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At the end of
1997, Novartis took full ownership of the Queretaro baby-food site
in Mexico, a plant that had a high rate of accidents attributable
to a lack of safety awareness.
Operations management invested significantly
in personal- protection equipment, fire-fighting systems, alarms,
sprinklers, and noise-reduction measures. Employee training was also
increased, and the Corporate HSE Guidelines as well as national/international
standards were instituted together with a safety-improvement plan.
These actions brought swift and sustainable
results, and the Lost-Time Accident Rate (LTAR) has fallen from 1.25
in 1998, to an impressive 0.15 in 2003: proof of just how effective
good HSE management can be.
Building a New Culture
The Des Plaines Illinois, US, site which manufactures
the complete FreshLook contact lens product range was acquired by
Ciba Vision in 2000. One of the major challenges since the acquisition
of Wesley Jessen Corporation has been the adoption of Novartis/CIBA
Vision HSE guidelines at this site. Over the last three years, thanks
to the outstanding commitment of all site employees, considerable
progress has been made.
HSE awareness has been raised using a variety
of methods. These, combined with direct senior-management involvement
in follow-up investigations of serious incidents and improved case
management by site health services, have led to real improvements
in on-site safety. Since 2002 the number of accidents needing first
aid treatment has decreased by 38%. Accidents leading to an
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absence of more
than one day have fallen by 78% and the number of accidents resulting
in impairment of individual’s working capacity has been reduced by
46%. Over the last three years, costs associated with accident related
absences have decreased by 75%. The
responsible HSE Officer, Shankar Sarkar, enthusiastic about the site’s
success: “Our achievements, especially in accident prevention, have
turned Des Plaines from a problem site into a role model that others
can emulate.”
Remediation
Since our past operations may have led to the
contamination of soil and/or groundwater, we have set aside financial
reserves of USD 179 million for estimated potential-environmental
liabilities. In and around Basel, the local chemical and pharmaceutical
industries (including predecessor companies of Novartis) have established
an organization to seek timely solutions to the possible consequences
of past disposal practices at a number landfills. The objective
of this organization is to eliminate acute and long-term risks through
pragmatic, eco-efficient measures that are developed in cooperation
with the authorities, and are based on professional studies and
assessment. During 2003, progress was made in assessment of seven
landfill sites in the Basel region, two of which may soon be excluded
by the authorities from further investigation. We expect the authorities
to take decisions on remediation for the five remaining sites 2005
or 2006.
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