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“ It’s all a matter of
common sense”
KEEP THINKING!
14 15
LOOK OUT!
WE CARE!
“People have to
stop and think
before they do
something”
Koos van Tol was appointed as Mammoet’s new Corporate Safety Director
in the middle of 2008. He has been with Mammoet for over 30 years and therefore
knows the business inside out. He is particularly familiar with safety,
health, environment and quality (SHE-Q), the area he is now responsible for.
Koos van Tol’s career has ranged from
crane driver to regional manager. He
knows the ins and outs of the heavy lifting
and transport business better than anyone
else. Koos has worked all over the world
and dealt with a range of cultures and
personalities. “I’ve worked with so many
different people within Mammoet. They’re
all different. So, you can’t just pull a string
and expect everyone to do what you want.
You need patience, talk a lot and approach
everyone differently. The challenge is to
find the right way to deal with everyone
and get them to do the job. It’s not
advanced math but simply a matter of
knowing how to deal with people.”
Mammoet Minds
And it’s no different where safety is
concerned. “Safety isn’t magic - it’s about
using common sense. Sure, you can
introduce hundreds of rules, but what it’s
really about is that people have to stop
and think before they do something.” And
that’s the concept behind the safety
campaign initiated in 2008: the Mammoet
Minute, a basic last minute check before
the work starts. “Through this campaign
we want to make everyone aware of the
importance of taking a minute before you
start the job, just to look around and think
about the risks and hazards you might
have to deal with. And, where necessary,
to take action, so you can do the job safely.”
The Mammoet Minute is part of the
Mammoet Minds campaign with the theme
“Keep Thinking! Look Out! We Care!”
which has been rolled out throughout
Mammoet to ensure that the Mammoet
Way of Working is the same everywhere.
Leadership in the field
A special training course for supervisors
started in 2008. “Our supervisors
are working foremen, who do
the job together with their people.
This training aims to im prove
leadership in the field and encourage
our supervisors to do even
more to ensure safety at the job
site, and to improve the safety
awareness of our people.” Six groups
have now started on the first
module of the course, which
includes a total of six modules.
Once the course is fully developed
next year, we will roll it out throughout
the business. We have similar
plans for our Working at Height
course, developed in the UK. “We
are now deciding if we can turn it
into a Mammoet course to add
to the e-learning portal of our
intranet.” Van Tol is also thinking
about developing a General Safety
Awareness Course which, like the
Mammoet Minute, should get people
to think first, and then act.