SIM, proud creator of Cognibox, announces the success of a major event, the first edition of the Cognibox Forum 2015: The best practices in contractors’ management, held on November 26th, at the Montreal Science Centre.
In fact, more than 150 had confirmed their attendance for this first forum. This was the occasion for more than 50 major companies from all over Quebec, not only to put their goals into perspective and improve their contractors’ management program, but also to share with their peer the best practices in terms of contractors’ management.
Within the past few years, specialized contractors have become an important trend, notably because of the complexity level and the expertise required for the accomplishment of the work. Often, these specialized task are so infrequent and are performed in high-risk environments. Le Cognibox Forum 2015 has been the occasion, through case studies, to see how the greatest corporations have limited the risks associated with presence of contractors at their installations.
Three representatives from major corporations came to share their experience with the audience. Joachim Kazmaier from Resolute Forest Products demonstrated how successful the implementation of Cognibox was and how their investment became profitable in less than a year. Mariano Côté of Alcoa shared about the importance to have the audacity to require from contractors to apply better health and safety, especially with employees trained in occupational health and safety. Finally, Louis Cyrenne from Iron Ore Company of Canada, a Rio Tinto division, came to present the additional measures they have put in place in order to avoid fatalities, such as, for example, the complete standardization of the contractors’ management process, from the qualification to the automated gate control.
The Stikeman Elliott and Shadley Battista Costom law firm have shaken the audience by sending a strong message about legal, financial and criminal consequences of a lack of rigour in contractors’ management. « Too often, great corporations that have recourse to contractors are confident they can are exempt from responsibilities when awarding contracts, but it is quite the opposite in the eyes of the law », mentions Me Essiminy, associate at Stikeman Elliott.
« This was the event of the year, for us. To gather together such great players from all industries around a subject such as contractors’ management is a real success. SIM is undergoing a significant growth and is aiming for nothing less than excellence. On the other hand, it is an amazing occasion for us to promote the expertise developed through the years, and to share this knowledge about contractors’ management and its associated risks. The greatest corporations through the world are relying on Cognibox to help them manage these issues which are part of their projects and at the heart of their operations. It was important for us to share these good practices with the industry », outlines Chantal Trépanier, CEO at SIM and designer of Cognibox, also recipient of the 2015 CEO of the year prize from Investissement Québec.
