VEFF magazine 1 2020

VEFF//20 VEFF – THE DNV GL EMPLOYEE ASSOCIATION VEFF MAGAZINE 2020

A new normal with hope and inspiration

GSS IT

Group CEO Global

Maritime

VERIT AND COVID-19

VIRTUAL ROADSHOW

CUSTOMER SUPPORT IN NEW WAYS

I EDITORIAL I

A new normal with hope and inspiration “I can honestly say that I’ve never experienced an event with such a drastic impact on how we live and work as the COVID-19 pandemic. Now more than ever, we must do the right things and be prepared to take steps beyond what we’re typically required to do”.

CHAIR OF VEFF, NINA IVARSEN

The VEFF magazine is produced by employees in DNV GL and sponsored

by VEFF union, which is a union for DNV GL employees. © VEFF 06-2020 Editor: Nina Ivarsen Front cover photo: ©Floriss, model: Maiken Karsten-Himberg Back cover photo: ©DNV GL Design and print: Bodoni, 122929

2

I CONTENTS I

A NEW NORMAL WITH HOPE AND INSPIRATION We hope that you, your loved ones, and your colleagues are safe and well.

2

First, I want to take this opportunity to thank you for supporting VEFF with your membership, which means a lot to us.

EDITORIAL 06

Group CEO Global Virtual Roadshow

10

VerIT and COVID-19

12

Head of Seafood Unit

13

Sustainability & Traning Manager

14

Digital Solutions show how collaboration helps us tackle the coronavirus situation

16

Region Oil & Gas Norway & Eurasia

Supporting continuous operations

18

Energy – keeping busy

Our top priority is the health and safety of our employees, and of course we care for our customers, and partners too. We have adapted to the changing environment very quickly, and our services at the VEFF office will continue to be available and accessible without interruption. We have a robust action plan in place, and we have implemented specific precautions for the operations and sustainability to ensure continuity.

20

Customer support in new ways

21

Keeping the wheels turning!

22

Covid-19 from a safety delegate perspective

24

BHT and Covid-19 article

26

Corona as game changer

27

Solidarity and optimism

In the current situation, it is vital to stay digitally connected – connected to our customers, our colleagues, and our communities.

We need to seek business opportunities also in times like this.

We are in a very demanding period, and we have all, big and small, young and old, come to know a reality that only a few months ago appeared to be completely unreal. Who would have thought that we would end up in a situation where all activities and interactions with another’s were strongly warned against?

We know that listening to our members is critical right now. We have indicated several actions and we have sent out newsletters to all our members every week with updates and advices. We also have had Council meetings, Board meetings and membership meetings. We have launched a Questback survey and will publish the results in this magazine. The topic was, how do you experience your new working situation related to Covid-19?

Cost adaptions We in DNV GL work with cost reductions in many countries given the very uncertain and negative outlook for the world economy. This is a very comprehensive work that takes place in good cooperation between employees and management. There are many employees in many countries who contribute significantly with various forms of voluntary pay cuts and other cost-reducing ­measures.

Helping you better support our colleagues Our thoughts are with the people affected and everyone working around the clock to help those most in need. © iStock

I also feel compassion with all of you who have small children who had to stay home from schools and kindergartens but slowly now start to re-enter the society. This has been very demanding at the same time as we have to be at work, whether at home,

3

I EDITORIAL I

delivering service to our customers or in the office. I understand that many are concerned about the situation we are in now.

Norway is in a serious situation. I share your concern that someone, or someone you love, will get sick. Going forward, each of us has an important task in limiting the spread of infection, even now as society and DNV GL slowly but surely opens.

“A total of about 80 % of our total 2,050 employees in Norway are affected by various measures”.

Voluntary pay reduction We have received feedback and questions that forced use of vacation, no use of overtime and fully utilization of flex time is unfair. Sometimes when we are facing a crisis, all measures taken may not always be logical, but that does not mean that they are not valid and important and that this will be a big contribution in these challenging times. If we do not take out all the holidays, the company must make a big deduction when one come to next year, which means a huge cost (many millions) you must transfer from one year to another.

Competence is fresh You can no longer count on having the same job through your whole career. More and more jobs are being moved abroad where the labor force is cheaper, while tasks are being automated and digitized. Therefore, it becomes important to fill up with new skills so that you can be flexible and fit into different roles and jobs.

The most important thing we can do is to focus on constantly learning new things that make us useful. We must make ourselves attractive and relevant in the labor market.

In times of crisis, innovation and creativity emerge. We do not quite know what this pandemic is doing with social development, but that our digital expertise has made great progress and provides new opportunities is certainly.

Returning to normal Although health experts urge caution, governments are under extreme financial pressure to reopen their economies, also here in Norway. And no matter what they do, lockdown fatigue and warmer weather in countries hard-hit by the coronavirus such as the U.S. and Spain will prompt more people to venture outdoors and even gather in groups.

Who wants normal?

This “dugnad” is about something much bigger than us and it is about getting control of a situation where no one really knows exactly what the best tools are. It is said that ”it is in adversity and crises that we show what we are made of”.

Decisions have been made, and then it is important to try to make the best of it. Group and GSS have implemented that almost everyone is on 40% lay-off. There are no exceptions.

Everyone that is not on 40 % lay-off have taken a 10% salary cut and taken one for the team.

We have started to re-open our offices in Norway. Many discussions about getting back to normal led to questions; why society would even want to return to the pre-COVID-19 world, rife with social inequalities, environmental degradation and economic greed. Why can we not urge a move towards something better?

