The manufacturing process is highly complex and intricate. Manufacturers of industrial gloves are under constant pressure to produce gloves that are comfortable, flexible, suitable for the task in hand and give maximum protection.

Cut & Sewn
The traditional method of glove manufacture, known as 'cut and sew', involves cutting out the constituent parts of the glove from the appropriate raw material, using a pattern knife and a hydraulic cutting press. These parts are then sewn together and 'turned' since the majority of glove, being 'inseam' are initially manufactured inside out. The use of inseam produces a neater finish and is safer where heat, particularly sparking or metal splashing, occurs. After 'turning', the glove is 'finished' by hand and pressed into shape on a glove setting iron.

The pattern of a glove, as well as the raw material from which it is manufactured, is important in ensuring that it will protect the wearer from a particular hazard. There are two principal patterns used in glove manufacture today: the 'Clute' pattern and the 'Gunn' pattern. Gloves made from the Clute pattern consist of a one-piece palm with a three or four piece back and separate cuff, whilst gloves made from the Gunn pattern consist of a one-piece back with a seam at the base of the middle fingers on the palm.

Some gloves also incorporate a specially designed thumb, known as the 'Wing' thumb, which reduces the possibility of the seams being damaged and the thumb becoming detached from the palm. In other gloves the seams may be reinforced or alternatively 'welted' to protect the stitching around the thumb.

Depending on the degree of abrasion or heat involved, other reinforcements may include a double or 'apron' palm, a riveted or stapled palm or a reinforced palm, thumb and first finger. In addition gloves may incorporate a 'vein patch', the principal function of which is to protect the stitching on the cuff.

Mitts may be preferable to gloves for certain high temperature applications, since they are loose fitting and can be discarded quickly in an emergency, and for handling particularly sharp or abrasive materials. The relative ease of 'turning' mitts in comparison to gloves during manufacture enables thicker or additional linings to be incorporated for thermal insulation purposes. The obvious disadvantage of a mitt is that it offers less dexterity than a glove, although this problem can be overcome by using a one-finger mitt which has the first finger as well as the thumb separate.

Dipped
The majority of rubber and plastic gloves are manufactured by dipping hand shaped moulds, known as 'formers', into the appropriate base material. For rubber gloves the porcelain mould is coated with a chemical and immersed into a liquid dispersion of rubber particles (natural or synthetic) and additives. The destabilising effect of the chemical causes the particles and other materials to deposit progressively onto the mould. After withdrawal from the latex compound, cotton fibres may be sprayed on to the mould to provide a flock lining. The mould is then passed through a bath of hot water to remove any remaining soluble substances. Rubber gloves, together with the majority of 'cut and sewn' leather and fabric gloves, are initially manufactured inside out, so that on being removed from the mould they are reversed and assume their proper form.

The final part of the chemical process is vulcanisation in which the finished glove is subjected to a heat-initiated reaction which finally determines its strength and chemical resistance. Some products, for instance natural rubber gloves, may additionally be 'chlorinated' (i.e. treated with chlorine gas to haloginese the surface) to make the glove more comfortable to wear and to increase its resistance to certain chemicals.

PVC gloves are manufactured by depositing a coating of a PVC plastisol onto a cotton stockinette 'liner' or foundation. Products manufactured by this process do not, therefore, require reversing after manufacture and are generally known as 'supported' gloves. Although fabric lined gloves tend to offer better abrasion resistance, comfort and warmth than rubber gloves, the nature of the material and the method of manufacture produces a product which is more rigid and allows less manual dexterity. The problem of perspiration can be further reduced by the incorporation during manufacture of a bacteriostat into the coating to prevent bacterial or fungal decomposition.

Knitted
One of the most notable recent developments in the manufacture of industrial gloves has been the introduction of the knitted glove. Manufactured along the same lines as the knitted fashion glove, both gloves and mitts are knitted from spun yarn directly into a glove / mitt shape on automatic machines. Gloves manufactured by this method have two distinct advantages over conventional products: they are seamless and reversible. This method contributes to safety by ensuring that the gloves are comfortable, flexible and close-fitting, features which allow the wearer greater manual dexterity. A wide range of fibres are now used to produce knitted industrial gloves, including Kevlar, Nomex, carbon fibre, nylon, polyester, viscose and cotton.