Melanoma Awareness Month

UV-U-SEE, a highly visible skin-protection initiative helping set a new standard in health and safety on construction sites.

This Melanoma Awareness Month, advertising agency Pablo London are launching their bold new UV-U-SEE initiative. LifeJacket Skin Protection, Leo workwear, The National Federation of Builders and Considerate Builders all stand with Pablo, as they seek to change the way the construction industry sees skin protection, calling for a critical new standard in health and safety that will help save lives.

Construction workers in the UK make up 8% of the nation’s workforce, but account for an alarming 44% of occupational melanoma skin cancer deaths. The UV-U-SEE holistic skin protection system, is designed to inform, alert and nudge those working on-site into new good behaviours of protection and vigilance. In an environment as busy as a construction site, this 360 approach to skin-protection is vital.

Advertising agency Pablo London has created a beta project that calls for industry change by transforming on-site behaviours; it all starts with their ‘The Higher-Vis Vest’. Taking a standard safety vest, Pablo has pioneered an integrated UV-U-SEE silicon logo that’s filled with a long-lasting UV sensitive material. As the sun’s UV level intensifies, the logo changes from white to pink to red, alerting the wearer and fellow workers to take precautions. LifeJacket Skin Protection, leaders in high-performance SPF, is then their partner for their UV-U-SEE sun cream range. A waterproof, non-greasy and long-lasting product that makes it easy to apply on site, this is the high-level of skin protection that’s needed in construction work environments.

Deliberately bold and visible, this project makes invisible killers seen at every touchpoint, reminding on-site workers that they deserve and need protection. The UV-U-SEE initiative is a creatively-driven response to a personal experience. Hannah Penn, Joint MD of advertising agency Pablo London, was diagnosed with melanoma shortly after the birth of her second child. After making a full recovery, Hannah wanted to leverage the agency’s creativity to alert people to the dangers of sun exposure. Every partner, standing shoulder-to-shoulder in this project, is determined to do exactly that.This ia a projects that reminds an industry that prides itself on health and safety, that this one measure still desperately needs addressing

This initiative calls for real change in the industry, which is why Considerate Constructors are making the provision and education for skin protection, part of our new gold standard accreditation. We stand with all the partners involved with UV-U-SEE, in making construction workers fully protected on-site.

Find out more about the project and order the products at uvusee.co.uk

What can you do?

• PEOPLE WORKING IN CONSTRUCTION MAKE UP AROUND 8% OF THE TOTAL UK WORKFORCE, BUT REPRESENT 44% OF OCCUPATIONAL MELANOMA SKIN CANCER DEATHS.
• IN THE UK, 4 IN 10 MEN SAY THEY ARE RELUCTANT TO USE SUNCREAM
• ALTHOUGH IT ONLY TAKES ONE EXPOSURE TO HARMFUL LEVELS OF UV TO POTENTIALLY TRIGGER SKIN CANCER, 86% OF SKIN CANCER IS PREVENTABLE.