This is possible, and for DNV GL we must define what we want to keep and what we want to improve. This goes for the way we work and travel as well as how we interact and communicate with customers and finding market opportunities.

For members that have been laid off, we (Andreas Falck, my deputy in Board of Directors) have created a calculator where we can give you information about the consequence of 40% lay-off. This calculator shows how much you get in salary and in unemployment benefit from NAV.

The search for treatments

This is the time to increase your expertise The corona crisis has given us all a reminder that the labor market can change dramatically in short time. Some industries loose revenue overnight, while others grow. We recommend that you think through how you can easily use the corona crisis to become a more attractive employee.

4

DNV GL did early in the pandemic engage in research and digital solutions to help the government with tracking of the virus and finding vaccines. At least 90 vaccines are under development as governments aim to inoculate their populations from the virus as soon as possible. Although medical experts aren’t as optimistic as U.S. President Donald Trump – who promised a vaccine this year – they do see room for hope. We still don’t have a vaccine against any coronavirus, even the ones that cause the common cold.

Besides developing a vaccine, the ability to determine whether someone has had the coronavirus is seen as key to quelling the pandemic.

I EDITORIAL I

“As the leader of VEFF, it is important for me that our solutions are the best solutions to lift DNV GL out of this crisis in the time to come, and at the same time care for our employees”.

• VEFF want to secure the employment and future of DNV GL. The Chair of VEFF Nina Ivarsen, being a board member in DNV GL for four years with Andreas Falck as deputy, have good knowledge of the business challenges, finances and the values of our company. We encourage to have more people working through increased use of digital tools and sharing platforms to create new business opportunities.

• We need to create, protect and develop new and existing jobs. It is a small and vulnerable world. We want to tackle the challenges ahead by being a responsible, trustworthy world partner, says Nina.

• Only by having our members support and trust we can deliver the best results for DNV GL. With the «ear on the floor» as Union, we know and see the reality of the operation every day in all business areas, GSS support and Group functions. With our members support, we can be better, do better, be stronger and we can contribute and navigate DNV GL through these challenging times and enter the next year(s) stronger than ever.

Fighting lockdown fatigue Despite the impetus, a vaccine seems distant, and some countries have re-imposed lockdowns that had lifted due to coronavirus flareups. We may have to continue to live at least partially isolated for many months to come. This is easy to forget when the virus is under control as seen the last weeks of May in Norway.

Economy In a new framework released by the United Nations, as a roadmap to support countries’ path to social and economic recovery, the United Nations calls for an extraordinary scale-up of international support and political commitment to ensure that people everywhere have access to essential services and social protection.

“This is not only a health crisis, but a human crisis, a job crisis, a humanitarian crisis and a development crisis. This pandemic shows that we are all at risk because we are only as strong as the weakest health system, and this is in particular important for DNV GL as a global company. It’s unprecedented scale demands and unprecedented response,” United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres stated, who presented his report on the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19 “Shared Responsibility, Global Solidarity” in March.

We need a hug One of the crueler impacts of the pandemic is that we are discouraged from touching our friends, and in some cases even our family. As humans, friends and colleagues, we find it difficult not to hug and give high fives and a friendly handshake. But we must be patient as we soon can take back the best of normal life that also includes a friendly, warm hug.

© iStock

The “United Nations Framework for the immediate socio-economic response to COVID-19: Shared responsibility, global solidarity and urgent action for people in need” calls for protecting jobs, businesses and livelihoods to set in motion a safe recovery of societies and economies as soon as possible for a more sustaina-

ble, gender-equal, and carbon-neutral path—better than the “old normal”.

5

I CEO I

Group CEO Global Virtual Roadshow TEXT: ULRIKE HAUGEN

Chief Communications Officer Ulrike Haugen tells us about the background and planning of the Group CEO’s Global Virtual Roadshow.

Ulrike Haugen

6

I CEO I

“I know that Remi is passionate about meeting customers and colleagues around the world. That’s why he travels a lot. With planned trips, meetings, and events cancelled, and international travel almost impossible, we realized that it could take several months before Remi could visit customers and colleagues in other locations and countries again. We came up with the idea to send him on a Global Virtual Roadshow instead,” says Ulrike Haugen.

Like most colleagues in DNV GL, Remi Eriksen continued his activities through video meetings when travel restrictions kicked in. The Group Communications team proposed to plan a Global Virtual Roadshow to allow our Group CEO to continue to be close to customers and employees and to show that COVID-19 would not stop him from representing DNV GL around the world.

Ulrike gave us some insights into the planning. “Within a few days and through a collaboration between Group Communications and the CEO office with Maria Gullhav and Ellen Beck Pedersen, we managed to set up a plan for Remi to visit one country per week until the summer and beyond. Remi was of course also part of our planning meetings. He will ’visit’ a new country each week and meet with customers and DNV GL colleagues.”

The team has set itself a goal to arrange at least 2-3 customer video meetings, one virtual roundtable with the Country Chair and regional managers, and one video meeting with a group of employees each week. The advantage of the virtual roadshow is that Remi will be able to visit more countries than he

could have visited under normal circumstances.

meetings and helping to connect Remi with customers and colleagues.

