Protec Helmets: A Quality Design for Tropical Climates

Protec Helmets: A Quality Design for Tropical Climates

With its overwhelming advantage in quality and design, as well as its suitability with tropical climatic conditions, helmets under the brand name of Protec of the Vietnam Safety Products and Equipment Company (VSPEC) have won the hearts of customers. VIB Forum interviewed Greig Craft, general director of VSPEC.

The quality of helmets is the top requirement of consumers. What kind of materials does your company use for making Protec helmets to meet their demand?

At present, there are many helmets of an unknown origin. These helmets are not of high quality as they use soft foam to protect from the impact of an accident, thus making it even more dangerous for helmet wearers when accidents occur. Helmets under the Protec trademark employ solid foam to protect those unfortunate enough to be involved in an accident. Materials for producing the foam of Protec helmets are imported from Europe so they are solid, light and convenient for use.

The locks of Protec helmets are made of plastic, which facilitate the process of locking and unlocking. Some helmets sold in the market have locks made of steel. This is very dangerous for holders because these locks may stab into the neck of wearers when accidents occur. We have invested US$80,000 in building a laboratory to research and test the quality of Protec helmets, so that all our helmets meet Vietnamese and international standards.

Helmets are compared with electric rice cookers, uncomfortable to use, especially in Vietnam’s climate. What has your company done to change these presumptuous opinions?

We have conducted surveys to understand why many Vietnamese people dislike wearing helmets. Most people in urban areas said that their ability to view and hear is limited when they hold helmets as traditional helmets cover the whole head. Our experts have undertaken anthropometry and have measured heads of more than 5,000 Vietnamese people to design suitable helmets for local consumers. Protec helmets cover just half of the wearer’s heads. They are very light and do not hinder the view and hearing of those who wear them. Apart from the quality factor, we have also focused on fashion. Protec helmets come in three models; the Protec Sega with elegant colours; the Protec UFO for those who like the sports look; and the Protec Classa with joyful colours for children. This has helped Protec helmets become favoured among consumers.

As a non-profit enterprise, what basis does VSPEC operate on?

VSPEC was established under the sponsorship of the Asia Anti-Injury Fund. This is a non-profit organisation that wishes to increase people’s awareness of traffic safety. Proceeds from selling products will be transferred to the fund for sponsoring other traffic projects. It would cost more if we imported helmets; therefore, we import production lines and recruit Vietnamese workers to reduce the cost of our product so they meet the purchasing power of Vietnamese consumers. Our company now has 65 workers and we are capable of producing 500,000 products per year. Protec helmets have been used by the Vietnam Committee for Traffic Safety during projects on traffic safety. Most notably, our products have been exported to Laos, Cambodia and Thailand, where they have been widely acclaimed.     

• Lan Anh