Nizhnekamskneftekhim to allocate 670m rubles to improve working conditions for three years

Frankly and honestly about every incident

“Analysing the performance in 2019, I have to recognise that last year there were allowed accidents, incidents and mishaps in subdivisions of Nizhnekamskneftekhim PJSC,” Managing Director of Process Safety Control and Occupational Safety and Health Ilshat Fatykhov began his report trying to be as honest and frank as possible with the enterprise’s employees and representatives of the mass media.

He focused on mishaps that took place last year.

“The key principle we want to communicate to everybody is the principle of openness. We should not just keep problems in mind on the spot, we should talk about them and solve them,” Ilshat Fatykhov addressed the employees of the enterprise. “I don’t want to remind you of shortcomings, I want to remind you of those cases we had so that such violations won’t happen again.”

He said that it was necessary to organise work in the enterprise in a way that prevents all emergencies and put a real-world example:

“When you drive on the road and see the road sign ‘Camera’, you decrease the speed and understand that a dangerous area is ahead. The sign might not have been erected, just a camera could have been placed and the public budget would have been replenished. The sign was put as a warning. The driver decreases the speed, which means the accident rate goes down. This is why it is necessary to plan one’s actions preventing violations. We should have the same thing in the enterprise,” he compared.

Culture of process safety

In the second part of the speech, Ilshat Fatykhov talked about the culture of process safety of the enterprise’s workers. In his opinion, it is an important aspect they should pay attention to now.

The audience listened to him carefully, this time the meeting about process safety and occupational health and safety was significantly different from the previous ones.

“It is necessary to change people’s mind so that every person will consciously comply with the requirements of occupational health and safety, process and fire safety understanding, knowing and caring of themselves. I would like every worker himself to become a controller. Everybody should care about oneself! This must be practised until it becomes automatic — to put the uniform on, take the gas mask, the helmet, adjust the chin strap and not because that somebody can see and punish for the non-compliance with safety requirements but because there is an instinct based on propaganda of safe working conditions,” he said.

The Bradley Curve or, more precisely, the curve of the evolution of safety culture, was shown as foundation to understand how to improve the level of safety at Nizhnekamskneftekhim.

This curve consists of four stages of realisation and change of mind.

The first — the so-called reacting level of injury — is characterised by that workers stick to safety rules by instinct.

The second level is requirements for occupational health and safety only in case of control, the worker properly uses the means of individual protection only if he sees a representative of the occupational health and safety service or his boss. Consequently, constant control over performance is required.

The third stage is an independent level at which workers don’t go by instincts and external supervision but realisation. Workers are convinced of the importance of occupational health and safety standards and care about not only theirs but also others’ safety.

The fourth level is teamwork that absolutely all workers of the enterprise are interested and participate in. This stage characterises the unity of workers regardless of their professional statutes.

It is planned to hold the first seminar on process safety culture transformation at Nizhnekamskneftekhim PJSC this March already:

“Specialists of a big organisation will come here and hold a seminar about the realised system of culture of process safety among chief specialists, chief engineers. We should move on in occupational health and safety and culture of safety by adjusting to the reality of the modern world. We will see how the realisation of one own and collective safety is born,” Fatykhov talked about further plans.

He also put an example of one of the enterprises that give new employees red helmets with an exclamation mark in the back of their head so that everybody will understand this is a new employee of the company who hasn’t gained enough experience, consequently, he needs more attention.

New programme and financing

Also, last year Nizhnekamskneftekhim created and adopted a programme of technical measures and better working conditions in 2019-2021. It is planned to take 160 measures at 674 million rubles.

“Our new programme consists of several sections. To ensure safe operation of hazardous facilities, a package of measures is taken: scheduled and preventive repair of equipment, modernisation and replacement of equipment, provision of emergency and rescue teams, training of staff and provision with means of individual protection, review of documentation regulating the processes of safety, control and monitoring,” said the director of the administration of Process Safety Control and Occupational Safety and Health.

Summing up the previous programme designed to improve working conditions and reduce the level of professional risks, Fatykhov noted that there were taken 321 measures, the funding totalled 412 million rubles.

Nizhnekamskneftekhim allocated 115 billion rubles to provide safe operation of equipment from 2014 to 2018, of which 83,3 were spent to modernise and reconstruct facilities, 21 billion rubles on major repairs, 4,7 billion rubles — to replace 65,827 items of manufacturing, energy and metrological equipment, 1,2 billion rubles — to examine process safety.

It is all about staff

According to Fatykhov, significant staff changes have taken place in the company in the last five years. 7,000 new employees joined the company from 2014 to 2018 instead of those who quit the job or resigned. People go to related enterprises or go beyond the republic.

“Understanding all risks of problems in the enterprise due to staff rotation, all safety issues at Nizhnekamskneftekhim were delivered to the company’s management. We offer full training and test the knowledge of all operating staff in the commission of the chief engineer of the company. We tightened the control of knowledge of the staff of contractors and subsidiaries in occupational health and safety and process safety. We also provide additional training on process safety control and occupational safety and health with instructors of gas rescue brigades, fire brigades, the chief engineer office, fines to contractors were also tightened,” the speaker noted.

To improve the staff stability in the enterprise, salaries were raised, a programme designed to repair premises and canteens was created and introduced.

The PJSC works to improve working conditions, canteens, premises are repaired. The petrochemists will soon get a new uniform. “An agreement with Kazan-Vostok-Service was signed in December 2019 to provide the uniform and means of individual protection. It will have corporate colours. The uniform was designed considering physiological peculiarities. The uniform will be tailored to an employee’s size, repaired if needed. The design is being approved. The enterprise will get it in about six months,” Ilshat Fatykhov said.

Under supervision of chief specialists

The company reviewed the system of performance of people who are on duty in the company.

“Now we are making a duty roster in a way that everybody will know when inspectors will come and to which shop because the head of the subdivision knows what shortcomings he has and will eliminate them. For instance, when the mother-in-law comes over her daughter-in-law, all ten problems will be solved during the clean-up. If the mother-in-law pays a visit without warning, she will see three problems out of ten. With prevention, we will solve ten problems. The staff will get ready in advance. Our task is not to punish but prevent,” Ilshat Fatykhov focused his attention.

There is another novelty: the phone of occupational health and safety and process safety. Dialling its number, the workers of the enterprise can inform about shortcomings or violations in the workplace.

The petrochemists pay special attention to safety control when preparing hazardous manufacturing facilities for major repairs. A deliberately created commission chaired by the chief engineer of the company, which includes leading specialists of Nizhnekamskneftekhim, controls and takes preventive measures to empty and get rid of the equipment. Experienced managers pass knowledge to the operational staff of the subdivision that accompanies them in process.

“Our leading specialists keep total control over all areas of activity. Inspectors are also present during major repairs. They have yellow vests on and they are everywhere. Now there are 30 people in one manufacturing unit. Inspectors evaluate the pace of works and are aimed to prevent negative consequences. This is why employees of contractors have to work following all safety requirements. So we don’t allow people to violate.”

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