Event Summary
Health & Safety 2012
1 February 2012, Manchester UK
Download: Programme & Exhibition guide | Delegate list
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Event summary
THEME: Looking for Excellence - Learning from Experience
Our 8th Annual Health & Safety Conference held in Manchester can be considered a great success going by the lively debate and feedback we have received. The continued support given by members and the wider industry has again reinforced our commitment to ensure that the health and safety agenda remains central to the wider development and growth of this exciting industry.
Our theme of “Looking for Excellence - Learning from Experience” reflected on our commitments set out in our Offshore Wind & Marine Energy Health & Safety Accord, was reinforced by the excellent presentations and contributions we heard throughout the conference.
The conference got off to a great start at the evening reception where RenewableUK and The Crown Estate were delighted to announced the first ever winner of a new award in recognition of outstanding health and safety performance in the renewables sector. The winner of the RenewableUK and The Crown Estate Renewable Energy Health & Safety Award for 2012 was E.ON Climate and Renewables in recognition of their shallow gas case study at the Rampion offshore project. It was also announced that Mainstream Renewables should be officially commended for their innovation and willingness to push forward best practice in their Hornsea Met Mast project. However whilst congratulating the “winners”, Lawrence Waterman (Head of Health & Safety for the Olympic Delivery Authority), who presented the awards, made clear that everyone was a winner. Everyone who took the time and effort to make a submission will have realised numerous benefits in just recognising the importance of celebrating and sharing best practice.
Lawrence went on to reinforce the learning and legacy arising from the London 2012 Olympics projects and he hoped and expected that our sector will act as a beacon for excellence in taking the leadership agenda to the next level during the critical stage of building our national infrastructure. Yet again Lawrence provided an excellent motivational speech that left everyone in no doubt of the contribution we can all make in driving the health & safety agenda.
Maria McCaffery, RenewableUK Chief Executive launched the conference and took the opportunity to commend the HSE and the close working relationship RenewableUK have built up with her team. Maria reminded the audience of the rapid expansion of the wind industry planned over the next ten years which should see our total installed capacity increase more than fivefold – and in offshore alone, more than tenfold. Maria emphasised our global leadership position in the offshore sector and the enviable health and safety reputation we hold in the UK. However Maria made clear that with global leadership comes global responsibility and visibility. And with greater visibility comes greater scrutiny. As we recruit a bigger workforce, build new factories and develop projects further out to sea, in harsher conditions, the need for the industry to provide a safe working environment for employees and members of the public is paramount.
Maria highlighted the positive steps we have taken highlighting the Offshore Wind and Marine Health & Safety Accord.
In conclusion she left us all with a powerful message. “Let no one underestimate the importance of health and safety to the future success of the wind and marine industries. Our work stretches across every facet, every transaction, covering all technologies, at all levels. We, the health and safety professionals, continue to make the UK a world leader in this sector, as a safe and responsible jurisdiction in which to do business”
This was followed by Alastair Dutton speaking on behalf of our core sponsor The Crown Estate. Alastair again congratulated the Award winners and went on to re-enforce the importance of sharing and learning lessons. This was a message not just for potential award winners – but a more general point that sharing and learning are a vital component of a responsible and maturing industry.
Our key note address was presented by Judith Hackitt CBE, Chair of the Health & Safety Executive. Judith clear set out how the HSE is responding to the new energy agenda. Whilst clearly articulating the technology neutrality of the HSE, she made clear that the future regulation of the industry will be risk and evidence based. She also acknowledged the challenges of dealing with public and media perception in light of recent high profile events. Above all Judith made clear that as with every sector, that the renewable energy supply chain needs to take ownership of its health and safety responsibilities by managing its own risk and not relying on others to do so. We are confident that the sector had heard this message already – but a timely reminder was well received by all.
Finally our thanks and appreciation goes to all our sponsors whose support is vital if we wish to run the event in its current format. In particular we thank our Core Sponsor The Crown Estate as well as the invaluable support of RES and Latchways.
We look forward to seeing all of you in Sheffield on 31st January 2013 for Health & Safety 2013.
Feedback
RenewableUK is delighted to have received some excellent feedback about the event. We are grateful for any comments about how you think we could improve future events. If you attended the event and you would like to give feedback, please take two minutes to complete our online feedback form here.
Exhibitors
17 companies active in the health and safety energy sector were on display at the accompanying exhibition, as shown below.
