Harmonising practices in 40 countries
Our role involves translating and effecting the global asbestos standard within more than 40 countries, including those with less prescriptive legislation and more challenging safety cultures. We are providing strategic and local support to guide stakeholders through the safe and consistent management of asbestos risk via a range of global and regional initiatives including:
- Global research to establish the current asbestos management risk status of worldwide sites and to determine and prioritise future asbestos risk management programmes.
- Development of a new duty-holder focused global asbestos database and register, built following a review of other leading global products and tailored specifically for our client’s business.
- Refining the client’s global asbestos standard, associated guidance and tools.
- Redesigning internal asbestos training courses for delivery across all regions.
- Establishing country-level asbestos consultant and contractor supply chains.
- Planning, oversight and coordination of all UK asbestos surveys, emergency response, annual re-inspection programmes, asbestos abatement works and associated monitoring.
- Responding to emergency situations and providing a help desk function.
A successful 2016
The first year of the project has been very successful. Focusing on UK operations, we’ve been able to demonstrate value by introducing bespoke databases and systems, reducing risk at multiple points as well as creating clear financial savings.
Next steps
In 2017, the team will roll out the SME function to all global operations, offering consistent global good practice management of asbestos risk, reducing potential exposure, delivering a measurable shift in asbestos awareness, driving management solutions that offer best value, and helping protect and enhance our client’s knowledge, reputation and industry leadership.
Lasting capabilities
Our longer-term objective is to develop a lasting capability within our client’s organisation, training and mentoring to raise awareness with local site staff, enabling self-sufficiency and the continuation of successful asbestos risk management at an individual site level. Ultimately, the objective is to provide a stand-alone management system that will provide the client with assured and cost-effective risk management of asbestos. In just a few years these systems will be up and running globally.
