Bringing subcontractors into the ‘NINA flow'

Arjan Ottink, OCM, and Nick Troost, DOCM, took the new NINA E-learning course from home
before starting work on the Triton Knoll wind turbine project. The project ran from June through
November 2020, so right in the middle of the COVID-19 crisis. This meant the opportunities for
coming together for a NINA session were limited. They found that taking the NINA E-learning
course in advance was a good alternative.

“The module was a refresher for our own people and an introduction to NINA for the subcontractors,” says Arjan. “It was great to hear colleagues from all around the world explaining what the NINA Values mean to them personally – how they deal with giving and receiving feedback, for instance, why they think this is so important, and how they benefit from it. This is often an eye-opener for subcontractors, even if their own safety standards are high. And for our own people, it strengthens bonds because they see that everyone works in the same way.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE
The E-learning course covers the 5 NINA Values through videos with contributions from various colleagues. It also deals with dilemmas encountered on the job, acted out by actors. Nick really liked these role plays: “You are given two scenarios and need to choose what you would do in that particular situation. You then get to see your choice played out. But you also get to see what would have happened if you had chosen differently. This means the module really sets you thinking.”
Arjan and Nick believe that continuing to talk about safety in groups is important for maintaining the focus on awareness within the project. Nick: “It’s about the bigger picture: an online session and group discussions and talking about SHOC cards and a pre-shift toolbox. This also brings our subcontractors into a ‘NINA Flow’ and teaches them that they can bring up safety issues without it counting against them.”

BALANCE
“Repetition is important,” agrees Arjan. “But what we do need to pay attention to is the balance. For this project, it was a client requirement that we held a session on their safety program too. So that meant the same things being repeated three or four times, and then you run the risk of people getting tired of it. Better planning with the client at the project preparation stage and a NINA project plan can prevent this.”

News

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Bringing subcontractors into the ‘NINA flow'

Arjan Ottink, OCM, and Nick Troost, DOCM, took the new NINA E-learning course from home before starting work on the Triton Knoll wind turbine project. The project ran from June through November 2020, so right in the middle of the COVID-19 crisis. This meant the opportunities for coming together for a NINA session were limited. They found that taking the NINA E-learning course in advance was a good alternative.

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