At Essential Site Skills, we don’t just provide training, we are also quality suppliers of PPE to the construction industry and beyond. Our online shop provides a range of health and safety gear designed to keep you safe on site.

What is PPE?

PPE stands for Personal Protective Equipment. It refers to any protective clothing designed to prevent injury, illness and infection when working or visiting potentially dangerous environments.

PPE could include everything from simple protection measures such as helmets, goggles and high-vis clothing, to more complicated equipment such as respiratory masks, safety harnesses and biohazard suits. The PPE you need will depend on the environment you are in and the specific safety concerns you are likely to come across.

Over on our online shop, we breakdown the range of PPE into several different categories so you can easily find the equipment you need:

• RPE
• Height safety
• Cable detection

We are always adding new products to all of these categories, keep an eye out for any new equipment we have in stock.

What does RPE stand for?

RPE is short for Respiratory Protection Equipment. This equipment protects users from breathing in harmful airborne hazards such as dusts, gases and pollutants. Breathing in these hazards can cause serious short-term and long-term health problems for the individual.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) breaks down RPE into two separate categories, respirators and breathing apparatus:

• Respirators, also known as filtering devices, use filters to remove contaminants from the air and stop them being breathed in by the wearer. They come in two types, non-powered and powered respirators. Powered respirators use motors to pass air through the filters. Non-powered respirators rely on the wearer’s breathing to draw air through the filter.
• Breathing apparatus use external air sources to provide safe breathing air to the wearer. These external sources are usually air cylinders or air compressors.

Our online shop stocks top-quality half-face respirator masks, all with different features to suit your working environment:

• JSP Force™10 Half Mask with Typhoon™ Valve
• JSP Force™8 Half Mask with Typhoon™ Valve
• Moldex 7000 Series Reusable Half Mask Respirator

We also provide the Moldex 9000 Series Reusable Full Face Respirator for those looking for a full face mask.

What is a face fit testing kit?

Having the correct RPE is only useful if face fit testing has been performed. This process ensures that the mask being used forms a full seal round the user's face and no airborne hazards are making it past the seal of the mask and into the wearer's respiratory system. This testing is a legal requirement.

We provide two face fit testing kits to provide all the necessary equipment users will need to complete these tests:

• Alpha Solway Qualitative face fit test kit
• Moldex BITREX® Qualitative Fit Test Kit

However, these tests should only ever be completed by those with the appropriate training. If these tests are performed incorrectly they could cause more harm than good, as wearers may wrongly think they are protected from the hazards around them.

If you want to be able to complete face fit tests on your colleagues, you should take part in one of our train the tester courses. These come in a few different varieties depending on the method and equipment you want to use:

• Face Fit Train the Tester
• Face Fit Train the Tester - Fit2Fit Approved Course (Qualitative)
• Face Fit Train the Tester - Fit2Fit Approved Course (Quantitative)

Find out more about our face fit testing and train the tester courses by reading our blog ‘Fit2Fit: Face Fit Testing & Training with ESS’. We have also recently introduced the NPORS Face Fit Train the Tester for Construction - Qualitative (P057) course. We are delighted to be the ONLY providers of this train the tester course designed specifically for those working in construction.

What equipment is needed for working at height?

Working at height is one of the most dangerous tasks in any working environment. Figures for 2020/21 show that falls from height remain the most common cause of fatal injury in the construction sector. This is why having the correct working at height equipment is so important.

The ESS shop stocks a range of PPE to ensure the safety of those working at height, including:

• Safety harnesses
• Fall arrests
• Connectors
• Rescue and rope access
• Lifeline & anchor points

If you want to know more about the ins-and-out of working at height, and what PPE is needed to stay safe, why not read the ‘ESS Guide to Working at Height’?

How do you find underground pipes and cables?

Power cable strikes (where underground pipes and cables are hit by machinery or tools when performing excavation, building or maintenance work) can cause many problems for workers and businesses. Striking cables can cause power outages in the surrounding area resulting in delays to work, reputational damage and heavy fines for the individual and company. But more importantly, striking cables and pipes can cause serious health problems and even death to workers through electrocution or burn injuries.

In 2020, cable strikes jumped up by a massive 20%. These shocking figures show how important it is for workers to perform effective cable detection before and during underground building work. To do this effectively, you need to have the correct cable detection equipment. For most cable detection operations this will mean using a C.A.T (Cable Avoidance Tool) and Genny (Signal Generator). 

C.A.T and Genny equipment work in tandem to detect signals from underground pipes and cables. Depending on the type of C.A.T being used, these tools can be used to detect a range of waves that might be emitted by underground services including radio, power and genny signals. Some tools will even allow users to accurately detect the depth of the cables, as well as the location.

Our shop supplies a wide range of cable detection tools with a variety of features depending on your needs and your price range. We sell a variety of C.A.T and Genny tools, as well as a variety of cable detection accessories to help transport your equipment to and from sites. For a full guide to the cable detection tools and training we provide, you can read our blog ‘ESS Guide to Cable Avoidance Equipment & Training’.  

BSIF accreditation

ESS are delighted to have just passed our most recent audit with the British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF). This audit confirms that we are quality suppliers of safety gear, with the PPE we stock meeting the high standards set by the BSIF. This seal of approval will provide you with the confidence that any items you buy from us meet the highest safety standards.

Need more advice?

If you have any questions or enquiries about any of the products we sell, why not contact our training team? Our team of experts will be able to give you the best advice to ensure you get the equipment that best suits your needs. You can call us on 0115 8970 529, or email the team at [email protected].