Ahead of his first stop in China Remi Eriksen said: ”I usually spend a significant part of my time joining colleagues for meetings with customers. This gives me the opportunity to support the organization in building close relationships with key customers at senior level, and it gives me important insights about changing customers’ needs. I don’t know when I will be able to join

INSIGHTS INTO DISCUSSIONS WITH CUSTOMERS AND COLLEAGUES IN CHINA, NORWAY AND SINGAPORE CHINA: At his first destination of Global Virtual Roadshow, Remi Eriksen met (via Teams) important Chinese maritime executives at the first Maritime VIP Workshop held on 21 April in Shanghai.

Remi talked about DNV GL’s response to the COVID-19 crisis, how we are

I usually spend a significant part of my time joining colleagues for meetings with customers. This gives me the opportunity to support the organization in building close relationships with key customers at senior level, and it gives me important insights about changing customers’ needs.

Group President & CEO Remi Eriksen

customer visits in person again, so I am looking forward to my virtual roadshow.”

So far he has “travelled” to Singapore, Germany and Greece. If you want to find out which countries he will visit next, please follow Remi on Yammer.

He will share insights from each trip on Yammer and refer to some of his meetings in his CEO videos.

The team would like to thank the Country Chairs, Regional Managers and colleagues around the world for setting up

supporting our Maritime customers in China and around the world, and recent joint achievements with key customers in China. Other speakers included Hu Jintao, the Director of Science and Technology in SDARI and Chairman of DNV GL Greater China Technical Committee, Director of China COSCO Shipping Group and Chairman of DNV GL Greater China Committee Sun Jiakang, and DNV GL – Maritime Regional Manager Norbert Kray. Remi witnessed virtually the ceremony at which DNV GL and Nantong CIMC Sinopacific Offshore

7

I CEO I

& Engineering Company (CIMC SOE) signed an agreement for classification of 3+2 LPG carriers for German shipowner Hartmann.

The regional managers shared the general sentiment from their BA, from the external customers’ perspective and from colleagues. They noted that colleagues are happy to be back in the offices and that business is approaching normal activity. ”My visit to Shanghai was very positive. It was good to see and hear that things are approaching normal, sales and revenue generation are good, and that there are plans for picking up what we have lost during the lockdown. This all gives me hope for life after COVID-19. Thank you and keep up the good work!” said Remi Eriksen.

NORWAY: Remi Eriksen joined virtual meetings with customers in Norway during the second week of his roadshow.

The customers are very pleased with our deliveries, especially our digital capabilities and our ability to find good solutions to key issues. A Maritime customer talked about normal operating conditions, except for challenges related to change of crew.

8

An Oil and Gas customer reported increased costs to keep the wheels turning – these were costs related to infection control measures. On top of that, the earnings are a lot lower because of the significant oil price drop. At the same time, there is increased activity in offshore renewables, and they are actively seeking opportunities there.

SINGAPORE: The next stop on the virtual roadshow was Singapore. Remi Eriksen met with the regional managers of all five business areas and discussed the market situation, and the actions being taken to mitigate the potential drop in revenue. They said that our customers are also facing tough times. Most, if not all, are challenged on their cost of operations, so they are challenging service providers too. But there are also new projects coming up and we are well positioned to win them. We get positive feedback on our expertise, which can add value if applied in the right way. So, we need to be even clearer on how we can add value for customers – it is not only about cost.

A highlight of the visit was the presentation of the Singapore Floating Power Hub project, which will meet the increased energy demand and power

fluctuations, as well as the drive to be greener. The project is doing a technical and economic analysis of a potential 2GW floating power hub with solar + hydrogen to complement gas as the energy supply. This project is a very good example of cross-BA and cross-regional cooperation, as well as how partnering with other companies is giving us new and exciting opportunities.

GERMANY: In Germany Remi Eriksen “met” with five customers, including MV Werften, Reederei Hartmann, E.ON, RWE and EnBW. For his insights on these customer meetings please take a look at his Yammer posts.

I CEO I

I don’t know when I will be able to join customer visits in person again, so I am looking forward to my virtual roadshow.

Remi Eriksen

9

I GSS IT I

VerIT and COVID-19 For many businesses COVID-19 forced them do their digital transformation in weeks while DNV GL have benefited from the digitalization strategy that we had for the last four years. For DNV GL, the digital enablement we have been leveraging during the COVID-19 circumstances is a result of years of investments in developing, managing, and operating one common IT platform.

TEXT: JØRGEN GULNES

OUR IT PLATFORM The groundwork for this IT platform builds on more than 25 years of continuous platform building. The VerIT platform has evolved from being a pure client and infrastructure platform delivered out of our own Data Centers, to become a hybrid platform consisting of services deployed in the public cloud and on-premise. Today, we use VerIT underneath all DNV GL internal IT services as well as basis for our external customer-facing services like Veracity. All Business Area production systems rely on this platform and makes it possible for end-to-end integrations with the administrative back office systems. Most recently, we have included capabilities for AI, machine learning, and robotics process automation in the platform.

The end-users in DNV GL can leverage a secure platform through different types of devices, e.g. laptops and smartphones. VerIT is managed and delivered

by GSS IT. KEY MEASURES TAKEN DURING Q1 GSS IT joined the Group Crisis team since early February with regular updates to all Country Chairs globally about VerIT platform capabilities. This made it possible for the GSS IT management team to closely follow the COVID19 outbreak and how it impacted DNV GL. Throughout this process we were able to take necessary steps to

10

ensure resilience and scalability of the digital services. During this period, the Group CEO established weekly meetings with selected GSS IT management to closely monitor the ”VerIT Infrastructure performance resilience”.

