And the Survey Says…
Results from the Priority Press Industry Survey

We received great response from the third annual Priority Press industry survey, which began in late summer and ended in October. This year’s theme was globalization—where your company is located geographically, the staffing of your worldwide Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) team, and managing EHS through your company’s supply-chain.  The following provides the results and highlights from this year’s survey.

The Universe

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Priority Press has a subscriber base of 7,600 + readers.  More than 6% of our readers responded (standard industry response levels are typically 1-2%).

The top five industries represented by respondents were: Manufacturing, Life Sciences (biotech, biomed, pharma, and medical devices), Information Technology (including ISPs, Computer Hardware and Software Development / Manufacturing), Semiconductor and Semiconductor Equipment, and Healthcare.

Current EHS Initiatives

Over the last three years, the survey has started with the same question—what are the top 3-5 Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) initiatives your company is currently focusing on. Possible responses include:

Respondents answering this question chose the following as their top three initiatives:

In the 2005 survey, the top three current initiatives were Hazard Analysis and Risk Assessment, Ergonomics, and Safety Leadership.  Clearly companies are continuing to invest in safety leadership initiatives and programs to improve their internal EHS processes. Figure 1: Current EHS Initiatives

Initiatives that were mentioned multiple times in the Other section included Risk Management and Employee Health and Wellness.

What’s Coming Up?

As always, changing economic and political climates often influence how the EHS function is managed.  We asked you to comment on the future-- the top 3-5 initiatives that you are exploring or initiating over the next 18 months. Possible responses include:

As illustrated in Figure 2, according to those who responded, the top three EHS initiatives, in order of preference, are:

Other responses included: Safety Training, Risk Management and Bilingual ESH Communications.Figure 2: What's Coming Up

Where in the World are You?

In today’s marketplace, across all industry segments, businesses are increasingly becoming more global in order to remain competitive. The transformation from a national entity to a global one also requires EHS programs to scale internationally.  The following chart illustrates the regions in which our respondents’ companies operate.

Figure 3: Where in the World Are You?

To staff global EHS organizations, managers may opt to hire permanent or full-time employees locally, engage professional outsourced staff, or combine both options for greater staffing flexibility.  The following chart reflects how our readers address their international EHS needs.

Figure 4: Managing EHS Needs

Driving EHS Initiatives through Your Supply Chain

The successful management of quality (including EHS operating standards) within supply chains is a major factor in the success of companies, especially those who depend on just-in-time supply and/or use hazardous materials.  Even if a customer’s own EHS programs have yielded important gains for the company, each supplier still has its own set of EHS challenges that can easily become the problem of the customer.

How far into the supply-chain does your company drive its EHS initiatives? 
More than 62% of respondents stated that their company requires primary or direct suppliers to adhere to specific EHS standards and 25% said that EHS initiatives are driven down through secondary or indirect supplier levels.  This question didn’t apply to 13% of respondents.

How do companies drive EHS through their supply chain?  They perform internal audits (80%), send out supplier questionnaires (26%), conduct telephone surveys (9%), and/or perform third-party audits (26%).

Your Internal Partners

EHS teams typically work with various levels of management across multiple departments within a company. Which groups do you work with the most?  The top three selected were: Operations (68%), Human Resources (53%), and Manufacturing (49%).  The chart below shows how other departments scored.

Figure 5: Internal Partners

Upcoming Articles

Based on your feedback, in 2007 Priority Press will include articles on:  EHS management and trends, measuring EHS, safety management, and ergonomics.  Plus, whenever we can, we’ll try to include a case study or success story.  If you have one you’d like to share, please contact Nancy Ellickson, editor-in-chief, via email (ellicksonn@eorm.com) or by phone (408.822.8115).

Once again, we appreciate your survey responses and comments.  It was interesting to learn about the kinds of initiatives that you are currently focused on and how you manage the EHS challenges of a global organization. If you have additional questions or comments on the Priority Press Industry Survey, please direct them to prioritypress@eorm.com.

Here’s to a safe and prosperous new year.

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