Sol, the Caribbean’s largest petroleum marketing company is celebrating the contributions of its Road Transport Team with a full week of activities across the 23 territories in which it operates. Within the industry, this type of celebration is traditionally heralded as “Fleet Week”, where specific attention is placed on recognising outstanding contributions which Sol’s drivers, mechanics, dispatchers, fleet supervisors and aviation crew personnel make to the industry every day.

The majority of the participating territories celebrated Fleet Week during the week of October 5 to 11, 2014, while three territories (Grenada, St. Kitts and St. Vincent) will be holding their Fleet Week activities during the coming weeks.

Gerard Cox, CEO of The Sol Group, said that the Sol Fleet Week was designed to highlight the important role played by Sol’s fleet team who work tirelessly to ensure the highest levels of safety for Sol employees and for the general public. Following Sol’s exceptional growth as a company in just under a decade, the company made a point to instate this week in honour of the members of the “Fleet” who have contributed to making the company the success it is today. The activity is the first of many annual “Fleet Weeks” which will take place in every country where Sol operates.

This year’s Barbados Fleet Week kicked off with a Church Service last Sunday at Sharon Moravian Church. Throughout the course of the week, the company engaged in a number of “Drive Alongs” where Sol CEO, Gerard Cox, and other managers accompanied fleet drivers on their daily delivery of Sol fuels. Another highlight of Sol Fleet week was a Team Lunch at the Hilton Barbados last Tuesday.

Sol Caribbean’s operations began in 2005, when the company acquired Shell’s business in the Eastern Caribbean, Guyana, Suriname and Belize. In 2014, the company acquired Exxon Mobil’s Caribbean operations and became the authorised licensee of the Esso brand. In just under ten years of operations, Sol has developed a strong regional footprint with a presence in 23 territories, including the Spanish-speaking US territory of Puerto Rico, and the French-speaking territories of Haiti, Martinique, Guadeloupe and French Guiana. Sol provides energy solutions to a wide range of industries including the shipping, luxury boating, aviation, mining and trucking industries.

The Company’s fleet team plays a pivotal role in the distribution of petroleum products to Sol, Shell and Esso service stations in the respective countries where Sol is the authorised licensee of these leading brands. They ensure both the driving public and commercial customers receive these petroleum products safely and on time.

Commenting on the importance of safety, Mr. Cox noted that Sol emphasises a “very strict culture of safety” across its entire operations. He added that Sol has reinforced this culture through international training and practices, as well as with policies and procedures which the company has used to develop its own world-class Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) Management System. This HSE system, he explained, along with “Goal Zero“, the company’s internal safety programme, contributed heavily to maintaining an efficient and safe regional operation.

“The health and safety of our team is a huge priority for us as a company,” he said. “All of our employees are part of our Sol family and it is important that we keep our family members safe.” Commenting on the role of the organisation’s fleet workers, Mr. Cox described the fleet team as being “absolutely critical” to maintaining the highest possible levels of safety across the region’s operations. He said that even though many fleet workers do not come into direct contact with the end consumer, it was important for the Company to highlight the stellar job which the fleet team does behind the scenes to get the fuels from the terminal to customers’ vehicles, machinery and vessels all across the region.

Mr. Ezra Prescod, General Manager of Sol’s operations in Barbados, agrees that it is important for the fleet team’s contributions to be highlighted to customers and other stakeholders who may not have otherwise been aware of the work carried out by these team members. Mr. Prescod noted that here in Barbados, as in all other territories in which Sol operates, the company’s fleet team members were “highly committed” to carrying out their duties and ensuring the very highest possible levels of safety. He added that the fleet team and the wider Sol community thoroughly enjoyed the recently concluded week of events.