SBIA PARTNER PROFILE ZIMMER BIOMET
Zimmer Biomet helping children return to school safely An initiative to help children return to school safely involved practical advice and safety resources for principals, and child-friendly signage
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leading medical devices manufacturer, with stateof-the-art manufacturing facilities in Shannon and Oranmore, Galway, Zimmer Biomet’s motto is ‘Made as if Intended for my Family.’ This ethos filtered through when the impact of COVID-19 began to be felt and the company wanted to create a positive impact in the community in which they operate. The resulting initiative, named ‘Hop on Board’, involved not just the Zimmer Biomet employees, but also included a significant input from one of the team’s
children. The broader impact of it was to protect the health and safety of all their children and families, and those of the wider community, as schools prepared to welcome children back on the premises safely after lockdown closures. General Manager Claude Costelloe states, “We had three priorities as a business: the first one was to ensure our team members and their families were kept safe;our second priority was to ensure that we protect the livelihoods of all our team members; and our third priority was to ensure that we did something for the community.”
BEST PRACTICES The ‘Hop on Board’ project helped schools to replicate the rigorous standards of hygiene and safety that are so crucial a part of day-today operations in a medical devices manufacturing facility, but translated the communication and implementation of it into a child-friendly manner. As part of the Mid-West Lean Network, Zimmer Biomet is a leading proponent of Continuous Improvement in the region. “During the COVID-19 pandemic there were no opportunities to host or attend industry knowledge sharing events,” Costelloe recalls. “We decided to share pandemic best practices with local schools. This was the first time we looked to share our knowledge outside of industry and instead looked to liaise with the Public Sector.” The genesis of the idea was to share with local schools the best practices already put in place in the factory, to support its workers stay safe in the workplace, assisting the schools to prepare to receive students back on the premises. SITE VISIT In July 2020, Zimmer Biomet hosted an information and discussion event for principals, featuring practical advice and safety resources, aligned and compliant with the Irish Government’s COVID-19 guidelines. To prepare for the event, the company’s CSR committee
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