Hawai Italia - The Rock, the new exploration of the toe cap

From years of research and experimentation comes the latest innovation Hawai starred at the last edition of Lineapelle

This is an unprecedented achievement in the world of safety footwear. The new polycarbonate-based toe cap, The Rock, passes impact and compression tests, guaranteeing above-standard performance that remains unchanged in any stress situation: ice, high temperatures, humidity. Gianni Fainelli, Italy sales manager for the Verona-based company, tells us about it.
Gianni Fainelli, what happened to the traditional Hawai composite toe caps?
“Until yesterday, our toecaps featured a nylon-based compound. We always preferred it to polycarbonate because of its high performance in terms of impact and compression resistance, although it requires special process methodologies and equipment construction.
Despite the excellent characteristics mentioned above, nylon has another peculiarity that could, under certain conditions, become a limitation for its application on the toe cap: it is a hygroscopic material, that is, it absorbs moisture over time. However, we will continue to offer it; the polycarbonate-based product will complement the nylon one, not replace it.”
Where did the research take you?
“From the in-house research and experimentation developed over the past few years, an innovative formula was developed, a polycarbonate-based compound that is strong, safe and stable over time due to its amorphous structure. The new compound we created successfully passed all the tests required by the EN ISO 22568 reference standard, maintaining the high performance of our nylon-based compound.”
The Rock thus marks the new frontier of safety in footwear.
“We strongly believe in innovation, which is why we have focused all our energy on the formula for the best compound. The Rock is a product destined to make a difference in terms of quality, safety and performance. Our Research and Development Center has refined a revolutionary material that combines the characteristics of traditional Hawai composite toe caps with stability and unalterable performance. It is also water and acid resistant, provides thermal and electrical insulation, and is ultra-lightweight.”
Is it also a sustainable material?
“In addition to complying with the new EN ISO 22568 B standard, The Rock is metal free, entirely made in Italy and is completely recyclable. The material can be recovered and put back into circulation to recreate another toe cap.”
What weaknesses, if any, need to be perfected?
“We keep on carrying out research in order to further improve product performance and be more competitive. The challenge is to be able to increasingly reduce the thicknesses with the same performance. The next step is to streamline the shape of the toe cap, bringing it closer to the much thinner dimensions achievable for example in a fiberglass or carbon product, again without compromising performance. It still seems impossible, but we have ideas in the pipeline.”