Health and Safety

EHS Purpose: Inspiring a positive EHS culture to protect everyone's future
Environmental, Health & Safety Commitment & Policy

IVL is committed to providing a healthy environment and a safe workplace for all staff through a combination of interactive consultations from all of its employee groups. This helps to identify and implement the measures needed to achieve our target of injury-free workplaces and process safety. We use a risk-based approach to identify concerned staff who may require assistance in stress management in addition to adopting ergonomic improvements at workstations to provide an environment that relieves stress and increases productivity for everyone. We are working with the Joint Action Committee of employees to ensure that all levels of our workforce are in statutory compliance, taking account of compulsory and periodic Health & Safety Training while equipping all staff with Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in-line with their responsibilities. We are determined to maintain zero fatalities in our operations and to continually improve our performance in health, safety and well-being through certification of the ISO 45001/OSHAS 18001 management system, internal corporate standards.

Health, safety and well-being represent our core values. Indorama Ventures PCL. continuously implements programs for improvements and places the health and safety of our workforce at the forefront of our activities. We fulfill our core values by often going beyond legal provisions concerning health and safety. This enhances our appeal as an employer of choice, promotes employee satisfaction and productivity, and ensures that we continue to attract and retain a capable workforce.

Placing the EHS function at the core of the business provides continuity, realizes efficiencies and allows us to achieve synergies with other enabling functions such as Sustainability and Business Continuity. The EHS function also allows for stronger central steering, increased expertise and is integral to achieving our sustainability vision.

EHS's core accountabilities

Governance and Standardization
  • Standardize practices across process safety, environmental compliance, occupational health & hygiene, and safety.
  • Define systems, a common methodology and drive the use of software solutions to facilitate the execution and monitoring of compliance with IVL standards.
Assurance
  • Develop, deploy and monitor EHS KPIs to maintain a company-wide overview.
  • Deploy EHS programs such as Injury & Illness Prevention Program (I2P2) and establishing the Golden Rules to drive improvements.
  • Design audit systems and EHS maturity scorecards.
  • Evaluate regulatory compliance, adherence to IVL EHS standards at sites, and transparent reporting to management through monitoring our defined metrics.
Building EHS Capabilities
  • Strive for high standards of EHS performance from all employees.
  • Investment in the EHS capabilities, such as founding the EHS Academy.
  • Create opportunities, such as global audit team member participation, networking and serving on Communities of Practice (COP).
Innovation
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams to identify and implement, when appropriate, new EHS-related technologies and processes.
  • Staying up to date with industry trends and emerging technologies, effectively communicating these advancements to relevant stakeholders, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement.
  • Leveraging data and analytics to enhance efficiency, reliability, and technological innovation in EHS practices across Indorama Ventures.

Health and Safety Management System

As demands increase for improved Health, Safety and Well-being, our adoption of a risk-based approach was a key strategic move taking into account all areas of risk including legislative requirements, the capacity of our employees, and the potential hazards from our manufacturing activities. As part of this process, we carried out numerous simulations and scenarios on health and safety to identify key areas of concern to improve our performance. The goal is to implement more appropriate measures which we can implement throughout our global network.

As of December 2023, 69% of our plants were certified with ISO 45001:2018 / OHSAS 18001:2007. An annual audit performed by professional third parties is scheduled periodically where the auditor is free to critically evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of our OH&S system. The plant manager, together with relevant OH&S staff, are proactive in addressing any observations regarding gaps or areas for improvement raised by the auditor. Their recommendations are conveyed to senior management.

Golden Safety Rules

IVL has implemented the Golden Safety Rules. These rules provide support for key life-critical activities. They are for all personnel (employees or contractors) working at IVL operated sites who carry out, or are responsible for, activities with particular potential to cause serious injuries or incidents, especially fatalities.

The Golden Safety Rules demand our full attention and are considered of utmost importance when it comes to protecting people. Each rule in the handbook outlines IVL’s minimum requirements and is accompanied by a detailed corporate standard.

Local sites are responsible for developing systems and conditions that align with IVL’s corporate rules, as well as training employees to understand them.

We believe that recognizing superior EHS performance and valuable contributions from our team members worldwide is a key element to building a positive EHS culture. 2021 was the inaugural year for IVL’s EHS Excellence awards. The EHS Excellence Award are awarded to an individual or team (EHS or non-EHS) that has demonstrated a conscious effort to reduce risk, drive improvements in safety or environmental programs, lead others to do the same, or otherwise champion a strong safety or environmental compliance culture. In 2023, 9 site performance awards were given and 10 individual or team awards were given (or 19 awards from 124 nominations were given).

