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The construction and engineering industry has historically been a
hazardous work environment, where serious incidents were regularly
recorded. Attracting and retaining young or new skilled staff to
this environment has been a challenge, and a poor health and safety
record has not helped the image of the industry.
Environmental matters are fast becoming global differentiators in
the way industries conduct their activities. Market analysts are
increasing the value placed on environmental performance factors in
determining investment opportunities.
No longer are end-of-process solutions acceptable; potentially
hazardous chemicals, processes and materials are increasingly
engineered out of system designs further up the project life cycle.
Energy efficiency, clean technology and benign design methodologies
are no longer optional extras; they are now demanded by project
owners and society. These health safety & environment (HSE) trends
have increased the focus on our market sector.
The Murray & Roberts commitment to zero disabling incident
transcends workplace injuries, and examines the Group's total
performance in terms of the health and wellbeing of all our
employees, the safety of each individual, and the impact of our
activities on the natural environment and society at large.
The Group's priority for the years ahead is not only to aspire to
zero disabling incident, but to achieve it. A strategic focus on HSE
key performance indicators (KPI's) will ensure that value is derived
from the HSE framework implemented across the Group in 2006. This
risk-based approach will be expanded to reveal the opportunities
inherent in good HSE management. More quantitative KPI's will be
used to demonstrate value through measurement of decreased days
lost, decreased utilities used and increased process efficiencies.
In order to evaluate the impact our activities might contribute
to climate change, Murray & Roberts has undertaken to establish the
extent of its carbon footprint. As a signatory to the Kyoto
protocol, South Africa has made a commitment to investigate and
assess alternatives to fossil based energy and to the use of
products that are more environmentally friendly. This places
significant responsibility on operations to implement solutions that
reduce the consequences of their undertakings on released carbon.
This initiative is in development within the Group and will be
conducted in the first two quarters of the 2008 financial year. The
setting of targets and reduction mechanisms will follow, with
defined objectives to decrease the Group's carbon footprint.
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Stop.Think |
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The Stop.Think
campaign has raised awareness across Murray & Roberts of
the need to deliver world class HSE performance. The
principles of coaching and changing behaviour will
continue to be developed through the Stop.Think concept.
We have expanded the focus of the campaign to include
all occupational and societal health issues, continued
safety awareness, and to ensure that none of our
activities are undertaken at the expense of the
environment.
Hand signals used in
the Stop.Think campaign.
The Stop.Think
initiative has been the start of a culture change in the
Group through which health, safety, and environmental
awareness is embedded in our people and systems to
ensure that our actions do no harm. An HSE culture is a
step beyond behaviour, to where we as a group will
always act instinctively on HSE issues. This concept is
evident in countries such as Australia and Canada, where
safety and health concerns are embedded in the process
of every undertaking, and where HSE issues form part of
every decision making process. |
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