Health & Safety

Commitment to a Health & Safety Culture
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At HMDC – La Union, health and safety isn’t merely a legal requirement that needs to be complied with, it is an opportunity to promote, improve and maintain the physical, mental and emotional well-being of everyone in the workplace.

THE SAFETY GOAL

“Zero harm to our employees, contractors, suppliers and visitors”

To achieve this goal, the company has put in place policies, infrastructure, equipment and rules that everyone from top managers, employees, contractors to visitors are expected to follow.

HMDC has been awarded the Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) 18001 : 2007 on December 05, 2016, This is valid until December 04, 2019.

Strategy for the Implementation of the OHSMS in HMDC – La Union
HMDC – La Union’s Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSMS) is already in place, which was based on Holcim’s health and safety policies.

To live up to these standards, everyone in the organization must systematically identify and assess risks and communicate these to all stakeholders. The risks must be addressed actively by allocating the appropriate resources, using the right technology, providing training to those who need it and developing safety-oriented individuals. In all levels of management, accountability is fundamental.

Apart from setting targets and reviewing the effectiveness of company’s systems for future updates or changes, preventive and corrective actions for any incidents and/or non-conformances must be performed.

Occupational Health and Safety Management Framework
This operating principle of ISO’s management system standards is the basis of HMDC – La Union’s OHSMF. Since cycles do not have an end, the Integrated Management System (IMS) must be repeated for continuous improvement. The Corporate Safety Department plans and issues the guidelines, with the agreement of the Safety Steering Committee. The site’s Mine Operations Manager, in turn, thru its Safety Officer and the Site Safety Officer, manages the implementation. The site’s mine personnel then conduct regular site visits to conduct inspections of equipment, systems and procedures.

Safety performance, based on reporting of incidents and injuries, are summarized and presented to the site management teams every month who then discuss how to mitigate and improve the operation’s safety performance. The Site Safety Steering Committee and the OpCom meet monthly to review safety procedures as well as to include directives and policies for improvement of its safety record and instill the safety behavior needed to enhance the culture of health and safety within the workforce.

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On the side of Caution:Maintaining Zero Injury Rates at HMDC - La Union

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Ensuring Safe Quarry Operations in Every Step of the Mining Process 

Certain safety practices apply to all tasks such as wearing complete and task-appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), equipping all vehicles with safety features and employing trained and competent people for specific tasks, just to name a few. But specific precautions are made depending on the ongoing mining activity.

• Stripping - Although actually done by a third-party contractor, HMDC – La Union establishes the necessary safety precautions during the planning phase. 

• Dumping and Stockpiling - Materials are to be dumped over a crest that is several meters in height or stockpiled on flat ground and built up in several lifts. This requires a lot of manual work, but significantly improves the stability of dumps and stockpiles thereby lessening the risk of failures. 

• Working at Heights in the Quarry - It is a must to keep a distance of at least 2 meters from the crest. Otherwise, if this is not possible, or in some cases in addition to the minimum recommended distance, physical barriers or safety harnesses connected to a fixed point are used. 

• Loading and Hauling - These tasks are to be carefully managed as there are numerous problems which may arise (bench failure, spillage from equipment, etc.) The most important aspect to be considered in this regard is the proper choice and use of equipment. 

• Active Face Zone and Stand Off Distance - Key to the safety of personnel and equipment is a regular inspection of such areas which must be done before each shift begins. And as this is the immediate loading zone, another priority here is to define the Stand Off Distance and limit access to the area. For example, other than haulage equipment, access to the area must explicitly granted by the area supervisor or operator of the loading unit. 

Stability of Quarries, Stockipiles and Slopes
Identifying safety hazards of low probability but of high impact is imperative when it comes to all aspects of the operations.

At HMDC – La Union, this begins by making sure that all the structures in our site are safe and sound. It has, after all, been proven that proper planning, engineering and design are the most cost-effective elements of risk mitigation and operational hazard identification.

There are three key safety aspects considered during the planning and design phase of quarries:

• Slope Stability - Quarry slopes must be stable not just during the lifetime of the quarry but also even after its closure. Aside from comprehensive planning based on accurate data and developed by competent professionals, we ensure that our quarry slopes undergo regular review to prevent rock falls or bench scale failures which result in injuries and fatalities.

• Infrastructure Layout and Design - During the planning phase, permanent and temporary installations, facilities and infrastructures are properly located. The manner in which these are designed is also a safety feature which mining engineers at HMDC – La Union give careful attention to. 

• Heavy Equipment Selection - The mechanical properties of extracted materials and the location where these are extracted are important factors in choosing the equipment to be used. Other factors to be considered are: 

1. Operator 
2. Surrounding environment 
3. Future applications and tasks 
4. Future layout and design of quarry 
5. Production requirements 
6. Climatic conditions 

Vehicle & Traffic Safety
This is one out of the 13 Fatality Prevention Elements (FPEs) that is highly applicable to HMDC – La Union’s daily operations. Problems which may arise in this regard are collisions, loss of control over vehicles resulting in rollovers and accidents involving pedestrians, just to name a few.

With this FPE in mind, HMDC – La Union strictly sees to the following:

• Equipping all vehicles with additional safety features such as fire extinguishers, safety hammers, first aid kits, reverse alarms and reversing cameras, etc. 

• Doing pre-start inspections such as the ‘walk-around’ inspection, fluids and lights check, and so on. 

