260 delegates, representing 65 organisations gathered to hear a range of inspiring speakers on the theme of 'Clearer, Simpler, Smarter' and to celebrate commitment, progress and achievement in health & safety at MPA's Health & Safety Conference and Awards 2019, sponsored by Industrial Diagnostics Co Ltd and hosted by BBC Presenter Julian Worricker on Wednesday 13 November at 30 Euston Square, London.

In opening, Martin Riley, MPA Chairman and Senior Vice President Tarmac, made reference to industry fatalities and incidents in the last two years which will see MPA link future efforts to eliminate them and improve overall performance by using 'The Fatal 6' as strategic drivers underpinned by hard targets and both lagging and leading indicators.

This new approach will in effect be a 'sectoral action plan' which all MPA members will be able to support as a joint effort. MPA's 'Safer By' initiatives will be central to delivery as will continuing provision of guidance documents and sharing of best practice.

Martin stressed MPA's vital leadership role in listening to its members, learning from their experiences, compiling their ideas and sharing the best for everyone's benefit using Safequarry.com, and MPA's Safequarry, Safeprecast and Driver's Apps.

In closing, Martin emphasised that leadership at all levels within and across all businesses was critical as part of the combined effort to eliminate fatalities and incidents in order to achieve zero harm.

Drawing on the work of MPA and its members, eminent speakers and panellists explored leadership, isolation, communications and zero harm, addressing the theme 'Clearer, Simpler, Smarter'. Darren Broadhead, Managing Director of Broadhead Global Ltd talked about 'Safer & 'Healthier by Leadership – what have we learned so far?', having facilitated 35 seminars across the UK over the past two years, attended by 400 delegates from 30 companies. There then followed an interactive panel session on 'Isolation - converting the message into practice' withGary Langton, Operations Manager London & Home Counties, Brett Aggregates; Adam Green, National Performance Manager, Tarmac and Andy Taylor, Health & Safety Director, France & UK, CEMEX. Finally, Steve Rae, Executive Director, Step Change in Safety, talked about 'Clearer, Simpler, Smarter: - lessons from Piper Alpha'.

In the second session, panellists Rachel Butler, Group HSSQ, DeTrafford (Construction); Trevor Stapleton, Health & Safety Manager, Oil & Gas UK and Steve Van Niekerk, Head of Assurance, HS1 Ltd, discussed 'Zero Harm - viewpoint from other industries.'

The afternoon's keynote speech was given by Jake Meyer, world-record breaking mountaineer and adventurer who, at the age of 21, became the youngest person to climb Mount Everest. He talked about his experience 'Surviving the Death Zone.'

The MPA Health & Safety Awards, now in their 47th year, exemplified MPA's drive to share good practice and celebrated MPA members' innovation and creativity from across the 140 number of entries from 27 companies of all sizes from across the UK.

Nigel Jackson, MPA's Chief Executive said:
"Members who have attended previously confirm that the ideas they gain by participating in the MPA Health & Safety Awards make a real difference to the health and safety of their employees, contractors and the general public." 

The winner of the Sir Frank Davies Trophy for outstanding practice and performance for those companies with fewer than 1,000 employees was O'Donovan Waste Disposal who the judges felt had sustained their health and safety performance year-on-year, transferring health and safety from a mere priority to a true value.

The winner of the John Crabbe Trophy, which recognises outstanding performance in health and safety, was Tarmac. Winning this trophy means a company has demonstrated excellence across a broad range of areas as well as meeting strict criteria for reported incident statistics.

MPA Special Awards went to two companies. For Engineering, to GRS Building Products for their Bulk Bag Splitting Initiative, which could be widely adopted across the industry. For Behavioural Safety, to CEMEX UK, for their 'Safety Savvy' initiative and as a company that has an unrelenting determination to make the difference by involving all the workforce and engaging and sharing its ideas within the MPA.

MPA Health & Safety Award winners were as follows:

Frank Davies Trophy
O'Donovan Waste Disposal

John Crabbe Trophy
Tarmac

MPA Special Awards
GRS Building Products
Cemex UK

Bitumen; Asphalt; Contract Surfacing
F M Conway – Winner
Aggregate Industries - Runner Up

Worker Involvement
Tarmac Building Products – Winner
Cemex – Runner up

Transport Initiatives
Marshalls – Winner
Tarmac - Runner-up

Occupational Health and Well Being
Hanson Aggregates – Winner
O'Donovan Waste Disposal Ltd - Runner Up

Contractor Safety
Tarmac – Winner

Engineering Initiatives
Terex Corporation – Winner
Aggregate Industries Lafarge Cement - Runner Up

Reducing Occupational Road Risk
Aggregate Industries - Winner 
O'Donovan Waste Disposal Ltd - Runner Up

Behavioural Safety; Safety Culture; Leadership
Quinn Building Products – Winner
Cemex UK - Runner Up

Individual Recognition
Gerry Clancy, Quinn Building Products
Justin Welford, Aggregate Industries
Billy Benton, Hanson Aggregates
Josh West, SMT GB
Andy Holmes, Tarmac DSM
Daran Murray, GRS Building Products
Jason Ellis, Tarmac: Ravelrig
Paul Nairn, Aggregate Industries: Sheffield Asphalt
Sonny Netto, Cemex UK
Ronnie Simpson, Cemex UK
Sam Shepherd,  Cemex UK
Steve Taylor, Cemex UK
Lee Needham, Cemex UK
Paul Cheeseman, Cemex UK
Stewart Macrae, Cemex UK
Callum McPhillips, Cemex UK
Jason Aked, Cemex UK

Ends.