1. What is the weight of the safety shoe?

This is the most common question asked by the purchaser. In the era of sports shoes being ultra-light, the purchaser is comparing the safety shoes with these light-weighted shoes. They think that the lighter the shoe, the better it is.

It is not entirely accurate because every shoe sole is designed for a specific purpose and the material they use to make the sole are made to achieve that purpose. So, if a sports shoe is for running then it should be light in weight to achieve the purpose of running. In the same way, safety shoes cannot be made with the sports shoe material because it has to perform in a rugged and harsh environment, which is why it must have solid material which does not get broken in severe conditions.

2. Why HILLSON safety shoes?

• We have a team of workers, supervisors, and managers under one roof
• Our company only focuses on safety footwear which makes us the experts
• Strong backward integration and processing of raw material
• No outsourcing
• Timely Supplying ability
• Quality at par with any other popular and expensive brand
• Value for money

3. How come the others are less priced than you?

Sometimes, people mix less thick leather or low-quality steel toe from the prescribed standard which a buyer cannot find out without destroying the shoe. Normally, a user does not know many technical details about it and the problem comes when some accident happens or the safety shoe does not perform as per the expectations.

We deliver what we commit. With our goods, each pair is manufactured the same way, making no variation in leather finishing, and no odor from sole or similar concerns.

We have to compare an apple to an apple.

4. What is the benefit of the dual-density sole in safety shoes?

Benefits of PU (Polyurethane Leather/Artificial Leather)

• Better flexibility of the shoe due to 2 layers of the sole as they balance each other and provide stability to the shoe.
• Better penetration resistance due to multi-layered sole.
• Enhanced looks.
• The double-layer allows soft midsoles for comfort, cushion, and hard outsole allows a better grip on the surface, better abrasion.

The benefit of dual-density in PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride/Plastic Polymer)       

• Mostly black color PVC outsole is made from recycled PVC and the quality varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. As it is black in color, a layman cannot identify the difference. The dual-layer PVC helps to make the outsole from 100 % material.
• This material’s abrasion property is many times more than the black color and so the life of the shoe is approx. double in comparison to the single density PVC at a not so higher price.

5. What are the different types of leather used in safety shoes?

The top layer of the skin is the strongest and highest quality –It is called grain leather after finishing & tanning.

The next layer is weaker and after tanning and finishing, it is called split.

The shoe made of grain will have the following advantages:

• More life to the upper
• The toe part of the shoe will not get wearied out in a few months of use
• More tensile strength
• More shining if polished regularly and taken care
• The overall life of the shoe increases

6. What is the different type of toe caps used in HILLSON safety shoes?

• EN 12568 MARKED STEEL TOE CAP FOR ALL ISI MARKED FOOTWEAR WITH 200 J IMPACT RESISTANCE.
• EN 12568 MARKED COMPOSITE TOE CAP FOR ALL ISI MARKED FOOTWEAR WITH 200 J IMPACT RESISTANCE –for electrical resistance.
• NON-EN 12568 MARKED TOE CAP – It’s used mainly where the safety is for compliance only, budget constraints are there & safety from a falling object is not anticipated or there is high labor attrition.

7. Why are there different ISI Standards for gumboots and safety shoes?

IS 15298 is broader & the latest standard that covers all types of safety footwear including safety shoes and safety gumboots but IS 12254 is an older standard that is specifically for PVC safety gumboots. Our company makes all ISI-marked safety shoes in 15298 while ISI steel toe gumboot is made with 12254 standards. Only in the case of tenders and big quantities we make gumboots in IS 15298 standard.

8. What is EN Standard?

EN stands for European Norms. Essentially IS 15298 is a copy of the EN 20344 Standard and all the specifications are the same.

9. What is the Warranty?

For PVC Sole Single Density:

0 days for upper crack because it is synthetic and we cannot guarantee. No doubt our quality of synthetic is highest in the market but still, we cannot take chances.

3 months for an upper and sole bond, sole cracking only (Abrasion  not included because PVC has low abrasion resistance. However,  our PVC standards normally pass on 3-4 months )

For PU Sole Single Density (NON-ISI & ISI)

6 months for upper crack, provided the shoe is taken care of in the way it should be.

