E117:05 5 September 2005

Safety Minister congratulates manual handling initiatives at launch of HSE And Step Change in Safety stand

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, Parliamentary Under Secretary responsible for health and safety, will be launching the joint Health and Safety Executive (HSE)/Step Change in Safety stand at the Offshore Europe Exhibition & Conference in Aberdeen on 6 September 2005 at 14.15.

Following the success of the joint stand at Offshore Europe 2003 and to re-emphasis the importance of the working in partnership theme established two years ago, HSE and Step Change will be sharing the stand at this year’s show again.

Lord Hunt will also present certificates to the winners of this year’s Step Change in Safety Awards for Outstanding Manual Handling Initiatives. Gordon Smith who is an offshore installation manager on Marathon Oil UK’s Brae field; Kjell-Erik Ostdahl, Schlumberger North Sea GeoMarket Manager; and John Gray, a safety adviser on the Britannia gas platform will each collect prizes for the best ideas to make manual handling safer.

Lord Hunt will be joined at the opening by Taf Powell, Head of HSE’s Offshore Division, Gary Luquette President and Managing Director, Chevron Upstream Europe and Chairman of Step Change in Safety and Graham Tran, Regional Officer of trade union Amicus. The aim of the joint stand is to reinforce the message of working together to secure the shared target of the UK becoming the safest sector in the world oil and gas industry by 2010.

Lord Hunt said: "Health and safety is of the utmost importance in the offshore industry and that is why these awards are of real significance. I'm pleased to see the HSE and Step Change again providing a strong example of working together. We share a vital target of seeing the UK at the forefront of safety in this industry."

Taf Powell said: "The stand at Offshore Europe will be staffed with people from HSE and from all parts of the industry, who want to demonstrate to visitors just what has and can be achieved in health and safety and in major accident prevention. Permanent improvements in performance are best achieved where industry and government can agree priorities and align their resources accordingly."

Powell added: "My Division and the companies represented on Step Change in Safety are working closely on programmes aimed; for example, at improving asset integrity, and significantly reducing accidents associated with lifting very heavy loads. The awards are for initiatives in another area of shared priority, namely reducing injury and ill health associated with manual handling of equipment. I hope as many people as possible can visit us here to learn more about these initiatives."

Gary Luquette, President and Managing Director, Chevron Upstream Europe and Chairman of Step Change in Safety, said: "Step Change in Safety and HSE have a common goal in preventing all injuries in industry. Working in collaboration, we can achieve the Step Change goal to make the UK oil and gas industry, the safest in the world by 2010. Sharing lessons learned and best practice will help us reach that goal. I am delighted that today’s launch illustrates just some of the practical steps the industry is taking to achieve this end and I congratulate our competition winners."

Graham Tran, said: "Trade unions continue to be supportive of Step Change in Safety to ensure full dialogue from all stakeholders within the offshore oil and gas industry. We believe, however, that oil companies should do more in terms of asset integrity given the price of oil today."

Notes to Editors

1. Offshore Europe takes place at the Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre between 6 and 9 September 2005. The joint HSE Step Change stand is No. 723 located between aisles 6 and 7.

2. All members of the press are invited to the HSE press conference at the press conference centre on Thursday 8 September starting at 10.30.

HSE’s Offshore Division is made up of five units, two based in Aberdeen and one each in Norwich, Liverpool and London. Three of the units contain a mix of inspection teams and topic specialist teams, whilst the remaining two units are entirely topic specialist-based.

3. Step Change in Safety is a key industry initiative launched in September 1997 to improve health and safety performance, awareness and behaviours throughout the UK oil and gas industry. It is supported by all the sector's major trade associations, the trade unions, HSE and Cogent (the industry's Sector Skills Council). Feedback and input from the workforce is maintained via four networks, for installation managers and supervisors, safety professionals and elected safety representatives and focal points.
www.step.steel-sci.org

4. A total of 24 ideas were submitted to this year’s Step Change in Safety Awards for Outstanding Manual Handling Initiatives. Three overall winners were selected:

• Marathon Oil UK Ltd (Brae Field) – Accepted by Gordon Smith, Offshore Installation Manager, on behalf of the Marathon team.
• Awarded for: Lifeboat oxygen cylinder lifting frame
  Traditionally, removal of lifeboat oxygen cylinders represents a very high risk of musculoskeletal injury. To minimise this risk, a lifting frame has been developed, which assists with the process of removing the cylinder from the lifeboat. The frame is fitted with wheels, which allows the cylinder to be manoeuvred easily once it has been removed. Use of the lifting frame means that manual handling required is minimal and the risk of hand injuries is also greatly reduced.
• Schlumberger- Accepted byKjell-Erik Ostdahl, Schlumberger North Sea GeoMarket Manager on behalf of the Schlumberger team
• Awarded for: Schlumberger Injury Prevention Programme (SIPP)
  The Schlumberger injury prevention programme impacts company employees and contractors worldwide. Its scope is broad, covering operations offshore and onshore, including the office environment. Overall, the aim is to reduce incidences of injury via provision of information, instruction and training. The programme utilises participative, practical methods in conjunction with modern video and computer graphics. Success of the programme is evident, with decreases in the number of lost time injuries as well as improved sharing of best practices.
• Britannia Operator Ltd – Accepted by John Gray, safety adviser on behalf of Britannia Operator Ltd
• Awarded for: Lightweight Inertia Reels Utilisation of fall-arrest safety equipment was identified as an area where improvements could be made. Lightweight inertia reels have been developed to replace existing equipment, considered to be too bulky and heavy for most activities. This has resulted in a change of attitude towards utilisation of equipment and personnel will now willingly use the new lightweight inertia reels without concern.

Public Enquiries : HSE InfoLine, tel: 0845 345 0055, visit: www.hse.gov.uk/contact or write to: HSE InfoLine, Caerphilly Business Park, Caerphilly CF83 3GG.

Press Enquiries : Journalists only : Oliver Glackin 020 7717 6016

Out of hours 020 7928 8382

Interview bids for Lord Hunt on the day should be made to Sally Bell on 07768 044618, or Karen Booth on 07766 505124