Fever accidents and stronger safety culture

Fever accidents and stronger safety culture

BIRN Group intensified its efforts to strengthen the safety culture across the companies in 2024. The group has managed to significantly reduce the number of accidents through a greater focus on prevention, protective equipment, employee involvement and the use of data.

A high level of safety is essential in a sector like ours where employees work with large machines in an often hectic work environment with heavy objects and molten iron. It is therefore a high priority at BIRN Group to continually evaluate and launch initiatives to improve the working environment and employee safety.

One of the major initiatives in 2024 was the development of a digital safety management system, which aims to streamline and strengthen safety work throughout the BIRN Group. The system is currently being tested at BIRN in Holstebro and is expected to be rolled out to all companies in 2025.

- “The aim of the system is to make safety observations and risk assessments more efficient and data-based. Safety observations used to take 12 minutes, but can be completed in just 30 seconds using the new system. A key element of the initiative is to understand the patterns that recur in the various departments and then initiate preventive actions,” notes Ronnie Rahbek, HS Manager at BIRN in Holstebro.

Risk assessment for each change

KOCKUMS MASKIN in Kallinge, Sweden also has strong focus on risk assessments. The company has implemented a digital tool to initiate risk assessments prior to each change, such as a new project, machine relocation or organisational change. This helps to proactively identify and manage risks and thus prevent potential accidents.

- “The tool allows us to detect risks that could impact quality, the environment or the working environment at an early stage, leading to a more robust and safe way of working. These early interventions have given us invaluable information and helped us to create a safer working environment for everyone involved,” says Johan Brengesjö, Managing Director at KOCKUMS MASKIN.

Better safety understanding paves way for zero accidents

In 2024, the machine factory at BIRN in Holstebro and ULDALL in Vejen both saw zero lost-time accidents at work. This is largely due to heightened attention to safety and prevention.

At BIRN in Holstebro, all health and safety representatives completed a training course in 2024 to equip them to perform safety observations and risk assessments at the various workstations, so that potentially dangerous situations can be spotted and changed before things go wrong. The BEE SAFE safety campaign is also helping raise employee awareness of the importance of safety and of using of protective equipment.

- "At the machine factory in Holstebro, we have received far more safety observations from employees. Annual follow-up training in areas such as crane handling has also helped maintain a high level of safety,” says Christian Kjeldsmark Lind, who was factory manager at the machine factory in 2024.

There has also been an extra focus at ULDALL in Vejen during 2024 on ensuring that all employees understand why it is important to
use protective equipment and following up on its use.

- “Due in part to the heightened focus across the board, we can look back proudly on 2024 as a year with no lost-time accidents at work,” says Dion Brun, Sales Director at ULDALL.