Early in the COVID-19 outbreak we developed best practices for DNV GL end-users to work from home. This was communicated broadly with an Intranet article. Continuously we learned how end-users were able to adapt based on lessons learned in China, Singapore, Europe, and Americas. Making sure that end-users adapted to secure remote working practices was underlined in a separate Intranet article. On the technical side, we have tripled the VerIT remote access capacities globally. The Microsoft 365 productivity tools are essential to interact internally and with DNV GL customers, and GSS IT is pushing ahead with the migrations to Teams from the legacy Skype platform. The customer satisfaction shows very high scores and tells us that we can support the company in a professional way during these demanding times.

Latest, we have worked with various business stakeholders in making sure that we use the right collaboration tools and that businesses are getting the right support to do remote inspections and audits.

I GSS IT I

Making sure that end-users adapted to secure remote working practices was underlined in a separate Intranet article.

On the technical side, we have tripled the VerIT remote access capacities globally.

11

I BUSINESS ASSURANCE I

Head of Seafood Unit TEXT: TEXT: LISA T. DE JAGER

Š iStock

The Norwegian Seafood Unit is supporting our Seafood Customers throughout the whole value chain, from wild catch and farming to ready to eat meal. Business Assurance has an established collaboration and delivery with experts in Oil & GAS and Maritime and also with Digital Solutions and Global Technical Research. With a broad range of services

12

from improving fish welfare and environmental emissions to social responsibility and certification of equipment, license to operate and classification of offshore farming and more, DNV GL is well positioned growing with the aquaculture industry. Our highly skilled people are located along the coast of Norway with the largest group based in Bergen. We

are proud to influence the Norwegian seafood industry growth, innovation and exports to global markets.

I BUSINESS ASSURANCE I

Sustainability & Traning Manager TEXT: LIN JACOBSEN HAMMER

Since April 1st Business Assurance operate in two divisions, the certification division and the division for Digital assurance and supply chain services (DASC), including services within assurance and assessment connected to sustainability.

This to accelerate the growth of innovative supply chain, assessment and digital services while allowing strong focus for certification services - with both divisions collaborating extremely closely in serving customers together.

As regulators, investors, owners, customers and employees demand companies to have a greener focus, we’ve been working closely with the other business

units in Norway to support our customers to meet these demands. That means we can put our competence within the domain, our R&D competence and our process knowledge into play, and support companies set up a strategy that can be implemented, followed up and reported on.

The result is that a company can get a verification of a green loan to finance their green focus, identify how their activities support the UN Sustainability goals or their Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) focus, get suppliers audited to secure they are upholding workers’ rights, show their products

story, whether it’s the degree of recycled content or it’s travel from land to table, or as we’ve just launched, show their maturity and readiness to start up again after the COVID-19 pandemic.

We use our core and global competences and develop our services with the customer need in focus, finding the right starting point, often one of our training services, and aim to create more digital processes that help them, and us, be more efficient, have the right focus and deliver according to the stakeholders expectations.

13

I DIGITAL SOLUTIONS I

Kenneth Vareide

Digital Solutions show how collaboration helps us tackle the coronavirus situation TEXT: SHILAN NAJMADIN

In December last year, reports started to emerge that a virus never seen in humans before had begun to spread in Wuhan, a large city in the Chinese province of Hubei.

Since then, the virus has been spreading rapidly around the world with a growing impact on the global economy.

14

I DIGITAL SOLUTIONS I

What could have been a good storyline for a thriller, became reality, with every one of us as the protagonists. The coronavirus has forced us to handle a range of new challenges at an unprecedented pace. We are not able to change the intro of the film, but we can have a great impact on how the story evolves and ends.

In the beginning of March, Skanska, one of the world’s leading project development and construction groups contacted Ragnar Hestvik, the QHSE Solution Manager in Digital Solutions. The company needed an incident reporting tool related to recommended and mandatory measures to reduce the risk of infection at building sites. Skanska created a checklist based on official guidelines that covered many types of incidents, such as lack of hand washing facilities, unsuitable working conditions or close contact between people at work. The Synergi Life team sat down together to come up with ways our software could improve the outcome of this story. Within only three days the team managed to develop an incident reporting scheme that Skanska successfully implemented.

The Synergi Life team realised that other companies might have the same needs and issues and organized a coronavirus specific webinar with presenters from DNV GL and our customers, Skanska, Hydro and the Norwegian Oil and

Gas Association (NOROG). The focus of the webinar was on business continuity in these challenging times. All companies shared best practices and their approach of how to tackle the crisis.

“From the start of the coronavirus outbreak, the health and safety of our employees, customers and business relations have been our primary focus. We realised that now is the time to focus even more on the impact our digital solutions have on people’s lives, and collectively recognised the critical role our business has,” explains Ragnar Hestvik.

The story continues. After the webinar, all participants have been invited to a Teams meeting to share more of their specific needs. Given the magnitude of this evolving situation, Digital Solutions partnered up with the Risk Management team in Oil and Gas UK, Group Security and health experts in Business Assurance to create a pool of expert resources. This collaboration gives DNV GL a competitive advantage in the market and creates additional value to what we can offer to customers to handle the crisis.

Together the team created a business contingency model to help organisations understand the potential impact to their businesses and gauge their readiness and response. The model consists of six different tool that can be purchased

individually depending on the organisations’ needs: Infection form – A form where all sick, infected, previous infected or quarantined employees can report their status.

