Bretland Group’s unwavering commitment to Health & Safety was once again underlined by its double success at the 2024 Health & Safety Excellence Awards.
Held in the Radisson Blu, Golden Hall in Dublin on Thursday, April 18 last, the Health & Safety Excellence Awards celebrate the most innovative individuals and companies driving excellence in Ireland’s Health & Safety sector. One of the big winners on the night was Bretland Group who scooped the Health & Safety Excellence Award – Utilities & Services and Health & Safety Team of the Year – SME Award.
The wins come at an exciting time for Bretland Group who are a leading provider of professional building services in Ireland offering quality construction and maintenance. Fronted by Fechin and Mary Daly, the Edenderry, Co. Offaly-based company is experiencing unprecedented growth as it continues to expand into new sectors and is also undergoing a full rebrand.
“We’re going through a process of expansion,” Bretland Group Head of SHEQ Darren Bourke explains.
“Our staff and turnover are increasing which has led to a need to double our office space. This growth is being driven by a move into new and different sectors. We already have a strong presence in the pharmaceutical and life science sectors where Health & Safety is everything.
“We’re delighted to win two Health & Safety Excellence Awards,” continues Darren, who previously won Health & Safety Team of the Year – SME and Health & Safety Manager of the Year in 2021 and ’22 respectively.
“The Team of the Year – SME Award is great recognition for our team and processes. Bretland Group has a long history in Utilities & Services, so it was nice to come up trumps in that category also. We’ve upped our game significantly and these awards are a validation for what we’re doing.”
Bretland Group’s entries this year focused on providing a digital Health & Safety platform to staff, workers and their wider supply chain. In correlating information from Health & Safety audits, digital observation findings and corrective actions, proactive (rather than reactive) data could be used to reduce rates of injuries and incidents on their projects. The digital platform was also directly linked to Bretland’s disciplinary process, enabling them to track unsafe acts and conditions, establish root cause through digital analysis and design effective safety awareness programmes to improve behaviours on their sites.
“In January 2023, Bretland senior management identified the need to transition to a digital Health & Safety platform. Their focus was to ensure a more measured, accurate and interactive approach to Health & Safety, and to provide user-friendly and inclusive procedural tools for staff, workers and our wider supply chain,” Darren says.
“A commitment was made to agree to a developmental partnership with Belfast-based IT company Onos Technologies to develop and introduce a paperless and digital way forward, to utilise proactive rather than reactive data in our forward planning, and ultimately reduce the risk of injury and incident in our construction projects.”
Bretland’s Health & Safety initiatives, processes and accreditations include Whiteboard Meetings (transition to interactive), Recording Site Observations on a digital platform, IP23 Implementation of Disciplinary Procedure and ISO 9001, 45001 and 14001 certifications. Each and every daily whiteboard meeting on all projects starts by agreeing meeting rules and code of conduct. This sets the tone for each meeting, the importance of interactive involvement and emphasises the positive culture required to avoid injuries or incidents on site. Bretland’s Health & Safety department played a key role in developing this initiative and were at the forefront in ensuring staff were suitably trained in effective presentation / delivery while ensuring this critical safety meeting didn’t become “just another progress meeting”.
It is critical in the utilities and services sector that existing (and often live) services and / or hazardous energies are recorded and reported to site management. Last year, Bretland senior management committed to providing site operatives, subcontractors and clients with an easy-to-use digital means of recording observations of critical services being installed and also existing services encountered during the installation process.
In developing IP23 Implementation of Disciplinary Procedure, Bretland Group established a consistent and fair system by issuing yellow and red cards to offenders. To ensure those working on their sites were fully aware of expectations, the contractor’s list of yellow and red card offences were printed on large signs and posted in strategic areas of sites.
With over 20 years’ experience in Health & Safety, Darren is responsible for developing all safety programmes and initiatives, and works closely with project-appointed Health & Safety officers and stie teams to ensure compliance. All programmes and initiatives are presented to senior management at design stage for consultation, and full support is given to the Health & Safety department to ensure resources are in place when required.
All Bretland staff attend a monthly communications meeting and receive information and training on plans to introduce programmes and initiatives to the company. Bretland’s BBS (Behavioural Based Safety) Rewards Scheme is used to full effect to ensure those embracing Health & Safety initiatives are rewarded for their efforts each month.
Bretland intends utilising their Health & Safety platform to develop a group-wide Performance League Table. Each site will be evaluated on Health & Safety performance on an ongoing basis, will submit a monthly report (based on hours worked, numbers of injuries and incidents on site, quantity of Health & Safety audits, effective close out of audit action items etc) and will be placed on their league table of sites to monitor compliance with initiatives and with company policy and procedure.
It is also Bretland’s intention to introduce their Performance League Table to their BBS Rewards Scheme to ensure those trying hardest are rewarded most to encourage positive competition among site teams and across their divisions.
Bretland are currently engaged in a wide range of projects. Recently, they completed the regeneration of Castletymon District Centre in Dublin. This project involved the upgrading and modernisation of Castletymon Shopping Centre and its environs. It included improvements within and around the Shopping Centre and along the roadway from the new library / Bancroft Park and Tymon Park / National Basketball Arena.
Bretland is currently constructing 38 social houses in Clara for Offaly County Council. The finishes will be high quality with contemporary detailing, while the houses will be A2 energy-rated. Clara is also the location of Bretland Park. This is the home of Offaly LGFA (ladies football) to which Bretland holds the naming rights.
With a rich history of delivering outstanding results, Bretland combines innovation with craftsmanship to bring your vision to life. Their team’s dedication and skill ensure the highest quality, on-time delivery and cost-effective solutions for a diverse range of projects. From design and planning to project management, the company provides a broad spectrum of services to clients across the commercial, residential, life sciences and civil engineering sectors as well as bespoke architectural glazing solutions.
Upholding integrity, safety and sustainability are Bretland’s core values. Achieving your vision is their focus, and their industry reputation is testament to a commitment of excellence in everything they do.
Bretland Group
10A Eden Trading Estate,
Edenderry,
Co. Offaly,
R45 E294.
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.bretland.ie
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, October 2024, Vol 10 No 10
