New personal protective equipment for cutting and shearing: Finger-safe

The personal protective equipment used in agriculture does not include specific devices and due to this fact they are not able to provide a suitable degree of protection of the operator. In particular, the hand is the part of the body that is more prone to serious injury (e.g. amputation). The aim of this study was to test new safety principals for reducing the risk of cutting. We performed 10 types of different tests that led us to the identification of gloves resistant to mechanical action as well as to cutting. The prototype has demonstrated a high protective efficiency against tools such as pneumatic or manual scissors. In conclusion, the study recommends the use of gloves with elements which absorb and dissipate energy and not just simple cut resistant gloves. © 2015 Sirio R. S. Cividino et al.