In the spotlight with Graham Willmott

What was your first job?

I had the good fortune to be selected by the Greater London Council Architects Dept. (GLC) and placed on a Trainee Building Surveyor scheme which allowed me to attend South Bank Polytechnic (now South Bank University) and complete a part time degree in Building Surveying. This appointment was a great opportunity to gain both practical and theoretical experience alongside a recognised qualification.

How did you get into the safety and health industry?

My late father had been in construction all his life and on one occasion whilst working on a flat roof he was warned by the HSE because he had moved the scaffold “A” frame edge protection and left himself exposed to a potential fall whilst working near the edge. He reflected on this situation and designed a counterbalanced edge protection system with lifting base foot that didn’t require moving when roofers had to work near the edge of a flat roof.

As with all technological breakthroughs it was a battle to transform the product into a commercial reality and was indeed a steep learning curve that would take my father from a comfortable surveying career back into hard manual labour. The initial development was called the “Robo System”. Despite all best efforts business was slow and costly as the product tended to be hired to roofing contractors and substantial investment was required. Over the next few years “Robo II” was developed and Scaffold Great Britain (SGB) became very interested in this new product innovation, purchased the company and made my Father the Product Manager. During this period, I would help run my father’s business as well as carry out my day job and degree at the GLC. SGB placed the product in their Hire and Sale Division and wanted to appoint agents to provide the temporary installation service to roofing contractors. This was an opportunity to start a business and become an entrepreneur.

I started Safesite Southern Limited with a partner in 1987 and our initial business model was to hire and erect scaffolding, plant and equipment to the roofing industry. Over the next five years we worked with many contractors, surveyors and architects and it became obvious that we could improve the design of the original temporary counterbalanced edge protection product and produce a permanent solution that did not require fixing to the buildings structure – The birth of “Safesite System 2000”.

This had great potential as a permanent guardrail solution – installation times were significantly reduced and the need to fix to the roof was completely removed.  In 1991 Safesite Limited was established and grew through the introduction of further products and professional personnel before being sold to Kee Safety Group in 2012. Today I still work as the Technical and Risk Management Director of Kee Safety alongside my various Industry Committee roles.

Who do you most admire and why?

During the 80’s recession the message from Margaret Thatcher’s government was clear, don’t rely on government or employers to give you a job, create your own business and reap the benefits of being self-employed! This was far easier said than done, however it’s something I took on board and despite in 1987 going from an annual salary of £11K to £4K and working twice as many hours, I have never looked back.

Many remember Margaret Thatcher and her time in office for different reasons; my memory is that of a leader who recognised things had to get done and in the process things could get ugly, personal and extremely unpopular but nevertheless she continued and did not U-turn. Various industrial grants and schemes were introduced during this period to assist business start -up’s and I was fortunate to be eligible for the “Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme” which is where it all began with just £9K and £3K of our own money!

How would you improve the safety & health industry in the UK?

The Industry has come a long way and we should be very proud of the achievements that have been made to reduce the number of serious injuries and fatalities through joint initiatives between industry and the HSE. That said, there is always potential for further improvement. We need to embrace technology and use this wherever possible to improve the health & safety of our work force and reduce risk. Business needs to take a strategic view of health and safety and adopt new innovative solutions to improve the working environment, which leads to greater efficiency, productivity and profitability.

What is the best way to combat negative attitudes towards health & safety?

It is our job to protect people whilst they are at work. We need to ensure people return home in the evening safe and well. To do this sometimes we introduce procedures that appear “alien” to the workforce and without explaining our reasons the work force often feel “its health & safety gone mad” We need to be open honest and truthful and involve all those effected by any proposed change. Ensure all those involved are represented and listened to before any preconceived ideas are discussed.  Consult with those at the “pit-face” and pilot their suggested alternatives. Make sure the workforce has ownership of the solution – this automatically ensures positive “buy-in” and everyone wins.

What is the best advice you could give to someone new coming into the safety and PPE industry?

As individuals, we need to invest in ourselves and continually strive to gain expertise, develop new ideas and challenge pre-conceived thinking. Embrace the industry you join and be prepared to take on new roles and concepts, even if outside your own comfort zone. Always listen to your peers and take on board their suggestions with an open mind. Building a strong team is essential and hiring people more capable and able than yourself will make that journey far easier and more rewarding. When offered opportunity to join interest groups and participate with standards/legislation drafting, grab it with both hands. The networking opportunities and engagement with peers within the industry will assist in your career development and professional competence wherever this takes you in the future.

What do you think the medium-term future holds for the safety and health PPE industry in the UK?

“Brexit” has introduced a great deal of uncertainty. No one really knows how this will affect the UK but those in the Standards writing arena are optimistic it will be business as usual and we will still follow European Norms. I do not believe we will revert to the past and adopt individual singular country regulations, this is no help to industry or clients and merely adds to cost. It’s very clear that UK manufacturing business exporting to Europe will need to comply with European Norms so it will be counter-productive to introduce additional UK standards. I believe the way forward is through innovation and investment which will keep UK manufacturers competitive in an international environment.

Occupational health is a big part of the HSE’s “Helping Britain Work Well” strategy how do you think safety can retain the profile that it requires?

We need to be able to measure the true value of any improvement in product innovation and utilisation we introduce in the work place. “Helping Britain Work Well” is both an industry and HSE initiative and for this to succeed in the industry we need to be able to demonstrate strategic improvement in productivity, reduced incidents and general efficiency in the workplace.

Do you see the new sentencing guidelines on health and safety offences affecting business yet?

Absolutely – The fact that the offence of “creating a risk of harm” is now law has certainly sharpened our industries view. It’s now our responsibility to advise clients of the guidelines and make them aware of the facts. Equally we need to ensure our industry fulfils its obligations in relation to training and ensure our personnel are competent to carry out their duties. An example of this is the “Trialblazer” initiative for work at height product installation which will be funded under the apprenticeship levy. This is a vital scheme for the industry as it will begin to provide regulation in our sector and ensure our workforce is trained and competent for the future.

Business needs to review itself considering the new guidelines in areas such as
– Corporate Governance – accountability at board level – ISO 45001 requires boards to take ownership of the risk management system, rather than delegating – duties both individually and as a key element of organisational compliance.
– Risk Profile – a reappraisal of risk registers will be necessary, including consideration of the level of reserve and financial planning and the impact upon EL/PL Insurance and premiums.
– Organisational Structure – risk containment – group companies may need to consider the operational independence of divisions to limit the turnover that could be referred to on sentencing
– Crisis Management – business needs to ensure crisis management procedures and reputational risk are considered when running the business day to day.