Health & Safety Partner for Manufacturing, Production & Engineering Businesses
Health & Safety Partner for Manufacturing is an embedded health and safety support service for manufacturing, production and engineering businesses, providing independent, external technical input to help manage operational risk on the shopfloor, across production lines, machinery, maintenance activities and contractor operations
Our Health & Safety Partner for Manufacturing service provides embedded, independent health and safety support for manufacturing, production and engineering businesses across the UK. Delivered by TIPS Consultancy Ltd, this service offers a cost-effective alternative to employing a full-time Health & Safety Manager, while ensuring operational risk on the shopfloor, production lines and maintenance activities is managed consistently and proportionately.
Who the Health & Safety Partner for Manufacturing Service Is For
This service is designed for SME directors, operations managers, engineering managers and production managers who:
Operate active shopfloor environments with machinery, production lines and maintenance activities
Need ongoing health & safety coordination, not just audits or reports
Want an independent external view to support decisions and reduce internal conflict
Don’t require a full-time Health & Safety Manager but still need competent oversight
Are managing contractors, change, projects and operational risk simultaneously
It is particularly suited to manufacturing, production and engineering sites where risk changes daily and decisions are made under production pressure.
The Problem the Health & Safety Partner for Manufacturing Solves
In many manufacturing businesses, health & safety can become difficult to manage because:
Operational risk sits across multiple departments (production, engineering, maintenance)
Managers may have conflicting priorities
Safety decisions become personal or political rather than technical
Actions are raised but not consistently tracked or closed out
Internal teams often know the operation well—but may struggle to challenge each other objectively.
The Health & Safety Partner service introduces an independent, external technical perspective that:
Removes personal management clashes
Supports evidence-based decisions
Keeps discussions focused on risk, control and legal duty, not personalities
How the Health & Safety Partner for Manufacturing Service Works
Embedded Support With Independent Technical Oversight
We work alongside your teams on site, while remaining independent of internal management structures.
This allows us to:
Provide objective, impartial advice
Support difficult decisions with external technical backing
Act as a neutral coordinator between departments
Focus discussions on operational risk, not hierarchy
Our role is to support managers, not undermine them—bringing clarity where health & safety responsibilities overlap.
What’s Included in Our Health & Safety Partner for Manufacturing Service
Working Alongside Manufacturing, Engineering & Maintenance Teams
Direct support to production, engineering, maintenance and supervisory teams
Understanding how work is actually carried out on the shopfloor
Practical input aligned with machinery use, production flow and maintenance realities
Operational Risk Assessment Support for Manufacturing Activities
Supporting and coordinating general operational risk assessments
Working with supervisors and operators at the point of work
Capturing real hazards associated with:
Machinery and equipment
Production lines
Manual handling
Maintenance activities
Contractor interfaces
Ensuring assessments are suitable and sufficient
Clearly documenting controls in a usable format
(Specialist risk assessments are excluded — see exclusions below.)
Shopfloor Safety Meetings Led by a Health & Safety Partner
Leading or participating in shopfloor safety meetings
Supporting toolbox talks linked to real operational issues
Providing an external technical voice to reinforce key messages
Helping align safety expectations across shifts and departments
Coordinating Health & Safety Across Manufacturing Departments
Supporting coordination between production, engineering and maintenance
Reducing gaps and duplication between teams
Helping ensure consistent controls across the site
Tracking and Closing Health & Safety Actions in Manufacturing Environments
Coordinating health & safety actions raised from:
Inspections
Meetings
Incidents
Risk assessments
Supporting managers with prioritisation and follow-up
Preventing actions from stalling due to internal disagreements
Contractor Control and Contractor Inductions for Manufacturing Sites
Supporting contractor management arrangements
Contractor inductions focused on:
Site rules
Machinery risks
Traffic management
Permit-to-work interfaces
Helping ensure contractors integrate safely into live production environments
Health & Safety Partner Support for Engineering Projects and Change
Participation in project and engineering meetings
Highlighting health & safety considerations early
Supporting safer planning around:
New machinery
Process changes
Layout changes
Maintenance shutdowns
Providing an independent technical view during decision-making
Workplace Inspections and Shopfloor Walkarounds
Regular workplace inspections and shopfloor walkarounds
Identifying unsafe conditions and behaviours early
Supporting proportionate, practical corrective actions
Ongoing Independent Health & Safety Partner Advice and Site Presence
Day-to-day access to competent advice
A recognisable, independent health & safety presence on site
Trusted support that teams can engage with openly
Staff and Contractor Inductions in Manufacturing and Production Facilities
Supporting or delivering health & safety inductions
Ensuring consistent standards for employees and contractors
Reinforcing expectations across production and maintenance teams
Important Exclusions & Legal Responsibility
Specialist Risk Assessments
This service does not include specialist risk assessments, such as:
Fire risk assessments
Legionella risk assessments
DSEAR
Asbestos
Other specialist or statutory assessments
These can be scoped separately where required.
Dutyholder Responsibility
The client remains the legal dutyholder at all times.
This service provides independent support, coordination and technical input, but legal responsibility for health & safety cannot be delegated.
Why a Health & Safety Partner for Manufacturing Is More Cost-Effective Than Employing In-House
A full-time Health & Safety Manager typically brings:
Fixed salary and on-costs
Single-person dependency
Internal reporting pressures
Potential management friction
The Health & Safety Partner service provides:
Flexible, scalable input
Independent external judgement
Broad manufacturing and engineering experience
No internal politics or reporting bias
You get competent oversight and technical authority without permanent overhead.
Why Manufacturing Businesses Choose an Independent Health & Safety Partner
Manufacturing and engineering sites benefit from this model because it:
Introduces objective, external technical judgement
Prevents health & safety becoming personal or political
Supports managers with difficult decisions
Improves coordination across production, engineering and maintenance
Keeps focus on real operational risk, not paperwork
Health & safety works best when it is embedded, visible and independent.
Trusted Standards & Guidance
Our Health & Safety Partner service is informed by recognised UK legislation, regulatory guidance and industry standards to ensure advice is proportionate, defensible and aligned with accepted good practice.
We regularly reference guidance from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to support dutyholders in meeting their legal obligations and managing operational risk in manufacturing and engineering environments.
Our approach reflects the core principles of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, ensuring employers do what is reasonably practicable to protect employees, contractors and others affected by their activities.
Where appropriate, our support aligns with recognised management system frameworks such as ISO 45001, particularly around leadership, risk-based thinking, worker consultation and continual improvement.
As a practitioner-led consultancy, we also operate in line with professional standards promoted by the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), ensuring advice remains competent, ethical and grounded in real operational experience.
Speak to Us About Health & Safety Partner for Manufacturing Support
If your business needs embedded health & safety support, independent technical input and better coordination across the shopfloor – without employing a full-time manager – the Health & Safety Partner service offers a practical solution.
Contact us to discuss your operation and whether this approach is right for your site.