CSR

The importance of Corporate Responsibility for Janson Bridging. Take here notice of our CSR Policy. 

Quality of life

As a business, we  want to contribute with our expertise to a worldwide improvement of quality of life. We achieve this by improving the mobility of people and communities with our products and services. As a result, education and healthcare in developing countries become better accessible, local and regional economies are able to grow and communities are better able to protect themselves against the increasing effects of the climate change.

Partners

Cooperation with other parties is essential to realise our goals. Therefore, Janson Bridging is always searching for long term partnerships. These partners are typically (national, regional and local) governments, financial institutions and donors, suppliers and subcontractors and communities who are the end customer using and benefitting from our products and services.  When entering into these partnerships we always adhere to two premises: respectful interactions and creation of win-win situations. Our practical knowledge and hands-on mentality make us an attractive counterpart that is able to keep track of the interests of our customers and partners.

Sustainable development

Our good name did not come naturally; we got it by hard work and continuously improving our way of working. This mentality is still our focus and continues to be so in the future. The continuous improvement is not only achieved by hard work, but also by working smart and efficiently. We not only try to do the things right, but we also want to do the right things.

For us, doing the right things does not only include a constant quality of our products and services, it also includes working in a careful manner. This means that prepare our projects with care and precision to prevent or mitigate possible adverse impacts of our activities or business partners on neighbouring communities and the environment. Moreover, we are happy to contribute to the environmental, social and economic progress to achieve sustainable development in the countries where we work.

To do so, Janson Bridging specifically follows the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, IFC Guidelines and ILO Declaration on fundamental principles and rights at work. We are committed to an active approach and contribution to continuously improve our organisation by achieving the goals and objectives.  Our main goal is:  Contributing to an improved quality of life by offering mobility solutions worldwide in the upmost achievable sustainable way.

Tips and complaints

Janson Bridging is focused to create added value to society. In this framework we are committed to a transparent relation with our stakeholders.

In event of suggestions how we can improve, or a complaint or grievance of any kind, please contact us at csr@jansonbridging.com.

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FOCUS AREAS

Janson Bridging has a strong commitment to corporate social responsibility. We work consciously and drive improvements in both social and environmental sustainability. The main subjects on which we focus are: human and labour rights, communities, health and safety, environment and business ethics.

Human and labour rights

Respect for human and labour rights is a core value of our company . Our aim is to connect people, to provide them opportunities to educate themselves, to reach a hospital and to bring their products to a market to boost their family income. These goals are attained by providing permanent or temporary bridges that enable communities to continue and enhance their normal way of life.

We are conscious that during the realisation of bridges temporal effects on neighbouring communities may occur. Therefore, we prepare by identifying all possible risks beforehand, take measures to prevent adverse impacts and keep timeframes as short as possible. We engage with affected people during the whole project period. We actively involve them and are always available for questions, complaints, and compliments. We not only supply a product, but we also take care of the complete implementation of the project.

Additionally, we care for our workers and those who are hired via our subcontractors. The most relevant topics for our projects to address are integrated in our policies and management system, these are: health and safety, child labour, non-discrimination, equal opportunities, inappropriate behaviour, forced labour and position of immigrant workers, right to join a trade union and collective bargaining, consultation about work and decent wages, a grievance mechanism and whistle blowing procedure. In 2019 for example, we launched a Code of Conduct for our suppliers who are working for the Janson Bridging Group.

Communities

Communities who might be affected during the realisation of permanent or temporary bridges are always informed. For us it is the only natural way to establish a constructive relationship with communities who will be connected and where we work during a project. During the preparation phase the community is mapped, and possible risks are identified and mitigated appropriately. If compensation is required for the acquisition of land, the client, (local) governments and donors are informed to take appropriate measures. For permanent bridges stakeholder engagement plans are made.

This means affected communities are extensively consulted, informed on the project and possible adverse impacts. Periodic moments for interaction are planned throughout the whole project considering possible gender aspects and needs of disadvantaged and vulnerable groups. An accessible grievance mechanism is always available.

When the risk arises that indigenous people or cultural heritage sites may be affected during the project, all activities will be ceased immediately for the necessary investigations. In these cases, sites will be protected with suitable measures and if necessary, access roads or bridges will be moved. All relevant stakeholders and interested parties will be consulted in identifying the appropriate corrective actions.    

Project related information is made available, for example, on a notice board or during meetings, in the culturally appropriate local languages to enable everyone to understand and enable meaningful participation.

After completion of the project and when required by relevant stakeholders an evaluation will be held to include the community’s feedback.

Health and safety

We are committed to the safety of our employees, contractors, subcontractors, customers, and the surrounding communities. Our goal is zero lost time incidents. Therefore, before construction starts all project sites are carefully investigated. The local community is informed about the possible risks at the project site and reasons for temporary access restrictions. Access roads are identified in consultation with the local community and measures are taken to ensure that the transport to and from the project causes no additional safety risks.

The training, development and continuous engagement of our employees concerning health, safety and environmental issues ensures that they know exactly what is expected from them. A site specific HSE instruction ensures that all employees present at a project site are familiar with the project HSE risks and preventative measures. Additionally, Janson Bridging is committed to provide the necessary resources to facilitate a safe and healthy work environment.

To continually improve our HSE performance we monitor all HSE related events. To ensure that all HSE incidents are reported we have provided all responsible employees with a smartphone application to facilitate an efficient and easy way to register HSE incidents. The result of this process provides more and better data for analysis purposes. The analysis provides insights in the key risks and possible dangerous behaviour. It also provides the basis for our continuous improvement program.

Janson Bridging has a Dutch certified Health and Safety management system (SCC- Safety Checklist for Contractors) The current management system will be upgraded to a certified ISO 45001 Management system in 2021.

Environment

We are committed to contribute to a sustainable environment. Our goal is zero environmental incidents. Issues concerning the circularity of materials used, biodiversity, soil-, water-, noise-, air quality and the impact of climate change are continuously addressed, throughout our diverse activities within projects, maintenance of our bridges, travel and the way we manage our offices.

For large international projects, an Environmental and Social Management System (ESMS) is used to identify and manage possible specific environmental issues for each project site. We, for example, take into account the season at the project site which may influence topsoil and river conditions, and identify whether endangered species of flora and fauna are present at the project site. In consultation with all relevant stakeholders, preventative measures are identified and implemented.

Janson Bridging has an Environmental and Social Management System (ESMS) The current management system will be upgraded to a certified ISO 14001 Management system in 2021.

Business Ethics

It is our policy to conduct business in an honest and ethical manner. We are committed to acting professionally, fairly and with integrity in all our business dealings and relationships. An anti-bribery policy is in place and all staff are informed about this policy.

This includes that employees are not allowed to give or receive inducements whether offered, requested, promised, or provided to gain commercial, contractual, regulatory or personal advantage.

We acknowledge that we are working in a high value business environment with governments, government influenced organisations or non-governmental organisations in countries that have a low ranking on the PCI Index of Transparency International. Therefore, we are proud of the fact that we can convince all our partners of the benefits that our bridging solutions bring them, as it has a major impact on people’s access to care, education, trade and mobility and conduct our business in a honest and ethical manner.

Monitoring, evaluation and reporting

Reporting is done hierarchically, following the organisational structure of our organisation and projects and is based on continuously monitoring by qualified staff.  As an example, a smartphone application is used to inspect and register at a predefined frequency. If communities are affected, regular meetings take place as agreed upon during the planning phase of a project. When required and agreed upon we formally report to relevant stakeholders.

The CSR policy of Janson Bridging is reviewed and evaluated at least once a year.