Safety managers face a constant tension. They want PPE easy to get, because a worker who can't get the right glove will work without one. But they also need control: approved products only, spending that stays in budget, and no supervisor ordering 40 pairs of premium boots on a whim.
Most distributors solve this by only taking orders from one person in purchasing. That keeps control but makes ordering slow, and the safety manager hears complaints from the floor. The app lets you give the floor easy ordering and give the safety manager control.
Managers approve
Any user on a customer account can be set up as a manager, and an account can require approval. When a supervisor places an order that needs approval, it is held as Awaiting approval and the manager gets an email or a text with the order details. The manager approves or declines from the link, and an approved order goes straight through. The link expires after a set period and can only be used once, so old approval emails can't be reused.
For a plant, this means the second-shift supervisor can order replacement face shields at midnight, and the safety manager approves it first thing. No one is blocked, and nothing slips through unreviewed.
Budgets and order modes
Each user can have a monthly budget. A crew foreman might get a set monthly amount for PPE, which keeps each crew's spending inside a limit the safety manager chose. You can also set how a user orders: orders only, quotes only with no direct ordering, or both. A newer supervisor might be on quotes only, so they can put together what they need and have it priced, while the manager places the order.
Restricted items let you block an item and, if you want, name what the buyer should order instead. The buyer is told at checkout. That's a powerful tool in safety:
- Block the cheap safety glasses that don't meet the plant's impact requirement and point to the approved style.
- Block a general-purpose glove in the cut-hazard department and name the cut-resistant glove.
- Block earplugs with the wrong noise rating for a high-noise area.
- Steer everyone to the standardized hard hat so the logo and suspension are consistent.
Master accounts for multi-site customers
A utility with a dozen service yards, a school district with 30 buildings, or a manufacturer with several plants is really one customer with many locations. A master account holds the price file, the customer's part numbers and the terms for all its locations. No orders are placed on the master itself. Each location inherits its master's price file, discount and part-number cross-references, and anything set on the location overrides the master.
Set restricted items on a master account and they cover every location underneath. The corporate safety director sets the approved PPE list once, and every plant follows it. When bins are loaded on the master with a location column, each location sees only its own bins.
Why safety managers love it
This is a selling point, not just a setting. Bring it to a multi-site prospect and show the corporate safety director how they can standardize PPE across every site, control spend with budgets, and still let crews order when they need to. Many safety directors have spent years trying to enforce an approved list with spreadsheets and memos. Giving them the controls in the ordering app is a strong reason to consolidate their PPE spend with you.
Ready to walk through it with your accounts in mind? Book a demo.