Programme and Conference Proceedings
The conference proceedings are available free of charge to all. Click on the relevant links below to view copies of individual presentations, or download all presentations in a zipped folder.
| Opening Session | |
| Chair and Welcome: Maria McCaffery, Chief Executive, RenewableUK | N/A |
| Core Sponsor Address: Alastair Dutton, Round 3 Programme Manager, The Crown Estate | N/A |
| Keynote Address: Judith Hackitt, Chair of the Health and Safety Executive | N/A |
| A1: Design & Project Management | |
| Chair: Julian Hubbard, Group HSQE Manager, RES | N/A |
| Dr Chris Robinson, Principal Consultant, MMI Engineering Ltd: A Risk Assessment Methodology for Onshore Wind Turbines Developed for the UK HSE | |
| Donald Brown, Senior Principal Engineer, Cleaner Energy and Utilities UK, DNV: Managing Safety Through Effective Design - Review of Emerging Good Practice | |
| Jeremy Carnell, Principal Consultant, PMSS: CDM in Design – A Helping Hand Or Compliance Burden? | |
| B1: Safety & Emergency Response in Offshore Wind | |
| David Farrier, Head of Business Improvement, E.ON Climate and Renewables | N/A |
| Peter Owen Lloyd, Head of EHS Strategy within Siemens Service Renewables, Siemens Wind Power A/S: Update on REFF | |
| Matthew Sharp, Managing Director, M & CM Ltd: Beyond Evacuation: When Reality Replaces Reporting | |
| Dave Nicholls, Safety Manager, Step Change in Safety: Helicopter Safety in Oil & Gas: Experience & Update on Issues Arising Recent Offshore Helicopter Incidents in the UK | |
| A2: Regulation & Compliance - What Does It Mean? | |
| Chair: Simon Joyston-Bechal, Partner, Pinsent Masons LLP | N/A |
| Rob Elvin, European Head of Safety, Health and Environment, Squire Sanders: Health and Safety Legal Update: Is Compliance Getting Any Easier? | |
| Thomas Herd, Lawyer, CMS Cameron McKenna LLP: Interfacing with Third Parties | |
| Ann Metherall, Partner, Burges Salmon LLP: The Future of CDM | |
| Jonathan Berman, Director, Greenstreet Berman Ltd: Earning Compliance – How Do We Encourage The Right Behaviours? | |
| B2: Leadership & Engagement | |
| Chair: Michael Lewis, Managing Director Europe, E.ON Climate & Renewables | N/A |
| Dave Nicholls, Safety Manager, Step Change in Safety: Workforce Engagement – Experiences From The Oil and Gas Industry | |
| Peter Hodgetts, Marine Health & Safety Champion, The Crown Estate: Leadership in Health & Safety | |
| Mathew Holder, Head of Campaigns and Engagement, British Safety Council: Leadership With New and Young Workers | |
| Robin Stowell, Partner, Converconsulting: Managing Incompetence | |
| A3: Beyond Compliance - Case Studies & Best Practice | |
| Chair: Chris Streatfeild, Director of Health & Safety, RenewableUK | N/A |
| Dirk Schreiber, QHSE Manager, Hochtief Solutions AG - Civil Engineering and Marine Works: Project Horn Sea Met Mast - Building A Project Related HSE Culture Within A Multinational Environment | |
| Nigel Shaw, HSSE Advisor, Gardline: Offshore Lifting Operations | |
| Alistair Mackinnon, Operations Manager Wind Energy, NEL: Testing and Certification of Small Wind Turbines – Some Lessons Learned | |
| Dr Colleen Butler, Human Factors Specialist, Health and Safety Laboratory: Ageing Workers - Lessons for Renewables | N/A |
| B3: Looking Ahead - What Next for Renewables? | |
| Chair: Robin Stowell, Partner, Converconsulting | N/A |
| Sam Dorling, Information Systems (IS) Manager, BMT Defence Services Ltd: Safety Performance Monitoring – Knowledge Transfer from the UK Defence | |
| Breanne Gellatly, Offshore Wind Accelerator Delivery Manager, The Carbon Trust: Update on The Carbon Trust's Accelerator – New & Novel Access Solutions | |
| John Reynolds, Director and Fellow, SAMI Consulting: The Use of Scenarios to Evaluate Future Health and Safety Issues for Wind Energy | |
| Closing Address | |
| Chris Streatfeild, Director of Health & Safety, RenewableUK: Closing Remarks | N/A |
The 2013 event will be held on 31 January with an eve of conference reception on the evening before. The event will take place at the Cutlers Hall in Sheffield, UK. Further details to follow.
Health & Safety 2012 Presentations
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