• Emergency response plan – An emergency plan for a business in case of a new infection wave.

• Infection risk assessment – A risk assessment where core risks are highlighted.

• Safe workplace assessment – Inspection of workplace based on guidelines.

• Travel risk assessment – Checklist that needs to be filled out and approved before travel.

• Observations – Reporting observations where guidelines are not being followed or reporting failures in measures introduced.

The business contingency model is under constant evaluation as the coronavirus pandemic unfolds but Digital Solutions’ Sales team in the UK already got very good feedback from customers.

While the story continues to unfold, Digital Solutions showed that collaboration is the key to enable innovation and to tackle the challenges that this pandemic has placed right in front of us.

15

I OIL & GAS I

Arve Johan Kalleklev

16

I OIL & GAS I

Region Oil & Gas Norway & Eurasia Region Oil & Gas Norway & Eurasia has since 2018 shared market and other news on Yammer. The news is a selection of important contract wins, new developments related to technology and services and other market info.

TEXT: ANDERS HUSBY

Apart from the pure information side, we have seen a positive effect of more cooperation as more and more are raising their hands based on the Yammer info.

The intention has all the way been to let colleagues know ‘what is going on’, not only in their own section or unit, but in a bit wider area.

The use of Yammer has slowly but steadily developed, and the number of contributors has increased to include a widespread selection of colleagues like project managers, experts, engineers, business leaders, consultants and support personnel.

Apart from the pure information side, we have seen a positive effect of more cooperation as more and more are rais-

ing their hands based on the Yammer info. Using the comment field with the typical approach ‘This sounds interesting, I have also something going on with this customer…’ or ‘I may be able to help here…’ creates positive dialogue and common opportunities. We saw that mentioning which colleague that was involved each news story, also helped.

zations. Therefore, we decided to have a regional update each week with sales news, market info and some examples of what we have achieved.

Highlighting our success stories is more important than ever, and show that we are doing right things!

Since the Covid-19 situation hit us with low oil price and a dramatic change in business environment, we saw the need for further information and not at least making sure that we utilized our people to the max across the lines of organi-

17

I ENERGY I

Energy – keeping busy The Norwegian team in DNV GL Energy work intensively from home locations to keep wheels turning and orders to come in. Dedicated team members, new ways of staying social at distance and active use of digital marketing is our daily work.

Erik Dugstad

18

I ENERGY I

The coffee chat in the rene wables team goes lively, alm ost like usual in office, usin g teams

TEXST: ERIK DUGSTAD

Much of the services provided by Energy in the Nordics are desk top work and we can continue to deliver this efficiently as teams are good at electronic cooperation with the tools we have available. Site visits have been on hold for a period, with the last cross border site visit between Norway and Sweden just before the quarantine regulations came into operation. Now we are preparing for the gradual lifting of restrictions on travel, and the opportunity to plan forward for upcoming site visits on windfarms across the Nordics.

what we have experienced with the same customer in earlier physical meetings.

In project work and customer dialogue we have as other parts of DNV GL become experts in teams meetings. One reflection is that sometimes the calls with customers sitting in home in the same situation of Corona-related restrictions and uncertainties, has given some very good meetings. The dialogue has been even more open and direct than

Digital marketing has been key as we do not meet and have the chance to have informal talks with customers in events or topical working groups. Two customer­cases has spread quickly in industry magazines and news websites, and our engagement and lead-generation from LinkedIn has increased.

DNV GL certified the parts of the ­methods applied for the floating solar

We have also worked on opportunities and partnerships as usual. One of the larger opportunities is a consortium bid for technical assistance in renewables integration to the power system, with an expected budget of over 50 MNOK. It will be a tough competition, but the corona situation is not hindering us from doing our best effort within DNV GL and also with our partners in other countries and locations.

PV system of Ocean Sun, attracting attention outside of the industry and into main stream media. The support from DNV GL Energy to Lundin Energy for their acquisition of a wind farm in Finland was also getting headlines in energy and financial publications. Just now we are also preparing a case on our advisory role in EV charging infrastructure transaction, and expand DNV GLs profile on practical energy transition in Nordics even further.

Working from home in less than optimal home office set-ups can put strain on shoulders and backs, but is maybe the mental part of sitting and working from home that is the largest common strain.

It has been great to see how teams are organising informal coffee chats, and also doing virtual birthday celebrations.

It is amazing o see the creativity and spirit of DNV GL employees in dealing with the current situation, until we again will gather in our offices.

19

I MARITIME I

Customer support in new ways Managing customer relations during the pandemic can be challenging, although this unprecedented situation offers space to explore new innovative digital customer services.

A good example of how Maritime Advisory quickly adapted to the new situation, whilst providing an alternative way of supporting clients, is the offering of online workshops that you can read more about below. Thank you to all our employees for being flexible and inventive during these times!

TEXST: CHALOTTE BJØRN

Given the total number of people (18) and the duration of the workshop (one day instead of two), the effective preparation prior to the meeting was essential to the success of the online discussions.

At the same time, the nature of the event offered the unique opportunity of having a full involvement of relevant personnel as well as covering the scope of the meeting within the day. At the end of the workshop, the client appreciated the quick turnaround, the efficient use of time, and above all the coordination of all the relevant parties.

Magne

DESIGN ASSESSMENT During the COVID-19 pandemic Sarath Raj, Principal Consultant, set up an online workshop to facilitate the approval of a design assessment by the Flag in order to meet the yard’s schedule of a vessel which was due in early May. The workshop, organized at a very short notice, involved many stakeholders – the yard, designer, supplier, vessel owner, Flag and the DNV GL team had the opportunity to virtually meet and provide their input to the final report.

