Arxada, trading as Arch Wood Protection South Africa, has been recognised by the Chemical and Allied Industries Association (CAIA) as a top performer and candidate for the 2021 Responsible Care® Award. The nomination was based on the company’s year-on-year improvements when comparing selected data from the 2020 and 2021 Key Performance Indicators (KPI) submissions.
Image credit: Chemical & Allied Industries’ Association
“This nomination underlines the fact that commitment to safety is an inseparable part of our company culture. Our site safety record has surpassed twenty-eight years without any loss of time due to injuries or fatalities – and we are confidently on track to complete our twenty-ninth year. To achieve this, safety was included in other organisational programmes – such as plant improvement projects and the Corporate Operational Excellence project – and in this way remained top of mind,” said JJ du Plessis, the senior business manager at Arxada.
Assessment of Key Performance Indicators (KPI)
Based on the greatest year-on-year net improvement, Arch Wood Protection SA was shortlisted after reviewing the company’s 2020 and 2021 data in the four major categories of Responsible Care pillars – namely safety and health; resource efficiency; pollution prevention and product stewardship. To determine the winner and runner(s)-up, the data supplied in the KPI submissions will be assessed along with contributions to the CAIA working groups, attendance of training workshops and the company’s process safety.
Du Plessis expressed his appreciation for the outstanding work carried out by CAIA to promote the sustainability of the chemical industry through Responsible Care.
“We thank CAIA for recognising our company’s achievements over the past year. Despite the unprecedented challenges faced in 2020, our operation manager and site head, Kesun Govender and our entire team continued to prioritise safety. The time and resources invested into safety training programmes and improvement projects has been instrumental in achieving a safety record that is worthy of an award nomination,” said du Plessis.
Runner-up of the 2017 Responsible Care Award
As a longstanding member of CAIA, Arch Wood Protection SA has embraced the Responsible Care protocols, which include corporate social responsibility projects that are sustainable. In 2017, the company’s outreach to the educational needs of the local community was recognised at the 78th CAIA awards ceremony. Arch Wood Protection SA was the runner up of the Responsible Care Initiative of the Year award for their outstanding achievement in sustainable corporate social responsibility projects.
About Responsible Care
Responsible Care is the chemical industry’s own, unique, global initiative – a voluntary programme that helps raise its standards and win greater trust from the public. It is designed to have a measurable impact on safety, health, environmental performance and security through a rigorous system of checklists, performance indicators and verification procedures. This enables the industry to demonstrate how it has improved over the years and to develop policies for further improvement.
This year’s winners and runner(s)-up will be announced on the 17th of November 2021 at CAIA’s 83rd Annual General Meeting, Responsible Care® Report Launch and Responsible Care Awards Ceremony.
JJ du Plessis. Image credit: Arch Wood Protection SA
