Safety Gloves for Utilities and Electrical
Utility crews cover network maintenance, vegetation clearance, underground cable work, water reticulation and telecommunications, often at short notice and in poor weather. The gloves discussed here are mechanical protection worn over or alongside electrical insulating gloves, never a substitute for them.
Cut & abrasion
Stripping cable, handling steel conductor, pulling draw ropes and working in pits full of sharp fixings all cut hands. Armoured cable in particular leaves wire ends that slice through a light glove. The property required is a cut resistant liner at TDM level D or above with good abrasion life on the palm.
Impact
Pole and tower work, pit lid handling and transformer moves put the back of the hand against heavy steel and concrete. A moulded thermoplastic rubber guard carrying the EN 388 P designation spreads the strike across the metacarpals instead of concentrating it on a knuckle.
Arc flash
Work near live equipment carries an incident energy risk, and a glove that melts makes an arc flash injury worse. The property that matters is a shell and liner built from materials that char rather than melt, with an EN 407 burning behaviour result, worn as part of a rated arc flash ensemble.
Cold
Storm response and night callouts mean crews work wet and cold with no chance to warm up. Cold hands lose the fine control needed for terminations, so an EN 511 rated glove with the water permeability digit at 1 keeps the crew effective as well as comfortable.
What to specify
Mechanical protection is specified under EN 388:2016+A1:2018, with the P designation added for pole, pit and plant work, EN 407 where arc flash or hot work is credible, and EN 511 for storm response and winter shifts.
Electrical insulating gloves are certified separately under their own standards and are selected by voltage class. Where both are needed, a leather protector or mechanical over glove is worn over the insulating glove according to your live work procedure, and the mechanical glove never replaces the insulating one.
Recommended gloves
- GRANBERG 9013: Chemical-and-cut resistant gloves with HF acid protection and ANSI A7 rating.
- GRANBERG 1190: Cut, impact & arc flash resistant gloves. Goatskin leather with full Kevlar® lining.
- GRANBERG 9007: Cut Resistant Impact Hi-Viz™ protective gloves. Typhoon® fibre with nitrile coating, oil resistant.
- GRANBERG 6000: Flexible chemical-resistant gloves for industrial wet work. Sandy nitrile palm, nylon liner.
Frequently asked questions
Do cut resistant gloves provide electrical protection?
No. Cut resistant gloves are certified under EN 388 for mechanical hazards only, and many contain steel or carbon fibres that are conductive. Electrical protection requires insulating gloves certified for the voltage class involved, worn according to your live work procedure.
What gloves suit underground cable work?
Pit and trench work needs a cut level D or above glove with strong abrasion resistance, because armoured cable ends, steel fixings and grit destroy light gloves quickly. Add impact protection where heavy lids, drums and ducting are handled, and a water resistant option for wet pits.
Can gloves be worn over electrical insulating gloves?
Yes, and it is standard practice. A leather protector or mechanical over glove shields the insulating glove from cuts and abrasion that would compromise its dielectric integrity. The over glove is chosen to suit the mechanical hazard and must not interfere with the fit of the insulating glove.