Contributor

Richard A. Rivkin

Bio

Richard A. Rivkin is President and Chief Executive Officer of Saf-T-Gard International, Inc., a privately-held family-owned and operated global supplier of industrial safety products based in Northbrook, Illinois.

Rivkin joined the company in 1970 to help steer the transformation from a glove company to the global manufacturer, distributor, importer and exporter of industrial safety products and personal protective equipment (PPE) that Saf-T-Gard International, Inc. is today. Always at the forefront of the safety industry, Rivkin’s career spans more than 40 years of innovation and accomplishments including the development and implementation of the Voltgard® Test Lab, the largest, independent, NAIL4PET-accredited rubber insulating products test lab in the United States, providing testing and recertification services to the electric power and telephone utility markets. He was also responsible for introducing a new stainless steel ring mesh (chain mail) technology cut-resistant PPE program to both the meat and poultry processing and food service industries.

As an established thought leader in his field, Rivkin has been honored with the President’s “E” Award for Excellence in Exporting including a personal presentation by the United States Secretary of Commerce. He was also the recipient of the 2005 International Glove Association Hall of Fame Award and has served as the past president of the Safety Equipment Distributors Association (SEDA) and the National Industrial Glove Distributors Association (NIGDA). Moreover, Rivkin has authored several safety-related articles for such publications as Industrial Safety & Hygiene News (ISHN), Modern Contractor Solutions, Occupational Health & Safety, Progressive Distributor, and the VPPPA’s “The Leader”.

Rivkin graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Management. He also holds a MBA in Marketing from Northwestern University.

He is a past member of several influential government groups, including Industry Sector Advisory Committee 17 (Wholesaling and Distribution) of the United States Department of Commerce and the Office of the United States Trade Representative, the Illinois District Export Council and the Importers’ and Retailers’ Textile Advisory Committee of the United States Department of Commerce.

Articles by Richard A. Rivkin

Q&A by Richard A. Rivkin

  • Why should rubber insulating gloves be tested?

    The short answer is “How do you know that it will save your life?”The longer answer is that there are regulations and standards that require certain electrical protective equipment to be tested at regular intervals.Damage...

  • Why is testing with a NAIL4PET accredited lab important?

    NAIL4PET is an acronym for The National Association of Independent Laboratories for Protective Equipment Testing. The abreviation is quite handy because, as you can see, the full name is a mouthful!NAIL incorporates the only...

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