Workwear and PPE: How prepared are you for winter?

As we head into Q4 and peak season, your business will be one of many gearing up for busy times to come. In all the hustle and bustle of getting ready, it’s important to ensure you’re on the ball when it comes to anticipating your winter workwear and PPE needs.

In the same way we don’t make ourselves food until we’re hungry, it happens all too frequently that businesses don’t think about ordering fleece jackets and thermal wear until their employees start to complain that they’re cold on the job. Planning ahead will not only help avoid delivery delays and the potential for required items to be out of stock entirely – it will also ensure you’re not caught out by an unexpected cold snap or the onset of darker evenings.

Planning for peak

When it comes to being ready for peak season, you already know that planning ahead is key to success.

Integrating workwear and PPE provision planning into your peak preparations will help ensure your business and its workforce are physically ready and able to handle anything the season brings. How prepared is your team for winter right now? Are your employees already thinking about how their needs will change over the next few months? Or are you collectively sleepwalking towards potential problems?

If your team is already engaged and accustomed to placing orders for their workwear and PPE through an online catalogue such as our Control-iT web portal then it might simply be a case of notifying your employees that items such as fleeces, waterproof jackets, replacement hi vis, winter gloves, winter footwear and thermals are now available to order, as well as providing regular reminders over the next few weeks.

If you instead rely on placing a bulk order with a supplier on behalf of your team, then you’ll want to start to anticipate potential demand. Some areas to think about include:

• How many employees do you have, and how has that number changed since last year?
• How many temporary staff do you anticipate working with you over the next few months?
• Which roles are likely to require what apparel and PPE?
• How is your current hi vis clothing provision? With dull days and dark afternoons and evenings on their way, it’s vital to ensure your employees have the right hi vis workwear, and that it is in a good condition. You can find out more about how hi vis should be cared for and maintained in this handy guide.
• Are there any health and safety concerns that you need to address urgently? This is also a good time to review the physical workplace environment for any hazards that need to be rectified, such as poor or broken lighting, slippery terrain, or a lack of winter essentials such as anti-freeze or grit salt. 
  Check if you're all set for winter with our warehouse health and safety checklist.

As with being prepared for any change in circumstances, planning ahead is crucial for success. The earlier you can start to work with your workwear and PPE provider on what your team is likely to need over the coming months, the better.

To talk to the iSB team about your workwear and PPE requirements, give us a call, or you can browse our online store.