TÜV Rheinland certifies Eurotunnel according to hygiene and infection protection management standard

Eurotunnel first transport company to receive “hygiene and infection protection management” certificate from TÜV Rheinland / Audit carried out on the basis of a comprehensive standard / Standard contributes to greater safety for passengers

Eurotunnel was the first transport company to receive the certificate “Hygiene and Infection Protection Management” from TÜV Rheinland. As part of a voluntary audit, a TÜV Rheinland auditor checked the complete customer journey for passengers and goods including the terminal in France and the terminal in the UK with regard to its hygiene and infection protection measures.

The audit catalogue on which the standard is based contains more than 80 criteria. These include safe organisation for the protection of guests and passengers, for example through technical and organisational procedures or adapted work processes. “The standard aims to increase the safety of passengers, especially during corona times,” explains Haïdie Keddar, Local Field Manager for CSR and Customized Audit Services at TÜV Rheinland.

Eurotunnel is a transport company operating through the Channel Tunnel between France and the UK. In view of the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated risks for passengers, the company decided to have its hygiene concept audited and certified by TÜV Rheinland. The audit carried out by the TÜV Rheinland auditor is based on a catalogue that includes a wide variety of criteria and is adapted in the case of possible changes to the law. The catalogue is based, among other criteria, on the guidelines of the European Commission, the guidelines of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work and the recommendations of the World Health Organization. In addition, the standard takes into account relevant country-specific requirements.

The audit process at Eurotunnel was divided into two stages: During the on-site visit, all areas of the customer journey for passengers and goods including the terminal in France and the terminal in the UK were audited and it was verified how the required protection measures are implemented. The following questions, among others, played a role in the audit process: Are the necessary distances kept? Where are the contact points between staff and passengers and what kind of infection and hygiene protection is in place at these points? In the second stage of the audit, the documents were examined. Here, the TÜV Rheinland auditor checked, for example, work instructions for employees and training documents. “Eurotunnel passed the audit process without any problem. The company demonstrated that it meets the requirements of the standard and has implemented an effective concept for hygiene and infection protection,” said Haïdie Keddar.

In view of the active Corona pandemic, a surveillance audit is carried out at Eurotunnel once every six months. “Even after the end of the Corona crisis, we recommend companies to maintain such a concept, as pandemics can occur at any time. Companies that work according to this standard and have corresponding measures and routine processes in place have a clear advantage here,” explains Haïdie Keddar.