Safety first! OEM safety equipment procurement strategy

Industrial accidents are a nightmare for manufacturers, so appropriate safety strategies and the establishment of corresponding partnerships with suppliers are very important.

Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) account for a large share of China's overall manufacturing industry. They produce unbranded goods that are then distributed by other brand companies. Like other manufacturers, most OEM employees work with automated machines, moving parts, and electrical equipment, so companies must provide employees with protective equipment to avoid various safety risks.

Occupational safety and health professionals say that a good workplace safety strategy often starts with leadership, whose support helps put health and safety at the heart of the business. Manufacturers’ leaders need to fully understand the importance of workplace safety and promote relevant policies through actions and financial investment. For example, the company’s chief financial officer may not need to know the specific operating details of a safety device, but when employees request to purchase equipment, they need to approve the relevant budget.

There are many specific reasons to support manufacturers to invest in workplace health and safety. The biggest factor is regulation - if manufacturers ignore the regulations, they may suffer huge fines, liability lawsuits from injured employees, and damage to their reputation. However, experts point out that negative punitive factors should not be the main reason for introducing workplace safety. He believes that formal workplace safety regulations are the basic responsibility of enterprises to their employees. Factories should establish a caring culture, and health and safety should be the biggest priority. Although many companies claim that this is part of the company culture, implementation is the real key.

Brendan Free, Industrial Products Manager at RS Electronics, agrees with the specialists’ comments. He said: “Workplace safety is extremely important to the OEM industry and both large and small companies in the industry have a huge responsibility for the safety of their employees and must take the relevant measures seriously. This industry has a lot of potential risks and it is worthwhile to invest in safety equipment and provide relevant training to prevent major accidents.”

Typical safety risks faced by OEM employees mainly come from mechanical and electrical operations. For example, if the power is accidentally turned on when an engineer is repairing a machine, serious consequences will occur. Feier said: "The safety device we most often provide to customers is the locking safety switch, which can prevent other employees from accidentally starting the machine when performing machine maintenance."

Safety specialists point out that the most common problem faced by manufacturers is that they treat workplace safety issues with a "headache-treating-the-headache" attitude, that is, they take remedial measures only after an accident has occurred. They believe that "if money can solve it, it is not a problem", and then they rush to purchase safety equipment to prevent similar accidents from happening. However, he believes that the correct attitude is to first examine the factors that cause relevant risks in the business operation process, and then consider how to improve procedures or operating methods to eliminate safety risks.

Feil believes that by working closely with OEMs, solutions can be found that match the manufacturer's needs. "I work with companies to identify the specific risks they face in their business and then provide safety equipment to protect their employees," he said. "We provided a voltage tester to a customer and after trial and approval, they provided a specification to upgrade one of the leads of the device. We are happy to do a reset through our help desk because it means the customer will get the equipment that meets their needs."

Another concern about industrial safety is that companies want to save money on safety equipment. Specialists point out that this problem is most obvious in the purchase of personal protective equipment such as hard hats, safety gloves and safety shoes. He said: "When companies purchase a high-priced factory equipment, they will double-check that it is authentic and meets all safety standards. But when it comes to gloves, hard hats, masks or other smaller items, they always tend to buy cheap ones. But using inappropriate safety equipment can cause loss of life and cause huge damage to business. We have seen many terrible accidents caused by improper personal safety equipment."

Feier believes that price should not be the first consideration when purchasing safety equipment. He pointed out: "Quality is the priority. Cost is important, but it is only compared after confirming that the products are at the same quality level.

“Our industry team is very familiar with the industries, safety regulations and the needs of different manufacturers, which helps us work closely with customers to find safety equipment that meets their specific requirements. We also work with safety equipment manufacturers to understand the latest technologies so that we can provide better solutions to customers as soon as the products are launched,” added Feier.

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