“Our ambitious but reachable goal is zero accidents in all operations,” says Noel Morrin, Executive Vice President of Sustainability at Stora Enso. “We have come far by halving our total accident rate in the past five years – and compared to a few decades ago, the improvement is tremendous. Recently, our Consumer Board division went 65 days without an accident – that’s over one million safe working hours and proof that a zero-accident workplace is achievable. But we still have a lot of work to do.”
At Stora Enso, we believe that safety starts at the top but that we are all responsible for working safely.
“Being safe at work is about simple things done well: common sense, taking personal responsibility for what you do, looking out for your co-workers,” Morrin says. “When taking on a task for the first time or something we have done before, do we take time to evaluate the risks? Do we plan the task well? These are some of the questions we need to ask when building a safety culture in the company.”
Certified safety
Safety at Stora Enso units is a top priority. It’s a visible theme through countless warning and reminder signs that help make safety a part of our daily routines. International standards such as the OHSAS 18001 further ensure that we apply a systematic approach to occupational safety. In 2019, Stora Enso’s Wood Supply Sweden received an ISO 45001 certificate for occupational health and safety, a new standard set to replace the OHSAS 18001.
“The ISO 45001 directs organisations to also focus on the opportunities of health and safety work rather than just risks,” says Mikael Eriksson, Occupational Health and Safety Specialist at Wood Supply Sweden. “It gives more weight to leadership commitment and the dialogue between leaders and the workforce in improving safety. Employees are seen as contributors to the results, not subordinates, which is how we feel about our workforce as well.”
Sharing safety know-how
The ISO 45001 standard also highlights the importance of involving contractors in safety improvements and urges companies to consider health and safety aspects in the sourcing of goods. Our Sourcing and Logistics function will run two webinars for our suppliers during the company-wide safety week.
“The goal is to share Stora Enso’s safety journey, key elements for safe operations and the ‘8 life-saving rules’ that we endorse at all our units,” says Johanna Pirinen, Senior Vice President of Sustainable Sourcing and Logistics at Stora Enso. “This is a great opportunity for us to start sharing our safety thinking and values in a new way. It is important that our suppliers have the same goals and values as us, also for safety.”
“Stora Enso’s goal is to get everybody home safe every day – our own employees, our suppliers and contractors, and anyone visiting our units,” Noel Morrin concludes.
