A number of firms from the specialist tools and equipment hire sector have joined the Hire Association Europe (HAE) safety drive
Bradshaw Electric Vehicles from Peterborough – the largest manufacturer of electric vehicles for industry – and Premier Hire, one of South Wales’ major independent tool hire companies, are among those that have joined the growing ranks of HAE members who have passed the SafeHire audit, which has been developed to measure continual business improvement.
Hire-Equip (North West), Flying Hire based in Lincolnshire, King & Stevens from West Sussex, EMN Plant based in Shetland, Champion Hire from South Yorkshire and Will Hire in Stourbridge are the other forward-thinking companies to have achieved the certification.
Despite the collapse of Carillion, the UK construction industry is still very diverse and fiercely competitive, so small and medium-sized independent firms that hire out specialist tools and equipment are benefiting from the differentiation that HAE’s SafeHire Certification brings.
“SafeHire Certification is more than just a logo. It helped us raise our game and implement positive changes in the way we operate. I was also aware that some of our competitors had successfully applied, now I can go to my client base and say we have this certification that recognises our business works to very high standards. This is a certification we are very proud to have received.”
Premier Hire Managing Director, Simon Boagey
UK businesses consistently have one of the lowest rates of work-related fatal injuries across the European Union and are more likely to have a health and safety policy, followed up with a formal risk assessment, compared to other EU countries.
However, HAE believes that there is always more that can be done and is continually improving the processes that make up the SafeHire Certification to help members in the hire industry, by highlighting potential hazards detected in tools and equipment to vulnerabilities of building facilities or yard security.
Hazard recognition plays a key role in SafeHire Certification – some are obvious like the requirement for some employees who need to operate at height – but other hazards such as the safe operation of hired tools and equipment could be less so.
SafeHire Certification provides the hire business and its customers with real peace of mind. Not only does certification prove competence in safety, health, environment and quality and meet client demands for high standards of service, but it also demonstrates having a well-trained workforce to support customers as fully as possible.
As part of the SafeHire Certification, businesses are inspected yearly and everything from paperwork to day-to-day operations and environment is checked for compliance – notably a comprehensive visual inspection of ready to hire kit. In order to raise the bar, even when a business passes certification a few elements can often be found for further improvement.
Many companies are proactively investing in health and safety training and reviewing their policies and processes in order to avoid accidents and even potential criminal proceedings against them. It pays them to be part of a national support network which can provide access to an independent arbitrator in the unlikely event of a situation getting out of hand.
For more information on how to gain SafeHire Certification click here
