Adhering to global best practices fundamental for Lafarge Mahaweli Cement
Tuesday, 8 October 2013 00:00
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Flexible, worker-friendly health and safety regulations that create
‘Value for Life’
Workers of the Lafarge Mahaweli Cement factory in the Colombo Port premises played a friendly Cricket match in Colombo last week, to celebrate their success in running the factory for two years without a single Lost Time Injury (LTI) – one of the major achievements for any Sri Lankan factory, on the health and safety front.
Running the Lafarge Cement Factory for two years without an LTI is not an accident by itself! This is the outcome of Lafarge’s health and safety formula, which elevates the company to greater heights among its peers, making it a cause for celebration.
“Lafarge wants to be at the helm, not only in the cement industry, but also in the health and safety front. Health and safety constitute an important part of our company ethos since 2007. That is exactly why we give a strong focus to running our operations without accidents or injuries,” Lafarge Mahaweli Cement Purchasing Manager Athula Karunanayake said. For that, Lafarge adheres to stringent health and safety measures, covering all bases of its operations. The Factory in Colombo Port handles the process of pumping cement from ships to the port, packaging and transporting to distributors across the country. Everyone involved in this operation, whether they are employees of Lafarge or not, have to adopt the same worldwide standards when conducting their day-to-days tasks.
Health and Safety measures, Karunanayake says, are well-structured. “For instance, the factory workers have safety standards and advisories for working at heights, mobile equipment, confinement areas and conveyor belts. These, needless to say are highly vulnerable areas for accidents to occur. Standards and Advisories contain all the steps that need to be followed at every particular task. Also, a manager is appointed as a ‘Champion’ to each Standard and Advisory who is in charge of implementing and maintaining those in the business,” he explains.
Lafarge’s health and safety measures have a top-down approach as well as a bottom-up approach, ensuring every member of the company, regardless of his or her scale, is responsible for health and safety. At the same time, safety standards set by the company are not stagnated. For instance, workers have the freedom point out new risks they come across and suggest preventive measures to avoid them. That makes the entire health and safety process flexible and worker-friendly.
“Every morning the workers of the factory, including managers and senior staff, engage in ‘Tool box Talk’ where they discuss risky instances at work and the manners in which they can avoid accidents. Each employee is made aware of risks and accidents associated with their work and how to avoid them, using precautionary measures. This process does not exclude outside workers who work with Lafarge particularly when it comes to transportation. Lafarge has provided side mirrors, reverse horns and seat belts to all vehicles the factory has outsourced for cement transportation. Every lorry driver has to wear a helmet, jacket and shoes from the entry point, and a separate crew is trained to direct the movement of vehicles. Regular inspections are carried out to monitor the implementation of health and safety measures at operational level,” said the Manager.
In addition, factory workers have to undergo an annual medical check-up that is conducted free of charge. If an employee is detected with an injury caused by the work they engage in, he will immediately be assigned to a safer task in the factory, without exposing him to any risk. Apart from that, regular health campaigns are organised for employees, encouraging them to share best health practices and some of these campaigns even involve their family members, educating and convincing them on the importance of health and safety.
Karunanayake also disclosed another important tactic practiced by employees to avoid risks through constant communication. Any incident that happens in any of the Lafarge plants in the 64 countries they are located will be recorded and shared amongst the rest of the factories in order that they take precautions and safety measures to avoid such incidents in future. These reports become subjects of discussion among employees to improve their knowledge in this regard, he says.
Lafarge Health and Safety Manager B.M. Julker Naime said, “We are working towards bringing a change in the health and safety culture not only for Lafarge Mahaweli but also within the cement industry or even on a country wide scale in Sri Lanka and we will need many supports from all our stakeholders.”
Lafarge strictly follows a policy that requires everyone to return home safely after work, in the same way they reported to work in the morning. This approach is directly linked to their employee welfare policy worldwide ‘Value for Life’ and it also makes the company’s growth solid and sustainable, making everyone a part of Lafarge’s success.
