12/11/18

Safety at work in LU-VE increases with "training breaks"

The method devised by LU-VE and adopted by the National Commission on Health and Safety of Federmeccanica-Assistal, Fiom-Fim-Uilm

Uboldo, 7 November 2018 – Short intervals during the working day, spent reviewing norms and operative procedures in order to maintain and continually improve safety at work: these are the “training breaks” introduced by LU-VE – the multinational heat exchanger manufacturer based in the Province of Varese - and recognized by the National Commission on Health and Safety of Federmeccanica-Assistal, (Italian metalworking company associations) and Fiom-Fim-Uilm (Italian metalworkers unions), as a training method available throughout Italy for companies in the this sector, in accordance with the agreement signed by these authorities on 8 October 2018.

The training breaks represent the jewel in the crown of the training system to reduce injury at work in LU-VE. They were introduced in 2012 at the LU-VE Exchangers facility in Uboldo (Varese), and in the period ending December 2017 these breaks helped to significantly reduce the number of accidents. The frequency index (number of injuries per 1,000,000 working hours) fell from 26.41 (2012) to 14.02 (2017). The incidence (number of injuries times 1000 divided by number of workers) was almost halved, from 43.32 (2012) to 22.04 (2017), even though there had been an increase during that period in the number of employees from 277 to 363.

In detail, the breaks consist of brief training moments of 15 to 30 minutes, held directly where the industrial processes are carried out, within departments or at the work stations of the employees. This choice is not only dictated by technical-organizational requirements, but also by the desire to involve workers as actively as possible, thus increasing the effectiveness of the training. This last point concentrates on continuous updating concerning work tasks, the workplace, the equipment used and the relative operational safety procedures, explained to small groups of workers by a safety trainer/manager of the prevention and protection service working alongside the supervisor and workers’ safety representative.

The innovative method of the training break was presented at the conference entitled “Best practice in production sectors in the Province of Varese” organized by the Organismo Territoriale di Coordinamento, ATS Insubria and the Università dell’Insubria on October 17, 2018 in Varese. Some significant examples of best practice developed in the Province were illustrated. The project will also be demonstrated on 26 November 2018 during the congress entitled “Social responsibility for industry 4.0”, organized by the Unione degli Industriali della Provincia Varese (at Ville Ponti, Varese).

"Our guiding principle is that companies are first and foremost men, women and ideas. The rest follows as a consequence, starting from the safety of our employees. LU-VE has always had this fundamental value; first the people, whose peace of mind is a crucial factor for us from all points of view," said Iginio Liberali, President of LU-VE Group. "The objective is to progressively extend this best practice to all the group facilities, starting with those in Italy."