Odfjell Quarterly October 2012

QHSEODFJELL QUARTERLY magazineSafety culture towards suBy Jennifer Franco, Information Officer, ManilaShip Management steadfast commitmentto the reinforcement of safety culturemeans not only strengthening leadershipinvolvement but also developing concreteactions to translate safety objectives intodaily operations. This entails ensuringawareness and loyalty to the organisation’sunequivocal vision, core values,message, expectations and goals thatlead to excellent safety performance bothon shore and on board.12The Officers Conference in Manila on28-30 August, led by managers from ShipManagement and Odfjell Tankers, provesour focus on guaranteeing the top management’scompetence and commitmentin matters relating to sustained safetyperformance. The three-day workshopalso underlined the continuous pursuitfor positive improvement on the proactiveapproach to safety through various programmesand safety message disseminationcampaigns.Toralf Sørenes, SVP QHSE discussing corporate QHSEProactive safety message:The Bow Tie ModelHelen von Hirsch Eriksen, OrganisationalPsychologist from Proactima and one ofthe principal presenters during the conferencestressed that Ship Management safetyculture leans towards proactivity: - We aimto create a proactive safety culture wherethe emphasis is placed on putting barriersto stop incidents from happening, i.e. toreduce probability of an accident.The shift to a proactive management ofsafety is a work in progress that entailsconsistent communication of the safetymessage, the Bow Tie Model. ShipManagement has designed its own versionof this internationally recognised modelthat defines a proactive approach to safety.HSE Manager Harald Bauck said that ShipManagement has already put in placenecessary barriers to reduce consequencesof an accident, but in order to develop aproactive safety culture, the focus mustbe on preventive actions. He added thatunderstanding the Bow Tie Model and itsimplications on safety of operations is thebeginning of a real shift towards proactivity:- Our focus must move from the right-handside to the left-hand side of the model.Putting the safety message out- One of the elements in safety cultureis values. They describe our identity andshould be the baseline which motivatesall actions for ship and shore staff, SeniorVice President of Ship Management HelgeOlsen said in his presentation during theOfficers Conference. To reinforce the SafetyCulture campaign, we have included proactivesafety culture in the core values whichwill frame the norms, attitudes and behavioursof everyone in the organisation. ShipManagement has also developed materialsthat will serve as visual representations ofour commitment to move towards a moreproactive management of safety. Posters andtarpaulins of the Bow Tie Model and corevalues are displayed on board vessels and inshore offices, and the use of the ‘Stop WorkAuthority’ card will be implemented soon.The ‘Stop Work Authority’ card will serveas a visual aid for all employees indicatingthat they need to ‘STOP WORK’ when theactivity poses a potential danger. This cardwill be given to all employees within ShipManagement.The efforts in making the safety messageknown both on board and on shore has beenyielding optimistic results. Vice Presidentof Fleet Management in Bergen, GeirmundDrivenes, shared that whilst the messageis spreading, there is always a need to fightagainst complacency through a robust andcontinuous information campaign:-Weneed to renew and keep driving the messageuntil we all think safety from top-level managementto everyone in the organisation.But putting the message out is only thebeginning of the cultural change. The realwork lies in everyone’s combined effort tobe proactive. This change has to start fromthe top of the organisation.Leadership developmentto drive cultural changeAn organisation’s success in developing asafety culture is only as good as its leaders’adherence to the safety philosophy. Thewww.odfjell.com