Safety Day at Nilar

On April 28^th, in observance of World Day for Safety and Health at Work, Nilar hosted an all-day event for safety for our manufacturing facility in Gavle. There were five stations prepared for the day. The employees were divided into groups, intentionally pairing people from different departments. This encouraged people to mingle and made the day a social event. The different groups were able to rotate through each station, gaining new information and participating in certain demonstrations.

“It is important to feel safe at work since you spend most of your day there. I feel like my colleagues and myself are much better prepared for anything.”

– Nils B.

To start, there was a presentation to educate all the employees on a new law regarding whistleblowers. The Whistleblower Protection Directive was adopted by the European Parliament and the European Council near the end of 2019, creating a standard for protection of whistleblowers in the EU. Compliance for a company size like Nilar is required by the end of 2023. At Nilar, safety is intrinsic to our operation, so we embraced this new law and used safety day to introduce employees to how these protections work. We had implemented an internal channel where an employee can find any information needed and how to utilize it.

There was a discussion of the waste and recycle management at Nilar at another station. The goal was to ensure all employees were up to date on Nilar’s approach. Clarification was provided on what can be recycled and how to deal with various waste throughout operations.  There are special bins readily available around the factory to promote separation of different items. The circular economy philosophy has been a central part Nilar’s research and production, so every effort is taken to reduce waste.

One station focused on promoting awareness of all the alarms and locking systems. This included discussing the proper procedures to follow for different alarm sounds and ensuring the proper lockout/tag-out methods were known.  Another station provided a lecture on the internal system for accident reporting and injury prevention proposals. Nilar wanted to make it clear how valuable reporting can be. Not only is there support for any sustained injury, but more importantly, reporting helps the company address any process issues that led to the incident. The documentation of near misses was also discussed given how invaluable they are in efforts towards preventing injury. There is a firm belief that entrusting employees in process improvement makes the company stronger.

The final station involved practical firefighting measures. The training was provided by an outside contractor that furnishes companies with appropriate personal protective equipment. Employees were reminded of the possible fire hazards that could be present and then trained on how to deal with a fire if it were to occur. The types of extinguishing techniques were discussed, and it was clarified what works best in different situations. This hands-on activity allowed different employees to extinguish the fire, showing them how to use the preventative tools on hand.

“Here I am putting out a fire with a carbon dioxide extinguisher. It was a great rehearsal of important knowledge and I learned about what kind of extinguisher to choose in different situations.”

– Henrik G.

By the end of the day, the positive feedback received and the flourishing camaraderie brought aspirations to make this a recurring event. This day of learning was prepared for the Gävle facility, but Nilar plans to extend this to be for all locations on an annual basis if possible. For Nilar, it is essential to empower our employees by providing a safe environment where they can actively and proactively participate in the implementation of preventive measures. As the occupational environment is constantly evolving, Nilar embraces days like this to progress with it.