Acque SpA has received the prestigious SA 8000:2001 from the RINA certification agency for the company's responsible management practices.
The certification completes the Best4 (Business Excellence Sustainable Task) previously given to the company, based on the following factors: quality, environment, workplace health and safety, and social responsibility.
The certification allows the Tuscan business to claim number one status in the water sector worldwide.
The conferring of the Best4 label testifies to the results obtained by the business in terms of effectiveness, efficiency and quality - goals reached thanks to a complex and demanding job that, as an official document from the company states, ''has involved all of the group's structures since 2004, with the goal of responding to the certification requirements; requisites obtained not temporarily, but as permanent elements in the activity of the group and periodically verified by an external and independent entity''.
There are only 30 companies in the world that enjoy Best4 status.
Acque, in addition to its certification in the water sector, was also the first to obtain the rating for each of its companies: Acque SpA (water services manager in the lower Arno valley), and subsidiaries Acque Ingegneria, Acque Servizi and Acque Industriali.
''The advantages of certification should not be seen only in terms of optimising resources, maximizing operative efficiency, and maintaining excellence in management - all of which are important aspect for entities and stockholders - but also from the point of view of creating qualified employees, protecting the environment and workplace security, promoting ethical principals, and respect for the individual and valuing his/her skills.
''Themes like precariousness, health and safety in the workplace and constant training all make up the heart of the certification process''.
At the centre of the action tied to the social responsibility of the Gruppo Acque SpA are the maximum evaluation of the patrimony of knowledge and capacity of the workers, through training and medical visits for all personnel, both temporary and permanent - individualized training that offers the possibility to everyone to deepen their knowledge and specialize in their particular area.
In terms of health and safety in the workplace, the company continually evaluates risks on all sites.
The management system in this field directly involves workers, through their representatives, with the objective of supporting them in the best way possible.
Continuous training is in place to effectively communicate the concepts and instructions and to increase knowledge of potential risks.
Thanks to these measures, the Acque group has one of the lowest workplace accident rates in the country.
