Reflective products… are they worth the investment?

About the author: Serge Laraque is Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Protecto Products. Before joining Protecto Products, the author has developed engineering products as well as a series of safety products on 23rd Jun 2015


You may have noticed the influx of men and women decked up in their industrial safety gear working the sidelines of highways , freeways , industrial plants , oil rigs, construction sites and so forth . Not long ago, such futuristic idea of incorporating safety and visibility as a major protective factor were viewed with reserved apathy , all due to increased cost from perpetually outfitting workers . At this juncture, employers have simply procrastinated from such implementation, until it became law.


The cause and effect of the tragic statistics emanating from various watchdog safety organizations were alarming. Based on those fatalistic figures something had to be done, create new safety rules, matched with an environment and a dedicated management upholding those regulations for a work force constantly battling injuries. This game changer became the impetus for present and future development of safety products throughout the spectrum.

Although in the past, just like the seat belt, reflectivity and visibility were delegated to a voluntary decision, no longer the case. Designating that a work zone area can be a dangerous environment , organization such OSHA ( Occupational Safety and Health Administration ) and ANSI ( American National Standards Institute ) took the bold stand of convincing cost conscious employers of the potential fringe benefits of protecting their workers from injury. Manufacturers, contractors, oil producers have risen to the challenge to outfit their employees and managers, seeing tangible financial incentives at the bottom of their ledger sheet. The word was out that workers must wear high visibility clothing and a hard hat; period.

As those numbers gradually plunged , workman's comp nose diving and the financial calculus on the upswing , skeptic employers themselves became a disciple , now the new safety cops enforcing the rules under their roof . As strange as it may sound, the entire compliance scope has slowly, but surely cross pollinated to a safety culture throughout the world. Even countries where safety was viewed as an industrialized nations concern, have voluntarily jumped on the ban wagon while harvesting the potential benefit of their resolution.

Based on those staggering figures the pronouncement was trumpeted that injuries and death in the work place must diminish and lassoed under control , therefore enforce the code of safety to its highest level. Today, no one is permitted to set foot on a work zone, unless properly safety equipped.

While safety vests and hard hats are common gear. However, headwear visibility is predominantly lacking. The profile of a safety hard hat can hardly be seen in the darkness of the night and a times barely visible, while the lower portion of the individual radiates the reflective clothing and to a logical point creates a noticeable disparity. 


Although companies do offer headwear reflectivity, safety hard hats with reflective strips are not part of your standard product line, often hard to find. One must tenuously surf the search engines to track down those spearheading this significant feature in headwear visibility and safety. From our search, they are listed under: Reflective safety hard hats, reflective hard hats, and reflective construction hard hats.

Searching the field of casual reflective clothing , development again is lacking , as safety conscious customers are faced with the challenge of locating true casual reflective apparels , and when available , it is sold at an exorbitant price with limited selection . Yet again, few companies do offer such reflective products, as they are listed under: Reflective casual clothing, Reflective clothing.

Trekking in the dark can be hazardous to your health, pedestrians, joggers, walkers, runners , cyclists have tabulated the peril associated with outdoor activities along with its dire outcome . Protection from texting, preoccupied motorists intermeshed with the affordability of finding reflective clothing can be an ongoing frustration. The news is abundant which such heartbreaking stories ,  as cross street walkers, joggers have seen their days culminating tragically. Those relating such personal heart pumping experience will make us shiver.

In conclusion, is the investment in reflective gear worth the cost? We reply with a resounding yes. In the meantime, we  leave you with these four letter words. Be seen, be safe.