The Deeside site has passed the milestone of five years of operation without any lost time accidents (LTA), and is the first plant within the entire UPM group to do so.
Shotton is an integrated facility that manufactures recycled newsprint. It employs 200 staff and encompasses a materials recycling facility, paper machine, and a biomass combined heat and power unit.
Shotton managing director David Ingham said he was very proud of the LTA achievement, and described it as the result of across-the-board engagement at all levels of the business.
“We have continuously focused our time and energy on keeping everyone safe at Shotton,” he said. “This success is built on a sound foundation of management commitment to safety and employees’ commitment to keeping each other safe.”
Parent UPM-Kymmene launched its global ‘Safety First’ campaign in 2011 with the aim of raising awareness of health and safety issues and best practice across all its operations.
The safety programme at Shotton involves weekly safety briefings for the workforce, as well as contractors and visitors. Employees make more than 4,000 safety observations every year.
UPM had sales of €10.1bn (£8.6bn) last year and employs circa 19,600 people worldwide.
The paper making industry in general has traditionally suffered from high accident rates, with a number of potential dangers inherent in the process.
The UK’s Confederation of Paper Industries’ Paper and Board Industry Advisory Committee (PABIAC) works closely with the HSE on health and safety issues within the sector. Last year PABIAC launched a new strategy that laid out targets for health and safety improvements through to 2019, focusing on occupational health management, slips and trips prevention and machinery safety.
