Solvay Group pandemic planning
Given the known threat of a flu pandemic occurring, Solvay has been preparing a robust contingency plan since the end of 2006. To this end, the company put in place a team which subsequently developed the Solvay Corporate Pandemic Influenza Plan. The plan’s objective is to make all reasonable efforts to ensure the best possible health protection for its employees and their families and to ensure, as far as possible, business continuity, working in close cooperation with its suppliers and customers.
The corporate plan has already been adopted and implemented and pandemic contingency plans are underway across Solvay.
Pandemic Project team
The Solvay Pandemic Project team directs and coordinates preparedness activities for the Solvay Group, across the whole organisation and in each of the business sectors. A corporate plan directs pandemic planning activities and serves as the basis for the development of national and local pandemic preparedness plans, which have been developed in accordance with plans set by (local) authorities.
The corporate plan also sets out activities at a National and each production site level. The Corporate Pandemic Project team oversees activities and any required escalation in response to an ongoing pandemic.
National level and the National Pandemic Response Group
At the national level, business continuity plans need to fully address the potential impact of a pandemic. These are regularly reviewed. The plan includes a checklist of issues that need to be considered on an ongoing basis, and a series of actions which may need to be to undertaken to enable business contingency planning.
A National Pandemic Coordinator and a substitute are appointed by each Regional or Country manager. Generally, the Solvay National Pandemic Coordinator will be responsible for implementing the appropriate policies and actions. He / she will assemble a National Pandemic Response Group (NPRG) comprising representatives and deputies from each of the operational sectors operating in that country, and the regional medical coordinator. The composition of the team can be adjusted depending on the nature of the issues to be handled.
The NPR Group ensures that their territory is prepared and that action plans are tested and regularly reviewed. The NRP Group`s responsibilities cover leadership, operations, travel, staff issues, health and hygiene, internal and external communication.
Prioritising customer needs
Solvay policy is to keep business operations running as normally as possible but, when this is not possible, to make all reasonable efforts to ensure the supply of key products to key customers. These priorities will be informed by any local national government guidance on what it may consider ‘essential’. Where such guidance does not exist or does not specifically include mention of Solvay products, priority will be given by Solvay to products necessary for the social/humanitarian area. These will be identified with the assistance and cooperation of our customers. These key products may (but not necessarily) include products that support water treatment, disinfection, pollution protection and essential medicines.
The Strategic Business Unit (SBU) managers are contacting customers identified as “essential” within this social/ humanitarian context, to establish their needs and seek their input into helping establish local priorities.
When appropriate, specific measures and continuity plans will be implemented along the whole supply chain in order to ensure, as far as possible, the continuity of the supply of the key products to the key customers in the worst case scenario.
Site level
At site level, pandemic plans define the actions required to ensure continued, safe operation of the site with minimal impact or disruption to delivery of products to customers, whilst taking all reasonable steps to protect the health of the staff. The site manager leads and coordinates development, implementation and monitoring of the local pandemic plans which details the key issues to be covered during a pandemic. The functions that are covered by these plans include:
Solvay Group pandemic planning
