Lisbon, Portugal, December 9th 2009
Certification of LeiriaShopping reinforces Sonae Sierra's commitment to the "zero accidents" goal
Sonae Sierra is the first Company in Europe to receive a Safety & Health Certification for the construction management of a shopping centre
- LeiriaShopping is the first shopping centre in Europe to be certified, in the construction phase, under the OHSAS 18001 Standard
- Decreased accident rate and exposure to Safety & Health risks for employees
- Sonae Sierra was the first European company in the sector to receive the OHSAS 18001 Standard certification and Centro Colombo was the first European shopping centre to receive certification
Sonae Sierra has just become the first company in Europe to obtain the OHSAS 18001 Safety & Health certification for the management of the construction of a shopping centre, a reference in the Management of Prevention of Labour Risks, developed by an international consortium of normalization and certification entities. The certification of LeiriaShopping reinforces the Company's commitment in this area, especially because it refers to the construction phase, an activity that carries risks in terms of Safety & Health, with a high prevalence of accidents.
This certification, issued by TÜV Rheinland, a German multinational leader in the certification area, acknowledges the quality of the Health & Safety system implemented in the management of the construction of LeiriaShopping, allowing the organization to identify and control the safety and health risks on site, decrease the potential for accidents, contribute to the compliance with safety regulations and increase productivity in general.
OHSAS 18001 is a standard that validates a Management System (like ISO 9001 and ISO 14001), orientated towards Safety & Health at work, functioning as a tool that allows companies to manage and control their performance levels in these areas, according to the objectives, policies and action plans set by the company itself.
To obtain this certification, it was essential to have every worker involved and aware of Safety and Health issues, which was achieved through the implementation of a "direct" participation system, through systematic inquiries to workers in the definition of safety regulations, with the presence of Staff Representatives in the Safety and Environment meetings, and through a suggestion box on site to welcome the different proposals.
The benefits of these measures were visible not only in terms of accident reduction and the training of workers, but also financially, with the reduction of indirect costs connected to the Safety and Health at Work conditions for the organizations involved in the construction, through the systematic identification of improvement opportunities.
A VISIBLE, ACKNOWLEDGED COMMITMENT
Since 2004, Sonae Sierra has been developing a Safety & Health culture across the entire company and its shopping centres, and in 2008 became the first European company in the sector to receive certification in this area. More recently, Sonae Sierra was the first company in Spain to obtain certification of the Safety & Health system of four of its shopping centres in the country, under the OHSAS 18001:2007 standard.
In Portugal, the company owns five shopping centres certified under that standard (Centro Colombo, NorteShopping, GaiaShopping, ArrábidaShopping and Estação Viana). Internationally and besides Spain, Sonae Sierra owns three certified centres in Brazil and one other in Italy.
Sonae Sierra's Safety & Health management has the objective of preventing and anticipating accidents, to protect its employees and everyone in contact with the company. "Zero accidents" is the Company's goal, through the adoption of common values throughout the entire organization.
By betting on training and prevention, Sonae Sierra reinforces its conviction that people are the most precious asset, and their physical, intellectual and psychological integrity must be protected. For the company, this attitude is a competitive advantage and a reference factor that sets it apart from its competitors. In 2008, the company recorded a 43% reduction in the number of lost days due to work accidents or professional diseases, in comparison to the average of the three previous years.
The implementation of this Program has been worthy of international acclaim: in 2009, Sonae Sierra was distinguished at the "European Risk Management Awards", in the "Best Risk Training Programme" category, an initiative of British magazine "Strategic Risk". The PERSONÆ project, which launched the basis for Sonae Sierra's current safety and health culture, had already been distinguished with the "DuPont Safety Award for Visible Management Commitment", in 2007, and the "ECO Award" from the American Chamber of commerce, in 2006.
About Sonae Sierra
Sonae Sierra, http://www.sonaesierra.com/, is an international shopping centre specialist, with a passion for bringing innovation and excitement to the shopping centre industry. The Company owns 52 Shopping Centres in Portugal, Spain, Italy, Germany, Greece, Romania and Brazil, with a total Gross Lettable Area (GLA) of more than 2 million m2. Currently, Sonae Sierra has 2 projects under construction and 10 new projects in different phases of completion in Portugal, Italy, Germany, Greece, Romania and Brazil. In 2008 our Shopping Centres had more than 429 million visits.