Occupational health and safety
Working safely in a dangerous environment
“Fortunately, we have never had a workplace accident with serious consequences for anyone’s health – even though our employees do spend time in dangerous environments. For example, some of them work on pylons or at great heights, while others work on the railway track bed. Protecting our employees is our top priority!” These are the words of Johannes Antoni, Managing Director of HÖRMANN Kommunikation & Netze GmbH. The certified work safety management system, which is also used at the company’s nine branches, controls all processes in order to ensure the highest possible degree of occupational safety. The company has a dedicated safety expert to assist the management in fulfilling its responsibilities in this area. Johannes Antoni adds: “Every year, we organise an occupational safety week and health days. Regular training, continuous awareness of potential dangers and the systematic analysis of incidents, including the implementation of protective measures, are the key to preventing accidents. Every branch, every task and every construction site has its own specific requirements and hazardous situations and requires the appropriate occupational safety measures.”
The highest standards of health management
Over the past two years, the key topics for Bernd Jermis have been the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting more than 600 employees and maintaining the factory’s production capability. He is responsible for occupational safety at HÖRMANN Automotive Gustavsburg GmbH – and thus also for health protection. “We had some cases of infection, but no major outbreaks,” he notes with relief. Working in close cooperation with management, he and his colleagues at the plant adopted a “safety first” approach right from the start.
A test facility was quickly established
At the onset of the pandemic, the occupational safety team at the Gustavsburg plant provided employees with high-quality masks that they could also use outside the workplace. A test facility was quickly established and mobile teams were even able to perform tests in the workplace. At the factory gate, a strict checkpoint was set up for all visitors and truck drivers with mandatory testing and, later, mandatory application of the German “3G” rules. A vaccination centre was established at the plant at a very early stage and the necessary vaccines were provided to employees via various special campaigns. Family members were also offered vaccinations. This helped to prevent numerous infections and identify cases as quickly as possible. As Bernd Jermis says: “We achieved our goal. The production capability of the plant was never in danger – thanks to everyone’s efforts.”