“Functional beauty” that elevates interiors: How to use design stepladders and step stools and Hasegawa’s philosophy

Stepladders and footstools are indispensable “tools” for ensuring safety in professional settings such as construction, manufacturing, and logistics. However, today, especially in urban areas of Vietnam, the role required of a stepladder is no longer limited to mere functionality and safety. As spatial design in homes, offices, and cafes is increasingly prioritized, the tools necessary for work are also expected to have value as “part of the interior.” This article focuses on the lucano series of designer stepladders from Hasegawa Kogyo Co., Ltd., which highly integrates functionality and design. It explains their applications and the philosophy of “Japanese Quality” supported by the company’s Da Nang factory in Vietnam. We offer a new perspective on tool selection for safety managers, purchasing managers, and site supervisors.

Accompanying rapid economic growth, design consciousness in urban homes and commercial facilities in Vietnam has dramatically improved. The “Business to Designer to Consumer (B2D2C)” model, where value is delivered from manufacturers to consumers via designers, is being reinforced, even at the Interior and Architecture Exhibition (VIBE 2025) scheduled to be held in Ho Chi Minh City in 2025. This indicates that design recognized by designers and consumers, not just functionality and price, is becoming a decisive factor in building materials and equipment.

This trend is also influencing “working tools” like stepladders and footstools. As these products are often placed in visible areas like living rooms or stores, it is crucial that they do not detract from the beauty of the space even when not in use.

Conventional stepladders primarily focused on storage when not in use and durability in the workplace. However, as scenarios for daily use increase—such as high-place work in homes with high ceilings, adjusting displays in stores, and organizing documents in offices—there is a growing demand for designs that allow the product to be “kept within easy reach at all times.”

Vietnam’s Occupational Safety and Health Law obligates businesses to ensure worker safety, making the safety of work tools a top priority. However, “hesitation” or “anxiety” when ascending to heights cannot be resolved by merely meeting safety standards. A new value is being emphasized: one where the integration of design and quality provides users with psychological reassurance and the joy of ownership, which, in turn, promotes safer use.

Hasegawa Kogyo’s lucano series overturns the convention of “tools” and is a designer stepladder (footstool) that pursues beauty. Its design philosophy is summarized as “Functional Beauty.”

Thanks to its refined design, the lucano series has expanded its use beyond conventional stepladders.

Products from Hasegawa Vietnam are underpinned not just by the beauty of their design but also by the manufacturing philosophy of “an uncompromising attitude toward safety,” which the Japanese parent company has cultivated for approximately 70 years.

The message advocated by Hasegawa Kogyo, “You know the reliability when you step on it,” demonstrates the importance of “sensory quality” that cannot be captured by data alone. In addition to JIS (Japanese Industrial Standards) and international standards, the company thoroughly implements “actual human testing” from the product design stage. This is a verification process for eliminating sensory factors such as “shake,” “sound,” and “flex,” which can cause user anxiety and which directly lead to the assessment, cultivated by professional craftsmen over many years, that “Hasegawa products are best for high-place work.”

This philosophy is also reflected in durability testing. For example, the company’s Tough Series verifies durability with over 100,000 repeated tests, assuming 100 ascents and descents per day, five days a week.

This strict quality standard is fully inherited by Hasegawa Vietnam Co., Ltd. in Da Nang, Vietnam. The Da Nang factory is positioned as one of the four main testing centers worldwide, including Japan and Dongguan, China. This proves that the Vietnamese manufacturing base is essential for maintaining the group’s overall quality standards.

The stepladders and footstools manufactured here are exported to markets with extremely stringent quality requirements, such as Japan (40.89%) and the United States (16.89%). This fact is a powerful testament that products “manufactured in Vietnam, based on Japanese craftsmanship and strict standards” are chosen by the world’s most demanding professionals.

Therefore, the beauty of the lucano series is not merely aesthetic appeal but a “functional beauty” backed by the solid reliability of the fusion of Vietnam’s manufacturing capabilities and Japan’s “uncompromising safety” philosophy, which clears international standards.

Stepladders and footstools are critically important “tools” that determine safety and efficiency in high-place work. However, in modern Vietnam, where consciousness of design and lifestyle is increasing, whether the product can maintain the “beauty of the space” is also becoming a new criterion of value.

Hasegawa Kogyo’s lucano series possesses two strengths: innovative design backed by awards like the Red Dot Design Award and the strict Japanese quality standard maintained at the Da Nang factory. This “functional beauty” provides users with the joy of ownership and reassurance during use, resulting in the creation of a safe and efficient working environment.

To safety managers, purchasing managers, and site supervisors in Vietnam: Choosing a tool is not merely a matter of cost. It is a strategic investment to comprehensively enhance employee safety, work efficiency, and the company’s brand image. Please experience the fusion of “Safety and Design” from Hasegawa, which is being communicated from Vietnam to the world.

Hasegawa Vietnam is a trusted partner for achieving safe and beautiful work environments.