Worldwide Protective Products and DSM Dyneema announced in October a completion of a technology licensing agreement enabling Worldwide to bring to market protective work gloves made with Dyneema® Diamond Technology, the world’s most advanced material for cut protection.
Working with Dyneema Diamond Technology allows Worldwide to capitalize on the material’s unique properties that deliver extreme cut resistance and abrasion durability, while also enabling enhanced wearer comfort. Combining this revolutionary fiber innovation with Worldwide’s market knowledge and unique knitting and yarn integration capabilities will result in styles that help establish a new standardin cut protection compared to current market offerings. In fact, the first new gloves introduced with spun yarn Dyneema Diamond Technology material will offer improved cut resistance and as much as four times the usable life of gloves currently serving the bulk of certain industry segments.
“Our partnership with DSM Dyneema means a significant step forward in workplace hand safety,” said Kerry Dyer, managing director, Worldwide Protective Products. “Bringing gloves made with Dyneema Diamond Technology to the market segments we intend to target has clear advantages.”
In addition to the ultra high level of cut protection, the new glove will keep hands cool and comfortable due to the inherent cooling properties of Dyneema Diamond Technology that does not trap heat as do many other cut resistant materials.
With the licensing agreement in place with DSM Dyneema, Worldwide becomes the preeminent U.S. supplier of straight knit protective gloves made from spun yarn Dyneema Diamond Technology material. The gloves will be knitted at the company’s North Carolina factory, enabling a new option in innovative cut protection for companies that prefer to source products made in the U.S.A.
Dyneema Diamond Technology offers a number of advantages over other materials used to make cut resistant gloves. In some material deniers the proprietary DSM Dyneema science behind Dyneema Diamond Technology enables glove manufacturers to choose one of two options: a higher level of cut resistance at the same weight and comfort level as existing gloves within that range of cut protection; or, a thinner and more comfortable glove that provides the same level of cut protection as current gloves. Dyneema Diamond Technology also offers superior abrasion resistance, enabling longer usable glove life without sacrificing cut protection as happens with some other materials over time or when laundered.
Workplace hand injuries – with cuts and lacerations forming the majority of reportable cases – continue to be among the most prevalent safety issues in manufacturing operations globally. A significant number of these cuts occurring in workplaces happen to workers not wearing protective gloves or sleeves at the time of the incident, with lack of comfort or the perception thereof the most commonly cited reasons employees give for not wearing proper protective equipment. These factors present particular opportunities for segments Worldwide plans to target with its new products, as many existing gloves prevalent in those applications depend on technologies that hold heat and cause wearer discomfort.
“Improving comfort in gloves that provide exceptional cut protection is critical for companies who want to make a real difference in employee safety and health,” said Olivier Boubeaud, global business segment director, high performance textiles, DSM Dyneema. “Spun fiber made from Dyneema Diamond Technology clearly provides advantages in this area. Offering protective equipment market leaders like Worldwide Protective Products access to this technology will improve availability of gloves with Dyneema Diamond Technology for employers and better enable us to deliver on our objective to create the world’s safest hands.”
