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Mark Sennett
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ARTICLE
Using your head
30 May 2013
Following the discovery that counterfeit helmets of dangerously poor quality were being sold in the UK, Jacques Forrest from Centurion Safety Products looks at why it is worth paying more for the genuine article
Following the discovery that counterfeit helmets of dangerously poor
quality were being sold in the UK, Jacques Forrest from Centurion Safety
Products looks at why it is worth paying more for the genuine article
Have you ever wondered why a reputable manufacturer's product is more expensive than its fake rival? Often people assume this is down to branding and expensive advertising, "You pay more for the name!" Yes, companies will put a lot of resources into branding and advertising, but in reality more often than not the difference in cost is down to the quality of the raw materials and more importantly, what processes the product goes through to make it safe and suitable for public use.
Take safety helmets; recently there's been a lot of concern regarding a batch of fake helmets believed to be of Asian origin that have been found in the UK market place which do not conform to the stringent tests and safety levels that one would expect from personal protective equipment (PPE) in Europe. In fact, according to the British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF): "The outer shell of the helmets can be split in half simply by using pressure from hands!".
PPE products placed in the European market have to conform with the Directive on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) 89/686/EEC which belongs to the family of directives under Article 114 of the Treaty on the functioning of the European Union. They harmonize products ensuring a high level of protection for citizens and free product circulation throughout Europe.
The manufacturer can only place PPE into the market place if it has been independently approved to be in compliance with this directive. Obtaining this type approval costs, as does the necessary production supervision requirement of the directive. Production supervision requires regular batch testing of the product and a quality management system covering all changes relating to the product. Another attributed cost for ensuring the safety and well being of the user is a reputable quality management system that has 100% traceability via a unique batch number, not only of the product but also of all the constituent parts of that product. All manufacturers of PPE should be able to present a relevant CE certificate for their product and provide a Declaration of Conformity on request.
As well as these quality procedures there are 'awards' in recognition of quality management systems of which the Kitemark is one. By purchasing a product accredited with the BSI Kitemark, the user can be confident that the product continually meets the performance characteristics of the initial sample submitted for type approval.
Conformance with the Kitemark requirements entails regular sample selection and internal batch testing to ensure continued compliance.
Furthermore BSI regularly test production samples at random and carry out a thorough audit of the quality management systems biannually. A manufacturer of sub-standard or fake products is not likely to have paid the necessary costs to obtain the relevant certificates, have a quality management system in place or have been accredited by a government recognised Notified Body.
How to spot the genuine article There are certain ways to help ensure you are getting the genuine article. For example, a Centurion safety helmet carries the following markings: BSI Kitemark - thus meeting the performance characteristics of the initial sample submitted for type approval and has been in place since 1976.
CE Mark - since 1993 the CE marking is a mandatory conformity marking for products placed on the market in the European Economic Area (EEA). With the CE marking on a product, the manufacturer declares that the product conforms to the essential requirements of the applicable EC directives.
Date of Manufacture - this is moulded into the helmet along with four quarter segments, denoting the quarter of manufacture within that given year.
Product Code - stamped on the shell is a unique code that identifies the actual product item type.
Centurion also has a 'full traceability' tracking system which identifies the origins of raw materials and components that go into the making of its safety helmets and which customer has received it, by way of the Centurion Batch number which is found in all of its safety helmets.
Everyone likes a bargain especially in these tough economic times but with increased legislation, suing and counter suing it is important to know that the PPE you have purchased is genuine and protects you and your employees. To that end a reputable PPE manufacturer spares no cost in testing and putting their products through whatever procedure is required to ensure that their customers are continually protected to the highest standards possible. It is a fact of life that you get what you pay for. What you don't want to do is pay with yours or someone else's life.
Jacques Forrest is technical director at Centurion Safety Products
Have you ever wondered why a reputable manufacturer's product is more expensive than its fake rival? Often people assume this is down to branding and expensive advertising, "You pay more for the name!" Yes, companies will put a lot of resources into branding and advertising, but in reality more often than not the difference in cost is down to the quality of the raw materials and more importantly, what processes the product goes through to make it safe and suitable for public use.
Take safety helmets; recently there's been a lot of concern regarding a batch of fake helmets believed to be of Asian origin that have been found in the UK market place which do not conform to the stringent tests and safety levels that one would expect from personal protective equipment (PPE) in Europe. In fact, according to the British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF): "The outer shell of the helmets can be split in half simply by using pressure from hands!".
PPE products placed in the European market have to conform with the Directive on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) 89/686/EEC which belongs to the family of directives under Article 114 of the Treaty on the functioning of the European Union. They harmonize products ensuring a high level of protection for citizens and free product circulation throughout Europe.
The manufacturer can only place PPE into the market place if it has been independently approved to be in compliance with this directive. Obtaining this type approval costs, as does the necessary production supervision requirement of the directive. Production supervision requires regular batch testing of the product and a quality management system covering all changes relating to the product. Another attributed cost for ensuring the safety and well being of the user is a reputable quality management system that has 100% traceability via a unique batch number, not only of the product but also of all the constituent parts of that product. All manufacturers of PPE should be able to present a relevant CE certificate for their product and provide a Declaration of Conformity on request.
As well as these quality procedures there are 'awards' in recognition of quality management systems of which the Kitemark is one. By purchasing a product accredited with the BSI Kitemark, the user can be confident that the product continually meets the performance characteristics of the initial sample submitted for type approval.
Conformance with the Kitemark requirements entails regular sample selection and internal batch testing to ensure continued compliance.
Furthermore BSI regularly test production samples at random and carry out a thorough audit of the quality management systems biannually. A manufacturer of sub-standard or fake products is not likely to have paid the necessary costs to obtain the relevant certificates, have a quality management system in place or have been accredited by a government recognised Notified Body.
How to spot the genuine article There are certain ways to help ensure you are getting the genuine article. For example, a Centurion safety helmet carries the following markings: BSI Kitemark - thus meeting the performance characteristics of the initial sample submitted for type approval and has been in place since 1976.
CE Mark - since 1993 the CE marking is a mandatory conformity marking for products placed on the market in the European Economic Area (EEA). With the CE marking on a product, the manufacturer declares that the product conforms to the essential requirements of the applicable EC directives.
Date of Manufacture - this is moulded into the helmet along with four quarter segments, denoting the quarter of manufacture within that given year.
Product Code - stamped on the shell is a unique code that identifies the actual product item type.
Centurion also has a 'full traceability' tracking system which identifies the origins of raw materials and components that go into the making of its safety helmets and which customer has received it, by way of the Centurion Batch number which is found in all of its safety helmets.
Everyone likes a bargain especially in these tough economic times but with increased legislation, suing and counter suing it is important to know that the PPE you have purchased is genuine and protects you and your employees. To that end a reputable PPE manufacturer spares no cost in testing and putting their products through whatever procedure is required to ensure that their customers are continually protected to the highest standards possible. It is a fact of life that you get what you pay for. What you don't want to do is pay with yours or someone else's life.
Jacques Forrest is technical director at Centurion Safety Products
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