Raising the bar on safety leadership

Alastair Reid
Maintenance and Industrial Services
Executive General Manager Brief

I was delighted to present the 54^th Teamwork Baton to the Port and East Pilbara (PEP) Team for demonstrating outstanding safety leadership, by working together and taking a proactive approach to fatal risk controls.

Over the last three months, the team has been responsible for completing nearly 70 per cent of the Mining and Minerals North-West Region's Fatal Risk Control Verifications (FRCVs). In August, the PEP Team has completed more than 37 per cent of FRCVs within M&IS, as well as half of all interventions across the division.

While the quantifiable data is impressive, I want to acknowledge and highlight the behavioural shift that has been instrumental in this outcome.

The FRCV program is part of our unrelenting focus on improving the safety and wellbeing of our people, and living by The Safe Way is the Only Way principle. FRCVs are critical, site-based assurance checks to ensure our people understand the potentially fatal risks associated with activities and to verify that non-negotiable controls are in place to manage those risks.

When the PEP Team recognised that very few FRCVs were being completed, they saw an opportunity to address this, making a conscious decision to re-rollout the FRCV program to all leadership personnel as a refresher on the requirements, purpose and expectations.

The team increased the selected project FRCV targets from the Monadelphous minimum of one per month to one per day, renewing their focus on high-risk work activities and work standards. They have also been embedding the action of completing FRCVs as part of 'business as usual' activities. By re-focussing the team's efforts, they exceeded expectations and saw rapid improvement against KPIs.

I'd also like to commend the wider Mining and Minerals North-West (MMNW) business for 'embracing the red' and driving an upward trend in completed FRCVs month after month.

Congratulations to the PEP Team, deserving winners of the Teamwork Baton.