Occupational safety important for PPDI – Board Chairman

Aug 27, 2017 News

– No serious injuries for the year so far

Working in dangerous environments requires adherence to strict Occupational Safety

PPDI staff demonstrating their fire-fighting capabilities at the Vreed-en-Hoop power plant

and Health practices. This is one of the pillars of the Power Producers and Distributors Inc (PPDI).
A site visit at two of the power plants operated and maintained by the company, specifically at Kingston and Vreed-en-Hoop, provided the media with first-hand experience at what technicians and employees of the company are exposed to in order to operate and maintain engines that generate electricity for Guyana.
Despite the dangerous job that is required to be performed, particularly the exposure to loud noise from the generation sets, the company has managed to not record any noise-induced hearing loss by its employees.
This is according to Deputy Chief Executive Officer – Human Resources and Administration, Gary Hall. He said that at PPDI, the company stresses the use of safety equipment. Further, he said that the company also buys the best safety gear that can be found on the market for the employees. He added that these are changed regularly.
Further, he said that since before PPDI took over from Wärtsilä Operations Guyana Inc. (WOGI), annual medical checks have been done on employees. This includes, annual audio-metric testing. As it relates to new employees, he said that baseline testing is done, so that any pre-existing conditions can be noted.
Hall said that all of PPDI’s employees are also covered by private medical insurance.
“Since PPDI has started we have had no major accidents or injuries. Of course we would get the occasional cuts and things like that which are treated by first aid, but we have had no employee off the job or impugned in any way via an injury on the job; when compared to last year, same thing.”
Chairman of the PPDI Board, Mark Bender reiterated that Occupational Safety and Health is one of the pillars of the state-owned company. He said that the company has its own high internal safety standards and is also guided by the Operation Health and Safety Act.
“We have some obligations under that Act in terms of compliance with the legal obligations. In many cases, our standards exceed what the legislation asks for.”
While visiting the Vreed-en-Hoop power plant, media operatives were told that all employees are trained to respond to any emergency that may arise at any of the four power plants operated by PPDI. In addition to Kingston and Vreed-en-Hoop, PPDI also operates the Garden of Eden power plant.
Bender said that the technicians are rotated at intervals to work at each power plant, since each plant is somewhat different regarding the technology. The Garden of Eden plant is much older than the Vreed-en-Hoop and Kingston two power plants.
All employees are also trained in First Aid and have been equipped with the necessary fire fighting skills to respond to any fire at the facilities before the Fire Service arrives. This skill was showcased at the Vreed-en-Hoop plant with a demonstration of the water system that was set-up to oust any fire.
Hydrants have been set-up at different points at the plant with extremely powerful pressure to ensure efficiency in the event that there is a fire. Further, the power plant is environmentally friendly as the internal drains are not linked whatsoever to the local drainage system. This ensures that there is no contamination of the environment.

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