Our QHSE Director Kevin has been with us for just over 10 years now, so we caught up with him to find out what inspired him to join Shields and what motivates him in his role. Read more as Kevin tells his story about working for Shields below.
Since 1979 Shields has always been a leader in the environment by prioritising the re-use of equipment. I decided to join Shields in August 2012 – I knew that it was a sector in which I could work toward a cleaner environment, make a difference as well as being challenging – which I enjoy. So far, I have been proven right!
I’ve always had a passion for gaining and sharing knowledge. I love this most about my role as the Quality, Health, Safety, and Environment (QHSE) Director. I’ve always been involved in these areas, right from the beginning I was head first into our ISO certifications for 9001, 14001 and 45001 (previously the Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series 18001).
As the company continued to grow, more opportunities arose for me to expand my knowledge. I now also participate in training and I really enjoy the variety of this role! Each day is different and it’s great to know you are making a positive impact to the company, our customers and our employees.
I think that if I wasn’t in this position, then maybe teaching would have been a great profession for me to do.
When I first joined Shields, it was to assist with a recycling project over several countries in Eastern Europe for a major network operator. Ensuring that their telecoms assets were given a new lease of life and re-used where possible. Today, we still follow the same principles at Shields of prioritising the environment, alongside ensuring the safety and wellbeing of our employees, and providing the highest quality equipment – currently our failure rate is less than 0.5%.
In 2012 Shields opened our 2nd facility in Eindhoven. We now have 7 global locations. All with fantastic teams and all working towards a common goal.
Today, the world is at a tipping point and the environment is at the top of everyone’s agenda. Carbon emissions, resource depletion and waste reduction should be the focus for every businesses and its consumers.
At Shields we have recently joined the Science Based Targets initiative where we, alongside 1000’s of other global organisations, have publicly signed up to reduce our carbon footprint and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We will be pursuing efforts to limit global warming to 1.5°C. It makes me proud to work for an organisation which is putting the planet before profits and ensuring that we can all be part of making a positive impact to the environment.
Nearly 3 years after tracking our baseline footprint, we are well on the way to our target. Shields has been switching to renewable energy, focusing on energy efficiency, and targeting the reduction of global logistics. We do this by ensuring that suppliers can provide telecoms equipment to the same quality of equipment expected from Shields directly to our customers. However, this will not be an easy target, and will require work from Shields but also many others in and out of our own supply chain.
During my time here at Shields, we’ve had successes and failures, both of which we learn, improve, and grow. Shields’ solutions have, and always will, help telecoms operators reduce their global greenhouse gas footprint. Shields have always focused on the safety and wellbeing of our employees and this is something I’m proud of. Shields provide the highest quality equipment and will always go above and beyond for our customers. That’s why I’m proud to have been here for 10 years, and plan to be here for many more.
To find out more about our rewarding career opportunities, contact our People Team by emailing [email protected].