Preparation is king

20

“By no means, the DNV GL first fullfledged digital workshop presented several challenges in terms of preparation, coordination and management of the event and participants,” says Sarath Raj. “However, as compared to the traditional face-to-face workshops, the digital version presented several benefits, first and foremost the flexibility of the location.

No time-consuming travel arrangements were required and no practical arrangements (such as lunch, emergency briefing and transportation) were necessary on this occasion.”

OTHER ONLINE BENEFITS In addition, the informal setting of the ‘home-office’ increased the comfort of the participants who could easily log in and out of the workshop when any parts were irrelevant, which allowed them to join other online meetings or complete any other outstanding jobs. Face-to-face workshops, or meetings in general, don’t always allow this type of flexibility and efficient way of working, so in a way the online workshop increased the productivity of all the participants.

“Digital workshops are definitely challenging, but the experience and the learnings can be interesting and can improve our customer relationships”, adds Sarath Raj. “However, preparation is key, and it includes a smart use of the time, coordination and engagement of the participants, as well as good digital skills”.

Drafting a concise agenda and sticking to it, as well as timing the breaks and wrapping up the event with expectations and next steps are also some of the tips and tricks recommended by Raj to effectively run digital workshops.

I MARITIME I

© iStock

Keeping the wheels turning!

When asked ‘how Maritime BA is doing during the pandemic’, the first thing that comes to mind is our employee’s ability and willingness to adapt so quickly to a new normal. I am so impressed by this and the fact that we have managed to remain fully operational all around the world during the COVID-19 pandemic. This really shows the character of our employees and what this company is made of!

I know that the past months has not been easy, especially for those of our employees with a demanding family situation. I therefore want to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to all for your great contributions!

Morten

been well taken care of - we have literally kept the wheels turning from day one!

I’m also inspired by how we have managed to use digital tools and approaches as a supplement to the physical surveys.

In Norway, no surveys have been cancelled on our watch, which says a lot.

Moreover, all our surveyors have been very disciplined in following the local health regulations and our own guidelines before going on board vessels to do surveys. As a result, our employees have stayed healthy and our customers have

21

I HVO I

Covid-19 from a safety delegate perspective Most of you may not be aware of that we have a crisis team in DNV GL Norway. They are on 24/7 alert, handling a number of cases during the year, most of which the rest of us never will know anything about.

TEXT: ELLEN MARGRETHE PIHL KONSTAD

22

I HVO I

As our company doctor mentioned, we have a very professional team, which was a strength when the pandemic hit Norway. They actually had their first meeting almost 14 days prior to the first confirmed case of a person being infected with the virus in Norway.

I joined the team just after winter holidays, having been kept updated by the Country Chair on the situation prior to this.

The learning curve the first few weeks was steep. As HVO I was not prepared for what we had to deal with, but luckily, the crisis team in Norway trains on scenarios on a regular basis. Together with

to the ones who had to be in the office in order to perform their job, such as ERS for Maritime, the laboratories for Oil & Gas or those responsible for the servers for IT to keep everything running smoothly.

Over the next couple of weeks, we realised that this was not just a health crisis.

The shut down of more or less the whole of Europe also had a massive impact on our finances. Different cost-cutting measures had to be implemented, such as travel and overtime restrictions and encouragement to take vacation in slow periods. Unfortunately, this was not enough, and DNV GL decided to implement 2 more measures effecting the

You noticed colleagues carrying laptops, screens and keyboards on their way home. Everyone with a small smile, and hope that things would soon be back to normal. internal and external expertise we were able to make plans, revise plans and make new plans. The recommendations from the government kept changing until the shut down on March the 12th.

Thanks to our very adaptable colleagues, and our digital platform, DNV GL went from being an office-based workplace to a work-from-home situation in 1 day during the close down of Norway.

Leaving the office on the 11th was a strange experience. You noticed colleagues carrying laptops, screens and keyboards on their way home. Everyone with a small smile, and hope that things would soon be back to normal.

Well 10 weeks later and we know that that did not come true.

Out of 2050 employees, 95% suddenly had some kind of home office. Working from the office was only allowed after prior acceptance from the Covid-19 team. Priority to the premises was given

employees directly; temporary lay-offs and a 10% salary and time cut.

The implementation of these measures, resulted in the need for information in the organisation; • how to contact NAV? • how to fill in time sheets?

• am I affected?

• I have full schedules as it is – how am I supposed to manage my workload with reduced time?

The questions where many, both to the Covid-19 mailbox, and to the safety delegates. After the first round at GSS, a FAQ was developed answering many of these questions.

lenging when it is done either in writing or by Teams. Body language is difficult to read through the screen.

In addition to the work done as part of the Covid-19 team, I have been conduction ordinary HVO tasks such as chairing AMU and VO meetings, facilitate the appointment of new VOs and a re-organisation that was implemented in April.

It has been challenging being a VO during times with home office. At work, you interact with your colleagues informally on a daily basis. This is much harder from a home office. For smaller areas, a VO have a closer relation to all the colleagues, but for a VO for a 100+ persons this becomes difficult.