• Use of right equipment for a specific task and on a particular haul road. 

• Right of Way guidelines; with emergency vehicles given first priority, followed by haul trucks, other heavy equipment and light and service vehicles. 

• Speed limits such as 40 km/hour for haul trucks and 30 km/hour for light vehicles. 

• Visual signage on the road which are properly categorized (mandatory, prohibitive, warning, danger, and notice) and colored (red, yellow, green, and blue). 

• Maps indicating access and traffic must be known and visible to all employees and visitors. 

Although this is not exactly categorized under this particular FPE, trespassing is a potential safety hazard related to it. HMDC – La Union tries to prevent this at all costs, particularly in active mining areas. Aside from putting up physical barriers around the site, the company conducts meetings with the communities surrounding our site to determine reasons for trespassing and look for solutions to stop this.

Other Fatality Prevention Elements Applicable to HMDC - La Union Operations’ Quarry Site

• Lifting and Supporting Loads 

• Electrical Safety 

• Hot Work 

• Working Near Water 

A screen grab from HMDC-La Union's "Safety Orientation for Visitors" video

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Safety Competence, training

and Responsibility

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For health and safety to be ensured, all personnel within HMDC – La Union must be competent to perform the tasks assigned to them. The company believes that when people have the right knowledge and skills to perform their job, then all they need is the right attitude to accomplish their goals. 

Aside from the assessment of basic skills and continuous training of each worker in their particular area of expertise, each must be familiar with their site, the specific hazards present therein and the emergency procedures that have been put in place.

CONTRACTOR SAFETY 

As partners of HMDC, contractor safety is of utmost importance. Exposed to various kinds of hazards on the job, HMDC – La Union established a common understanding of the importance of OHS with the qualified contractors. In addition, they are also part of the Emergency Response Team (ERT) and the Safety Inspection and Central Safety Committees.

Safety performance is evaluated after each job. Non-conformance to rules, standards and requirements will result in penalty points. Contractors falling below 75% (total) or 80% (safety) will be suspended from bidding for work in the future.

For several years now, ANSECA Development Corporation is the major partner of HMDC – La Union in its quarry and rehabilitation operations. With HMDC’s safety policies integrated into their own, ANSECA has been carrying out the actual quarrying work and progressive rehabilitation that the HMDC – La Union mine planning engineer has put in place.

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Awareness & Communication of HMDC’s Safety Culture

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Since health and safety is one of the most important aspects in HMDC – La Union’s daily operations, every single possible hazard, control, rule, limitation and any change in procedures must be
conveyed to all workers in the quarry, whether they are HMDC employees or under
the employ of our contractors.

The Company Rules of Safety, instituted by top safety managers 
of Holcim Philippines, Inc. and adopted by HMDC are basically the safety principles 
which everyone on site should abide by.

THE FIVE COMPANY RULES OF HMDC 

• I assess and control risks before starting any task. 
• I only perform activities for which I am authorized. 
• I never override or misuse health and safety devices, and I always use the required PPE. 
• I do not work under the influence of alcohol or drugs. 
• I report all incidents. 

ACTIVITIES ENSURING SAFETY INSIDE HMDC – LA UNION 

For the culture of health and safety not to be taken for granted, it requires daily constant reminder and practice with the aim of making it a habit, or second nature to people. This is why HMDC ensures that its safety policies are frequently and consistently communicated to all stakeholders.

Tool Box Meetings

Every work shift at HMDC – La Union starts with tool box meetings. Here, safety processes, best practices and near-miss incidents are discussed. These meetings are usually short. But as is done every single day, workers absorb the information well and it becomes ingrained in their daily activities.

Visitor Safety Talks

Basic safety knowledge of the company’s safety policies is also shared to those who are visiting the plant for the first time. In fact, this is the initial step that visitors need to go through before they are allowed to go on site tours or other businesses within the site. In addition, HMDC - La Union recently produced safety orientation videos for visitors and contractors, respectively. The Safety Orientation Video for Visitors is already being used to orient visitors while the version for contractors is in the production stage. The goal is to standardize the way both visitors and workers are oriented on the company’s safety principles.

Reminders Regarding Site Emergency Procedure - Everyone should be aware of what to do in case of emergency, from recognizing these disasters to strictly following evacuation procedures.

INCIDENT REPORT, INVESTIGATION AND CORRECTIVE ACTION 

Accidents are defined as unplanned events which interrupt the completion of an activity that may include injury or property damage. Despite its unpredictability, HMDC – La Union strives to apply their policies at all times, systematically assessing incidents and non-conformances and implementing preventive and corrective actions, if needed.

Incident Reporting

All HMDC – La Union Operations personnel must report OHS incidents in a timely manner on standard Incident and Investigation Report forms. The record must be completed as soon as practical, after the incident has occurred; but no later than the end of the shift during which the incident occurred.

Incident Investigation

A team is created to investigate the incident which has occurred. Led by the safety officer, the team is composed of various individuals from other divisions in the organization.

Corrective Action

HMDC – La Union follows the standards set in their Integrated Management System procedure. As it is a part of their OHSMF, they need to revisit the procedures interrupted by the incident and do risk assessments to prevent this type of incident from happening again. Once the investigation has been concluded and the appropriate corrective action has been put in place, information will be cascaded to all other HMDC operations.