ASCO and Fletcher Shipping have received top honours at Port of Aberdeen's 2024 Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) Awards, in recognition of their commendable initiatives that contribute to making Aberdeen a safer, healthier and more sustainable port.

Held at Aberdeen Football Club, the awards ceremony attracted over 70 industry leaders, HSE professionals, and Port of Aberdeen employees. Richard Ballantyne, CEO of the British Ports Association, delivered the keynote speech, providing expert insights on HSE within the UK ports sector.

The competition for the awards was intense, with double the number of nominations from the previous year.

Commenting on ASCO And Fletcher Shipping, Bob Sanguinetti, CEO, Port Of Aberdeen, said: "Their significant and sustained efforts to enhance HSE standards are commendable and set a benchmark for best practices that can inspire our colleagues, port users and customers."

ASCO was awarded the 'Port Health and Safety Award' for its robust leadership training, its WorkSafe LiveSafe ethos, and unwavering commitment to safety excellence. Fletcher Shipping and Serco NorthLink Ferries were also finalists in this category.

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Peter Guild, Group Head of HSSEQ, ASCO, said: "We are thrilled to receive the Port Health and Safety Award. This is an excellent recognition to our team working incredibly hard 24/7, 365 days a year, often in ever changing environmental conditions.

"We are very proud of this tremendous achievement because it highlights the commitment and passion for safety excellence, service excellence and sustainability from everyone involved."

Fletcher Shipping was honoured with the 'Port Environment Best Practice' award for its proactive steps to reduce emissions and implement responsible, forward-thinking business practices that address this significant industry challenge.

Keith Fletcher, Chairman, Fletcher Shipping, said: "We operate a fleet of platform supply ships that consume significant amounts of fuel and emit substantial emissions. By simply adding specialised software onto our vessels, we can monitor the fuel burn and emissions.

"Armed with this information, we can have constructive discussions with our stakeholders and agree parameters within which to operate to reduce the fuel burn and emissions. It is a simple short term fix, which helps us to start the longer transition process."

This year saw the introduction of a new 'Zero Harm' category for Port of Aberdeen employees, which honours those who consistently take actions beyond compliance.

The port's Operations Department received the award for their development of a mooring operations training pack and their ongoing vigilance and proactive reporting of safety incidents and observations. Michael Smith, Marine Support Staff and Amber Inglis, People & Culture Advisor, were also shortlisted for the Zero Harm Award.

Naveed Qamar, Head of SHEQ, Port of Aberdeen, added: "The significant rise in quality nominations this year highlights the increased engagement with our port users and customers, and our commitment to delivering HSE excellence in our operations.

"Our Operations Department, Michael and Amber would all have been worthy winners of the Zero Harm award. The breadth of applications from colleagues across the business is testament to the priority that our people place on HSE."