WHAT I WILL TAKE WITH ME: I am amazed on how we all contributed to keep the company up and running in a very difficult time. Colleagues have been looking caring for each other, managers have been paying special attention to staff with little or no network outside work. Regular meetings have been moved to Teams - including the social ones, being lunches, coffee breaks, wine lottery or quiz nights. This time has also shown us how important our colleagues are. We can do our job from the living room, but we miss being at the office seeing our colleagues.

Now returning to a new normal, I hope we can take this extra consideration back into the office; Bringing with us the best from the last weeks.

(Some people have even claimed that we as an organisation has moved more digitally the last 10 weeks then the last 5 years since everybody now have to work digitally.)

I strongly believe that being able to address and discuss issues immediately helps reduce the stress and conflicts.

The good cooperation I have had with both our unions and the management team has been a big strength during this time. Communication is especially chal-

23

I HVO I

BHT and Covid-19 article TEXT: ELLEN MARGRETHE PIHL KONSTAD

I had the pleasure to talk to our company doctor Hilde Heiro (on Teams) over a cup of tea on here impressions on how DNV GL has handled the ongoing Covid-19 situation. As an HSE/BHT doctor she works with several companies and I was curious on here impression on how DNV GL has handled the ongoing crisis so far.

pandemic the recommendations shifted on a short notice. Hilde was a point of contact on infection control. She also was on top of the information from FHI and hence able to assist the team in the chaotic early stage of the pandemic in Norway.

“DNV GL was quick to identifying who had to stay at the office in order to continue working, while the rest is working from home, implementing measures to miniate the risk for those who had to continue working at the office.”

BHT also experienced a growing number of employees contacting them in the beginning of the crises seeking advice. © iStock

Hilde Heiro Married and 2 children, age 4 ½ and 7 ½.

Background from University of Oslo (UiO) and are currently specialising in occupational medicine. Works for our HSE/BHT provider StaminaHelse.

“I am in general impressed on how DNV GL has handled this crisis.”

Already on February the 14th Tommy initiated first meeting in the Norwegian

24

crises team discussing the possibility of a major crises and how to handle it on a national level.

“DNC GL was the first company contacting me with questions regarding Covid19.”

Hilde emphasise the advantage we had in having an already established well-functioning crises team. It is a strength, the team’s ability to involving both internal but also external expertise.

Hilde served as a medical expert into the team, assisting them with medical recommendations. In the beginning of the

“The easy access employees have to BHT is a great advantage in situations like this, and is a big strength for DNV GL” She highlights the good cooperation between DNV GL and BHT, resulting in good knowledge of each other. This has made the cooperation during this crisis easy.

“In general – I must say that DNV GL so far has handled the crises in a very good way.”

I HVO I

During the last few weeks all of DNV GL Norway has har det opportunity to meet Christian Eidem. He is our HSE/ BHT physiotherapist and has been leading out twice a week bend and stretch sessions on Team.

Christian Eidem Married and have 2 children, age 9 and 11.

Background as chiropractor from the University of Stockholm with additional training such as ergonomics, acupuncture and trigger point therapy.

Take small active breaks Whether your job involves sitting down a lot or manual labour, small active breaks are good for your body.

You don’t have to do all the exercises at once – vary and combine with a couple of quick steps to a colleague, the toilet or the coffee machine.

“The challenge in this situation is that the ones who did not get a lot of activity prior to the pandemic has become even less active during it.”

Having to use your kitchen table and chair as an office is not ideal. Your back is not getting the support it needs, the heights are wrong, and it may be difficult wary positions. In short, you are missing all the elementary qualities in you had in a good workstation at the office.

Many of you will experience increased pains in back, neck and arms due to this.

Christians 3 tips to counter the physical challenges with home offices: • Take regularly brakes during the workday • Try to get at least a 20 min walk inn every day • Take part in the “Stretch and Bend” lunch session every Tuesday and Thursday

SHOULDER ROTATION

BACK STRETCH

STRETCHING THE UPPER BODY

Roll both shoulders at the same time in large circular motion with the arms by your side.

Stretch your back as shown in the picture and stay in that position for 3 seconds.

Place your hands over your head and bend to one side. Hold that position for 3 seconds and switch sides.

SQUAT

STRETCH THE FRONT SIDE OF THE THIGH

SNOW ANGELS

Place legs at a hips distance apart. Squat as low as you can and spring up from the heels. Repeat 10 times.

STRETCHING CHEST AND ARM Place an outstretched hand on a wall, door frame or similar at shoulder height.

Move your upper forward and sideways in one motion.

Hold an ankle placing the heel against your backside. Straighten your lower back so you feel your front thigh stretching.

Hold the position for 3 deep breaths and switch legs.

STRETCHING UPPER SIDE HAND AND UNDER ARM Stretch out your arm; bend the wrist with fingers facing the floor. Apply some pressure with the other hand.

Stand against a wall with your back, elbows and forearms touching the wall.

Raise your arms over your head, lower them slowly. Repeat 8-10 times.

STRETCHING NECK AND SHOULDER Place your hands behind your back, lower your shoulders, and tilt your head towards one of your shoulders. Extend the stretch by pulling your arm. Hold for 30 seconds and change sides.

staminagroup.no

25

I MARITIME I

Corona as game changer No doubt, the world would be better off without this pandemic outbreak. What impresses me, is how DNV GL employees turn such a crisis into an opportunity, developing and implementing our tools of tomorrow.

TEXST: MARIANNE VALDERHAUG

The corona virus outbreak has changed the world as we know it. Things we took for granted a few months ago are suddenly prohibited, and this is seriously affecting both our professional and private life. Continued world trade is essential during crisis, to secure supply of food, medical equipment etc., and Technical Support have been heavily involved helping customers finding ways to secure continued trading.

