May 14 2007
The European Aluminium Association has named its "best performers" in the area of occupational safety, based on 2006 statistics. Four are Hydro plants.
Each year, the European Aluminium Association (EAA) compiles a "benchmarking" report that covers occupational safety in European primary aluminium plants, rolling mills, extrusion plants, alumina plants and remelters.
In total, the 2006 report, which was presented earlier this month, identified 16 sites as best in Europe in terms of safety. Two were primary aluminium plants, one was an alumina operation, and three were rolling mills.
Four of the 10 extrusion plants belong to the Hydro group. These are located in:
- Nenzing, Austria (Bellenberg, Germany included in mention)
- Ornago, Italy
- Cacém, Portugal
- La Roca, Spain
The EAA report measures the locations by using a total recordable injury rate, which is the most common key performance indicator for safety. It takes into account the number of lost-time injuries, restricted work cases and cases that require medical treatment.
In 2006, the total recordable injury rates that the EAA shows for the five different areas of operation are rather high when compared to Hydro's figures in the same areas. In fact, the figures underline that safety is high on Hydro's agenda and that the company aims to be among the safety leaders in the aluminium industry in Europe.