After 50 years operating in the towing
and transport sector, NationwideTowing
& Transport (NTT) has seen theWorkplace
Health& Safety regime it operates ingrow
exponentially.
Five to seven years ago, NTTbegan
to look seriously at itsWHS compliance
procedures and systems anddeveloped
business structures to ensure it remained
one step aheadof the requirements.
ShivanayGoundan, GeneralManager -
GroupRisk at NTT said: “Wemake surewe
can really deliver safety.
“Wehavehad to resourceour business
accordingly and in thepast five years NTT
has invested in excess of $30m inpeople,
WH&S processes, IT and fleet to ensure
we remain in compliancewithourWH&S
obligations.
“Towing& Transport is ahigh risk
industrywhich requires investment of
time, resources and finances andNTThas
ensured all risks areminimisedby investing
heavily into these areas,” Shivanay said.
As a result of its compliance investment,
NTTprovides a comprehensive service that
ensures its people, services and systems
complywith allWH&S legislation.
“NTThas a robust system inplacewhich
protects the interest of our customers and
our business, and ensures aquality service.
Wehave a tested compliance, safety
andquality system inplacewhichwas
developedover anumber of years.We also
manage legislative compliancewith ahigh
level of detail and ensure this alsoprotects
the interests of all our customers.”
The company is constantlymonitoring
the industry, reacting tonews of industry
accidents and incidents by reviewing its
ownpolicies andprocedures.
For example: late inDecember last
year, a female tow truckoperatorwith an
opposition company inVictoriawas hit by
a truckwhen loading a tow truckon the
running lane sideof ahighway.
“We immediately reviewed and
matchedour procedures to that situation
todetermine the safety and risks for our
operators and customers.
“Weare confidentwehave freeway or
Creating a safe towing and transport industry
high speedprocedures in linewith safety
requirements,” Shivanay said. “It is ahigh
riskpart of our business, sowe called all
our operators and reinstructed them in the
company’s best practice.”
All NTTdrivers are required to complete
driver auditing. NTT’s Driver Safety& Skill
Assessor andDriver Trainers audit all NTT
drivers to ensure thequality and safety of
all its operators.
“There is a compliance and legislative
requirement to ensuremonitoring is
completed. NTT completes this and this in
turn, assists all customerswith their own
legislative requirements,” Shivanay said.
“Driver training is an extremely
important aspect of operating a tow truck.
NTT ensures legislative requirements are
met by providing comprehensive training.
All NTTdriversmust complete a 13day
trainingprogramwhich ensures safety,
quality and customer serviceareat the
forefront of each individual’smind.”
Toensure thequality of the training
process, NTT training and auditing is
completedand reviewedby Certificate
IVqualified trainers. Each audit is then
reviewedby theNTTRiskDepartment
to ensure any corrective actions are
completed. The comprehensive audit is
documented for eachdriver.
NTThas invested indriver
communications, creating an integrated
approach to itsWHS education.
Onepart of this program is the
installationofmobile PCs inevery truck.
“We can send job information toour
drivers, butmore importantly it also allows
us to send safety alerts toour drivers; for
eg: onhighwinddayswe canalert drivers
to thehazards and risks.
“Also, beforeany job canbeundertaken,
our driversmust logon and completeand
register they have read andunderstood
the job information. This is job assessments
on arrival (JSEA).”
Anon site assessment before each
loading andunloading taskmust also
be completed via themobile PCs before
any job cango ahead. Adriver is not
permitted to complete the taskuntil the
siteassessment is complete
“When a site assessment is failedNTT
reacts promptly by usingour highly skilled
Driver Trainers toprovide adviceor attend
the sitewhere required.
“By ratingour equipmentwe can ensure
failures areminimised and each job canbe
riskassessed correctly. NTThas pioneered
the annual testing and taggingwhich is
an industry initiative. This ensures even
after the initial assessment of the rating,
the integrity of the equipment is not
compromised,” Shivanay said.
“For NTT, re-training is just as important
as the training itself. NTThas Cert IV
qualified trainers available to complete
re-training for driverswho are found to
not complywith safety andprocedural
requirements.We alsohave adiscipline
system inplace to address any driver that
continually does not complywith safety
precautions.
“In recent years, NTThas invested a
significant amount into thedevelopment
of SafeWork Procedures (SWP). This
ensures the informationprovided to
all drivers is accurate and specific to
completing their task.”
TheNTT SWPs are communicated to
all drivers during trainingandall drivers
are assessedon their compliancewith
the requirements of the SWP. TheNTT
SWPdocument complieswith legislative
requirements.
Contact: 03 9875 6078or visit:
HR
INDUSTRY IN FOCUS
26
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AND
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| MAY 2014
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“NTThas become an industry
leader in training,
customer service andbest
practice.We seeour
customers react and take
feedback fromus onhow
to improve their own safety.
We’reproudof that.”
