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Executive Report: Safety specialist Hire Station claims its ESS Safeforce business is now the largest of its kind in the UK. Alan Guthrie visited the operation's Wellingborough headquaters to learn more about the specialist hirer and its market. Vp’s interest in the specialised area of safety equipment hire and sales dates back to 1994, when it established its Safeforce operation within its Groundforce shoring and piling business, based at Vp’s Harrogate headquarters. The business grew steadily with several acquisitions and new branch openings in major cities, eventually becoming the safety and environmental equipment arm of Hire Station, Vp’s tool hire division. By far the biggest factor in its growth was Hire Station’s purchase in July 2005 of Pivotal Services Group, comprising the safety equipment supplier ESS Safety Services and the training provider, Pivotal Training. The operations were subsequently merged to form ESS Safeforce, now based at Pivotal’s former headquarters in Wellingborough. Health & Safety issues are recognised as forming one of the key drivers of hire business, and Hire Station puts it as a top priority. Indeed, it believes that ESS Safeforce is the biggest specialist safety company in the UK, and claims it is several times larger than its nearest competitor. Since the Pivotal acquisition, £2.5m has been invested in new equipment for the fleet. National coverage and local service “We
are
bringing
a
tool
hire
philosophy
to
the
specialist
area
of
safety
products
and
services,”
contends
Jonathan
Newport,
Divisional
Director
of
ESS
Safeforce,
who
previously
headed
up
the
Safe
&
Sure
Division
of
HSS.
“Many
other
companies
in
this
market
are
single-location
operations,
and
by
using
the
Hire
Station
model
we
have
several
depots
offering
national
coverage
and
local
service.
Buying
ESS
enabled
us
to
become
a
genuine
one-stop
solutions
provider;
it
had
a
very
strong
retail
business
and
a
highly
regarded
training
operation,
which
we
have
consolidated
and
developed.”
“We guarantee that the 20 most frequently hired items are instantly available from all our locations,” states Jonathan Newport, “and all technicians are thoroughly trained in the servicing and maintenance of every product we supply. Our delivery drivers are also able to give detailed advice on safe operation on-site.” ESS Safeforce currently has hire outlets in Coatbridge, Leeds, Warrington, West Bromwich, Rainham, Heathrow and Wellingborough. Specialist training facilities are located at Leeds, Chesterfield, Middlewich, Rainham, Andover and at Wellingborough, with additional training sites soon opening in Coatbridge and West Bromwich. While the business operates dedicated workshops for equipment servicing and calibration, it has also invested substantially to create On-Site, a fleet of fully equipped vans offering a mobile service. These visit customers’ locations to undertake necessary work, minimising downtime. “A ‘twilight’ service is also offered, whereby a van reaches the site when contractors’ vehicles arrive back in the afternoon or early evening with the equipment,” states Technical Services Manager, Simon Ambrose. “Servicing is carried out immediately, so that it is ready the next morning. We can also undertake repairs in the field, and we support contractors working anywhere in the UK and Europe, including the Channel Islands. We recently attended a site in Cyprus. The On-Site vans even visit those of our depots without a workshop, so that equipment does not have to be sent away from the branch.” Computer-based asset tracking As a further service to customers, ESS Safeforce has introduced Fleet Asset, a computer-based asset tracking service. This enables all equipment used by a contractor, including both hired and owned items, to be monitored in terms of its location and availability, and alerts are triggered when servicing becomes due, or when upgrades such as software revisions for electronic equipment are released. Another new initiative introduced this year are Magi Cards, unbreakable tags the size of a credit card listing all required calibration and inspection certificate information, and which provide the customer with a more robust alternative to paper printouts. “We aim to constantly add new operational aspects that will act as growth engines,” states Jonathan Newport. “One of our most recent is our Shutdown Services initiative, which provides bespoke packages for facilities that need to close for lengthy periods for detailed maintenance work, such as oil refineries, petrochemical plants and other heavy industry installations. Such projects can mean more than 1,000 extra workers have to be on site for weeks or months. We can organise the bulk hire of essential safety items and establish an on-site facility that can supply products and consumables, and deal with other requests.” The company’s trained Health & Safety specialists can supervise activities such as confined space working and undertake face-fit testing so that dust masks and respirators are tailored to individuals’ requirements. ESS Safeforce’s training centres area attended each year by more than 20,000 delegates, learning how to work safely in confined spaces, such as pipelines, inspection chambers, tanks, silos and flues, to ensure that workers have suitable skills to meet the requirements of the Confined Space Regulations 1997. “We train people from industries such as oil, petrochemicals and rail, as well as the MOD, government agencies and utilities,” states Divisional Operations Manager, Andy Cull. “All our training centres are equipped with audio visual facilities within air-conditioned classrooms, and each location has a full training tunnel labyrinth, ensuring that delegates attending our courses gain appropriate experience within a safe, controlled environment.” Recognised City & Guilds courses are presented on subjects such as confined space entry, meter pit training, and working in hostile atmospheres. Other courses available cover first aid, safe use of gas monitors and sessions for supervisors, amongst others. The training centres also offer City & Guilds courses covering the requirements of the New Roads and Streetworks Act for operators and supervisors, as well as tuition on safe digging and cable avoidance, and safe signing, lighting and guarding. Rescue Services initiative A particularly impressive aspect of ESS Safeforce is its Confined Space Safety and Rescue Services initiative. Highly trained and dedicated personnel are qualified not only to manage work and rescue operations in confined spaces, but can carry out emergency medical treatment in accordance with NHS protocols. “They can effectively act as a link between the emergency services and a contractor’s own Health & Safety personnel,” states Jonathan Newport. “Again, we have invested in a fleet of fully equipped vans with everything needed to supervise planned work, or to respond to emergency situations. Some of the specialist items carried are beyond the standard equipment specification of the Fire & Rescue service vehicles. Teams are based nationwide, and have to be able to respond literally at a moment’s notice. “The Confined Space Safety and Rescue Services initiative was introduced several years ago in response to a request from BT, showing how we can adapt our offering to customer needs. Throughout everything we do, the highest possible standards have to be maintained. You cannot put a price on safety, because if equipment fails, lives could be at stake. However, the standards we lay down are rigorously observed, so that we, and our customers, can sleep easily at night.” • T
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346 Executive Hire News › Archives › October 2007 › Executive Report › Safety specialist
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