Preferred Protective Equipment Is Keeping Our Communities Safe

This Patch article is sponsored by Preferred Protective Equipment.

Preferred Protective Equipment is a manufacturing company based in South Windsor, Connecticut, that supplies businesses and individuals with personal protective gear. Its Federal Drug Administration-compliant products include a reusable acrylic shield and fully adjustable vest and harness.

Patch caught up with Darryl Phillips, president of Preferred Protective Equipment, to learn more about how the company's protective products are aiding the community during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as its new Total Comfort Face Shield™ line of products.

Patch: How long have you been doing business in town?

Phillips: The Preferred family of companies has been based in South Windsor, Connecticut, for eight years and has been operating in Connecticut for over 36 years.

Patch: What attracted you to the line of work you’re in, and how did you get started?

Phillips: While supplying the health and beauty industries with graphics from the West Coast, I had always admired the superior and innovative work that was produced by Preferred Display Inc. Once the opportunity was presented to join the organization, I relocated my family from Southern California and began diversifying the range of services offered by our company.

Patch: If you had to sum up your business mission to a stranger in five words, what would those words be?

Phillips: Value-based, customer-centric partner.

Patch: What’s the biggest challenge or most difficult moment you’ve faced in your job?

Phillips: The biggest challenge has been navigating our company through the current COVID-19 pandemic. We have refocused our core competencies in design, engineering and manufacturing to develop a line of PPE [personal protective equipment] to help put our community and nation back to work. Keeping morale and motivation high, by providing a unified vision, has been essential to our continued ability to create and innovate.

Patch: What’s the most satisfying part of your job?

Phillips: The most satisfying part of my job is working with our team of talented professionals and recognizing the direct correlation between their personal growth and our company’s success.

Patch: How would you say your business or organization distinguishes itself from the others?

Phillips: Based on our history as a leading high-end acrylic fixture provider for the premium cosmetics industry, our company has grown to become the best-equipped acrylic manufacturing company of the East Coast. When our firepower is packaged with our design and engineering know-how, the end product is of the highest quality and is manufactured efficiently to provide maximum value back to our clients.

Patch: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given when it comes to success?

Phillips: Listen, learn, act, repeat. Many business leaders focus on one or two aspects of the four. The most successful leaders find a way to incorporate all four, especially when it comes to listening to all employees, regardless of position or title, and — most importantly — our customers.

Patch: Are there any new projects or endeavors you’re working on that you’re extra excited about?

Phillips: We are extremely excited about our Total Comfort Face Shield™ line of products. Our owner and founder, Robert Rousseau, through multiple conversations with the medical community, established the need for PPE to address two current major concerns. Our heroic nurses and doctors needed a solution that provided much better protection from bodily fluids, while removing breathing tubes from patients on ventilators. There was also a pressing need to develop PPE that did not cause discomfort, especially to the head and face. These two factors were the primary drivers in bringing our face shields to market, which in essence act as a Mobile Partition™. Through the work of our dedicated team, we are able to bring the product line to market, from inception, in three weeks. We not only were able to eliminate face or head discomfort, provide head and upper body protection, but also solved the fogging and overheating concerns caused by commonly used PPE.

Patch: Do you have any events coming up in your community?

Phillips: We, along with the rest of our country, are looking forward to not only getting our economy and schools back on track, but once again enjoying the sense of community that social interaction provides. We will play our small part in getting back to the new normal.

Patch: How can Patch readers learn more about your work and business?

Phillips: You can learn more about our work and company on our website.