By the time you are reading this first viewpoint of 2020, we would have already been well into the swing of things with the first month of year coming to an end. New Year’s Day resolutions have come and gone, dry Jan gets wet again and veganuary-ans become carnivorous. Before you know it, it is cold and wet outside and you are once again at the starting line of what can be a long, challenging year ahead and you can’t help but wonder – what is the point in it all? And it’s times like these that campaigns like Michael’s story show what an important role the supply chain has in protecting its customers whilst creating demand.
For those unfamiliar with Michael’s story, it’s one that is told by his sister, Marie Taggart about the untimely and tragic death of her brother – sparky, Michael Adamson. The prevailing message is that fact that the death of 26 year old Michael was one that was totally avoidable. He had cut a cable marked ‘NOT IN USE’, which was in fact wired into a distribution board and was not safely isolated. After a lengthy court case against his employers, the HSE press release issued after the trial outcome said: “Michael Adamson’s death could have been prevented had his employer ensured that safe working practices were being carried out in accordance with the company’s own written procedures.” Devices for lock-off/tag-out were not provided by Michael’s employer. Instead the practice on site was to use insulating tape.
After hearing about Michael’s story in 2017, Malcolm Duncan, Managing Director at Super Rod, decided to start a dialogue with electricians about safe isolation and promote safer working conditions. A number of subsequent campaigns led to the company’s most recent launch of a safety kit that includes a number of different brands, designed to help installers work safer. On page 50 you can read more about Corporate Social Responsibility and the part the wholesaler plays in ensuring safe working practices for their customers, whilst creating demand for a much-needed kit that can hopefully avoid anything like that happening again.
Elsewhere in this issue we look at the most popular products amongst your key customers with the Top products 2019 feature on page 24. The Fire & Safety feature includes a focus on the latest fire safety standards and the products offering solutions to ensure building occupants are kept safe, whilst the Electrical Accessories feature looks at the launch of a new lighting company, Ovia.
Have a good month and enjoy the issue.
Michael Connolly
Editor
