Total marks 13 years without lost time injury

TOTAL has achieved 10 million man hours without lost time injury (LTI) over a span of 13 years, the general manager of the oil company's Brunei branch said.

Yves Grosjean, the general manager of Total in Brunei, said the milestone is impressive in terms of how the Total team in Brunei can stick together, not excluding its contractors who are the doing most of the work.

Grosjean told The Brunei Times in an interview yesterday that the achievement means a lot to the company considering the amount of time that the company has gone without incidents.

"That means that a variety of operations that have taken place over time, different teams and different people, who have been doing the job have had to uphold the safety culture, and make sure all lessons learned were not loss, and have an inclusive way of bringing in new people to feel comfortable in different environments," said Grosjean.

"It's all about making teams hold together and through this very long period of time, and we are very grateful for their involvement and attitude, response, to our drive throughout the work place."

However, Grosjean warned that the company "is not there yet, and we know there is an element of luck in this achievement".

"In terms of corrective actions, it's not about blaming, but it's about helping each other whilst all of it is being done in a positive attitude," he said.

As for Total's stance on health, safety, security and environment (HSSE), Grosjean said that everyone must continue to work had together despite any new challenges.

"As you know, we have made discoveries in the deep reservoir, slightly south of the high pressure Maharaja Lela field. So we are starting new development which will mean a new platform and wells to be drilled," he said.

With regards to Total's onshore processing plant, Grosjean said that the plant's capacity will be increased, which is a complicated process as work will be done a live plant.

"So all the teams involved will be new teams and we will have to work with them and make sure the safety culture and lessons are transmitted, and continue to have a successful team," he said.

"Thank you for your commitment, thank you for your enduring efforts to make our workplace safe. And to the rest of the (energy) industry, I would like to say that we can make it. We are not here to give lessons, but we know the difficulties, the dangers and we will bring our contributions," he said.

Grosjean assured industry players that Total would be happy to share its experiences, and hoped to work together to improve the workplace and all operations being carried out.

The general manager said in his welcoming speech at the Empire Hotel and Country Club yesterday that the clock for this record started ticking on April 13, 1999.

"I can tell you that with our current and past operations that involved drilling, seismic acquisitions, the handling of very heavy equipment especially at the Muara logistics base and on the supply vessels, maintenance and modification works at our onshore processing plant as well as on our two offshore platforms in the Maharaja Lela field, such a level of safety is truly outstanding and something to be very proud of for every one of us and for all those who have contributed in the past," he said.

Grosjean said that this shows that Total has been successful in creating a true safety culture, and a work environment where people not only know the safety rules, but also feel encouraged to speak up and share views or ask questions about HSE aspects of jobs.

He then reminded that despite this "remarkable achievement, we must be very careful not to fall into complacency".

"Every work-related death, injury or illness is a preventable tragedy, and also that the victims are usually workers in the prime of their lives with families depending on them for their livelihood," he said.

Grosjean said that every manager or employee, no matter rank or level, has an important role to play in making the workplace as safe and as healthy as possible.

"Safety is the seam that joins the fabric of life, don't let a loose thread bring it all undone. That makes safety everyone's responsibility," he said.

Total, in conjunction with the 2012 World Safety Day, had a slogan entitled 'stepping up and stepping in', to join hands and share efforts to ensure the principle of safety first is accorded the highest priority and is always met at all times.

"It means identifying health and safety as something that needs to be shared and encouraged with everyone, whereby we need to step up and step in to ensure that health and safety is protected. It's about intervention and prevention," he said.

Guest of honour, Dato Paduka Hj Matsatejo Sokiaw, CEO of Brunei National Petroleum Company (PetroleumBRUNEI), said that the achievement shows Total's continuous commitment towards the embedding of a safety culture.

"From the most junior to the GM, from the youngest to the veteran personnel, for Total to embed this culture across different nationalities, ages, and cultures on a continuous level, requires on-going persistency, dedicated personnel, and consistent approaches. This indicates that their 'safety culture' has been shared throughout the organisation," Dato Hj Matsatejo said in his speech.

The Brunei Times