The Business Bytes
TBB BUREAU
JHARSUGUDA, JUNE 14, 2022
Vedanta Aluminium, India’s largest producer of aluminium, has conducted an on-site Safety Mock Drill in association with National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), at its aluminium smelter in Jharsuguda. The mock drill saw the plant’s emergency management team and NDRF officials collaborate to reinforce safety awareness among all employees and business partners associated with the company.
Udit Kumar Dixit, NDRF Inspector; Ramesh Mohanty, District Fire Officer; Manoj Mishra, District Assistant Director of Factories and Boiler (ADFB); Susanta Mishra, District Project Officer, Odisha State Disaster Management Authority; and representatives from other companies participated in the mock drill.
Mock drills are a useful tool in Vedanta Aluminium’s safety arsenal. Conducted at regular intervals, they serve to test and bolster employees’ emergency preparedness as well as gauge the coordination between various teams in simulated conditions. This comprehensive safety drill with NDRF focused on bolstering the effectiveness of safety communication systems, creating standard operating procedures for rapid mobilization of resources at site and safe shut down of the processes site in case of an emergency, and monitoring the roles and responsibility of the Combat Team, Rescue Team and Auxiliary Team at Vedanta’s operations.
Speaking on Vedanta Aluminium’s safety-first culture, Sunil Gupta, CEO – Vedanta Ltd., Jharsuguda said, “At Vedanta Aluminium, safety of our people and partners is our foremost priority. The ethos of Zero Harm, Zero Waste and Zero Discharge are instilled in our DNA and therefore, our aluminium operations are governed by the highest safety standards, creating a safe working environment for our employees and business partners. We have extensively deployed safety technologies and behaviour-based initiatives to further strengthen our safety performance. Mock drills with emergency simulations help us assess our response mechanism, so that we can be more agile and effective in case of emergencies. We also work closely with the government and the community to bolster the safety quotient at our operations as well as beyond.”
Appreciating Vedanta Aluminium’s safety focus, NDRF Inspector Udit Kumar Dixit said, “A company’s safety culture is evident in its safety preparedness system in case of exigencies. I am happy to see the robust and structured safety management system that Vedanta has put in place at its operations, prioritising the safety and well-being of all its stakeholders. The company’s commitment towards upholding the highest standards of safety at its operations is indeed noteworthy.”
Vedanta Aluminium is working extensively towards creating a safer workplace by constantly bolstering and enhancing its Safety Management System with advanced technologies and environmental safeguards.
Sankalp, a Safety Culture Transformation Programme implemented by Vedanta Aluminium across all its operations, including Jharsuguda, in partnership with DuPont Sustainability Solutions. Through this programme, the company is nurturing an interdependent safety culture to overcome safety gaps arising out of cultural and behavioural issues and instil a culture of safety through coaching, counselling, monitoring and feedback on safety behaviour.
The company has instituted the Visible Felt Leadership programme, as part of which the company’s leadership personally anchors safety quotients at site through regular employee engagements and audits of safety practices at shop floors.
It has an all-women fire-fighting team ‘Agnivahini’ at Jharsuguda who have been meticulously trained to act efficiently and effectively during emergencies.
A robust Safety MIP (Management in Place) allows the company to deploy personnel with the required safety skillset, knowledge, and attitude at the right place within the safety structure, making safety a shared responsibility.
The company has introduced Safety Stand Down, a programme wherein leadership teams engage with employees and business partners on various facets of health, safety and environment, to build a holistic safety-first culture.
Extensive digitalization of operations and processes is helping Vedanta Aluminium minimize human interaction with machines
The Manufacturing Execution System of the company ensures visibility of all critical plant operations, allowing for remote decision-making through mobile applications, while employees can maintain social distancing and yet fulfil their activities on the plant floor
Mobile and web applications have been developed in-house for monitoring of safety parameters at various work sites.
Vedanta Aluminium Business, a division of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest manufacturer of aluminium, producing half of India’s aluminium i.e., 2.26 million tonnes in FY22. The company operates a world-class 1.6 MTPA aluminium smelter and 3615 MW thermal power generation facility in Jharsuguda, Odisha. The only Indian smelter in the global ‘1 Million Tonne’ production and export club, Vedanta Jharsuguda is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications across core industries. With its state-of-the-art facilities, unparalleled engineering prowess, R&D and innovation abilities, Vedanta Jharsuguda is working towards a sustainable and greener future for all by spurring emerging applications of aluminium, the ‘Metal of the Future’.
