Shell talks about road safety initiatives in Coca-Cola Logistics Summit

MANILA: Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation presented the safety standards being followed within the organization at the recent virtual Logistics Summit of Coca-Cola Beverages Philippines, Inc. (CCBPI).

CCBPI is the bottling arm of Coca-Cola in the Philippines. It is a partner of Pilipinas Shell under Shell Fleet Solutions, which supplies products and services such as discounted fuel, ferry bookings, and the streamlining of toll payments to various companies to ensure efficient fleet management.

In a statement, Shell Health, Safety, Security, and Environment (HSSE) Manager Lily Keh-Camero said, “We’re not only providing the best-quality fuel products and services, but we also share how we deliver these products in a safe and secure way.”

Meanwhile, CCBPI Logistics Director Ruth Genota stated, “We have always placed great value on our partnership with Shell because CCBPI’s road safety protocols are integral to how we do business. Every Coca-Cola bottle that reaches our consumers is backed by the implicit promise that it was manufactured, handled, and delivered according to the strictest safety standards.”

Coca-Cola manages a fleet of around 3,000 trucks and over 2,000 sales service vehicles, making it one of the largest logistics networks in the country. Because its supply chain spans the entire country, Coca-Cola’s fleet often faces challenges on the rough roads of the Philippines.

According to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), 32,000 vehicular road accidents happened in Metro Manila from January to August 2020. In an earlier report, it was revealed that 15% of all road accidents in 2019 were truck accidents.

During the Logistics Summit, Pilipinas Shell Country Security Manager Oliver Ortega shared the company’s HSSE culture. Pilipinas Shell has set the best safety standard across wide range of industries and they are promoting this culture to other companies not just for business efficiency, but also for better transportation quality for its customers. The Logistics Summit was attended by 100 CCBPI employees.

Pilipinas Shell also discussed the HSSE Goal Zero journey, which targets to raise awareness on the safety standards across the entire organization by focusing on three high-risk areas: personal, process, and transport safety. The company’s HSSE team conducts training for the people included in the program to strengthen the safety culture in the workplace.

In 2019, Pilipinas Shell established the BiyaHero program that promotes road safety practices by supporting initiatives and partnerships, originating from the insight that “safety is a shared responsibility among everyone on the road.” Drivers, riders, mechanics, and pedestrians all play a significant role in observing road safety.

“Road safety protocols demand a continuous journey of improvement. At Coca-Cola — given our goal to deliver quality products across Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao — we have to make sure that the Logistics Team are champions of road safety. Through summits like this, we get to learn from industry partners and share best practices, working together to better navigate the country’s roads and chart safer journeys even in service,” Genota said.

According to Keh-Camero, road transport risk is one of the operational risks that Pilipinas Shell is dealing with as it establishes COVID-19 safety protocols to bounce back. She stated, “We feel good in sharing our safety programs and initiatives, as these have not only improved our safety culture as Shell but they also form a mindset that saves lives. If this can be replicated through platforms like CCBPI’s Logistics Summit, just imagine how many more corporate safety cultures and policies can be improved, and ultimately how many more lives we save.”

Photo from Pilipinas Shell

Also read: Pilipinas Shell, Grab PH present initiatives for Cebu drivers and delivery partners