When surveyors are unable to attend vessels, surveys go overdue and certificates expire, our traditional solution would have been to postpone surveys and issue short term certificates. But postponements are merely short-term solutions, and that’s why we have started to explore whether our scope of remote surveys can be expanded, to also include bigger and more demanding surveys.

FIRST MAIN CLASS ANNUAL SURVEY COMPLETED REMOTELY A main class annual survey includes testing of various equipment, as well as a survey of the whole vessel. To cover the full scope, a DNV GL surveyor will normally spend up to a day on board the vessel. Is it possible to cover such a huge survey remotely?

To find out, we asked Morten Østby, who has been instrumental in digitalizing our FIS activity, to run a pilot. With the help from Haakon Dehn, Head of Planning Region North Europe, we identified a suitable vessel and established contact with the Owner, who was eager to join the pilot. Two weeks after the pilot kick-off, we had successfully completed the first remote main class survey in DNV GL’s history. Kamlesd Kumar work-

26

Two smartphones, Teams and live communication with the crew gave us enough information to complete the main class annual survey remotely.

ing in the Operational center at Høvik was lead surveyor, and Håkon Vikse, surveyor and KAM from Haugesund, assisted during the survey. The Owner was very satisfied with our survey and the only remark was that the crew had to spend quite a lot of time on preparing the document review.

Completing this survey remotely would not have been possible without good planning, connectivity during the complete survey, great support from the crew and teamwork within DNV GL. Involving a surveyor knowing the vessel was also very valuable.

This is one example of how the pandemic has challenged our way of working and thinking. Another example is piloting of remote COW initial survey, successfully completed by our team in Singapore in April. Remote Class Entry survey of younger vessels and remote Dynamic Positioning surveys are soon to be piloted.

Being able to perform surveys remotely does not mean that we will stop attending vessels. Our ambition is still to visit all DNV GL class vessels once a year, and remote survey will be a supplement to our onboard survey.

INCREASED WORKLOAD AND NEW WAYS OF WORKING Because of the pandemic, we see a rapid uptake of remote survey. Comparing the numbers from January and April, we find that number of remote jobs per week has increased by roughly 50 %.

Number of customer requests through DATE® is also increasing.

Thanks to dedicated employees and a very good IT system, we have managed to keep up business as usual, assisting customers in a professional way and further developed our digital deliveries. The way we have managed to change and adapt is fantastic, and it’s inspiring to see that we are exploring ideas we didn’t even dream of at the beginning of this year.

I PARAT I

Solidarity and optimism Following the corona virus outbreak in Norway, Parat has been taking a leading role and we quickly predicted the consequences the pandemic would have, and has had, for businesses and workers across the country.

TEXST: HELENE HUSEBØ

financial care packages that were put in place following this has been of great importance to many businesses and workers, including DNV GL employees.

We have since pushed for further financial support for particularly vulnerable industries, and our voice has been heard and our recommendations have been noted. Parat’s leader, Unn Kristin Olsen, has repeatedly voiced her concerns in national news media regarding the aviation industry in particular, as well as the uncertainty concerning pension laws and unemployment benefits. Parat’s main concern during this time has been to raise, assist and direct attention to workers’ and employees’ worries, issues and struggles as a consequence of the pandemic.

In March we organised a digital concert in order to spread joy, hope and optimism in what for many are difficult times. From left opera singer Thomas Ruud and pianist Monica Tomescu-Rohde.

Photograph: Vetle Daler

We have continuously been ahead when it comes to informing and ensuring that VEFF’s members stay up to date regarding their rights as workers throughout these difficult times.

As early as 4 March, Parat published a press release about your rights as an employee during the pandemic, in which we addressed potential issues such as lay-offs, terminations and payment of unemployment benefits. Throughout these difficult times, we have been working hard to ensure that our members, VEFF’s members and the public are aware of their legal rights as workers.

Our legal department has regularly hosted webinars, where Parat’s solicitors have walked the participants through key

legal advice and answered live questions.

We hope and believe VEFF’s members also in the future will make use of this service.

Throughout the pandemic, we have been pushing for financial support for businesses across all industries. On 6 March, Parat urged the Government to come up with financial care packages for businesses and corporations in order to provide security for all employees and workers, including all freelance workers. Later that week, the Prime Minister and the Minister of the Exchequer announced that they were considering what financial measures would be put in place in order to minimise the economic consequences of the pandemic. The

On 18 March, in order to boost morale and encourage optimism and positivity, Parat gathered audiences online for a concert organised in solidarity with everyone who had been laid off or lost their jobs, health care workers and other vulnerable groups. “Parat is working hard to help our members and others who now find themselves in a difficult situation. At the same time, by organising this concert, we are trying to spread joy, hope and optimism”, said Parat’s leader Unn Kristin Olsen, at the time.

Opera singer Thomas Ruud and pianist Monica Tomescu-Rohde put on a beautiful show for everyone that tuned in online.

27

Editor: Nina Ivarsen. Design and layout: Bodoni, 122929

VEFF

PROUD PEOPLE PERFORM Hvordan bli medlem av VEFF

How to become a VEFF member

• Kontakt veff-kontoret: VEFF@dnvgl.com • Du finner også informasjon på www.veff.no

• Contact the VEFF office: VEFF@dnvgl.com • You will also find useful information on www.veff.no