Southern Spars’ Path to Health and Safety Excellence
Regularly challenge your business and staff to raise health and safety standards.
Embedding change
Southern Spars made safety the top agenda item in production management meetings and daily toolbox meetings to keep risks and prevention strategies at the forefront of every workday.
By fostering a proactive safety culture, Southern Spars has established itself as an industry leader in workplace health and safety, setting a benchmark for others in high-risk manufacturing environments.
Introduction
Southern Spars is a global leader in the design and manufacture of carbon fibre spars and rigging for high-performance yachts, including America’s Cup competitors and race circuits worldwide. With a workforce of 160 employees, 100 of whom are production staff, Southern Spars operates in a high-risk manufacturing environment.
Recognising the need for significant improvements in health and safety, the company embarked on a transformative journey to reduce lost time injuries (LTI) and implement a robust recovery-at-work model.
Identifying the need for change
In 2021, Southern Spars identified a troubling trend: a significant increase in LTIs. By November of that year, the company recorded seven LTIs, resulting in a total of 70 lost production days. Additionally, an unhealthy workplace culture had emerged, where LTIs were becoming an accepted part of the manufacturing process. This was unacceptable to Southern Spars’ leadership, prompting a data-driven approach to understand the root causes and implement corrective measures.
Through statistical analysis, the company identified that most LTIs occurred on Mondays, while Tuesdays had the highest number of recorded injuries – although none were classified as LTIs. This insight prompted a deeper dive into injury causes, times of occurrence, and affected departments, forming the foundation of Southern Spars’ injury prevention strategy.
Developing a holistic safety spproach
Southern Spars took a collective and holistic approach to health and safety improvements. Key initiatives included:
- Cross-Departmental Workshops: Engaging health and safety representatives, top managers, and senior leadership in open discussions to uncover root causes and collaboratively develop solutions.
- Enhanced Communication and Transparency: Installing TV monitors in all departments to display real-time LTI rates, LTI-free days, recorded injury statistics, and near-miss incidents. This increased awareness and encouraged proactive safety measures.
- Prioritising Health and Safety in Meetings: Making safety the top agenda item in production management meetings and daily toolbox meetings to keep risks and prevention strategies at the forefront of every workday.
- Improved Accident Investigations: Moving beyond accepting medical reports at face value, Southern Spars implemented immediate post-incident debriefings to explore return-to-work options. These were informal, non-disciplinary discussions focused on employee well-being and recovery solutions.
Implementing the recovery-at-work model
Southern Spars adopted a structured four-step recovery-at-work model to ensure injured employees remained engaged and returned to work safely:
- Immediate Contact: Reaching out to employees post-injury to check on their condition and discuss potential return-to-work options.
- Medical Certification & Work Adjustments: Requiring a medical certificate to determine work capabilities and designing alternative duties based on medical recommendations.
- Ongoing Support & Adjustments: Maintaining open communication through casual check-ins and adjusting workloads as needed to facilitate a smooth transition back to full duties.
- Full Clearance & Reintegration: Ensuring employees received a full medical clearance before resuming their original roles and responsibilities.
Results and milestones
The safety transformation at Southern Spars yielded remarkable results:
- By late 2022, a significant reduction in injury rates and LTIs was evident.
- Between April 2022 and January 2024, the company achieved over 600 consecutive LTI-free days – a milestone demonstrating the effectiveness of the new approach.
- In 2024, although three LTIs were recorded, Southern Spars successfully surpassed the 100-day LTI-free threshold multiple times, breaking a previous mental barrier.
- Employees with potentially debilitating injuries were able to return to work within a day or two, minimising disruption while ensuring their health and engagement.
Key takeaways
Southern Spars’ journey to health and safety excellence underscores the importance of:
- Early Intervention: Immediate action and assertive engagement with injured employees to explore safe return-to-work options.
- Transparent Communication: Ensuring employees are aware of both causes and solutions related to workplace safety.
- Continuous Improvement: Regularly challenging the business and staff to raise health and safety standards.
By fostering a proactive safety culture, Southern Spars has established itself as an industry leader in workplace health and safety, setting a benchmark for others in high-risk manufacturing environments.
