FOCUS WINTER PREPARATION
Drainage: Ensure all drainage on your sites is
running clear and free. Autumn is a good time
to do this with the leaves dropping. If your gully
pots become blocked with a build-up of leaves
and debris a high level of water can mean they
become overwhelmed. Engage a specialist to
check the drainage on your sites and ensure
these are running free. If the worst does happen
and a flood does occur, having an emergency
response contract can save you time and hassle
arranging for the water to be pumped out
getting you back up and running quickly and
safely.
Bunds: Checking the integrity of your bunds
is imperative at the start of winter. The changes
in temperature from hot to cold can cause
the lining or joints to crack which can cause
hazardous materials to be released into the
environment leading to downtime, costly cleanup
and potential environmental fines.
Checking the pump or drain valve on your
bunds is also a good idea to make sure they
are working e ectively in managing the build
of liquids. A specialist can check all the bunds
across your sites and o er remediation work
to make them safe and compliant before the
winter comes.
Rainwater harvester: A lot of sites,
particularly those that are unmanned, are
investing in rainwater harvesting for systems
such as toilet flushing and non-drinking water
hand washing basins. Like any asset, these
require maintenance to ensure they remain
operational. Before the winter it is good to
check their shut o valve is engaged so heavy
rainfall doesn’t overwhelm them and they are
protected from frost.
Environmental risk audit: This has been an
unprecedented year so far and we are expecting
the winter to bring about additional challenges.
But with it comes opportunities to reassess
your business operations to ensure that you
don’t incur any unnecessary costs or downtime
and thus giving you a critical advantage over
your competitors.
42 SEPTEMBER 2020
TRUE GRIT
GRITIT is a specialist Winter Gritting company, servicing a wide portfolio of clients
including numerous retail, education and healthcare sites: all sectors that have been
especially hard hit by the COVID-19 crisis.
Compliance Director Steve Webb has been the driving force behind the operational
and business changes required because of COVID-19 to guarantee employee and client
safety. He explains: “Our cautious approach has centred around various immutable
foundations, namely:
Proactively communicate to each client on a 1-to-1 basis
Follow and disseminate government advice to all employees as soon as it is updated
Rigorous COVID-19 safety procedures followed across the board
Emphasize employee wellbeing and health
Provide every means possible for operational sta to ensure the safety of client sites
and follow client requirements
As the COVID-19 events started to unfold, we took a calm, structured approach with
clients, namely a clear missive from the top to contact each client individually to
inform them of the measures that we were taking as a company, what to expect from
us in the weeks ahead and how we’d help clients during their own di icult times.
As the pandemic unfolded, Government advice changed weekly, sometimes daily,
and we have followed and disseminated this advice out to our teams, from social
distancing to facemasks, and from self-isolation following non-domestic travel to
personal hygiene measures. We will continue to do so for the foreseeable future –
corporate COVID-19 advice is now part of the “new normal”. Safety of client sites
Throughout the COVID-19 crisis, we have made a point of it to follow client
requirements, including signed declarations from our operatives, which were made
possible at speed.
THE UPCOMING WINTER SEASON
We are not alone in wondering how the upcoming season may be a ected by
COVID-19, especially as the threat of a second wave looms on the horizon. This is
why we have ‘wargamed’ sets of highly detailed operational contingency solutions,
anticipating possible “what if” scenarios in the months ahead such as the imposition
of further local lockdown restrictions in specific areas, or imposition of transport
restrictions.
Our internal operator sta ing plans also cover standbys for every single operator
and route we have, to make sure that regardless of events, we always have teams of
GRITIT Winter Gritting professionals available for all our clients. The measures that
we have taken means that we can safely continue the crucial work of keeping Britain’s
commercial, public, emergency and critical infrastructure safe and operating during
the entire winter, 24/7, 365/365.”