Everyone within a manufacturing facility can benefit from a comprehensive personal protective equipment (PPE) program. To be successful, however, the program must gain key stakeholder support at the executive and plant management levels early in the process to optimize the results.
Safety and procurement managers at a medical device manufacturer, for example, suspected the company was paying too much for employees' hand protection. The company partnered with a PPE manufacturer to assess the gloves used for various applications to determine whether workers were wearing the best products. The assessment also was designed to identify best practices.
Assessment results revealed workers in several manufacturing areas were wearing gloves that were not aligned with their protective needs. Recommendations were made for hand protection products that would provide the appropriate level of protection while reducing product and related costs by 30 percent.
While the plant was able to achieve its injury reduction objectives, the company realized only 2.4 percent of the potential cost savings. Why? Regulatory compliance personnel and departmental supervisors did not support implementation. These individuals lacked ownership involvement because they were not invited to participate in the process when the improved PPE program launched.
Read on to learn how to involve the right people to optimize the results and savings for your company's PPE program.
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