ReeR Safety : Italian innovation, global vision and leadership in industrial safety

With more than sixty years of experience, ReeR Safety is today one of Italy’s most respected companies in the field of industrial safety. From pioneering safety light curtains to becoming an international player in industrial automation, the company has continuously evolved through investments in research and development, manufacturing capabilities and regulatory expertise. To gain a deeper understanding of ReeR’s growth journey in recent years and the challenges facing the industry, we spoke with the company’s management team. Excerpts:

Q1 ReeR has undergone a significant transformation in recent years. What have been the main milestones achieved ?
ReeR’s evolution is the result of a growth strategy built on technological innovation, industrial investment and close customer relationships. Over the past few years, we have significantly expanded both our manufacturing capacity and organizational infrastructure. The expansion of our headquarters in Turin has increased the space dedicated to production, logistics, and R&D, strengthening our ability to design, industrialize and manufacture sophisticated solutions entirely in-house to meet the evolving demands of the market. At the same time, we have accelerated our internationalization strategy through the establishment of direct subsidiaries in China, North America, Spain, India and Taiwan. This has reinforced our global presence, which today also includes dedicated country managers and a network of more than 65 specialized distributors worldwide.

This growth allows us to work even more closely with machine builders and system integrators, providing technical support, application consulting and qualified assistance across the world’s major industrial markets.

Q2 Your international presence has expanded rapidly. What role do subsidiaries and local partners play ?
International growth is not achieved simply by opening offices abroad; it is built on creating strong and lasting relationships. Our subsidiaries provide a direct presence in strategic markets, but the contribution of our network of specialized distributors and partners, who work alongside customers every day, is equally important. We have always prioritized collaboration with technically competent, financially sound companies that are deeply rooted in their local markets. This approach enables us to deliver efficient and tailored support worldwide while maintaining the customer proximity that has always distinguished our way of doing business.

The synergy between our headquarters, subsidiaries and local partners creates an ecosystem capable of rapidly understanding application requirements across different markets and transforming them into opportunities for innovation. Q3 ReeR continues to manufacture in Italy. How important is this to your strategy ?
It is a central part of our identity. We design, develop and manufacture our products in Italy. Our Turin headquarters is home to the heart of our innovation: a dedicated R&D facility covering more than 1,000 square meters, where approximately 15% of our total workforce is employed. This investment demonstrates the strategic importance of R&D within the company.

Maintaining direct control over design and manufacturing activities enables us to guarantee high quality standards, complete traceability and rapid implementation of technological innovations. Manufacturing in Italy is not simply an industrial choice, it is a model that allows us to preserve our know-how, ensure process quality and respond quickly to the needs of a continuously evolving global market.

Q4 How important is research and development to ReeR’s growth strategy ?
Research and development has always been one of the key drivers of our growth. The world of industrial automation is constantly evolving, and so are the requirements related to functional safety, connectivity, operational flexibility and regulatory compliance. To meet these challenges, we continuously invest in expertise, laboratories, technologies and product development activities.This commitment has enabled us to expand our portfolio with innovative solutions that not only enhance operator protection but also improve machine efficiency and productivity. Our objective is to develop products that simplify the work of machine builders and system integrators, reducing engineering complexity while maintaining the highest levels of safety.

Q5 Two recent examples are R-Safe and SafeReady. What do these products represent for ReeR ?
They perfectly embody the direction of our innovation strategy. R-Safe was developed in response to the growing demand for effective and reliable contactless safety devices. Leveraging RFID technology, the system enables the safe monitoring of doors, gates and movable guards, achieving high levels of functional safety even in the most demanding applications. ReeR’s design philosophy also ensures robust devices capable of withstanding harsh environmental conditions as well as tampering attempts.Customers particularly appreciate the system’s ability to maintain high performance levels even in series-connected configurations, ensuring both reliability and ease of integration.SafeReady, on the other hand, represents the evolution of the safety light curtain concept. It is the result of years of application experience, technological development and continuous dialogue with the market.

