Business Champion – Amey

Amey is a leading infrastructure services and engineering company. It designs and maintains many of the UK’s strategic assets, working with national and local government, and other commercial customers, to manage assets and complex projects. It has 11,000 employees, including operations, engineering and consultancy teams.

“Amey believes that proper attention to the health and safety of its employees, subcontractors, client staff and the community within which the company operates is a key element of effective business management. Injuries are not inevitable, harm is not acceptable and risks are ours to manage. Management of fleet risk is particularly important as it affects all road users. Everyone uses the roads on a regular basis, or rely upon those who do, and we all have a right to do so safely.”

Peter Anderson, Managing Director, Transport Infrastructure

Introduction

Construction giant Amey works hard to manage fleet risk. Group Fleet & Plant Compliance Manager Julies Davies tells us why safety is embedded in the company’s DNA. Amey has a variety of initiatives which help reduce the risks its employees and those around them face when using the road. Fleet safety and compliance is supported by board-level engagement:

Driver Handbook

Amey updates its driving-related policies regularly. In October 2022 it launched a new Driver Handbook which includes our Greener Driving Tips to help reduce Amey’s carbon footprint.

The handbook also includes updates on compliance issues, the latest road legislation and Amey’s policies.

Key Fleet Figures

• 11,000 employees
• 3,500+ vehicles, including circa:
  • 1,100 cars
  • 1,300 vans
  • 1,200 trucks
• 8,000 drivers
• 1,500 Driver CPC holders
• 30 Transport Manager CPC holders

Insurance benefits

Amey updates its driving-related policies regularly. In October 2022 it launched a new Driver Handbook which includes our Greener Driving Tips to help reduce Amey’s carbon footprint.

The handbook also includes updates on compliance issues, the latest road legislation and Amey’s policies.

Mobile phone use

Amey considers the use of mobile phones while driving an extremely high-risk activity. It therefore recommends that drivers set-up a voicemail greeting to let others know that they may be driving and that they will return their call when it is safe and legal to do so. If drivers are considering making or taking calls while driving, they must be fully compliant with the law and that decision rests ultimately with them. Where vehicles have fixed tablets or PDAs, drivers have been advised that touching the screen is permissible in order to record required information. If necessary for the operation of ancillary equipment, the engine may still be engaged, but the vehicle must be stationary and in a safe place if the driver interacts with the PDA.

Driving Licence Checks

Amey works with Applied Driving Techniques to check driving licences. Over the past three years the company has gradually increased its check completion rates, which gives a clearer view of the driving population and potential risk exposure.

Driver Training

Amey’s driver training sits within a broader culture of care. This aims to move the emphasis from rules to relationship, and empowering staff to recognise and remove risk from the operations.

This approach is encapsulated in the Zero Code, which describes the behaviours that we expect our people and supply chain partners to enact. It is a simple work code that highlights the key actions we must all take to protect ourselves and others from harm.

As part of this, Amey has collaborated with its driver safety partner to provide e-learning across the business, promoting road safety and mitigating risks. It offers centralised yet tailored training to over 9,000 drivers in the UK and Ireland, based on targeted requirements and an analysis of individual driving performance. Drivers access the training through Amey’s health and safety portal.

Amey has also reviewed all Driver CPC training and partnered with Logistics UK to provide bespoke accredited training.

Good communication is an important part of driver training. Key messages are constantly reinforced by vehicle information posters, and bulletins. New policies are given to transport managers to cascade across their individual contracts. However, a new document information system also makes all polices available to employees.

The posters cover vehicle and driving topics, such as speeding, tailgating, correct tyre pressure etc.

The company also runs safety conferences. Although these were temporarily interrupted by the pandemic, Amey intends to re-institute the events.

Daily Vehicle Checks

Amey uses CheckedSafe, an app which allows drivers to complete their daily walk around checks on a phone or PDA. It is simple to use and makes vehicle inspection quicker and more efficient, as the driver can submit the results in real time with images, time and date stamps, and notes on corrective action. Once the check is finished, the report is viewable through an online portal.

All failed vehicle compliance checks automatically generate a report which is sent to a line manager or administrator for guidance.

Given the range of vehicles in the Amey fleet, drivers are given templates to guide them through the most appropriate defect report for the model in front of them.

The system is also used to carry out several H&S checks across the business.

Vehicle Safety Technology

Amey continues to invest in the latest technology to support the safety of its fleet. This includes the use of:

• Telematics
• 360-degree cameras
• CCTV
• Reversing alarms and reversing radar
• LED warnings
• Access and egress assistance
• Verbal warning device warning the driver the hand brake has not been engaged
• Auto-stop function for traffic management vehicles at 7.2t and 18t – this stops the vehicle if it detects any impediment when reversing

Supply Chain Control

Amey audits all its supply chain partners ensuring they are equipped with the correct safety kit, training and qualifications which the organisation requires.

It is rare for a non-employee to use an Amey vehicle. However, on those occasions when a sub-contractor or agency driver operates an Amey vehicle, s/he would be obliged to complete the driver licence mandate, and provide evidence of vehicle and public liability insurance as appropriate.

Business Benefits

This is an update to the previous Amey case study published in 2019, which itself revealed considerable achievements such as a 38% reduction in at-fault incidents and a 30% improvement in fleet utilisation. These new figures show that Amey’s continued commitment to driver safety is delivering further significant progress.

• Road traffic incidents down 33% in 2022 compared with 2019
• Fleet utilisation figures up by 25 percentage points in September 2022, compared with January 2020
• Average fuel economy up 12% and fleet CO2 emissions down 6.7%

Green Driving

The green driving tips which are disseminated to each driver include:

• correct tyre pressure and axle alignment
• the fuel benefits of smooth driving
• appropriate speed
• no unnecessary load items
• no idling

These driving goals are supported by the Masternaut telematics system, and the add-on lightbar which has been fitted to each cab. The lightbars give drivers instant feedback on their driving style with traffic light colours for constant reinforcement.