Safety, health and the environment: three spearheads of the Gosselin policy

For an important market player and logistics service provider like Gosselin, safety, health and the environment are always important themes. In addition to the obvious basic preventive needs (avoiding accidents, injuries and environmental damage), employees’ well-being is at the absolute top of the list of priority objectives. HSE manager Karl Vanderwallen tells us more.

(written by KMOinsider)

Up until a few years ago, the HSE (Health, Safety & Environment) activities were spread out over various departments at Gosselin. Oversight was difficult to maintain as a result. Around six years ago, Karl Vanderwallen joined the company as HSE manager. With his background as a chemical engineer, prevention adviser and environmental sciences expert, he was the perfect person to shape the policy on safety, health and the environment.

Safety, health and the environment foster well-being

“Our team takes a great deal of initiative in a variety of fields,” Karl explains. “The central theme running through it all is the focus on employees, a concept that may be interpreted very broadly. In the past, a prevention adviser used to concentrate primarily on limiting the number of industrial accidents, but we define this role very differently today. Among other things, there is a lot of attention placed on psychosocial well-being (such as ergonomics in the offices) and the training programs for professional and personal development (including programs for specific internal target groups).” It goes without saying that Gosselin wants to satisfy legal requirements ( compliancy). These days however, the organization also takes the ‘softer’ aspects into account. Every department gets a basket of fresh fruit every month for the work floor, and a bicycle plan was put in place.

Safety, health and the environment are everyone’s responsibility

Gosselin recently conducted an employee satisfaction survey among its staff. And even though this is required by the government, the company also takes action based on the outcome of the survey. A thorough screening of the results is currently underway. After all, these results can generate insight to help optimize work-life balance, for example. Ultimately, it is in every employee’s best interest for the employer to respect the laws on safety, health and the environment. The entire organization also reaps the benefits of a good HSE policy. “We don’t issue orders from an ivory tower,” the HSE manager continues. “The theme is crucial for everyone at Gosselin and also has repercussions across the entire organization. This is why we prefer to work in close consultation with other departments such as HR, Quality Control or Moving.”

Communication in a rapidly growing company

Gosselin is an extremely enterprising organization that is constantly expanding. “This is an intriguing challenge for us: we have to go all out for every new acquisition. The employee survey also showed that the dynamism sometimes happens at the expense of the continuous flow of information. People struggle to keep up with everything. This is why, with management’s support, we are now going to pay extra attention to internal communication.” All of these elements contribute to Gosselin’s profile as a modern, future-oriented, sustainable and socially conscious company, all of which naturally make it an appealing employer.

Explicit focus on the environment

This background of strong growth also means there’s a lot of administrative work to take care of. “Due diligence processes, building and environmental permits... We are actively involved in all of these issues.” Gosselin is managing the entire project internally. This demands a lot of effort, but also offers insight into every project phase and the ability to retain maximum control. Safeguarding a livable planet is simply a priority now. Everyone benefits from good living and working conditions. “People enjoy working for Gosselin. They value the camaraderie, the nice work atmosphere and the flat management hierarchy. If we can add the ideal conditions for safety, health and the environment to this, we consider our mission to be accomplished,” Karl concludes.

Interested in Gosselin’s concrete initiatives for safety, health and the environment? Would you like to know more about our complete logistics services? Don’t hesitate and  contact us.

About Gosselin Group 

Gosselin was founded in 1930 and employs 800 co-workers that generate more than 350 million euro in turnover. The headquarters of Gosselin are located at the Albert Canal in Antwerp, Belgium, and its inland terminal connects the port of Antwerp-Bruges with the European hinterland. The company has 56 offices in 34 countries and has a strong presence in Europe, Russia, the Caucasus and Central Asia. The Gosselin Group consists of two divisions: Gosselin Moving and Gosselin Logistics.  

Gosselin Moving offers international moves for multinationals, expats, diplomats, military personnel and private persons.  

Gosselin Logistics provides logistics services to businesses: transport solutions, customs formalities, warehousing and terminal operations, and industrial projects for heavy machinery and exceptional transport.