand behind the high quality of our products and put our dedication to worker safety above all else.
Contributing factors to the influx of inferior nitrile gloves in the market
1. Inexperienced new entrants
Many new disposable glove manufacturers have entered the market in recent months, but most are short-term-oriented with no prior experience. They will be challenged to effectively and efficiently produce quality products while automating processes and demonstrating a commitment to corporate social responsibility as supply catches up to demand and average selling prices decline. Many manufacturers lack product registrations and the quality control systems required to comply with existing standards.
2. Low-grade raw material
Disposable nitrile gloves are made with nitrile latex, which is produced by stably dispersing and suspending tiny particles of nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) in water. High-grade, low-viscosity nitrile latex is less likely to trap bubbles during the glove manufacturing process, which is important because the presence of bubbles can result in tiny pinholes, jeopardizing protection and increasing the risk of rips and tears.
Risks from inferior nitrile gloves in the market
1. Supply and demand imbalances
Some suppliers are selling rejected medical gloves to traders, who repackage them in generic packaging and sell them as “B-grade” products in industrial channels. Even worse, unscrupulous traders have put low-grade gloves in branded packaging and sold them fraudulently through intermediary parties. All this activity has caused supply and demand imbalances to vary across countries and industries, leading to a bifurcation of pricing by region and market.
2. Risk of product damage
The risks that inferior products pose to users are significant. Inexperienced manufacturers lacking quality control standards, coupled with the use of adulterated latex by established players, drives lower levels of protection and increased likelihood of pinholes, rips and tears. The greatest danger is potentially what the United States Food & Drug Administration (FDA) refers to as a “false sense of security,” whereby users perform tasks with the belief that they are fully protected, when in fact, they are at risk.
Trust in Ansell
Ansell upholds an unwavering commitment to safety. We don’t compromise the quality of our raw materials, experiment with fillers, or take risky shortcuts. As a global company with 125 years of experience, our quality control systems are designed to protect the 10 million workers around the world, across 25 medical and industrial industries, who wear our gloves each day. We continue to comply with the highest level of quality standards in the world. When you trust in Ansell, you can be assured that we proudly stand behind the high quality of our products and put our dedication to worker safety above all else.
Shop Ansell’s Micro-Touch Nitrile Exam Gloves at pattersondental.com. For more information, please reach out to your local Patterson representative.
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