That Burr on the Titanium? It Doesn't Take Your Finger — It Takes Your hand Safety Record

ANSI A9 is about as high as cut resistance gloves — more than enough
 

Any old hand on the floor will tell you: what actually sends people to the hospital and keeps safety managers up at night isn't the big obvious blade from the movies. It's the unassuming little burr left on the hole edge after drilling.

Real aerospace shop floor: after drilling, the titanium firewall's hole edges are sharp with burrs — brush past one with your hand and you'll bleed.

01.This industry's work environment is gentle — and dangerous. use the Safety gloves:

An aerospace manufacturing shop is where the gentle killers live. It doesn't look dangerous the way a construction site does — it's clean, bright, and well-organized. But the danger hides in the details:

  • Titanium firewalls are big, thin, and hard. Drilling, grinding, deburring, assembly — every step throws off sharp edges and burrs. They're not deep, but they're more than enough to break the skin.
  • The work is too precise for a clumsy glove. An airplane isn't a tractor — tolerances run in millimeters. Workers use their hands to find positions, line up holes, feel the edges. A glove that's even a hair too thick, and the job can't get done right — so a lot of them take it off without thinking.
  • Hands get slippery and easy to lose control of. Cutting fluid, aviation hydraulic oil, and metal dust all mixed together — you slip grabbing a part, and the edge is right there.
  • The real killer is the "record." Under the U.S. OSHA system, this kind of cut counts as a "recordable injury." One little slice, and behind it sits your annual safety KPI, your insurance rate, and points off your customer audits.
So here's the catch-22: stronger protection → thicker, clumsier glove → workers find it annoying and won't wear it → they go barehanded → they get cut → a recordable injury.

02.The way out isn't "tougher" — it's "thinner"

A lot of buyers' logic goes: scared of cuts, so buy the thickest, most protective glove. Result? The glove ends up in the warehouse, not on the worker's hand — because with it on, they can't turn that little screw.

The way Schwer untangles this is actually pretty simple: make the protection thin and dexterous enough that workers want to keep it on. Protection only does its job the moment it's actually worn — not when it's strongest, but when it's not taken off.

ANSI A9 is about as high as cut resistance gloves
Precision assembly on the floor: down to 24-gauge knit, the glove lets workers feel whether a hole lines up — while still stopping the burrs.

03.Match the glove to the task — don't try to "one-glove" everything

In aerospace and metalworking, we don't believe in one glove trying to survive every step. Match each process to the right gauge and cut level, and workers will actually keep them on. Usually we build it in three tiers:

Fine assembly / inspection / edge-feel · needs feel

Schwer Air AR3543 — 24-gauge ultralight · A5 cut

  • 24-gauge NBR ultra-foam palm coat — our thinnest tier, thin enough to feel whether a hole lines up right;
  • still rated A5 cut resistance, enough to stop everyday burrs and edge fins;
  • built for final inspection and precision alignment — the jobs that live or die on feel.
View AR3543 →
Drilling / deburring / handling titanium · needs cut + puncture

Schwer ProMax PM3202 — 18-gauge · A9 cut

  • ANSI A9 is about as high as cut resistance goes in civilian PPE — more than enough for titanium edge fins and metal slivers;
  • 18-gauge keeps it dexterous; NBR palm coat plus knuckle coverage holds grip even with oily hands;
  • for steps that also need impact protection, swap to ProMax PM3663 (18-gauge A6 PU palm coat, with impact guard).
View PM3202 →
Oily-environment grip · wet/slippery conditions

Schwer Core CR3665 — 13-gauge · A6 · NBR sandy-foam palm

  • A6 cut plus sandy-foam palm coat — grips solid in dry, oily, or wet conditions;
  • on a station drowning in cutting fluid and hydraulic oil, not slipping means one less accident;
  • high value, built for high-volume, all-day wear.
View CR3665 →

04.Back to that burr from the start

With the right model: the same sweep across the holes that used to mean stitches and a report now leaves, at most, a white streak on the coating.

The same motion — a hand sweeping across the freshly drilled firewall holes. On the day it wasn't matched right, it meant a slice that needed stitches and a write-up. With the right glove, at most you leave a white streak on the palm coating.

The worker goes home with all ten fingers. The safety manager's monthly report has one less glaring number. It's not magic:

  • Gauge (18 / 24) decides dexterity — whether workers keep it on;
  • Cut level (A5 / A6 / A9) decides whether it stops the metal edge fin;
  • Palm coat (PU / NBR) decides whether it holds grip with oily hands.

Get those three right, and protection stops being a burden and becomes second nature. And protection that's second nature is the only kind that actually stops accidents.

Don't wait for the first cut to switch gloves

Tell us your trade, your process, and your conditions — we'll match every step to the right gauge and cut level.

 Top cut resistance: PM3202
By SCHWER Editorial Team