A health & safety meeting point

Safety & Health Expo (SHE) returns to Birmingham NEC from 15th to 17th May for its most comprehensive show to date. Safety & Health Expo aims to provide the latest information on products and legislation, health and safety end user case studies, seminars from the leading voices in the industry and access to top associations and CPD opportunities

Safety & Health Expo is run in partnership with the British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF), the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), and the Institute of Safety & Health (IOSH) all of which bring to the show a multitude of experience and expertise.

David Lummis, CEO of the BSIF comments: “Safety & Health Expo is the UK’s leading event for the health and safety industry and provides a great platform for us to meet with both the visitors and exhibitors whilst supporting the great work our members do. We have organised a number of activities including breakfast briefings, opportunities to meet overseas buying groups, and of course the BSIF Safety Awards.” The BSIF will announce the winners of its Safety Awards on 15th May. As in previous years, there are three award categories: The BSIF Service Awards, The BSIF Safety Excellence Awards and The Product Innovation Awards. The Product Innovation Awards will be separately judged by a panel of safety industry professionals.

The Awards continue to underline the Federation’s dedication to the highest standards within the supply of occupational health and safety products and services. They recognise pioneering innovation, celebrate achievements and schemes designed to reduce accidents or injuries, and the creative use of new technology to develop innovative products.

The face-to-face nature of Safety & Health Expo, combined with the fact that it has become an annual meeting place for professionals from all over the UK and Europe, make it a convenient and efficient networking environment. Visitors will have the opportunity to get answers from speakers and exhibitors which are tailored for them and their business needs.

Educational Features

Safety & Health Expo is bringing back the Access Industry Forum’s (AIF) Knowledge Base. The forum for the principal trade associations and federations involved in work at height has an ambitious programme of topics and speakers lined up. Topics include ‘The Löfstedt Review and the Work at Height Regulations’, ‘Is claim to blame?’ and an update on last year’s ground breaking discussion: ‘In search of the Holy Grail: No more working at height accidents ever’, featuring contributions from RoSPA, IOSH, HSE, IIRSM and BSC.

The SHP Legal Arena also returns with a varied programme of speakers. Legislation and regulation are the main drivers of health and safety practice in the UK, and keeping abreast of developments in this area is a key part of the practitioner’s role. The Legal Arena will give advice on some of the key legal developments of the last year, as well as analysis of some of the biggest cases and decisions in health and safety, and related legal advice from leading barristers and solicitors.

New this year is The Academy, sponsored by ARCO, to include sessions from author Steve Asbury about ethics and Magnet Group on their SHP IOSH Award winning ‘Serious about Safety’ campaign. Joining them will be presentations from ARCO, Scott Safety, Draeger and ARC Associates.

The Occupational Health Theatre sponsored by Posturite will feature sessions from Maria Bourke of Letsgethealthy.co.uk, Bob Raigon of Safety Groups UK and Dr Sayeed Khan, chief medical officer at EEF. It will also feature panel debates with  leading voices in occupational health.

The IOSH stand and mini lecture theatre will offer a schedule of presentations. IOSH will also host a series of networking groups for their construction, food and drink, retail and distribution, sports ground and events, fire risk management and Midlands branches.

Rob Strange OBE, IOSH chief executive says: “This year is set to be interesting for the industry. I’m sure there’s plenty to come from the Government and its battle to boost the UK economy by attempting to cut back on what it refers to as health and safety ‘red tape’. During times like these, events like Safety & Health Expo give safety and health professionals the opportunity to keep in-tune with changes and continue to make a difference.” Sessions are free to attend and are seated on a first come first served basis.

Exhibitor highlights

Exhibitors at Safety & Health Expo are set to showcase a huge variety of products and services with companies specialising in PPE, training, fall arrest, technology, testing and more. There are a number of new exhibitors.

New to the show, Dickies – the international workwear brand – will be showcasing its new range. Maurice Morton, sales & marketing director at Dickies adds, “We are using the opportunity to feature the UK Worker of the Year 2012 competition on our stand and inviting visitors to either apply or nominate a friend.”

At the Cirrus Research stand visitors will have the chance to venture into the ‘sound tardis’ to test the latest innovations and products for measuring occupational and environmental noise, as well as attend a range of technical and educational demonstrations.

RRC will run its ‘Spot the Hazard’ computer-based game which tests players’ health and safety knowledge as well as their skills with the mouse. There will also be the opportunity to attend free advice clinics and discussions on the latest e-learning and other forms of online training run by RRC’s health, safety and environment specialists.

Safety & Health Expo (SHE)

www.safety-health-expo.co.uk

T: 020 7921 8049