The new platform integrates advanced features such as blanking functions, configuration through a dedicated mobile application and Bluetooth monitoring capabilities. These features enable machine manufacturers to design equipment that is more compact, more efficient and easier to integrate.We are proud to have introduced not simply a new safety light curtain, but a genuine technology platform designed to evolve over time. Our development roadmap includes the introduction of additional features and functionalities aimed at anticipating market needs and supporting machine builders in creating increasingly high-performance, connected and easy-to-integrate machines. Both products demonstrate that innovation should never be an end in itself but it must translate into tangible value for customers.

Q6 ReeR is often considered a reference point in regulatory matters. How has this leadership been established ?
Industrial safety is certainly about products, but their design, development and use must be supported by a deep understanding of the regulatory framework. For many years, we have actively participated in major national and international standardization committees dedicated to machinery safety and electro-sensitive protective equipment. This involvement enables us not only to anticipate regulatory developments but also to contribute directly to the definition of the standards that will shape the industry in the years ahead.

Being present at these technical committees allows us to develop products already aligned with future market requirements and to support customers in correctly interpreting increasingly complex regulations. Our educational activities, including technical guides, webinars, specialist training and in-depth technical content, stem from our commitment to promoting a culture of safety that extends beyond the product itself.

Q7 And what about quality ?
Like safety, quality must be measurable and verifiable. Over the years, we have developed an integrated management system that includes key certifications such as ISO 9001 for quality management, ISO 14001 for environmental management and ISO 45001 for occupational health and safety. In addition, we hold Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) certification, which demonstrates the reliability of our logistics and customs processes at an international level.
Our goal is to provide partners and customers with products that meet the highest quality standards. To achieve this, we carefully select reliable raw materials, continuously invest in employee training and foster a corporate culture focused on continuous improvement.Quality, however, cannot be separated from sustainability.For this reason, we have embarked on a concrete path aimed at reducing our environmental impact through the use of renewable energy, process digitalization and the adoption of responsible practices throughout the value chain. We believe that creating value means combining manufacturing excellence, environmental responsibility and a strong commitment to people.

Q8 What is ReeR’s vision for the future ?
We aim to continue serving as a global benchmark in industrial safety while remaining firmly rooted in our Italian heritage. This means further investments in research and development, expanding our international presence and continuing to develop innovative solutions that help machine builders address the challenges of Industry 5.0.

We are fully aware that industrial safety is undergoing a profound transformation: while the focus was once primarily on operator protection and the proper functioning of machinery, it is now essential to consider the security of the digital infrastructures that govern production processes.The recent increase in cyberattacks targeting a key sector as the manufacturing highlights how plant continuity and reliability increasingly depend on the ability to protect industrial networks, automation syst

ems and connected devices. We believe that the future of industrial safety lies in the integration of safety and cybersecurity, two dimensions that have become inseparable for ensuring operational continuity, reliability and plant protection.

ReeR is making substantial investments in cybersecurity, both at the corporate and manufacturing levels. The company is registered with Italy’s National Cybersecurity Agency, has long implemented procedures aligned with the requirements of the NIS2 Directive, and provides a structured process on its website for the responsible disclosure and management of vulnerabilities. Cybersecurity also plays a central role in the development of new products. Advanced connected solutions such as SafeReady are designed not only with functional safety performance in mind, but also with a strong focus on data protection, secure communications and system integrity.

At the same time, we continue to invest in promoting a culture of safety through technical guides, webinars, specialist training and regulatory content aimed at machine builders, system integrators and end users. We are convinced that the future of safety will emerge from the convergence of regulatory expertise, functional safety and cybersecurity. Our ambition is not simply to keep pace with change, but to help drive it. We have done so in the past by introducing technologies that have shaped the evolution of industrial safety, and we intend to continue doing so by placing innovation, quality, expertise and comprehensive protection at the center of everything we do. Because safety is not merely a technology: it is a culture built every day through knowledge, responsibility and innovation.