Abstract
Chemical companies have a long history in hazard prevention. In Europe, statistics show that the chemical manufacturing companies are among the safest employers.
However, many major incidents have shown that a good injury record does not automatically mean that there are no process safety incidents. Careful tracking of process related incidents like spills, leakages, failure of equipment is inevitable to prevent future occurrences.
In order to achieve the goal of continuous improvement, you have to systematically identify risks and trends in your company not only for injuries but also for process related incidents. No easy goal in any company. It is even harder for a company with many sites and employees all over the world.
Since 2014, WACKER uses the worldwide database SPIRIT (based on Enablon). In this database, all kinds of incidents –near misses, first aid cases, injuries and process related incidents are reported. Since then, the quality of data obtained improved considerably. This led to an increased awareness throughout all hierarchy levels which is necessary to continuously improve safety.
This article shows where we came from and how we got to the status we have today. In drawing a comparison to learning a new language it shows the challenges and obstacles along the way.
