Environmental health and safety sound design
Novo Nordisk is currently integrating environmental, health and safety considerations into design of new plants and buildings. A procedure on “Environmentally sound project design” of new plants and buildings as well as the modification and expansion of existing plants and buildings was implemented in 2003 and updated in 2007. The procedure generally applies to all ISO 14001 certified areas and comprises the key design phases, which include conceptual design, basic design and detailed design.
Criteria for implementing of environmental health and safety improvements
The ambition level for EHS improvements, not being required by legislation or authorities, must be ambitious but realistic seen in relation to the size of investment and use of resources.
The criteria for implementing of EHS improvement projects is based on the financial pay back time which gives an objective basis for management decision and prioritizing of improvement projects. In general, the pay back time is 4 years which means that improvement projects with a pay back time of ≤ 4 years must be implemented. However, for energy savings and reduction of CO2-emissions related to Novo Nordisk’s Climate Strategy the pay back time is ≤ 5 years.
Climate Strategy and energy screenings
The Climate Strategy has now been in operation for the production sites of Novo Nordisk for 4 years. As of 2008, screenings for energy saving projects have been performed at all our production sites worldwide to achieve the corporate climate target of an annual reduction of 30,000 tons CO2. The screenings have resulted in many energy saving projects and provided us with valuable knowledge that can be applied in connection to environmentally sound project design.
Moreover, implementation of Energy Management at the production plants has contributed to a more systematically and focused approach to energy savings.
The experiences and methods used in connection with the energy screenings and the Energy Management System can and will be applied to identify improvement potentials for other resources such as water and chemicals.
Methods and tools
We are continuously working to improve the methods for EHS assessment and considerations that needs to be undertaken in connection with the design of new plants and buildings. To achieve the best possible result, the assessment and considerations are made from the first design phase, called Conceptual Design, in cooperation with the consultants, engineers and specialists. In 2008 we have trained 340 key employees (management group and project managers) in EHS assessment.
The methods currently include preparation and assessment of the ”Environmental, Health and Safety Profile” (EHS Profile) which identifies and quantifies the impacts and the possible improvement potentials. The EHS Profile, which is prepared as part of Conceptual Design and Basic Design, provides a good basis and reference for implementation of improvement measures and further investigations.
A case study – EHS Profile
An example of an ”Environmental, Health and Safety Profile” (EHS Profile) prepared for the Conceptual Design of a production plant is given below. The EHS-Profile is illustrated as a diagram showing the status of the significant EHS aspects, impacts and issues using different colours.
Colour code
- Red: Significant EHS impacts and improvements are needed
- Yellow: There could be EHS issues and further investigations are needed
- Green: No EHS issues and no investigations or improvements are needed assuming that good EHS practice according to Novo Nordisk standard is applied
- Grey: To be discussed
- White: Not relevant for the project.
The EHS Profile shows that consumption of water and energy and the related CO2-emissions are coloured red which means that improvements are needed for these aspects. Furthermore, five aspects are coloured yellow which means that they need to be investigated further; e.g. the legal requirements need to be clarified.
