Our environment, health and safety processes
Accountability
Accountability for environment, health and safety cascades down from the main board (who bi-annually review our programmes), through each business unit to every individual. Each and every employee is responsible for some aspect of protecting the environment and health & safety from the Chief EHS (Environment, Health and Safety) Officer, who reports to the Chief Executive Officer, to the factory worker. This may be something as simple as correctly separating solid waste for recycling, or cleaning up spills of liquids which could cause people to slip and fall.
A QEHS steering group lead by the President of Global Supply Chain reviews our environment, health and safety management systems, identifies key issues and recommends any changes in policy to the board.
Corporate functions provide support, training, auditing and reporting services to the business units, line management and employees. Training programmes are conducted annually in different regions and these programmes not only raise awareness but provide practical information on how to conserve energy and water, undertake risk assessments, improve machine guarding, reduce waste, promote recycling and respond to spills and emergencies.
A typical factory audit consists of a several-day visit by corporate or Group auditors who are independent of the site's management. Together with the site management team, the auditors take a tour of the factory before examining the site's environmental and health and safety performance, management systems, procedures, records and objectives. The auditors' report consists of a series of recommendations, which are reviewed during subsequent follow-up visits.
Management Systems
We are committed to achieving the highest standards in Environment, Health and Safety (EHS). Our EHS policy and Standards help us manage issues such as energy and water use and waste, as well as the safety of those involved in making and selling our brands. Effective management of these is part of our long-term commitment to sustainability.
In 2004 we updated our EHS Standards
, building upon previous achievements and raising the bar at all of our sites. These new standards are based on international ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 standards and in many parts of the world they are much more demanding than the local legislation requires. Nonetheless, we are determined to keep on improving our EHS performance. Our aim is for our manufacturing sites to have fully implemented and embedded these EHS standards by 2008.
All of our company-owned manufacturing sites are audited by our EHS assurance team to our own benchmark. Some sites are also externally audited and certified to one, or both, of the above international standards.
We are continuing to invest in our systems, processes and facilities to improve the Company's environment, health and safety performance. Each month our businesses send their EHS data electronically to our central EHS team. This data is consolidated and checked before being reported to our Global Supply Chain Leadership Team for review quarterly and annually. It is also reviewed at least twice a year by our Board and Chief Executive's Committee.