Jorma Korpela is now enjoying his retirement

March 2015 saw the end of an era in the safety sector in Kokkola, as Jorma Korpela took a well-deserved retirement. Jorma started working for the then Kokkola Fire Brigade in June 1966 and has since then seen from his vantage point for almost 50 years how safety issues in society have evolved.

-The work of the Rescue Service has become more preventive. In those days, ambulance transport was a kind of side activity, carried out with a rather reduced fleet. This environment has moved on enormously," says Jorma. Today, safety work also emphasises individual responsibility, while the number of safety obligations for society as a whole is increasing all the time. According to Jorma, today's safety environments are particularly challenging for companies, with different types of obligations imposed on them by various pieces of legislation: "Meeting these obligations requires knowledge and expertise. Large industries and their resources are one thing, but quite a few SMEs have the capacity to meet their obligations without external support.

Jorma emphasises that the overall management of safety, or preparedness, is of great importance to companies' business operations, such as quality and production. Machine safety, electrical safety, cleanliness, fire safety and occupational safety are examples of issues where systematic management reduces the risk of failure or an adverse event. -Protect's work with clients often begins with a safety survey, where a risk assessment is carried out and the level of requirements defined. If the safety environment is in place, quality is not compromised because the production process has anticipated and minimised various adverse events. -In addition to this, it is important to plan and manage how the company will deal with the authorities and the public if something happens. All such matters need to be worked out in advance, because in specific situations the repercussions are often far-reaching," says Jorma, describing the multidisciplinary and multidimensional nature of safety. Jorma and Protect's CEO Pertti Salo started their entrepreneurial career together precisely because of the need to help customers in planning for preparedness. -The company was initially called Pohjanmaan Paloturvallisuuskonsultit Ay, as the name describes well the kind of work we did in the early stages. There was a lot of rescue planning, for example, as well as fulfilling planning obligations arising from chemical legislation. The expansion of the ownership base created the opportunity to diversify and expand the activities of the current SK Protect Ltd. -PRO24 was born as a data management tool that brought order to the jungle of Word documents. PRO24 is a multi-purpose system for corporate safety work and is sure to attract an even wider customer base in the future.

Five decades in the safety industry have led Jorma to argue firmly that safety should not be a cost in the corporate and public economy, but an aspirational issue that everyone must take care of for the private and public good. A small investment in safety can make a big difference. -I have made many friends during my career and I feel a great sense of satisfaction that safety issues have developed in a positive direction. With our customers we have developed a mutual trust, and with some of them our business acquaintance has deepened into friendship. In that sense, I have been poor in that I have not managed to make any enemies over the years," Jorma laughs. He reminds clients and partners that safety work is a dynamic job that never ends. As a sergeant major in the reserves, volunteer national defence and reserve work have been among Jorma's hobbies in his spare time. In his retirement, he says he will focus on his full-time role as a grandfather to his five grandchildren. In addition, he will be travelling with his wife, Vaula, which has been a favourite pastime for the couple up to now. "To all our customers, partners and colleagues, I would like to extend my warmest thanks for the unforgettable years and decades," says Jorma with a familiar smile.