Cando launches TrackSmart

TrackSmart aims for industry leadership

Safety at Cando Rail Services is an intrinsic core value. It’s the way the company does things.  Cando recently launched its TrackSmart initiative to its more than 530 employees putting even more emphasis on its safety program. The company’s goal is to create an industry-leading environment which enhances safety training and improves sharing of safety information and practices at every location.

“This is a major initiative for us. TrackSmart was built on extensive employee and industry research. We did a thorough review of our safety practices across the company. We also surveyed our employees who told us where they see opportunities for improvement. We combined that with our executive team’s vision of safety as the way we do things” said Steve Gallagher, Cando’s Director of Corporate Safety.

One of the main tenets of the initiative is to continuously improve communications practices throughout the company. TrackSmart will encourage open peer to peer communications on the job while also enhancing ongoing safety training and awareness across the company.

Since Cando operates at more than 25 locations across Canada and the United States, the company is uniquely positioned to share safety practices learned from different industries and types of facilities.

TrackSmart will help the company share best practices, while also collectively learning and improving when things go right and when things go wrong. The initiative includes a system where all crews can plug in to share and receive what they’re learning.

“We have always treated safety seriously. Our record has been excellent and we know that our expertise has been a prime driver in our success as a company,” said Brian Cornick. “What I like most about this initiative is that it is driven as much by our guys on the ground as it is by head office. We all believe safety has to be a prominent and central part of our everyday culture. That message comes straight from our crews. Safety drives everything from customer service to being a good neighbour to the communities we serve.”

The TrackSmart program’s tagline speaks to its central role in the company’s daily operations: Every Job. Every One. Every Day. Everyone is accountable for safety no matter what job they have. Everyone needs to be aware of their surroundings and to take action when something isn’t right. Every job must be done safely, regardless of how urgent it is. Cando rolled the initiative out to all employees in early May 2017.