New Registered Safety Supplier Scheme website

The Registered Safety Supplier Scheme (RSSS) historically focused on the threat posed by fake and counterfeit products and fake and counterfeit certification. However, in addition to this problem, a much more pernicious threat has become apparent and that is the failure of PPE to match the performance claims that the CE certification denotes and crucially the performance that users anticipate.

If the outcome of an employer’s risk assessment includes the necessity for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) it is the law that it must provide adequate protection against the hazard and it must be suitable for the individual.

The BSIF is dedicated to eliminating non-compliant, unsafe, counterfeit and illegal safety products from the UK market and provides a quality assurance scheme for the purchase of genuine PPE that will help to keep people safe and healthy at work.

The number of non-compliant, illegal and poorly performing safety products offered for sale in the UK market is significant and all organisations and individuals sourcing PPE and related equipment need assurance that the markings, documentation and claims for the performance of the product are genuine.
The BSIF Registered Safety Supplier Scheme has been strengthened to provide assurance to PPE customers and users that only compliant and correctly performing products are supplied.

The RSSS website

The new website for the RSSS scheme is designed to enable end users to understand, engage and utilise the scheme in a much easier and straightforward way. The site's visitors will now have full access to the members of the scheme thanks to the supplier search function and the supplier list page.

The supplier search function is designed so that a buyer of PPE can put in their chosen location and a radius to this (from 5 miles up to 100 miles) and then click search. The results will then show all Registered Safety Suppliers within the chosen radius. This makes it easy for the purchaser to source their required product from the supplier directly. The search results also show contact details and the supplier's website meaning that their entire range of products is available to the user.

The supplier list page has an individual section for each member of the scheme and includes logo, company name and website, again to make it very easy for the user to find PPE.

Supporters of the scheme are also encouraged to get involved and can benefit from declaring that as a purchaser of PPE they will source product, where possible, from RSSS members because they see the importance of using a reputable and compliant organisation who has joined the scheme due to their commitment to good safety practices. By aligning up as a supporter they benefit from having the company logo put on to the RSSS website to promote their commitment to the scheme and the fact they are using best practice when it comes to purchasing PPE.

The login area for supporters also provides them with access to BSIF campaign downloads, latest industry news and updates in legislation from the EU.

'Ask BSIF' is another benefit of the new site and allows consumers to ask us any questions relating to Safety & Health by filling out the online form. We will then come back with the answer to their query.

We hope that by developing this website the RSSS will become a lot easier to access and be used by all of those who are involved in the sourcing of Personal Protective Equipment, therefore combating and illuminating the threat of non-compliant, fake and illegal PPE within the market place.