Esh Group has installed 55 defibrillators across its sites in the North East and Yorkshire.
The defibrillators have been installed as part of a five-year rolling programme with supplier Defib Machines, which will conduct regular maintenance of the devices.
Research from the Resuscitation Council UK charity suggests that the use of defibrillators within three to five minutes of a cardiac arrest increases survival rates by up to 70%.
Esh said it will train all site supervisors to use the machines as part of the rollout.
One of the defibrillators has been installed at the Northumbrian Water Group scheme that the Esh-Stantec joint venture is delivering at Great Ayton Sewage Treatment Works.
Dave Eden, project manager at the project, said: “The installation of a defibrillator on site has been met positively by the team. With an ageing workforce, having this resource adds an extra layer of safety and reassurance.
“Increasing the number of properly trained individuals on site significantly enhances our ability to respond effectively in high-pressure situations and the more comprehensive our first aid capabilities, the safer our site operations will be.”
A life-changing difference
Esh Group’s health, safety, environment and quality director, William Stobbs, welcomed the initiative following his experience of cardiac arrest emergencies.
“I encountered a personal tragedy with my father-in-law when he suffered a cardiac arrest on a bus between Tebay and Blackpool,” Stobbs said. “He took ill and unfortunately, despite our efforts with CPR, we weren’t able to save him.
“I then, fortunately, had a better outcome when my mother-in-law collapsed in a local pub and her friends used a community-sponsored defibrillator until the paramedics arrived. I was expecting to tell my wife that her mother had died at any moment, but when the paramedics arrived and continued the use of their defibrillator, they found a slight, faint pulse and told us that the efforts with the defibrillator had saved her.”
Stobbs added: “We naturally hope that, as a business, our teams won’t need to use them, but rolling out the defibrillators will provide reassurance that there is access to immediate support in an emergency.”
