13 May 2024
Committed to safety and cooperation
Achieving safe CO2 storage together, that is Porthos’ mission. That means controlling your own safety and that of others. The project involves a long route and many stakeholders. On land, the Porthos pipelines cross bridges, viaducts, canals and the seawall and meet dozens of cables and pipelines to eventually end up more than three kilometres under the North Sea in a depleted gas field. The project includes numerous challenges, including for Porthos’ HSE experts, who work daily to ensure a safe and healthy working environment.
Safety first
Gerard Hölzken (HSE Manager) and Nick Spijkers (HSE Lead) and their team of safety experts ensure that Porthos employees and the six main contractors comply with contracts and procedures. In doing so, they provide solicited and unsolicited advice on Health, Safety and Environment. Hölzken: “The scale of this project involves a large number of safety risks in a variety of areas. For instance, on projects involving so many parties, there is always tension between planning, budget and safety. Safety is quickly compromised, while that is the highest priority for Porthos.”
It starts with awareness
Safety goes far beyond simply wearing personal protective equipment. First and foremost, it is about awareness. Spijkers: “Our focus is on creating an environment in which contractors can perform their work as safely as possible. HSE must live within the organisation. For instance, we have organised a Safety kick-off, a Safety Leadership Training and other initiatives to underline the importance of safety.” Hölzken adds: “Many safety programmes relate to culture and leadership. They ensure that parties look out for each other and make each other aware of the consequences of their behaviour. The risks lie not only in technology, but also in the way we work together within Porthos, with our contractors and all other stakeholders. We structurally seek cooperation and continuously urge others to do the same to prevent incidents.”
All noses in the same direction
Porthos’ motto is to welcome everyone to work in a healthy condition and to let them come home healthy again. “This requires a clear policy. It also requires a culture in which everyone has the right and duty to discuss unsafe situations immediately. If an unsafe situation does arise, people should have the authority to stop work and report the situation. We aim for both people inside and outside the Porthos organisation to call each other to account for unsafe behaviour and unsafe situations. With this, we want to create ambassadors for safety who, with their cooperation, are alert everywhere and at all times,” Spijkers said.
“There are five main contractors on the project, all bringing their own subcontractors. This means that several hundred people will soon be working on the route at the same time. And especially when we consider the construction of the compressor station and the cooling water pump building, that’s a lot of people on a relatively small plot. It is important then that, for the topic of safety, all noses are pointed in the same direction.”
Embedding safety policy rather than completely adapting it
“We believe in getting and bringing safety,” says Hölzken. “By doing so, you don’t just impose this important theme, but let stakeholders learn from each other, the so-called Learning Mindset. A cross-pollination that benefits everyone.” Spijkers illustrates this using an example: “One of our main contractors, Bonatti, has developed a coaching programme in the field of HSE. We asked Bonatti to tell more about this to the other contractors. Possibly this might be of interest to them too.”
Hölzken adds: “You do have to be careful to take contractors out of their routine. We contract these specialists because they know how to do it. When designing and implementing safety measures, you have to weigh up very carefully what you want to adapt and find the right balance. It is important to make concrete for parties how their individual safety policies fit within Porthos’ vision.”
Building bridges
“A large part of our work,” continues Hölzken, “consists metaphorically of building bridges, disarming and engaging in dialogue. In this way, we create a culture in which people are allowed to make mistakes. By then learning from these mistakes and letting others learn from your mistakes, we create a strong culture where everyone feels safe, psychological safety built on trust and a respectful constructive critical attitude both within and outside the organisation.”
Contributing to a more beautiful Netherlands
When Porthos approached Hölzken a few months ago for the position of HSE Manager, he did not have to think for a moment. ” I have a huge interest in companies that contribute to making the Netherlands greener. In Porthos, I find the right combination of complexity, challenge and the opportunity to contribute to a more beautiful world.”
Spijkers fully recognises Hölzken’s motive: “It is special to be involved in this unique project and at the same time contribute to the greening of the Netherlands. I am convinced that in this way we are contributing substantially to accelerating progress towards the climate goals.”
Lessons learned
At Porthos, safety is paramount. This means that the Porthos HSE team is constantly communicating, facilitating, speaking up and listening. Hölzken: “The past teaches us that in large-scale complex projects like Porthos, it is important that all noses are in the same direction. An open culture and unambiguous approach are essential here. Porthos, which involves many different parties, now needs one face and voice with one unambiguous approach to HSE. We need to get that done now. From that point of view, the right monkeys come on the right shoulders. Safety does not discriminate. An incident does not look at gender, age or nationality – it just happens. With a solid HSE culture and organisation, incidents can be prevented. This requires everyone from the management to the pipefitter outside in the field. Everyone has to take their role and responsibility in this. That’s why,” says Hölzken, “my personal motto is See it – Own it – Fix it!”
Spijkers: “It is important that everyone takes their own responsibility and acts accordingly. Only together are we strong in this. Dare to call people to account for their behaviour and point out safe execution. Safety goes beyond your project alone.”
Photo: HSE Lead Nick Spijkers (l) and HSE Manager Gerard Hölzken (r)
