Todd Corporation has made dramatic improvements in workplace health and safety in the past year, including achieving a 76 per cent reduction in the group’s total recordable injury frequency rate.
The number continues to fall, from a high of 17 per one million hours in 2011 to just four in 2012. And an 88 per cent reduction in medical and lost time injuries (LTI) in the energy division was also recorded in 2012.
A number of energy projects in the year to March 31 proceeded without any LTIs, including drilling operations at Mangahewa, completion of the McKee 100 MW peaking plant, installation of gas pipelines at Mckee, and the commencement of the expansion of the McKee production station.
The turnaround began with Todd implementing a new health and safety management system (MS) in 2011 that incorporated the highest national and international standards.
Zero harm culture
The aim was to develop a safety culture capable of zero harm - zero injuries, zero environmental incidents, zero unscheduled outages and zero non-compliance issues across all the Todd group companies.
The MS combines 21 elements including management leadership and accountability; process assessment and improvement; training and competency; hazard identification, risk assessment and management; incident reporting, investigation and management; and legislative compliance.
Todd says its HSE system is one of the most stringent, integrated and rigorously audited systems in the country.
Each of the 21 elements is continually reported on, and learnings are shared across all of Todd’s businesses including Todd Energy and Nova Energy, but also including the group’s natural healthcare and wine interests. Todd says the arrangement is unique in New Zealand and compliance with the MS is improving, up from 57 per cent in 2011 to 73 per cent last year.
Incidental benefits from the new system include simplified business systems, reduced business risk, a more cohesive corporate culture, and an improved profile and reputation.
The Excellence in Health & Safety award category is sponsored by Siemens.