Celebrating our 31st Founding Anniversaryamidst the Coronavirus Pandemic

by | Sep 5, 2020 | Uncategorized

My Dear Colleagues,

This day in 1989, JGC Philippines was born and our reason for being then clearly defined: “to be a reliable and efficient Global Engineering Center for JGC Yokohama”. But like any other successful and progressive company, JPHIL continued to transform itself and sought opportunities for growth beyond that seemingly limited mandate. And so five years ago JPHIL boldly redefined its new vision: “we shall be a global EPC company like no other in designing, building and delivering technologically advanced plants and facilities that are of exceptional value to customers”. We began to execute local EPC projects for various industries: power and energy, chemicals, non-errous metals, petrochemicals, lube oil blending, etc. In the process, we gained the much-needed site experience that bolstered our EPC capacities spanning the whole EPC cycle and operation and prepared us for larger overseas EPC contracts. Meantime, a novel concept of designing and executing mega projects – “One JGC” Concept had taken root and formally adopted and implemented by both JGC and JPHIL as a tool to expand Group EPC capacity, resulting in the creation of a design and execution power house consisting of the combined talents of both JGC and JPHIL that is considered competitive and highly competent. The exciting part for JPHIL is the clear and distinct opportunity for our Filipino talents to take on global leading roles in global EPC projects. Silently, the first batch of 22 graduates from the MBA-type program on Leadership and Management Development Program (LMDP) conducted in house by Ateneo de Manila University Graduate School of Business presented their group’s Integrative Project summary as a defense of their Group Thesis or Project Study. These graduates, Managers/Leaders coming from EN, PJO, CAD, MSD and O&M gained broader perspectives in looking at business situation allowing them to apply core management and functional and integrative skills in analyzing all attendant issues and with a view to factor in future and strategic considerations. They are better prepared for future roles.

We were right there, in the midst of an exciting journey for growth and innovation, when the Coronavirus Pandemic stroke and reset our plans and dreams. Yes, we can accept that plans and dreams were reset, but we cannot accept they are completely erased. We are determined to come back and come back stronger. And so the last six months have been very painful and the adverse effects of this pandemic on our operations this year 2020, tremendous: current projects getting delayed or terminated, and more costly, new and prospective projects postponed or cancelled – for example our esteemed client Pilipinas Shell deciding to finally cease local refining operations and to convert the refinery facility into an import terminal. All these have the effect of reduced business volume, higher costs and possibly resulting in a loss for JPHIL for 2020. On top, there is still the main issue that nobody knows when this crisis will end, giving rise to the uncertainties and even more adverse impact in the coming year 2021. In our daily Excom meeting over the same six months, we looked, dissected and improved our response to the COVID 19 pandemic and devised ways and means on how to keep our premises and processes ever safe for all. We implemented measures beyond the rules of government. We did contact tracing ourselves and required isolation, allowed swab tests where needed to avoid local transmission. And so far, no local company transmission has ever been observed. And let me acknowledge and thank the COVID 19 Prevention Task Force for their dedication and effective work in keeping us all safe. We studied and prepared well the work arrangements that allowed flexible switching as differing quarantine modes were pronounced by government – with least disturbance and short turnaround time. New laptops and improved internet connectivity allowed WFH at different work ratios sufficiently productive. We thank all our staff for your dedication and support in keeping our productivity at acceptable levels despite the difficulties you were encountering, not to mention the anxiety that we all have to endure during this crisis. And so we ask you during this crisis period when we ironically are also celebrating our 31st year of founding, to try to conserve what we have and be more productive and efficient with the remaining jobs in designing and execution. Please try to work smart so that no time or money is wasted. Try to complete all pending work or close all punches at site as quickly as possible and always having in mind still the welcoming smile of our valued client when we hand over the completed work. All these would be your contribution to the welfare and survival of your company in crucial times like this. And hopefully, the salary increase that the company could afford this year will allow you to absorb the inflation impact on your family expenses. We hope that the finances of the company for the rest of the year will allow us to keep a good portion of our performance bonuses.

Finally, let me just tell you that the JGC Vision 2040 has been developed and recently released by our Global Leaders in Japan. It speaks of how JGC as a Group would look like in 20 years’ time from now, which markets we will pursue and concentrate on and how it intends to grow even more in the light of both the challenges and opportunities of said markets given our time honored core competencies and unique competitiveness. It is indeed exciting. So we march on, we will prevail over this crisis – together, ever resilient.

Thank you so much.

Antonio P. Cabrera
President
JGC Philippines, Inc.

Staff Training Program

Staff Training Program helps employees learn specific knowledge or skills to improve performance in their current roles, those occupying supervisory functions or those being prepared to assume such role (e.g., Problem Solving and Leadership).

