Stricter Safety Regulations Protect Worker, Foster Growth

The OHSAS 18001 standard for occupational health and safety will be substituted by the new ISO 45001, which Juan Vargas, Director General of Guantes Vargas, says is bound to change safety policies across several industrial sectors, including automotive. “This is the first truly global standard for occupational health and safety management systems. It will play a major role in protecting the life and well-being of workers.”

The cost of treating work-related injuries and diseases has led governments to raise the bar for occupational safety standards to prevent these issues, according to Vargas, leading to the introduction of the new ISO 45001 regulation. One of the main differences between OHSAS 18001 and its successor is that a company will be responsible for managing the safety of workers. This change will empower workers to sue their employers if their negligence results in a work-related injury, disease or death, which pushes companies to raise safety standards and equip workers with high-quality safety equipment. “If companies do not provide the proper equipment to workers and they are injured or suffer a chronic disease as a consequence, the company is liable,” says Vargas.

As a Mexican manufacturer of safety gloves and distributor of industrial safety equipment with close to 70 years of experience, Guantes Vargas bets on R&D, product adaptability and targeting the right markets to capitalize on the growth that ISO 45001 will bring for the industrial safety sector. “We are already on the verge of gaining the ISO 45001 certification. We are adapting our processes and products to comply with this standard,” says Vargas.

Companies tend to favor price over quality when choosing safety equipment. However, something as simple as providing workers with polyester-cotton mix uniforms can cause skin allergies that, after years of daily use, can evolve into dermatitis and even permanent skin damage and cancer, says Vargas. To prevent these issues, he says companies should look for advice from industrial safety professionals. “Rather than just selling gloves, steel-toe shoes or face masks, safety equipment suppliers must offer solutions that will not harm people in the long run,” Vargas says.

ISO 45001 will force companies to provide Mexican workers with the same quality safety equipment used in countries with stricter industrial safety regulations, just as quality management systems like ISO or IATF ensure automotive companies have the same product quality at all their plants. However, each company will have specific needs in terms of industrial safety equipment that will depend on the manufacturing processes that they carry out. “Guantes Vargas tackles this challenge with flexibility at its manufacturing plant to adapt its equipment to clients’ needs rather than just sticking to a catalogue,” says Vargas. “It is all about engineering.”

Volkswagen may request industrial shoes that last for 1.5 years, or longer gloves that offer better protection, and Guantes Vargas’ engineering department ensures this happens. Additionally, the company works to reduce the potential harm that users can take from its products, as well as their environmental impact. For instance, the company has substituted plastics with leather tanned with fish oils in some of its industrial gloves to both eliminate waste and eliminate the impact of plastics on users’ skin.

As part of its growth strategy, Guantes Vargas has developed a diversified operations portfolio that enables the company to balance contractions in some industries with growth in others. “In economic cycles, some sectors will perform better when others face difficulties,” says Vargas. “It is important to keep an eye out for symptoms of economic changes to prepare for them.”

Overall, Guantes Vargas expects to reach significant growth as a consequence of better industrial safety management systems. “Just as the 1990s and 2000s were the time to focus on improving quality, the 2010s and 2020s will be the years to address safety and environmental issues,” says Vargas.