Individual policies are incorporated into overall policies and procedures manuals for Charter and AGI that apply to all businesses worldwide. Local line management at each business has the primary responsibility for compliance with local regulatory requirements, policy and procedures, standards issued by ESAB or Howden and also for implementing management systems and driving continuous improvement.
Environmental, Health and Safety
ESAB and Howden operate in engineering environments where there is considerable inherent risk and we recognize the need to adopt best practice safety management across all our operations. Charter aims for all of its operating sites to use EHS management systems to implement policies and drive performance improvement; new acquisitions are required to put in place an EHS management system as soon as possible. Certification of the EHS Management Systems has been a priority as it provides a high level of assurance that the systems being implemented are to an appropriate standard. Significant progress has been made in recent years and at July 2010 only one manufacturing location remains to be certified. (see Recent Achievements and Developments – EHS Management Systems).
Charter has selected as EHS Key Performance Indicators('KPIs') (for the combined businesses) lost-time injury frequency rate, energy use (both direct and indirect, with the ultimate aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions) and waste transferred to landfill. These KPIs are measured across all the countries in which we operate. A focus on these KPIs is also expected to drive efficiency gains and cost savings and is integrated within the Lean Manufacturing programme. Lean Manufacturing involves a systematic approach to identifying and eliminating waste through continuous improvement of the manufacturing process. Cleanliness of the workplace and employee engagement are given a high priority and many of the tools, such as the use of a safety cross, one point lessons and team problem solving, are being deployed.
Board and the senior management receive a monthly summary of EHS performance worldwide, prepared by the Head of Risk Management on the basis of corresponding reports submitted by the management of Howden and ESAB. These reports currently present data on the following KPIs:
- the number of injuries that result in lost time
- the total number of days off work (including any weekends or vacation periods)
- the number of first aid injuries and near misses reported at manufacturing or service sites with more than a 100 employees
- significant environmental releases, regulatory fines or penalties.
The reports also present the results of any incident analyses and key corrective actions taken. It also reports progress on key activities and plans for the next quarter, enabling issues most relevant to the business to be prioritised and resources to be focused.
Environmental, Health and Safety Management System internal audits are an important component of achieving continuous improvement. These have been a regular part of ESAB’s programme for many years and are being introduced in Howden in 2010.
Competition and Bribery and Corruption
Charter companies have contracts and operations in many parts of the world and the Board is committed to ensuring that the business is conducted with honesty, integrity and openness. As well as the Code of Conduct there are specific policies covering competition and, more recently, bribery and corruption.
To assist with raising awareness and providing training a Compliance Officer was appointed in 2010. On-line training material was rolled out on Competition Law in 2009. In 2010 online training on anti-bribery and corruption will be commenced, initially in English but shortly to be extended to 10 other languages.