You've read about why a safety site survey matters. You understand the cost of skipping it. Now you're wondering what the process actually looks like – what happens during the consultation, what the survey itself involves, and what you receive when it's done.
These are fair questions. A paid consultation is a commitment of your time and budget, and you should know exactly what you're signing up for at each tier before you pick up the phone.
This article walks through the Clarity process from first contact to final proposal – and shows how the experience differs depending on which consultation package fits your challenge.
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No. And this is something we want to make clear.
A sales visit starts with a product and works backwards. A consultation starts with your operation and identifies what it actually needs. The two can look similar from the outside – someone walks your site, asks questions, takes notes – but the intent, and the output, are entirely different.
Clarity consultations are structured around identifying risk, not selling product. The specialist leading your survey is there to map hazards, review your existing controls, and understand how your people and vehicles interact. If the findings point toward a solution we don't supply, we'll say so. That isn't a common outcome, but it matters that you know our recommendations aren't filtered through a product catalogue.
The paid model exists for exactly this reason. The consultation fee creates accountability on both sides. And if you proceed with Clarity for supply and installation, the fee is credited back against your order – so the practical cost of finding out exactly where your site stands is zero.
The consultation format is structured around the scale of your challenge. There are three tiers, and what happens at each one is different.
Best for: a single, defined safety concern – a specific crossing point, a loading bay, a narrow aisle.
This tier begins with a structured discovery conversation rather than a full site visit. We work through the root cause of the specific issue, identify what's driving the risk, and produce a bespoke solution proposal with 2D product drawings.
There's no site visit included at this level, but the consultation is thorough. The output is focused and immediately actionable – a clear recommendation for one problem, not a broad overview of the site.
Best for: wider pedestrian safety challenges across your facility.
This tier includes a full site visit. A Clarity specialist maps your traffic flows, identifies high-risk zones, reviews your existing barriers against PAS 13:2017, and checks whether your documentation reflects current operations.
The output includes both 2D and 3D concept drawings, a written findings summary, and a site-specific proposal your team can take directly into project planning or internal approval. This is the tier for facilities where the risk picture isn't limited to a single area.
Best for: multi-site organisations that need to set a consistent safety standard across an estate.
This consultation begins with a leadership alignment session – reviewing your existing group HSE standards and agreeing on what a consistent baseline should look like across sites. From there, the consultation produces a framework for rolling detailed surveys across your full estate.
The output isn't a single proposal – it's a repeatable audit standard that your team can apply site by site, with Clarity providing the specialist input at each location.
For the Full Site Package and Group Standard tiers, the on-site survey follows a structured methodology aligned with the requirements of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and the standards set out in PAS 13:2017.
There are four core areas:
We map how FLTs and pedestrians actually move through your facility during live operations – not how your traffic management plan says they should. The gap between the two is usually where the risk sits. We identify conflict points, crossing zones, and areas where segregation is absent, compromised, or creates new hazards while appearing to resolve existing ones.
Shift-specific patterns matter here. A crossing that presents low risk during day operations can become a problem on nights when staffing levels and supervision differ.
Loading docks, narrow aisles, blind corners, racking ends, charging bays, and areas with high pedestrian density all carry elevated risk profiles. Each is reviewed individually – taking into account line of sight, vehicle speed, the frequency of pedestrian access, and whether current controls are appropriate for actual operating conditions.
Existing barriers are assessed against PAS 13:2017 – the UK's publicly available specification for warehouse safety barriers. The key questions are whether they are specified correctly for the vehicle weights in use, whether they remain structurally fit for purpose, and whether they are positioned to protect the right hazards.
Barriers that are technically compliant but installed in the wrong location provide a false sense of protection. We flag these as firmly as those that are damaged or underspecified.
We check whether your current risk assessments accurately reflect your operations. Outdated documentation is one of the most common findings on a Clarity survey – and one of the most significant. If your last risk assessment was completed before a layout change, before a new vehicle type was introduced, or before your headcount shifted substantially, the document no longer represents your site.
An HSE inspector will treat a risk assessment that doesn't reflect current operations as effectively absent. The gap between what's on paper and what happens on the floor is exactly what they look for.
The output of a Clarity consultation is a documented, site-specific proposal – not a generic barrier recommendation based on square footage, and not a quote padded with standard configurations.
What you receive depends on the tier:
For the Full Site Package in particular, this documentation does two things. It gives your team something concrete to take into project planning. It also demonstrates due diligence – evidence that your safety decisions are grounded in a formal survey rather than assumption, which matters if an HSE inspector visits or an insurer asks questions.
If you're working on building a business case internally, How to Guarantee Your Polymer Safety Barrier Pitch Gets Approved covers how to structure that approval process.
Once the proposal is in your hands, the next step is yours.
If you proceed with Clarity for supply and installation, the consultation fee is deducted from your project cost. If you use the findings to inform an internal specification or take them elsewhere, that's entirely your call. The survey still has value – you've documented your risks and identified a clear path to compliance.
For those who proceed, the project moves into the Design phase. Drawings are refined, your team is aligned, and the installation is planned around your operations rather than fitted in despite them.
More on what a professional installation methodology looks like – and how to tell whether a supplier is following one – in How to Spot a Barrier Supplier Who Can Actually Audit.
Find Out What a Clarity Consultation Would Uncover on Your Site
Choose the package that fits your challenge and book your consultation. The fee is credited back against any installation order.