8 | Naylor Love Dunedin T T Bernadette Cooney Bringing Health & Safety to the fore Gary and Phyllis Clarkson at this year’s New Zealand Institute of Building (NZIOB) Awards, where Gary was a finalist in the Southbase Health, Safety & Wellbeing category. “Common sense only comes from a position of knowledge. If you give people the information, they can make better, safer choices. And that leads to stronger projects for everyone.” REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Naylor Love Dunedin Health & Safety manager, Gary Clarkson, was a finalist in this year’s New Zealand Institute of Building (NZIOB) Awards, in the Southbase Health, Safety & Wellbeing category. Although he didn’t take home the top prize, Gary says the recognition reflects the culture and commitment that Naylor Love fosters across the country. “It was an honour just to be nominated,” Gary says. “The support from Naylor Love has allowed me to start initiatives that have genuinely upskilled and empowered our people to consider Health & Safety from a position of knowledge, so they can make informed decisions.” Gary, who has been with Naylor Love Dunedin for six years, introduced three Health & Safety programmes designed to ensure making safe decisions becomes second nature for all construction site workers on Naylor Love projects. “For apprentices and younger workers, that has meant intensive coaching and mentoring, giving them not only technical knowledge of risks, like the dangers of dust, noise, or sharp tools, but also the confidence to speak up when something’s not right,” says Gary. The second component targeted site supervisors, equipping them with stronger awareness of responsibilities and practical tools for assessing and managing risk. Perhaps most significantly, Gary established an ongoing Health & Safety Forum for subcontractors. “Many of these are smaller businesses, perhaps lacking dedicated Health & Safety staff, yet they account for more than half of Naylor Love’s on-site workforce.” Gary’s forum, running every six weeks for the past 15 months, has given subcontractors access to tools, techniques, training, and open dialogue. “Common sense only comes from a position of knowledge. If you give people the information, they can make better, safer choices. And that leads to stronger projects for everyone,” Gary says. The results have been tangible, he says. Subcontractors now arrive on-site with clear expectations, engagement has risen, and workers are more confident about voicing concerns. These Health & Safety strategies have been tested on some of Dunedin’s most complex projects over the past couple of years. Most recently, Naylor Love delivered the new ACC building at Queen’s Garden for Ngāi Tahu Properties. Naylor Love’s new Health & Safety approach, drew praise from stakeholders such as Laurie Corbett, the Ngāi Tahu property development manager. Another notable project was the gasworks chimney restoration for Dunedin City Council. The heritage project required intricate safety planning, including suspended work at height under highly technical conditions. Naylor Love Dunedin also applied its H&S strategy to the construction of the Otago Polytechnic Trades Training building, a technically demanding project with unique risks. Gary’s dedication stems from personal tragedy. Growing up in Scotland, he lost a close friend in the 1988 Piper Alpha oil rig disaster in the North Sea, which claimed 167 lives. The event left a deep impression on him, and ultimately inspired him to pursue a career in Health & Safety. “Watching those images on TV, seeing the devastation, and then following the inquiry, I thought, this isn’t right. People need the knowledge and accountability to stop this from happening again.” contractors of choice Painters & Decorators JAMES WREN & CO LTD 50 Carroll Street PH: 03 477 9384 www.wrens.co.nz EST 1896 Contracting • Painting, Decorating • Programmed Maintenance • Solid Plastering • Specialist Coating • Tiling • Textured Coating “Aotea Electric Southern are proud to align ourselves with the Health & Safety values shared by Naylor Love and look forward to our continuing H&S Group collaborations.” 03 455 1039 aoteaelectricsouthern.co.nz Electrical | Communications | AV | Solar | Industrial | Building Compliance Applicators of sealant, waterproo ng, resin ooring and membrane roofs
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