Cement industry commits to accident reduction
THE British cement industry has committed itself to a dramatic reduction in the number of accidents at work, setting a target to achieve a 30% reduction in injury rates every year until 2010, compared to a 2003 baseline.
The commitment was officially announced at a cement industry health and safety seminar held at Warwick University and attended by Health and Safety Commission chairman Bill Callaghan.
Speaking after the event, Mr Callaghan said: ‘While the UK cement industry has achieved substantial reductions in accident rates in recent years, I am impressed by its even more challenging reduction targets for the future. I will follow with interest the industry’s progress in demonstrating that its health and safety systems are truly robust and ‘world class’.’
The chief executives of the four British cement manufacturers –– Buxton Lime Industries, Castle Cement, Lafarge Cement UK and Rugby Cement –– have all given their full backing and formally signed up to the ‘Cementing good practice’ initiative.
Peter Weller, chairman of the industry’s steering group on health and safety and managing director of Castle Cement, said: ‘We have worked hard over the last 10 years to reduce accident rates by two-thirds but we accept that we have got to do better still. Indeed, our vision is to create an environment where accidents and ill health do not occur.
‘A 30% year-on-year reduction in injuries is a challenging target but we are giving this commitment at the very highest level and we are determined to succeed. We must not forget, we are not dealing with statistics here but people’s lives, so there can be no higher priority than the safety of our workforce.’
Areas identified for immediate action include:
- accidents caused by falls from height, transport, and slips and trips
- management of the industry’s process operations, general maintenance and contractors working on site
- occupational health, including product safety.
