Calderys Group strengthens its health & safety commitment with 2024 safe.day edition

For the second year, Calderys has organised its safe day. In all sites worldwide, employees and contractors were asked to stop operations and tasks and dedicate some time to reinforcing the company's health and safety culture with diverse activities.

This year's event theme was "Shared Vigilance," which focused on how everyone can contribute to lowering risks and maintaining a safe workplace by staying alert. Activities and workshops involving employees, contractors, and sometimes customers were organised everywhere.

Michel Cornelissen, Calderys President and CEO, said, "At Calderys, our commitment to health and safety is integral to our strategy and embedded in everything we do. Our corporate value, 'We are accountable,' says it all. We are accountable for our actions, decisions and their consequences; this includes our health and safety and everyone involved in our activities. This is an absolute commitment and a key priority every day. The safe.day has been launched to take the time to reflect on our approach to health and safety to constantly improve it and reinforce our general health and safety culture. It is a key event in the life of our company, and I was very proud to witness the engagement and enthusiasm of the teams on September 20th."

In addition to the workshop on "Shared Vigilance," sites were requested to hold an activity around the "line of fires" and how to mitigate the risks of being in harm's way. They then had the option to introduce a third workshop tailored to their local needs. During the day, a global internal webinar was also organised for all colleagues who could not be on-site for the occasion.

David Secret, Global Vice President of Operations Excellence, emphasises, "We tailored our safe.day to ensure absolutely everyone was able to dedicate some time to health and safety on that day. But it's important to note that health and safety is a never-ending journey; we have robust health and safety processes and policies in place and strive for continuous improvement in all areas. Everyone is empowered to stop their job if safety conditions do not meet our standards. We want to create working environments where people feel healthy and safe, and everyone who works for us or visits our sites goes home safe and healthy."

Calderys' safe. program

Calderys safe.day is named after the group's safety program: safe. launched In 2023 during the first edition of the safe.day, which gathered the whole newly-combined company. The safe. Program aims to maintain a strong health and safety culture across our business. It is structured around four pillars:

Safety First: Safety is part of the company's DNA. Employees are encouraged to take the time to do things properly and halt operations if safety conditions do not meet the group's policies and protocols.

Advancing Communication: Effective and transparent communication about company standards and protocols and potential dangers is encouraged between co-workers. It is vital for continuous improvement.

Fostering Collaboration: Health and safety are promoted as a collective effort and shared commitment. Employees are urged to intervene in high-risk situations to benefit themselves and their teammates.

Encouraging Ownership: Everyone is accountable for workplace health and safety, whatever their role. Employees are encouraged to actively engage and visibly commit to creating an incident—and injury-free environment.