Each role needs different kit, but customers should see one company whether they are at the counter or watching a machine come off the wagon. Here is how to plan kit by role, from the hire counter to the workshop pit.
Dressing a mixed workforce
Start by listing roles rather than people. Hire desk and sales staff need smart, branded polos or softshells. Yard staff and drivers need hi-vis for moving around loaded vehicles and on customer sites. Fitters need coveralls that stand up to hydraulic oil and grease. Operators need full site PPE, often to the principal contractor's rules.
Set a colour and logo standard across all of it, then pick the right garment for each role.
- Hire desk: polos, softshells, fleeces
- Drivers and yard: hi-vis jackets, trousers, safety boots
- Workshop fitters: coveralls, gloves, safety boots
- Operators: full site PPE, hi-vis, helmets
Depot yards and delivery drops
Yards are full of reversing plant, forklifts and slewing machines, so hi-vis is essential even for short trips across the depot. Delivery drivers unloading on site or at the roadside often need class 3 hi-vis if they are near live traffic, and many sites expect it anyway. Winter drops at 6am in rain mean a waterproof hi-vis jacket is worth more than a vest over a hoodie.
Workshop fitters and grease
Servicing excavators, telehandlers and generators means hydraulic oil, diesel and grease. Polycotton coveralls or bib and brace are the practical choice, washed on a regular cycle so oil does not build up in the fabric. Oil-soaked clothing is more flammable, so do not let it go unwashed. Safety boots with an oil-resistant sole and nitrile-coated gloves round it off. Give fitters enough coveralls to rotate through the laundry without anyone going a week in the same pair.
Where to put your logo
Plant hire kit is seen on every site you deliver to, so make the back count. A large printed company name across the back of hi-vis jackets is the most visible branding you can buy, but it must sit on the fluorescent fabric only and never over reflective tape. Oversized prints can reduce the compliant area, so keep within limits. Embroider polos and softshells for the hire desk, and coveralls on the chest for fitters.
Ordering for plant hire companies
Most plant hire companies start with hi-vis jackets and rainwear, hi-vis trousers and coveralls and boiler suits. You can order from one garment and add more as you take people on. The logo price drops at 9 and again at 25 garments, and every garment with a small logo counts towards it, so mixing styles and colours still gets the better price. Before anything is made, we embroider an actual sample of your logo and email you a photo to approve, or you can pop in to our Hull workshop to see it.
