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#1 Posted : 29 August 2007 17:07:00(UTC)
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Posted By Taff2
I've just joined a medium sized food manufacturing company that has a poor track history - accident rates are good but safety management systems are lacking. We employ 150.

Senior management are enthusiastic to develope a robust H&S management system - but are not seeking accreditation at this stage.

How long would it take to establish a suitable system? - I do not want to commit to a an unrealistic target.

Has anyone achieved this in under 2 years/18 months/1 year/6 months?


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#2 Posted : 30 August 2007 08:20:00(UTC)
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Posted By Steve B
Taff2, This is one of those questions "how long is a piece of string". What you need to ensure is the level of commitment from your senior management, i.e. a lot talk the talk, you need to get them to walk the walk. if this commitment is clearly seen by all staff they are more likely to follow suit. setting up a safety committee from the workforce chaired by the MD is also a good view of commitment. initially your management will see an increase in near miss reporting etc and senior management may see this as a negative, of course we know that this is a good thing so warn them in advance. to answer your initial question, you should see an improvement within 6 months or so but it will take a number of years to get the culture fully embedded.

hope this helps
Regards
Steve B
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#3 Posted : 30 August 2007 08:36:00(UTC)
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Posted By Bob Youel

with only 150 staff and an enthusiastic management team it should be an easy and short [few months at most] task

I went into one such company as you describe and was out of a job in 6 months [I was self employed] - A refreshing change

Another organisation that I have worked with have taken ten years to do what the other company did in 6 months
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#4 Posted : 30 August 2007 08:46:00(UTC)
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Posted By The toecap
As has been stated. You need full management backing. I work in a company were a lot of promise has come from the board. But, at the lower levels there is very little support. Basically, the board think things are great. I know better. Things are getting worse because figures are being falsified by area directors. I wont be staying much longer because i wont be part of it. So best of luck but, see what happens in say 3 months attitudes may change.
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