Enel and the Italian State Police together on the road to safety
A lesson in road safety. Stepping up to the rostrum on 19 September at the Enel Auditorium in Rome to present the project “On the road to safety” will be two “mature pillars of the community”. This is how Marino Bartoletti, the well-known sports journalist who will be chairing the event, described the Italian State Police, which celebrates its 70th birthday this year, and Enel which is heading towards 60 years of activity.
These two reference points for our country established the protocol signed in March and the training programme on “safety at the wheel and accident prevention while driving for and to work”.
Safety, collaboration, innovation
“It is a project that combines safety and the capability to do things well,” explained Carlo Tamburi, director of Enel Italy, beginning the speech together with the Deputy Commissioner of the State Police Luigi Savina.
A training pathway that for Enel aims to set a benchmark to export to other countries in which the Group works. “To countries where there are not such extensive and useful protocols like this one signed in Italy with the traffic police.”
The initiative aims to raise awareness about dangers and bad habits while driving, among Enel’s internal staff and the company’s suppliers, and to improve road safety and accident prevention and limit the frequency of accidents that take place during the journey between home and the workplace, currently a significant proportion of the total number of road accidents.
The courses developed for Enel staff, with the support of the traffic police officers, are totally free. Furthermore, our company is improving the work of the police officers through innovation and technology, providing the force with 18 top crash, an innovative tool that facilitates a notable reduction in the time necessary to detect accidents, simplifying and increasing the safety of the officers on the roads and reducing inconvenience for drivers by returning the traffic flows to normal as quickly as possible.
“The issue of safety is central for Enel, as is that of sustainability. In terms of investment in Italy, our company is committed to supporting industrial growth and sustainable development because without sustainability there can be no development or innovation. As a company we want to continue on this route, looking towards the future”
– Carlo Tamburi, director of Enel Italy
Drive and work safely
“Enel has always believed that health and safety in the workplace are top priorities and since 2014 we have been strongly committed to facing these issues with an operative approach that is increasingly focused and closer to the field of action,” explained Attilio Cherubini, Head of Health, Safety, Environment and Quality at Enel. “An approach that is based on the experience of our staff and on objectives and solid commitments of our management.”
Using direct experience our organization aims to identify the best practices to export and apply in all of the sectors in which we operate and in every context. “The project involves working together with the traffic police,” observes Cherubini,” it gives us an opportunity to improve road safety in our country and to export good practices from Italy to other countries where the Enel Group is active.”
From people to the territory to daily life
“On the road to safety” is an initiative that involves over 10 thousand Enel staff, in diverse departments of the company, including the staff of subcontractors. Around 95 initiatives are due to take place over 15 months, 35 of which have already taken place in 60 Italian provinces involving four-hour training courses. These courses aim to develop specific skills in the perception of risk while driving, on potential distractions, such as the inappropriate use of smartphones, as well as central factors such as speed and visibility.
“The winning feature of the collaboration with the State Police has been based on two fundamental aspects: their expertise, based on knowledge of the laws and direct experience in the field and the skill in communicating difficult concepts in a simple way. The key to contribute to accident prevention, beginning with direct experience”
– Carlo Pignoloni, Head of Renewable Energies Italy
The training is fundamental for a company like Enel that in Italy has over 30 thousand employees and thousands of external contractors. Many of them work each day on the roads to carry out interventions on our energy infrastructure that is spread across the national territory. Teams carry out interventions using around 11 thousand vehicles of varying type, equipped with the latest innovative technology, 365 days a year, in all weather conditions.
“Enel Green Power’s collaboration with the State Police arose from the need to study detailed aspects of driving safety. This led us to establish a link with the traffic police,” explained Carlo Pignoloni, Head of Renewable Energies Italy. “This is our way of doing things: searching externally for the most qualified professionals to deal with complex issues.”
The educational event in the Auditorium was followed by a lesson on road safety with some tips offered by three experts from the traffic police. Their wisdom, good sense and experience was shared with those in attendance as the audience learnt about the numerous bad habits and decisions taken while driving that can put our safety at risk each day.