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In the spotlight with Nik Rilatt

24 November 2022

This month we put Nik Rilatt from RS Safety Solutions in the spotlight to find out how he found himself working in the world of health and safety.

How did you get into the health and safety industry?

My career in the PPE industry has spanned 20 years, starting as an office junior for one of the UK’s largest distributors. During my time there, I worked in various roles such as branch admin, exports, and category management. I then joined Needlers four and a half years ago as product and procurement manager, and in my time I have worked hard to offer the very best range of products and solutions to our customers. Needlers was acquired by RS in 2021.

What do you enjoy most about your job?

I really enjoy how much my role challenges me every day and encourages me to seek out opportunities to innovate, work with new technologies and continuously develop our products and solutions. This industry is all about getting people home safe to their loved ones and being able to help people do that is extremely rewarding. I feel as though what I do really makes a difference!

What do you think are the biggest challenges facing the health and safety industry in UK?

The UK health and safety industry is a challenging arena in which to work for many different reasons. Legislation and regulations are ever-changing, making it a continual challenge to remain up-to-date and informed. In addition to this, the complexity of the industry means there is a lack of understanding around health and safety in general. Customers expect more from their suppliers, especially when it comes to cost, meaning that it is an incredibly competitive market, so I have to constantly consider how we can add value to our customers in lots of different ways. Sustainability is one way that we can add value, however this provides its own challenges. There are also significant challenges around the enforcement of our industry with the authorities stretched, and not able to give the attention or resources that our industry deserves.

How do you think these challenges can be overcome?

I believe that we need to work with our customers and end users more closely to provide so much more than just product. Sharing expert knowledge and awareness is key to ensuring these challenges can be overcome. Also, the constant development of new technologies and materials can help with sustainability, compliance and also supporting cost challenges by providing more reliable products and solutions.

What sets RS apart from its competitors?

RS has a vast amount of resources available which helps us to innovate and constantly improve what we do. RS’ acquisition of Needlers and Liscombe has created a strong personal protection equipment offering, and the combination of the three brands and depth of expertise - comprising many years of health and safety industry knowledge and experience across all the teams – provides a powerful proposition. We have also launched RS Safety Solutions, offering our expertise and experience to help customers choose the right products for their needs, their compliance requirements and the industry they operate in. We offer a consultative approach to help them shape a safety strategy that will be fit for purpose, yield cost savings and choose sustainable solutions where possible.

RS invests heavily in people to help develop skills and knowledge even further and to ensure we’re abreast of a rapidly evolving industry. RS is also very committed to ESG and everyone in our organisation plays a part in delivering our goals to help make the world a better place.

What are you most memorable successes at RS?

The global pandemic was a difficult time for many industries for many reasons. My role during this time was crucial to support our customers, as we are a critical supplier to the UK food industry, and without the products that we ensured made their way to the food sector, there could have been huge repercussions on the food supply in the UK which would have impacted us all. It has also been a memorable time being a huge part of raising our presence in the market as true experts.

What’s next in the product pipeline for RS?

In line with our ESG commitments, sustainable products are high on the agenda for us as is ensuring that we only work with the highest quality and ethical manufacturers. We are also looking to develop our products to suit specific markets around the world, not just the UK. I’m excited to see our product offer expand as we begin to work closely with new suppliers. The industry has some work to do around producing PPE that fits more people properly; people come in all kinds of shapes and sizes and so being able to offer products that will fit more people in the right way is something we are keen to develop. There’s a lot of focus on the ‘safety’ side of health and safety but far less awareness/visibility on the ‘health’ which is something we will be looking to also address in collaboration with our customers.

What’s your vision for the future of RS?

RS has evolved to become more much than simply a distributor of products. We are a solutions-driven business providing a one-stop-shop for our customers encompassing breadth of quality product range, high service levels and unrivalled expertise. The RS Safety Solutions service is an example of this, and I believe we will continue to be the trusted experts in our field and our customers will work with us long term to provide for their needs. 

What do you think the medium term future holds for the safety industry globally?

We are still in a period of settling down following Covid-19 disruptions, meaning that there are some challenges to still overcome. This combined with war and economic challenges across the world means the medium term future is all about remaining stable and providing for our customers as best as we can in the face of these challenges.

What health and safety issues are you most passionate about?

I am passionate about fully understanding the issues people face and the impact these issues have on their lives, so that I can work to find the solution that will ultimately make life better. It is important to me that what we do makes a difference.

How can we entice more young talent to work in the health and safety sector?

It is important to get under the skin of what is important to the younger generation when looking to entice young talent into our industry. Forward thinking companies which recognise the importance of the issues that matter will successfully encourage young talent to join. Some examples of this could be around support and understanding the importance of mental health, and as the research suggests, making ESG a high priority can be an attractive quality for young talent who are evaluating their career choices. It is also important that the stigma attached to the health and safety industry is broken down, and educate future talent on the impact they can have and how they can make a difference. Attracting young talent is all well and good, but it is also important that organisations focus on how they retain talent so as not to lose expertise and future leaders.

Nik Rilatt is product & procurement manager for RS Safety Solutions. For more information, visit https://uk.rs-online.com

 
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