KUALA LUMPUR: The makers of the humble disposable rubber gloves are turning “green”, with the introduction of the reusable EcoGlove.
EcoGlove chairman Patrick Hampe claimed that the gloves would be cheaper for end users, reduce the risk of latex and chemical allergies, and friendlier to Mother Nature.
After use, the new gloves would be reprocessed by its manufacturers – sanitised and checked for defects – before being repackaged and sent back to the users.
A machine using cold plasma technology sterilises the gloves, and as a quality control measure, Hampe said any one set of gloves are only allowed to be reused seven times.
It is estimated that 140 billion gloves are produced globally each year, with Malaysia accounting for half the sum. Most disposable gloves are made from latex or petroleum-based nitrile.
New invention: Dr Lin showing the EcoGlove. Each pair is traceable due to the unique matrix or 2D barcode on the gloves. With EcoGlove, Hampe said the carbon footprint would be reduced by 60%, as there would be almost zero wastage.
“At the moment, 1.4 million tonnes of waste from gloves are accumulated worldwide annually.
“Used gloves that are rejected – not passing the pinhole test for example – or have been reused seven times already, will be shredded and recycled. The recycled waste can be turned into rubber mats or shoe soles,” he told The Star.
To ensure that every pair of gloves is traceable, EcoGlove board member Tan Sri Dr Lin See-Yan said they had placed a unique matrix or 2D barcode on the gloves.
“A machine scans the barcode, and ensures that no gloves are reused more than seven times and weeds out cloned gloves.
“With EcoGlove, we have high quality gloves with the most efficient use of human resources. You only need one technician at each service centre to manage the machines and reprocess the used gloves,” said Dr Lin.
Dr Lin said although the cost of producing EcoGlove was 30% to 40% higher than normal latex gloves, it was cheaper in the long run as it could be reused up to seven times.
Hampe himself is behind the innovation of the environmentally friendly product, but the Belgian-Frenchman insists that the EcoGlove is very much Malaysian as it uses Loprol (low-protein latex), a formula developed by the Malaysia Rubber Board.
“Even the machines used to decontaminate, sort out and repackage the sterilised gloves are assembled in Penang.
“I am just an inventor of the concept using available technologies. You cannot be a glove maker, automation specialist and IT expert at the same time,” he said.
Hampe said Loprol is a formula that is almost free from proteins, which trigger latex allergies, while most chemical allergies are linked to nitrile gloves.
