The mission is to be first: best voluntary emergency response teams chosen at TAIF-NK

Strong, highly professional teams

Competitions among voluntary emergency response teams at TAIF-NK JSC have already become traditional, they have been held for over 10 years. The teams include highly-qualified and trained workers who possess the necessary knowledge and experience to effectively work in extreme conditions.

“Voluntary emergency response teams were created in every shop at TAIF-NK. They are made of volunteers who did training in specialised organisations. During the year, team members do training on the territory of the enterprise, practise skills of doing gas rescue works and evacuation of workers. Voluntary emergency response team members do training in a specialised organisation once in three years. Also, the teams of the company receive certificates of the Russian Ministry of Energy once in three years. The last certification has been held this year, we have received a certificate and now we have the right to do gas rescue works for three years,” says head of the Process Safety Control Department of TAIF-NK JSC Anton Vakhotin.

“Great responsibility falls on us”

The competitions among the voluntary emergency response teams consisted of four stages. The teams practised actions when installing and removing a gas pipeline valve, evacuating an injured person from a container and from a gas-filled zone. They also practised first aid skills provided to an injured person, that’s to say, everything an emergency response team member should do before the arrival of special services.

“Competitors go through three main stages and one additional one. The first one is to repack, remove and install a valve in a gas-filled zone, the second stage is to rescue a workers from a sealed space with a hose mask, the third — is to rescue and evacuate a worker from a gas-filled zone on stretchers. At the end of the trials, five teams showing the best time proceeded to test their knowledge of first aid. Two people from each team providing first aid to an injured person who was poisoned participate in the last stage,” specifies Anton Vakhotin.

As the enterprise notes, voluntary team members regularly upgrade their qualification and get new knowledge to keep their professionalism up. The training includes learning the latest technologies and instruments as well as analysis of cases. All this helps to fix and improve the strategy of rescue operations.

Special attention in training is paid to improving their physical shape, endurance, strength, flexibility and coordination of movements. This allows being ready to do difficult tasks in any conditions.

“If there is an accident in a shop, everybody will leave the site while we will get rid of the consequences together with special services. It is great that such competitions are held here — great responsibility falls on us. We improve our skills here,” says pump technologist of the Heavy Residues High Conversion Complex Ramil Ginnatullin says.

Equipment operator of Shop No. 6 Ilnur Abzalov has been a voluntary emergency response team member for many years. The young man is sure that special attention in training should be paid to mental training, fostering endurance, readiness to do one’s obligations in a difficult situation in an organised and disciplined way.

“The voluntary emergency response teams play an important role in providing an enterprise’s process safety. During these competitions, we improve our prowess, which gives us more confidence that the lives and health of people working in production facilities will be under reliable protection,” he says.

The enterprise stresses that the competitions among voluntary emergency response teams not only allow improving professional qualities but also uniting the staff, exchanging work experience.

Team members of Shop No. 2 of the Heavy Residues High Conversion Complex can be called one of the most united teams in these competitions. Captain, equipment operator Ramil Shayakhmetov confessed to Realnoe Vremya’s correspondent that his team arrived in the competition only to win. They have finished second in the last two years, this year they aren’t going to cede the leadership.

“I am a captain of a voluntary emergency response team. I need to gather single-minded people, examine all competition stages so that every competitor knows how to act in their position. During the year we have done training, practised different emergency situations in full gear, in hazmat suits under the guidance of the shop foreman, chief engineer of the plant and the factory. IT is time to sum the work up,” says Ramil Shayakhmetov.

Hard training, moral and mental training and a desire to be the best bore fruit. As a result of the competition, the voluntary emergency response team of Shop No. 2 of the Heavy Residues High Conversion Complex was first. A team of Shop No. 3 of the Oil Refinery became second, a team of Shop No. 4 of the Heavy Residues High Conversion Complex finished third.

“We went to the competition to get the first place and finally became winners. Our team is united and aimed at success. The lads did a great job, I am proud of them,” captain of the voluntary emergency response team of Shop No. 2 of the Heavy Residues High Conversion Complex Ramil Shayakhmetov shared his impressions.

Safe working conditions, preservation of workers’ lives and health, regular training classes on dealing with emergency situations, novelties in occupational safety, automation of production processes and much more are in the focus of TAIF-NK. Competitions among fire prevention teams of the enterprise took place at TAIF-NK JSC in early August. Workers of the company demonstrated high physical form and the ability of quick decision-making when localising and handling emergency situations.

Emergency-free operation of the enterprise for many years is a result of a comprehensive approach to providing process and occupation safety.