Virtua, a leading provider of resources, expertise and bespoke service to the Telecoms and mobile telecoms industry based in Swindon, has recently been appointed Terry Welton (a Senior Telecoms Engineer) to the role of Health and Safety and Facilities Manager.
Andy Watts, CEO at Virtua said: “Telecoms engineering can be a dangerous business. Driving to work is a dangerous business. Living is a dangerous business. Some people think Health and Safety guidance is a bureaucracy designed to stop people doing ordinary things. I don’t see it that way. I see it as a set of common-sense techniques and tools to reduce the risk of people getting injured or killed at work. 180 people were killed at work in the UK last year. 10,000 major injuries from slips and trips. That’s not bureaucracy, that’s avoidable”
“We’re proud of our record on Health and Safety, but that’s exactly why we should continue to improve. Our people, our customers and our partners are real people with lives and families. I don’t want anyone of them hurt while they’re at work. By giving Terry the full Health and Safety role, we can make sure we don’t miss a thing and we protect everyone as much as we can. Terry’s a proper engineer, he cares about safety and he has loads of common-sense. That’s a great mix of skills for the Health and Safety lead.”
Terry’s new role and responsibilities will be wide ranging and include keeping records of all the Virtua staff in terms of their skill sets, qualifications, public liability insurance, security clearance status and any training courses they have attended. In addition Terry will be responsible for ensuring that all staff are fully trained in the numerous safety aspects of their job including risk assessments, working at height, the use of protective equipment and dealing with hazardous substances.
In his Facilities Manager role Terry will be responsible for all aspects of premises maintenance and security, fire safety and asset control and protection. With many years of experience as an Engineer in the Telecoms Industry Terry is very much looking forward to taking on these new responsibilities commenting: “As our business grows the importance of high quality health and safety policies and awareness is paramount and I’m looking forward to working with the team to make us top of our game.”
Terry will also work very closely with Virtua’s expert consultant – Pia Parry at the Health and Safety Advisory Service (www.healthandsafetyadvisory.co.uk) who provides support on all the very latest expertise, tools and regulations.