Product Stewardship in practice

In Shell, we believe that good Product Stewardship is one of the cornerstones of good Health, Safety, Security and Environment (HSSE) performance, and good HSSE performance is essential for business success. Product Stewardship is a fundamental part of the way we manage our products. We also believe firmly that it does add business value.

The Shell Group’s HSSE Commitment and Policy is the cornerstone of our approach to all HSSE activities. These fundamentals govern the way in which each individual Shell company around the world is expected to conduct its affairs. We also have 12 Product Stewardship principles that we strive to operate by.

While it is important to start in this way from a base of strong principles, the key to success is the point at which business people and Product Stewardship teams come together to solve problems.

Those problems and challenges can come in many forms. Solving them depends on strong working relationships and trust on both sides. It calls for a continual sharing of information on emerging risks and the open exchange of strategies and priorities. If the right skills are brought into play and these partnerships are managed well, business success should always be the end result.

One way in which we demonstrate our Product Stewardship principles in action is through our entry into the chemicals market in China. The main focus here is compliance. We conduct compliance checks and carry out all chemical/product registrations in line with regulatory requirements. We also conduct customer appraisals and contractor selections before making supplies and deliveries. This is to ensure people have the same understanding as us concerning the safe handling of our products.

It is also important to participate in the local Chemicals Association to learn about local HSSE practices and share our best practices. These actions are key to maintaining our licence to operate in China and help to reduce business risks by ensuring the safe handling of our products.

At the heart of our Product Stewardship programme is the HSSE Management System, which incorporates our Product Stewardship Management system. This enables us to establish better linkages to each process and ensures all information is under one roof. It ensures accountabilities at all levels are clear, adequate resources are available and progress is subject to annual review.

It’s a system we’re proud of and that delivers real business benefits.

Product Stewardship is a key component of a responsible approach. It is also an important marketing tool that can help to deliver a competitive advantage. It helps to strengthen our HSSE performance and control. It also helps us to strengthen our relationship with our stakeholders. In our experience, it does create business value.

Our 12 principles include:

- complying with internal and external requirements

- managing product risks prior to market entry

- supporting the study of chemical hazards and risk

- providing hazard/safe handling information

View the full list in this feature's associated presentation.

This feature was added to the Innovations section in December 2007