Dubal : Dubai Aluminium

Protecting is one of DUBAL's core activities. The company acknowledges the importance of preserving precious natural resources and acts responsibly to protect the environment around its operations. Minimizing harmful emissions and the adoption of a 'reduce, reuse, recycle' waste philosophy are central to all its activities.

DUBAL’s environmental policy was updated in 2005. The revised policy has provided the framework for a comprehensive Environment, Health and Safety (“EHS”) Code of Ethics; as well as input into the company’s Leadership Training Programme.

DUBAL's Environment, Health and Safety Code of Ethics

In its quest to provide its customers with high quality products and services, DUBAL is committed to promoting practices that protect the environment and the health and safety of its workers and the community, at all times.

It undertakes to promote:

Safe work environments that minimize health hazards and exposure to harmful risks;
The use of appropriate technology that protects and preserves the environment while generating world-class results; and
The implementation of ethical business practices of the highest standard.

Environmental Initiatives

United Nations for Environmental, Scientific and Cultural Organization (“UNESCO”)

DUBAL has been a member of UNESCO since 2004 and actively supports UNESCO’s 'Rashid the Recycler' environmental education programme and regional office.

UNESCO was founded in November 1945 to build peace in the minds of men. Today, it functions as a laboratory of ideas and a standard-setter to forge universal agreements on emerging ethical issues. UNESCO is working to create the conditions for genuine dialogue based upon respect for shared values and the dignity of each civilization and culture. The world urgently requires global visions of sustainable development based upon observance of human rights, mutual respect and the alleviation of poverty, all of which lie at the heart of UNESCO's mission and activities.

Emirates Environmental Group

Since 1997, DUBAL has been an active member of the Emirates Environmental Group (“EEG”), a non-profit organization that supports sustainable advancement for Dubai and the UAE. The group was founded by twelve members including Habiba Al Marashi, the EEG's current chairperson. The EEG is dedicated to promoting civic awareness and community action to protect the local environment of the UAE. As of November 2005 it had more than 1,200 corporate members including individuals, schools, companies, governments and international institutions.

Since 1991, the EEG has organized a variety of public education forums and community projects aimed at increasing social awareness about environmental issues that affect our daily lives. Additionally it has initiated numerous community involvement projects from nationwide Can Collection Campaigns to Beach Clean-up Drives.

Minimising Harmful Emissions

DUBAL uses best available technology for production as well as mitigation technology for emission minimization. These include, among others:

The installation of six state-of-the-art combustion systems for its power plant has reduced nitrous oxide emissions (“NOx”) to be in line with world standards.
Combined cycle power systems have enabled marginal reductions in carbon dioxide emissions (through higher efficiencies and therefore lower consumption of hydrocarbon energy).
As of December 2005, roughly 30 per cent of DUBAL’s entire power generating needs, which exceeds 1,400 megawatts, has been supplied through steam turbines – despite continued expansions and simultaneously increased energy demands from the plant.
Chemical recycling via high-efficiency Fume Treatment Plants (“FTPs”) helps contain the plant’s hydrogen fluoride emission levels.
In a benchmarking study of 150 companies, conducted in 2005, DUBAL had the second-lowest level of fluoride emissions resulting from the production of anodes. The company placed first in the particulate fluoride category, had the second-best performing smelter and rated third for total fluoride emissions.

Ambient air monitoring stations have been located strategically throughout the plant. The units measure a number of parameters, including emission levels of nitrous oxide, sulphur dioxide, hydrogen fluoride and particulates. Recorded data is delivered on-line to the Environmental Laboratory every two hours.

Waste Management

DUBAL's general services department initiated a scrap recycling plan in February 2005, whereby assorted, recyclable, steel, copper, collector bars, plastic, batteries and wood are sold. By December 2005, the project had generated more than USPageContentHTML.6 million in revenue..

A dedicated waste management campaign aims to reduce general waste by 5 per cent. As a preliminary step, an informational campaign has increased awareness regarding the environmental impact of waste products while motivating workers to introduce innovative measures that reduce waste measurably.

DUBAL actively implements a green belt concept to enhance the smelter site's physical environment, with specific emphasis on the residential area where approximately 1,700 employees are accommodated.

Occupational Health and Hygiene

In 2004, DUBAL introduced new policies to improve the monitoring and management of its employees’ general health. All employees working in operational areas are obliged to undergo a series of medical tests every two years, allowing the company to detect an abnormalities or unusual circumstances as early as possible.

With regard to occupational health and hygiene, special emphasis is placed on reducing exposure to the prevailing risks - particularly noise-induced hearing loss, inhalation of hazardous gases and dust particles, and exposure to high ambient temperatures. For example, the company installed a pot demolishing facility in July 2004 that effectively reduces worker exposure to potentially harmful dust and fumes. It complements the hot butt cleaning facility, introduced in October 2003, and forms part of a fully-automated, fully-enclosed operation that has substantially reduced employee exposure to fluoride dust and fumes in particular.

During 2006 and 2007, the company also enhanced the respiratory protection facilities in the plant, which has improved the work environment considerably; and conducted an employee awareness campaign to highlight the effects of heat on individuals. The latter campaign was called “Beat the Heat” and achieved its objective of zero lost working days due to heat rash in both 2007 and 2008; and zero loss due to heat stress for three consecutive years (2006 to 2008).

Other initiatives implemented and managed by DUBAL’s dedicated Occupational Health and Hygiene department include:

Profiling job descriptions with regard to potentially harmful physical and chemical hazards in the working environment and monitoring worker exposure.
Pre-employment medical examinations, including chest x-rays, audiograms, optometric assessments and lung function tests.
Regular follow-up medical examinations for early detection of medical conditions, scheduled according to workplace exposure to potentially harmful physical and chemical hazards.

Safety

From a safety perspective, DUBAL consistently strives for zero incidents and lost time injuries (“LTIs”). Given that the main risks are heavy machinery and vehicles, extremely hot molten metal and high amperage electrical circuits, the formal interventions include:

Safety training for all new recruits, with follow-up refresher training at appropriate intervals.
Restricted access to operational sites.
Safety-driven operating rules within the facility, including strict occupational hygiene standards.
Road to Zero Lost Time Incidents, an intensive five-phase programme launched in 2006 that aims to entrench a safety culture among DUBAL employees, extending beyond the plant’s borders to their daily activities at home and elsewhere.
Campaigns to reinforce awareness of DUBAL’s safety regulations.
Reporting systems for risky behaviour and potential hazards, which have led to substantially less lost time incidents as well as a reduction in the severity of incidents.

The construction of a new 20,000 tonne coal tar liquid pitch facility, completed in December 2004, enabled the company to convert from solid to liquid pitch – a much safer option with fewer associated occupational safety risks. Although the move is a costlier proposition, the company believes that the safety and occupational health of its employees far outweighs the financial considerations.

As a result of DUBAL’s consistent focus on safety, the company achieved certification to the OHSAS 18001 Occupational Health and Safety Management System assessment standard in September 2003, and has retained the qualification ever since.

As a result of these interventions, the lost time injury rate ("LTIR") has declined from 7.7 in 1997 to 0.33 in 2008.