O’Donovan Waste Disposal is a family-run waste management company based in London, UK. The company has six depots in London, a turnover of £21 million, 95 heavy goods vehicles and 165 employees.
O’Donovan is committed to employee training and education, community, industry best practice and the safety of all road users, and strives for continuous improvement with a robust ongoing safety strategy called ‘Safety Above and Beyond’.
A bespoke operations management system monitors driver behaviour in real time and highlights driver performance and driving styles, while flagging incidents such as harsh braking or acceleration. This system allows any training or mentoring needs to be identified immediately and reports are collated for a weekly driver league table that celebrates safe and efficient driving.
Training is a core part of the health, safety and wellbeing initiative and all staff have been heavily involved in the process, empowering them to implement its principles. Training is in a multi-lingual format to support the multi-national workforce and ensure that UK terminology is understood.
In addition to a comprehensive classroom-based training programme, drivers take part in compulsory urban driving courses, which focus on the safety of vulnerable road users, in particular cyclists.
“O’Donovan is committed to employee training and education, community, industry best practice and the safety of all road users, and strives for continuous improvement with a robust ongoing safety strategy called ‘Safety Above and Beyond’.”
Safety is a major priority and O’Donovan’s management team is working hard to improve transport standards and policy in the UK, and has played a key role working with HGV manufacturers to redesign truck cabs to improve driver vision.
Several drivers have complete Road Haulage Association training, and are qualified to carry out driver assessment and support and mentor staff. This one-to-one focus enables gaps in training to be identified and addressed early, to improve driving standards.
O’Donovan supports its local community through Exchanging Places schemes that encourage drivers and cyclists to interact and gain understanding of each others’ experience of using roads.
O’Donovan Waste Disposal was highly commended for the Company Driver Safety Award (small fleet) in 2019. This award recognises the organisation with a total fleet size of less than 250 vehicles that has implemented initiatives that do most to promote and achieve safer driving among employees.
See more previous winners.
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