About

Protecting Health, Safety & the Environment

Health Safety, and Environmental Management

Protecting the environment and protecting the health and safety of those who work on our behalf are among our highest priorities. Lilly has a global corporate Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) Policy that guides our actions, supported by 36 global functional policies on common HSE issues, such as process safety, air pollution control, soil and groundwater protection, and emergency management.

Each of our facilities develops its own HSE objectives in accordance with local priorities and corporate commitments, requirements, and goals. Sites are held accountable via the HSE management system, which includes oversight through metrics review and site self-assessments. Our facilities are also subject to periodic corporate HSE internal audits by teams composed of internal experts and external auditors. The information gathered during the auditing process is the basis for annual reports to the corporate compliance committee and the corporate HSE guidance council. These committees report progress and issues requiring senior management intervention to the policy and strategy committee, composed of the CEO and senior staff, or to the public policy and compliance committee of the board of directors.

Each of our plants is expected to have a health and safety committee that includes both management and non-management personnel. Employees are encouraged to report health and safety practices that they believe could be improved. The committees work to find solutions to the reported practices and then implement those solutions.

We follow and apply the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Recording and Reporting Occupational Injuries and Illnesses Standards globally. Corporate data regarding accidents, illnesses, injuries, and lost workdays within the company are tracked continuously and collected and analyzed monthly.

We have several facilities certified to ISO 14001. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO), based in Geneva, Switzerland, established ISO 14001 as a voluntary standard for environmental management systems (EMS). The goal of the ISO 14001 standard is similar to our sustainability objective: to demonstrate the integrity of our HSE management system through continuous improvement, compliance, and minimization of environmental impacts. Our strategy is to allow individual Lilly sites around the world to determine whether facility registration is appropriate for their facility.

Three manufacturing facilities—our locations in Morumbi, Brazil; Kinsale, Ireland; and Mexico City, Mexico—and the corporate EMS have achieved certification to the ISO 14001 standard.

In addition, we participate in several voluntary programs related to HSE management, including the OSHA Voluntary Performance Program, Responsible Care®, and the Business Roundtable’s new S.E.E. Change Initiative.

A brief case study from Lilly’s Speke, UK, facility illustrates how our facilities are continuously improving the way they manage environmental challenges.

Chairman's Letter
Our Business
Corporate Citizenship Approach
Key Issues
Awards and Recognition