A rEVAlution in safety footwear wins awards and is turning heads

[ONE OF THE STARS of the 2019 Health and Safety Expo – the last in-person manifestation of the leading health and safety exhibition – was Kevin Burgess, director of Leon Boots Co, manufacturers of innovative safety boots for the construction industry, as well as the agricultural and leisure markets.

Safety footwear is the unseen protector on the construction site – an essential item of kit, yet often hidden behind mud and dirty overalls: unlike the glamorous high-viz jacket and hard hat sported with glee by politicians. And hitherto safety boots have been heavy and uncomfortable to wear. The company has changed all that.

Leon Boots Co grew out of a longestablished distributor of Wellington boots made from EVA (ethylene-vinyl acetate). Then, in 2016, the directors of the company – Kevin and his son Charlie – identified a need in the safety footwear market for a lighter and more comfortable safety boot: EVA is 65% lighter than traditional rubber or PVC. So the Leon Boots brand was established near Dublin – moving into the UK market two years later.

The essence of the Leon Boots brand is its lightness and comfort for the wearer, coupled with the tear resistance of the combination of EVA and a polymer formulated by TRC, the Technology Research Centre. The company markets its innovation in light and serviceable boots as a ‘rEVAlution’.

Interviewed on site at Health and Safety Expo, Kevin explained the qualities of their latest product: “It’s the lightest safety boot on the market: steel toe cap, Kevlar mid-sole and TRC non-stick sole unit.”

The company’s Safety 1st boot won the award for Most Outstanding in Construction Footwear in the BUILD magazine 2019 Design and Build Awards.

The boots are made by a direct injection moulding process without gluing or vulcanising processes, which makes them resistant to splits and cracks.

The boot also incorporates a removable sock, which is machine-washable. The boot can be slipped off when the worker returns from site and the sock can be worn as a slipper.

Kevin explained: “They also contain a removable and washable sock liner for extra comfort and warmth, should you need it, even though EVA is a great insulator down to -30º, making them a truly unique product.”

And unique products are what the company is all about. Speaking in 2019, Kevin went on to describe a unique feature of one of their models – a cover preventing material from seeping down the top of the boot.

“Innovation-wise,” said Kevin, “we’ve always got new products. We did the UK Concrete Show in Birmingham back in February and customers were asking us to have something with a collar on the top – so we have the ability as a manufacturer to come up with innovative products.” q • To find out more about the innovations currently in train from Leon Boots Co, visit www.lbcboots.com