I cannot start this safety moment without remembering with you the tragic accident on Nagpur Mumbai Expressway Project in India on Monday 31st July in India, when 20 of our colleagues lost their lives, 13 women lost their husbands, 29 children lost their fathers. We need to exchange, to think individually and collectively about what we can do, can change, to make sure such a dramatic accident does not happen again, and that serious injuries are prevented. Looking at causes triggering accidents, there are always multiple, made of missed-out steps, lack of preparation, lack of quality control, complacency. As a specialist contractor, we have many times learnt the hard way that we are also exposed to the works done by others, clients, partners, so many interfaces which all can be source of risks. In construction, risk exposes health and lives. So, we cannot ignore any blind spot. This starts from business development when we target projects, and it continues during the delivery of the projects on site, for all our management teams, engineers, supervisors, workers. And all along, we must leave no space for short cuts, blind spots and the “so-easy-trap” of complacency. To be complacent is not to be benevolent or friendly. It is dangerous and can be deadly: therefore it is very unfriendly.

Jean-Yves Mondon CEO of VSL International