Any visible mishandling, wetting, wrong way of wearing cannot be covered under warranty.

6 months for an upper and sole bond, sole cracking only.

For PU Sole single double (NON-ISI & ISI)

6 months for upper crack, provided the shoe is taken care of in the way it should be.

Any visible mishandling, wetting, wrong way of wearing cannot be covered under warranty.

12 months for an upper and midsole bond, midsole, and outsole bond & sole cracking only.

Safety Gumboots:

100% against leakage for 6 months or sole abrasion whichever is earlier.

10. Which is better- PU OR PVC?

Globally PU is more popular in safety footwear due to the following reasons

• Negligible abrasion
• Light in weight
• Better Bond strength
• Do not change properties with the weather.

Still, PVC is widely used in India because of the following reasons:

• Lesser in price
• Long shelf life than PU. Doesn’t crack if not used.

11. PU Sole is resistant to what type of chemicals?

Chemical resistance varies between polyurethane formulations. In general: Polyester type polyurethane is more resistant to oils, solvents, and weak acids/bases. And polyether type polyurethane is more resistant to water exposure.

12. How to maintain PU soles?

• Use a scrubbing brush to clean the dirt from the PU soles and can wash it with warm water.
• Do not dry the shoes in direct sun or heat as it will harm the shoes and soles leading to their damage. Let the shoes dry in shade.
• Rub your soles with linseed oil or fish oil from time to time to extend their durability significantly.
• To protect the interior of your safety shoes, you should wear them on alternate days or with a break. Also, you can clean the interior of the sole from time to time to avoid bacterial growth.

              Thus, PU sole is one of the best soles when it comes to the manufacturing of both safety and fashion shoes. Both safety shoes for men and women use this sole to offer footwear that is comfortable and durable at the same time- not to mention affordable.

13. Why is synthetic not good?

Synthetic is not bad but it is not leather and leather wins over synthetic in the following ways:

• USP is price
• India is a hot country so no ventilation in the feet leads to infection, foul smell.
• Synthetics can crack but leather cannot. Flexing synthetic can never match the leather. It can be improved but cannot be the same.

14. What do you mean by “SOLE IS ISI”?

It’s a trap to con people with low standards of marketing and covers up the noncompliance of the manufacturer.

15. What is DIP V/s Pouring or DESMA V/s Pouring?

DIP means making the shoe sole by direct injection process while pouring means making the sole of the shoe by pouring process.

Desma is the name of the company that makes the DIP Machine which is super expensive and is available with a few big companies.

ISI Standard does not describe the technology that has to be used for making the shoe. It is just concerned with the test results.

THE SHOE MADE BY DIP PROCESS OR POURING PROCESS GIVES THE SAME LEVEL OF RESULTS. IT IS MAINLY THE MARKETING DONE BY BIG COMPANIES TO CREATE AN EDGE ON OTHERS.

16. How do we know that the shoe is genuine ISI?

Just marking a shoe with ISI is not sufficient. The following points can be cross-checked to identify the genuineness of a shoe marked with ISI:

• Check for marks on the shoe. Marking on the box is not enough.
• Check for the authenticity of the CM/L number on the website of the Bureau of Indian Standard.
• Ask the supplier to submit a test report from any government Lab for testing as per ISI.
• If the consignment is big then the buyer may also submit the sample at FDDI, Noida for testing as per IS 15298 Standard. This involves some expense but if the purchase amount is significantly high then the buyer can choose to use this as the most effective option.
• Take references from known sources.
• Visit the factory of the manufacturer, if possible.

17. What are fibre toes and composite toes?

Fibre toe is made of plastic whereas composite toe is made of polymer. However, fibre toe is more brittle than composite because when it comes in contact with the adhesive used to glue the toe cap with the upper of the shoe, it becomes brittle after some time. This results in the drop of the impact resistance in comparison to the composite toe cap.

18. What is nitrile sole & did we have it in the past?

Nitrile is a blend of natural rubber with some chemicals which give it heat resistance properties around 300 degrees Celsius. We did not have it in the past.

19. Why do you want to supply through your distributor?

• The local representative gives a better response in case of urgency.
• Ready stocks. The factory takes a minimum of 30 days to process the order.
• Packing standards can be customized by a dealer.

Other items can also be fulfilled.