In Austria, Bad St. Leonhard Sawmill has set a good example in improving its safety performance. The unit is the first sawmill company in Austria to implement a certified safety and health management system (AUVA). This certification was granted in September 2004 by the Austrian Social Insurance for Occupational Risks.

A Zero-Accident Project was started in Finland in 2004, with Kotka, Oulu and Uimaharju mills as pilot units. This project involves increasing local management’s responsibility for safety, restoring operational safety responsibility in the line organisation, carrying out regular safety audits, giving safety training to all personnel and providing safety information. The Zero-Accident Project will eventually cover all Stora Enso’s Finnish units.

At Kvarnsveden Mill, special emphasis has been given to safety during a large paper machine construction project involving some 700 workers. All contractors’ employees were given special safety training before they could start work on the project. Safety inspections have been conducted regularly, and safety performance has remained at a good level.

At Skoghall Mill, safety procedures have been given prime importance during the construction of a recovery boiler, an evaporation plant, fuel handling systems and other machinery, as part of the mill’s Energy 2005 project. This project involved an average of 200 workers during 2004, and will occupy about 550 contractors’ employees in the beginning of 2005. All contractors’ employees must participate in Skoghall Mill’s safety training programme before starting work on the project. No serious accidents had happened in the project by the end of 2004.