An Inappropriate Choice of Personal Protective Equipment

A UK dealership of imported European-manufactured construction equipment procured branded Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and uniforms for its Field Service Engineers that failed to take account of the industries that the dealership operated in, leading to PPE being purchased that put its Field Service Engineers at serious risk of death or severe injury.
 
The UK dealership operated in a diverse range of industries, each with its distinct requirements for PPE that the dealership failed to consider when procuring the PPE, including:

• Road.

• Rail.

• Construction.

• Mineral extraction.

• Mining.

The dealership operated in harsh conditions, with its Field Service Engineers working in the open, where the weather could be hostile, visibility poor, and working hours that were often long, sometimes during the hours of darkness.
 
The PPE and uniforms procured were dark blue and grey, with limited reflective flashings, severely limiting the visibility of the dealership's Field Service Engineers during inclement weather at night. Such working conditions hampered staff visibility when attending breakdowns of construction equipment in remote areas of the UK.
 
Organisations are required, as set out in the guidelines defined by the Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992, to ensure that suitable PPE is provided for staff who may be exposed to high-risk levels to their health or safety whilst at work, except where the threat to health and safety has been adequately controlled by other equal or more effective means of risk limitation.
 
The process used to procure the dealership's requirement for PPE was restricted to a few Suppliers being requested to quote for a limited number of items, where the dealership had not expressly or adequately specified the PPE requirement. In failing to prepare a specification of requirements, the few Suppliers that were requested to quote for the PPE and uniform failed to understand the following:

• The industries that the dealership operated in.

• The specific PPE requirements of each industrial sector.

• The intimate PPE needs of the dealership's staff.

• The hostility of the working environment in which the PPE would be worn.

The evaluation panel utilised during the procurement involved staff with limited industry experience, unconnected with the users of the PPE. The budget managers who would be purchasing and the users of the PPE were not invited to take part in its evaluation or to consider which supplier should supply it, resulting in the assessment of PPE being undertaken by those with the least experience and knowledge of its use.
 
The PPE procured severely limited staff visibility at night in adverse weather conditions and was expensive, unsuitable, and disliked by the dealership's Field Service Engineers. The quality of the PPE was poor, meaning replacement PPE items were required more than anticipated. With extended lead times, staff had to wear substandard PPE whilst awaiting replacement items to be delivered by the supplier.
 
The fundamental role of the procurement process is to assist an organisation by providing a process that enables the selection of Suppliers:

• Through group consensus.

• Without bias.

• That is fair, open, and transparent.

• Gets the most experienced staff involved in the selection process.

The more people are involved in the supplier selection process, the less chance there is of the supplier not providing the ultimate quality at the most reasonable cost. This means:

• Establishing requirements.

• Researching the market.

• Evaluating suppliers.

• Negotiating contracts.

• Managing risk.

By sourcing suitable Suppliers, a practical and defined procurement process will actively assist an organisation to:

• Reduce its ongoing costs.

• Understand the risks and opportunities involved.

• Consider and limit health and safety risks.

• Elicit data to assist in decision-making.

• Provide insight into potential suppliers.

For these reasons, a detailed Supplier pre-qualification process is imperative for all organisations procuring PPE. Through the provision of an in-depth and robust Supplier selection process, an effective and efficient procurement process will assist an organisation in selecting the most appropriate PPE Supplier.
 
The procurement process must be simple, easy to understand, and operate to mitigate all organisational commercial and health and safety risks but, more importantly, reduce the risk of death and serious injury to staff.

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