We do not accept that fatalities are an inevitable consequence of working in a hazardous industry. We believe we can operate with zero fatalities and zero significant incidents. The phrase “Goal Zero”, which we launched in 2007, captures this belief. To turn this goal into reality, we are reinforcing the message that Goal Zero is possible, rewarding success and getting better at checking that rules are being followed. In 2007, Shell held two company-wide Safety Days to draw attention to safety performance and find ways to improve. Our largest global contractors participated as well. The focus was on one of Shell’s Golden Rules of safety: to comply with the law, standards and procedures. We also launched the Chief Executive’s HSSE Awards (see below) to highlight examples of excellent safety performance.
SHELL’S MARS PLATFORM IN THE
GULF OF MEXICO
AWARD-WINNING SAFETY IN THE GULF OF MEXICO
Recognising good safety performance sends an important signal: that safety really matters. It also promotes learning and healthy rivalry between our operations. That is why we launched our Chief Executive’s HSSE Awards in 2007. One of this year’s four awards went to a team in charge of operations and safety on all Shell’s platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.
Over the past three years, the team has coached contractors and management, making sure safety is at the top of everyone’s priority list. They carefully analysed past safety incidents and near misses to focus platform crews on excellent safety performance. Their injury rates have improved by 20% since the programme began in 2005. These and other efforts helped Shell in the USA win the 2007 Safety Award for Excellence awarded by the US Department of the Interior.
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