If your budget for buying new cleaning equipment is shrinking, this article will give you three strategies for making decision makers loosen their purse strings.
Show them the money
The primary complaint when buying new housekeeping equipment is their cost. When budgets are tight, it is difficult to prove an investment that does not lead directly to revenue. Companies that have had an incident already know that no price is too high for safety.
Consider the amount that Imperial Sugar had to fork out as OSHA fines, $8.8 million. This event also caused injuries and deaths of workers, this led to over 100 citations for willful violation of combustible dust hazards.
The costs that are associated with facility damage, worker injuries and the citations are high. Equated to that, spending a few thousand dollars to buy housekeeping equipment is a straight bargain.
Identifying non-compliance risks with standards
Cleaning a manufacturing plant is a requirement by law. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has set standards for all manufacturing plants including woodworking, pharmaceutical, food processing and metalworking. Failure to stick to these set guidelines results in OSHA fines.
Faced with these consequences, don’t you think it’s for your facility’s best interests to adhere to these rules?
Safety as a Far-reaching Issue
Instead of convincing your plant manager to purchase proper housekeeping equipment, sell the idea that they are buying into safety as a critical issue.
You can do this by:
- Tailoring your pitch - prove to your plant manager how safety boosts efficiency.
Frame the issue – demonstrate how safety helps you reach your goals as a business. For example, a company with strong safety programs benefits from lower costs associated with illnesses and injuries; they also have better productivity and healthy bottom line.
- Check your emotions – don’t let negative thoughts take over or you risk being seen as a complainer.
- Pick the right moment – choose the right moment to pass your proposal i.e. when the company is not dealing with pressing issues.
- Involve others – don’t do it alone, ask your co-workers and experts to join in, this will make your case stronger.
- Stick to the norm - approach the topic in a way that your facility manager appreciates.
- Come up with suggestions – do your research to come up with helpful suggestions.
Buying industrial cleaning equipment shouldn’t be difficult. Place the investment in the context of risk prevention and safety. This will help you find a lasting solution for your housekeeping problems.
