Elevating Safety and Efficiency at a Global Energy Company
Oil refineries are rugged environments. Workers face a heightened risk of cuts, impact injuries and chemical exposure while handling pipes, disconnecting valves, or operating heavy machinery. In response to these challenges, our integrated energy manufacturing and logistics customer sought to standardise hand protection across ten of its refineries. This initiative aimed to improve PPE spending efficiency while reducing the risk of injuries caused by workers using the wrong gloves for specific tasks.
Drawing on our deep understanding of the oil and gas sector, Ansell implemented a program to ensure a consistent supply of gloves, effectively protecting workers across all of its sites. Utilising AnsellGUARDIAN®, our proprietary data-driven risk assessment and consulting service, we watched workers in action at the company’s largest refineries to understand the specific hazards different workers faced, and the requirements of their specific jobs. We also compared the cut and impact protection, durability, chemical protection and comfort offered by various Ansell and competitor gloves. Finally, our planning teams studied the company’s glove ordering patterns.
This comprehensive analysis allowed us to recommend an Ansell hand protection plan that ensured consistent delivery of gloves that offered superior protection against the hazards of different jobs when compared to similar competitive gloves. Once approved, Ansell teams met with site safety supervisors and helped train workers at each location on proper use and disposal.
Ansell’s all-encompassing support – from hazard assessments, to supply planning and worker training – enabled a seamless transition to the new gloves across all sites.
Supporting Streamlined PPE Solutions for Healthcare Giant, Baxter
Baxter, a multinational healthcare solutions leader, is also at the forefront of sustainable supply chains and has set a comprehensive waste reduction goal as part of its 2030 Corporate Responsibility Commitment. As part of this effort, some of the company’s European sites set targets to reduce the number of different PPE items in inventory by 65%, thereby driving a reduction in packaging waste and inventory costs.
To help these Baxter locations achieve this goal, Ansell conducted AnsellGUARDIAN® assessments at 23 Baxter sites in collaboration with Baxter’s procurement teams to understand their PPE purchasing and storage practices. Insights from these discussions provided Ansell with a comprehensive understanding of Baxter’s glove usage and requirements, leading to a recommendation for a more streamlined PPE portfolio.
Implementing Ansell’s recommendations resulted in a significant reduction in inventory costs and waste for Baxter, without compromising worker safety. Baxter exceeded its SKU reduction target of 60%.
Encouraged by these positive outcomes, Baxter recently began discussions with Ansell about potentially expanding the programme to additional sites in Europe and North America. This success highlights Ansell’s ability to go beyond worker protection and partner with companies to help them meet their waste reduction and sustainability goals.
Meeting Impact Protection Standards for the World’s Foremost Online Retailer
The world’s largest e-commerce retailer employs over 1.1 million workers and operates over 175 fulfilment centres globally. Safety is a priority for the company, which aims to become Earth’s safest employer.
As part of its continuous efforts to improve its safety record, our customer recognised a need to protect workers against the risk of hand injuries caused by falling objects, machinery, or equipment. They initiated a search to identify a glove that would mitigate these hazards without compromising workers’ ability to perform their tasks.
While hundreds of PPE manufacturers offer bulky gloves that provide impact protection, most significantly restrict finger movement, which could hinder workers’ ability to use handheld barcode scanners, pack products, and sort inventory. Even minor limitations in movement for warehouse workers could dramatically reduce operational productivity. Recognising the critical importance of choosing the right glove, the company undertook extensive testing of a variety of impact gloves.
Ansell’s HyFlex® R840 emerged as the ideal solution, delivering robust impact protection for workers while ensuring optimal dexterity and comfort. With company productivity and performance at stake, Ansell’s innovative design and high quality resulted in a significantly superior impact glove for our customer when compared to those of our competitors.
Winning a Toscana Surgical Tender Through Our Dedication to ESG
Ansell recently became the sole supplier of surgical gloves in the Toscana region of Italy after winning a significant tender that adhered to the European Commission’s sustainable procurement directives. This marked Italy’s first national public surgical tender with strict Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) requirements, reflecting a growing trend across EU countries towards sustainable procurement.
The tender focused on two key ESG aspects: Green Public Procurement, which seeks to reduce environmental impact throughout a product’s lifecycle, and Socially Responsible Public Procurement (SRPP), which prioritises social benefits over the lowest price. Bidders were required to demonstrate commitment to environmental and social responsibility throughout the product lifecycle.
Recognising the opportunity to lead in ethical practices, Ansell collaborated with its Italian distributor, Clini-Lab, and leveraged our in-house sustainability experts to review tender requirements and effectively address 14 ESG requirements to demonstrate the superior quality and sustainable features of our PI Micro surgical gloves, designed with PI-KARE™ Technology.
Ansell’s commitment to ESG principles led to its successful tender award, reinforcing its position as a leader in Italy’s healthcare sector. This win highlights Ansell’s ability to satisfy increasingly frequent requests for information about the sustainability of our products and manufacturing practices and navigate government procurement processes. Ansell is proud in cases like these to showcase how we are paving the way for a greener, more socially responsible future.
