sain t-gobain annu al report 2008 annual report

In the Building Distribution Sector, musculoskeletal
disorders represent a major health risk for employees,
given the handling activities their work entails. At Point.P,
all newly hired warehouse employees attend mandatory
training in proper motion and posture. Lapeyre has developed
a video on appropriate handling techniques that is shown
to employees in all Lapeyre stores, and 115 staff members
have undergone training that they will in turn extend
to both new employees and current members of the workforce
on an ongoing basis.
In the Pipe Division, an ergonomist devises solutions
to ergonomics issues specific to the Industrial Projects unit.
In addition, two assessment programs – Ergo-Progress
and Ergo-Team – have been developed, the former for new
investments and the latter for correcting shortcomings
at existing sites. Users take part in training sessions lasting
from one to six days. The goal is to improve the Division’s
facilities by incorporating ergonomic considerations into
the earliest stages of the design process. These assessment
programs ensure that even the minutest details of every
project are subject to close scrutiny. More than 40 employees,
including project managers, designers and site managers, have
been trained in the use of the programs, and over 50 projects
have benefited from the in-depth focus they provide.
2008-2010 OBJECTIVE
The Posture/Lifting/Movement (PLM) ergonomics
process will be implemented at pilot sites in each Division
beginning in 2009.
Preventing biological hazards
Following an outbreak of legionnaires’ disease in France
in late 2003, and the introduction of new French regulations
in 2004, Saint-Gobain sites in France have moved proactively
to prevent and control risks in this area. All potentially affected
Sectors in France have taken the necessary steps to ensure
compliance, including monthly or even weekly monitoring
of water quality, frequent cleaning of pipes to prevent
the formation of a biofilm and the commissioning of audits
by qualified external inspectors. In addition, many have
organized training in crisis management. A number
of sites have upgraded their facilities to minimize hazards.
For example, dead-leg piping has been eliminated to prevent
the accumulation of standing water and the emergence
of the bacteria responsible for legionnaires’ disease. Although
these stringent regulations currently apply solely to France,
a number of businesses, such as the Innovative Materials
Sector – Flat Glass, have replicated these practices in other
European countries and beyond.
In response to the increased risk of an avian flu pandemic,
we introduced a series of preventive measures in 2005
that mobilized the EHS and Human resources Departments:
• General instructions were issued based on the pandemic
risk scale published by the World Health Organization.
• The Sectors integrated the risk of a pandemic into
their operational crisis management plans.
The Construction Products Sector, for example, provided
all its sites with an optional system to assist them
in evaluating their continuity plans.
Environmental issues
THE FRENCH PRESIDENT VISITS
A SAINT-GOBAIN SITE
On November 4, 2008, France’s President,
Nicolas Sarkozy, visited the Placoplatre® site near Paris,
accompanied by the Minister for Ecology, Energy,
Sustainable Development and Regional Development.
After touring the factory’s new plasterboard production
line and training center, the President took part
in a roundtable discussion on implementing
the “Grenelle de l’Environnement,” which lays out
France’s medium-term environmental strategy.
Given our strategic position in the habitat and construction
market, we need to deliver a text-book environmental
performance, which is why we are committed to making
constant progress in this area.
THE SAINT-GOBAIN GLASS SITE IN EGGBOROUGH
RECOGNIZED FOR ITS EMPLOYEES’ CONTRIBUTIONS
TO ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
The Eggborough site was named Britain’s eighth
most eco-friendly company in a Sunday Times survey
for 2008. The factory’s 196 employees can take pride
in the results they achieved in reducing waste and CO 2
emissions, particularly through greater use of recycled
glass in the manufacturing process, an area where
the plant significantly outperforms its competitors
in the flat glass industry.
MANAGEMENT REPORT
53
Saint-Gobain - 2008 Annual Report