Risks & safety G4-PR1, G4-SO2

We recognize our responsibility as a company

As a chemicals manufacturing business, Nitro Quimica recognizes our responsibility towards our employees, communities and the environment. We take safety seriously at all levels of the organization as a requirement for our business sustainability, recognizing that our license to operate depends entirely on our ability to control any risks to human health and the environment.

Identifying and monitoring risks, and implementing action to ensure operational safety, is an integral part of our day-to-day operations. In 2016, we implemented a Business Continuity Plan and continued our Process Risk Analysis process. The Company uses hazard and operability (HAZOP) studies to identify hazards with the potential to cause accidents or incidents. Information about risks and hazards is shared with all employees. Gas releases and fire hazards are, in general, the primary aspects addressed by the Company, especially in relation to the Water Treatment Plant chlorination system and nitrocellulose and sulphuric acid handling.

Working with independent consultants, in 2016 Nitro Quimica also conducted a comprehensive survey of major risks to business continuity, such as dependence on a single port for product exports and single suppliers for certain raw materials.

All potential risks – from process to business risks – are monitored and initiatives are developed by our Safety Committee and subcommittees to address each of these risks.

Business Continuity Plan

Safety Committee

Nitro Quimica’s Safety Committee meets with senior management to discuss initiatives related to health, safety and the environment. Each subcommittee under the Safety Committee is championed by a member of senior management.

Sustainability Subcommittee

This committee is responsible for raising awareness about the efficient use of natural resources and working preventively to reduce environmental impacts. It also communicates our social responsibility initiatives to communities and engages with relevant stakeholders. The Sustainability Subcommittee’s activities in 2016 included ensuring compliance with applicable regulations.

Process Safety Subcommittee

This Subcommittee is responsible for implementing process safety improvements and assessing and addressing process, systems and procedures issues posing any risks to workers’ health or the environment. In 2016 the Process Safety Subcommittee conducted hazard and operability (HAZOP) studies at the sulphuric acid plant and optimized alarm systems.

Occupational Health and Safety Subcommittee

This subcommittee is responsible for taking preventive action to improve occupational health and safety performance. Activities in 2016 included occupational vaccination against the flu, tetanus and typhus.

Service Provider Subcommittee

This subcommittee is responsible for enhancing integration between service companies and Nitro Quimica and ensuring they implement best-practice management. Activities in 2016 included evaluating service company performance and auditing their management systems in compliance with legal requirements.

NR 10 (Electricity) and NR 12 (Machinery and Equipment Safety) Subcommittees

The NR 10 Subcommittee implements control measures and preventive systems to protect the health and safety of workers interacting directly or indirectly with electricity. Activities in 2016 included training, audits on electrical installations, safety talks on electrical hazards, updates to power system records and reports, and updates to electrical schematics.

The NR 12 Subcommittee implements control measures and preventive systems to protect the health and safety of workers interacting directly or indirectly with machinery and equipment. Activities in 2016 included the installation of mechanical guards and electrical protections at the maintenance workshop. Machinery inspections were also performed at other departments to ensure compliance with NR 12.

Transportation & Handling Subcommittee

The Transportation & Handling Subcommittee is responsible for documenting procedures, monitoring regulatory developments and establishing safety requirements for the transportation and handling of hazardous products. Activities in 2016 included a review of internal handling procedures in a workshop with partners (trucking companies with highest key performance indicators are rewarded).

Nitro Quimica’s logistics operations, including product movements between plants and warehouses and storage and inventory management, are managed by a third-party company. This supplier handles 80% of our cargo volumes, with the remaining 20% handled by qualified trucking companies. We are currently served by more than 20 trucking companies. To transport our chemical products, trucking companies require special permits from government agencies.

When contracting with licensed trucking companies, Nitro Quimica also requires them to implement certain best-practice requirements for greater safety in transportation operations. Truck fleets are required to be less than five years in service and follow a stringent maintenance program, and all drivers are required to undergo training on accident prevention. Vehicles are also equipped with route tracking and speed management technology. Trucking companies are also audited by our Logistics, Environment and Safety departments to ensure they uphold our values and to inspect their documentation on site.

Each vehicle entering the company’s premises is inspected against a checklist and any failed trucks will lose their shipments.

All trucking companies and their permits are registered in an internal system that ensures permits are renewed 90 days prior to expiration. In 2016, no instances of nonconformity with these procedures were identified.

Emergency Response Plan Subcommittee

This subcommittee is responsible for documenting emergency response procedures and requirements. It plans, develops and delivers training to the emergency brigade, employees in general and service companies on addressing specific incidents. Activities in 2016 included implementation of a Support Brigade Training Program, Emergency Brigade Monthly Training Program and Department Drill Program.

Inspection and Risk Analysis Subcommittee

This subcommittee ensures that issues raised by employees are reviewed and changes are made to prevent accidents. It uses a methodology in which employees are trained and able to identify and analyze risks. In 2016, a group of trained employees conducted systems and people – facilities and behaviors – audits and provided instructions, corrections and retraining where deviations and risk exposure were identified.

A general meeting is held monthly with employees and attended by top management. Meeting topics include health and safety, prior month performance and any safety incidents. The purpose of these meetings is to ensure that any incidents, however minor, are discussed to prevent recurrence.

The first Joint Response Organization in Sao Paulo City

A Joint Response Organization is a not-for-profit organization that develops joint response plans involving industry, the municipal government, the fire department and the Civil Defense Department. On a monthly basis, these stakeholders meet to discuss emergency response plans and commit to supplying resources and maintenance services. Nitro Quimica is a co-founder and member of the first Joint Response Organization in Sao Paulo, further improving our emergency readiness at our facilities. Prior to creating the Sao Paulo chapter, Nitro Quimica was already a member, and currently remains a member, of the Joint Response Organization for Alto Tiete.

As a recommendation of the Brazilian Chemical Industry Association (Abiquim), Nitro Quimica has a Community Engagement Board as a channel for sharing industry information with our communities and discussing matters of common interest and issues related to safety, health and the environment. The Board is composed of company representatives, community leaders and members of government agencies. Meetings are held on a quarterly basis alongside the East Zone Joint Response Organization meetings to enhance interaction.

In a key program in 2016, called “Community Safety, safety technicians in training at associate-level education schools in Sao Miguel Paulista visited public schools in the region to implement improvements related to health, safety and the environment in the school setting. Students presented their projects at the end of the program and the highest scoring group received a prize.

Once a year, Abiquim organizes a National Community Engagement Board Conference bringing together community engagement boards from all chemical companies in Brazil, where more than 50 delegates share their engagement experience.

Renewed HSE certification

Nitro Quimica has continuous improvement processes in place that ensure we implement industry best practice and achieve required industry certifications. In 2016, our efforts to improve on health, safety and environmental compliance were recognized through renewed certification to the Chemical Industry Association’s Responsible Care program (“Atuação Responsável®”).

All certifications are subject to annual internal and independent audits. In internal audits, a team of company employees conducts a thorough analysis of the relevant matters. Independent audits are conducted by independent certification firm ABS Group.

Customer safety

We monitor safety risks across our supply chain – from our suppliers to our customers. In 2016 we initiated an audit to map our product delivery risks and review the internal safety procedures in place at our customers. On-site monitoring will be ongoing to ensure continual improvement and mitigate any risks in product delivery.

In the event of a spill on customer premises, we are notified and provide an immediate response to a third-party emergency response firm.