Cigar Manufacturer Rolls Out New Safety Programs with NEPIRC

The Avanti Cigar Company, the sole producer of dry cured cigars in the United States, has a history dating back to 1901, when the Suraci family emigrated from Calabria, Italy, to begin a new life in New York City. Over the course of 120 years, the company, initially known as “Suraci Brothers” moved from New York City to Dunmore, Pennsylvania, where it currently employs between 40 and 45 workers to produce cigars under the popular Parodi, Avanti, De Nobili and Marca Petri brands, as well as private labels and niche brands for select markets.The company has been featured on the History Channel and interviewed by Cigar Aficionado and Cigar World for magazine and online articles. The company has consistently embraced innovation, acquisition and a commitment to quality as ways to flourish during the “Roaring Twenties”, survive the Great Depression, dominate during industry consolidation and capitalize on market opportunities.

The Avanti Cigar Company has always been committed to employee safety and well-being. After inviting NEPIRC, part of the Pennsylvania MEP and the MEP National Network™, onto its shop floor for a free workplace safety walk-through, the company acknowledged the need for additional safety training and enhanced safeguards around some of its newer machinery. While the company was compliant with all safety requirements, it wanted to go above and beyond to ensure that its workers were optimally protected against potential accidents in the cigar-rolling, packaging and product transportation processes. The also wanted to develop a more comprehensive employee safety training program.

NEPIRC partnered with a qualified third-party to collaboratively provide the company with comprehensive hazard risk assessment and management training, safety training program consultation and development services, OSHA 10 training and NFPA 70E electrical safe workplace training.