One of the oldest materials that has been used by human beings is rubber. All the way back to ancient times, rubber has been used by human beings. It originated in South America, where the rubber tree is native, and the native people to the region learned to extract the sap from the tree which became known as natural rubber.

Throughout more modern times, scientists have created man made types of rubber with different properties, but natural rubber is still used as well as these types of rubber. The person who is probably the most famous and whose name is synonymous with rubber, is the American Charles Goodyear. Tyres all over the world still bear his name, and it was actually an accident in 1839 which caused him to invent one of the first man made forms of rubber, when he split a liquid rubber mixture and some sulphur onto a hot stove, causing it to heat up and become much tougher.

This of course paved the way for new uses of rubber, after he named the process vulcanisation. Once he had come across this during his experiments, he spent more time honing the process in order to get his newly formed version of rubber perfect – and the demand for the new products soared all over the world as the Industrial Revolution swept through, transforming life and industry.

One of the earliest uses of this rubber came from the request of a surgeon at a Baltimore hospital. One of the nurses who worked at home suffered from a skin condition that was made worse from constant hand washing, and she needed some gloves that would be both durable and protective, both to her hands and to the patients that she was treating.

The surgeon spoke to what was by then the Goodyear tyre and rubber company, who sent back some gloves. These were gratefully received, and before long, it was not just the one nurse, but the entire team at the hospital who were receiving these newly invented latex gloves.

Nowadays companies like this rubber moulding UK based company https://www.meadex.co.uk/rubber-moulding can be found all around the world and the products that are created from rubber are diverse and wide ranging. It is tough and durable, as well as being able to insulate, so it can be found in machinery and vehicles, as well as of course still being the material which tyres are made from.