Safety is our Priority, Always

GroundProbe’s SHES Coordinator, Beatrice Binz

GroundProbe proudly provides safety-critical monitoring systems to our valued customers to keep people and communities safe. It is at the heart of everything we do – ‘Safety is our priority. Always.’

We also believe in providing a safe environment for our staff and in investing in Safety, Health, Environment, Security (SHES) practices – for us it is the best business decision and should never be considered optional.

Why SHES is Important to GroundProbe

Without prioritising SHES, a workplace risks an environment that is unhealthy, unsafe and insecure resulting in increased insurance claims, medical bills, insurance premiums, labour costs and loss of productive time and reputation. Valuing the importance of SHES simply makes sense for many reasons.

GroundProbe’s Commitment to Safety

GroundProbe is committed to providing and maintaining a safe working environment, safe systems of work, and keeping equipment in a safe condition. However, safety can only be upheld when everyone respects why it’s important.

GroundProbe’s FY2022 key initiatives for safety stipulate we must:

• Reaffirm safety culture and promote quality reporting
• Define a SHES champion program and develop participants
• Review SHES plan and implement identified gaps.

The importance of safety is also made clear during staff induction. During this process we teach new members how to keep themselves and others safe – to reduce the risk of pain, injury or even loss of life – ensuring everyone can go home at the end of the day.

Finally, GroundProbe employees have a personal duty of care to protect their own health and safety as well as maintain the health and safety of others. They are required to:

• Use equipment provided for health and safety purposes
• Follow instructions and training relating to health and safety provided by the employer
• Comply with the health and safety policies of the workplace
• Report any situation at the workplace which they believe is hazardous.

Building a Long-Term Safety-Focused Work Culture

GroundProbe has always maintained a high safety-focused work culture but we know it is a long-term, ongoing process.

Helping to set our high personal standards of SHES are our senior leaders who encourage staff to minimise risk because one person is not a risk – but their behaviour or condition can be a risk – and this can be corrected, minimised or eliminated.

Some of the Challenges we have Faced

Like most companies, living through the global COVID-19 pandemic challenged our SHES policy. However, we successfully communicated an operational plan, proudly resulting in maintaining full operation in all parts of our business, including Geotechnical Support Services (GSS), production and supply, product development and reliability. This was only possible because we were able to execute our policies and procedures – together.

As SHES Manager here at GroundProbe, I have learned to ask myself, ‘what have I done today to keep myself and my colleagues safe in our work environment?’ – I challenge you to consider the same question.

Because at GroundProbe we are proud to say safety is our priority. Always.