Cadetship Training Program

The Cadetship Program is for new engineering graduates with no work experience. It is designed to build the technical and behavioral foundation for engineers’ professional careers. The training program aims to develop the technical skills and capabilities which will be needed in the real world of Engineering-Procurement-Construction or EPC business.

Information Security

JGC Philippines, Inc., a reputable Engineering, Procurement, Construction (EPC) company, shall establish, control and maintain a secured business environment with its business partners.

For this purpose, JGC Philippines shall recognize the value of all information assets including those of customers, vendors and subcontractors and establish an Information Security Management System (ISMS) that conforms to the requirements of ISO 27001:2013. Based on this management system, JGC Philippines is committed to:

  1. Comply with all legal, corporate and other requirements pertinent to information security;
  2. Prevent unauthorized use, reproduction and destruction of all information assets including those related to customer, vendors and subcontractors and established documented procedures to secure the confidentiality, integrity and availability of the information;
  3. Protect the intellectual property rights of the company;
  4. Recognize, respect and protect the personal information of all employees entrusted to the company;
  5. Establish a contingency plan to ensure business continuity in the event of a natural disaster, act of terrorism, and computer attacks;
  6. Provide all employees with proper education and training to implement, maintain and improve the effectiveness of the ISMS; and
  7. Review regularly the effectiveness of the ISMS and subsequently aim for its continual improvement.

Environment

JGC Group is committed to contributing to the protection of the global environment based on the JGC Group's purpose of "Enhancing Planetary Health". Based on the above, we have established an environmental management system for project execution and set the following environmental policy.

  1. Set environmental goals, review them periodically, and strive to achieve them.
  2. Utilize our technologies to make proposals to customers related to the protection of the global environment.
  3. Comply with all laws and regulations related to environmental protection, as well as agreements with customers and other interested parties.
  4. Pursue continuous improvement of our environmental protection activities through the implementation of the environmental management system.
  5. Implement the following practices during the design, procurement, and construction phases of each project.
  • In our design work for projects, we shall take into consideration resource and energy conservation and work to prevent pollution of the air, soil, and water and limit greenhouse gas emissions using energy-efficient materials and equipment.
  • In procurement, we shall encourage vendors and other cooperating companies to adopt a positive attitude toward environmental protection, including the reduction of greenhouse gases.
  • In construction, commissioning, and maintenance work, we shall make every effort to reduce the impact of the environment by minimizing resource use and energy consumption, reducing and recycling waste, preventing air and water pollution, and minimizing the emission of greenhouse gases.

Quality

Under the "2040 Vision" plan, our long-term management vision established by JGC Group, we have positioned 2021 to 2025 as the "five years of challenge", and established a new medium-term business plan -- "Building a Sustainablle Planetary Infrastructure (BSP2025)".

JGC Corporation established its own-medium-term business plan based on BSP2025 and institute the following Quality Policy to implement challenges and transformation in accordance with the medium-term business plan.

  1. We shall provide the quality that fulfills all of the applicable requirements, by utilizing our wide-ranging technological expertise and project execution skills built up through years of experience and through the promotion of DX (Digital Transformation).
  2. We shall fully comply with the agreed requirements with our customers, and shall aim to establish ourselves as an organization that will prompt customers to view us as their first-choice partner when they are faced with new or advanced technical challenges in an ever-changing business environment.
  3. We shall pursue the realization of an evolving organization the promises continual improvement and gives rise to innovation and improvement, through combining a strong sense of individual responsibility and creativity, along with a will to go beyond barriers between departments and among individuals.
  4. We shall always be conscious of enhancing Planetary Health. In face of various social issues, we will become a company that is required by society by synchronizing businesses with solving such social issues.

Health and Safety

JGC Corporation's commitment to providing the highest quality products and services in accordance with the JGC Group's ""Purpose"" of Enhancing Planetary Health and the basic principles of its HSSE philosophy is evidenced by the establishment of our occupational health and safety management system for both construction work at our construction sites and for office activities at our offices as expressed in the tenets of our occupational health and safety policy described below:

  1. Establish occupational health and safety objectives and strive to achieve them. Those occupational health and safety objectives shall be reviewes periodically.
  2. Comply with all laws and regulations related to occupational health and safety, as well as agreements with interested parties, including customers.
  3. Identify the sources of risks related to occupational health and safety in advance and through thorough assessment work to prevent their occurrence.
  4. In setting and implementing objectives and plans related to occupational health and safety management, the opinions of employees and construction workers shall be considered together with their participation.
  5. Bring about continuous improvement of our occupational health and safety activities through the implementation of an occupational health and safety management system.