Mill’s zero-injury approach to safety rewarded

The Sappi Saiccor Mill in Umkomaas is proud to have recently received several awards in the 2021 Sappi Southern Africa (SSA) Safety Excellence Awards.

The mill received a special safety award for achieving four million man-hours without any Lost Time Injuries (LTI).

Saiccor’s Project Vulindlela, which saw up to 2000 additional people on site at one time, achieved 5.8 million safe manhours without an LTI.

This expansion project worth billions was announced last year to increase capacity and global competitiveness, and to reduce the environmental footprint of the company through continuous maintenance improvement and upgrade projects at the Umkomaas mill.

The Sappi group mentioned that this project halves CO2 emissions and reduces SO2 emissions by 35%, while water use efficiency improves by 17% and waste to landfill is reduced by 48%.

The Saiccor mill fire team was also acknowledged at the awards when they were deemed the overall winner in the firefighting competition.

“The awards are held annually to celebrate the achievements of employees and contractors who are nominated for their consistent and uncompromising commitment and dedication to our zero-injury approach to safety,” said Zelda Schwalbach, external communications lead for Sappi Southern Africa.

“One of the key fundamentals is to drive operational excellence and one of the ways in which this is championed is through acknowledging and celebrating our safety-first culture.”

SSA’s CEO Alex Thiel commended all individuals and team award recipients.

“It is with deep recognition and respect that we present the awards in honour of the rigour shown in staying vigilant, keeping an eye out for others, identifying hazards and having the courage to challenge any unsafe acts or conditions,” said Thiel.

“They are prime examples for all of us to follow.”

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