IVL is implementing various software systems to streamline data collection for EHS metrics and allow better oversight of risks company-wide. These systems are used for incident management, action tracking, compliance tracking and regulatory registers, auditing and health data management. This allows us to track not only lagging indicators such as TRIR and LTIFR but also leading indicators such as open incident investigations, actions related to investigations or audits, compliance tasks, overdue investigations, actions, or compliance tasks.

Health and Safety Performance

IVL’s Corporate EHS Structure consists of the Center of Excellence (COE) and Regional Directors that work closely with EHS Business Heads, Site EHS Heads and local EHS professionals. The COE has experts on Industrial Hygiene, Occupational Health, Occupational Safety, Process Safety, Environmental Management and EHS Data Analysis. The COE is responsible for EHS Governance (company-wide EHS standards). The Regional Directors cover the three regions of the Americas, Europe-Middle East-Africa and Asia-Pacific. Regional Directors coordinate and ensure sharing best practices within their region but are also responsible for IVL’s auditing program. EHS Business Heads are responsible for driving EHS and sharing best practices within their segment. Site EHS Heads and local professionals are responsible for ensuring their site’s compliance with corporate standards and local regulations.

Comparing our global employee injury/illness rate (TRIR) to that of our peer member companies in the American Chemistry Council, Indovinya, our subsidiary of Indorama Ventures, finished the year 2023 in the 1st quartile, and for process safety performance globally, we are in the 2nd quartile. We realized a 29% decrease in environmental permit exceedances.

Area of Expertise

Facility, Process and Occupational Safety

We work diligently to meet or exceed multiple applicable industry and corporate level standards to provide a safe working environment for our workers and neighbors. This includes meeting the requirements of each element of the OSHA Process Safety Management (PSM) 1910.119 standard, and the requirements of multiple ISO standards, such as ISO-9001 (Quality Management Systems), ISO-14001 (Environmental Management Systems), ISO-45001 (Occupational Health and Safety), and ISO-50001 (Energy Management Systems).

With these standards in place, we are prioritizing our workforce safety, we are continuously enhancing our training programs to improve our workers’ skills and safety awareness, we have established a set of Golden Safety Rules that are at the highest priority of every facility, we are ensuring that our plant’s infrastructure and equipment are properly maintained, and we are using the information learned to invest in enhancing our safety performance to reduce the risk of safety incidents and to improve our efficiencies.

Each IVL facility is tasked with assuring that clear responsibilities are defined and in place as part of the overall facility safety management. Facility personnel conduct risk assessments commensurate with the respective risk of the task and process operation and ensure that all IVL incidents and associated actions are entered into a common software platform for the recording of investigations and the proper management of actions.

Industrial Hygiene, Occupational Health, Health Promotion and Wellness and the Employee Assistance Program are the four main programs that can be found under the umbrella of Health Programs. We believe that managing all employee health related programs together under one umbrella with collaboration from other departments like Human Resources and local labor unions provides a holistic approach to worker health. Industrial Hygiene focuses on the prevention & control of hazards. We get to know our risks via exposure measurement & management in the workplace. Occupational Health addresses the incidence of occupational diseases, with an emphasis on injury prevention & injury care. Employee education & promotion of healthy lifestyle choices helps our employees to make better decisions related to their personal health-in and outside of the workplace. Employee assistance program supports employees in various aspects of their professional & private life. IVL follows the GRI framework and provides governance for all of these areas.
Environmental Programs involves the development of standards to drive a consistent approach to compliance with environmental requirements. Indorama has compliance as a core value. Systems have been put in place to manage compliance requirements (regulatory and company policy) and to maintain awareness of current and changing regulations. There are also standards for pollution prevention and chemical/ waste storage. Each Indorama facility is required to meet these standards and auditing is conducted to ensure implementation.

Practices

Lighting, Noise and Indoor Air Quality
IVL is committed to full compliance of relevant Occupational Health & Safety (OH&S) laws and regulations covering our plants around the world. On an annual basis, as required by law, our plants conduct monitoring of lighting, noise and indoor air quality to ensure a healthy workplace for our employees. Although our current monitoring results on lighting, noise and indoor air quality are in-line with regulations, the Safety Health & Environment (SHE) committee, together with employee representatives, are proactively implementing measures to further improve the work environment at IVL’s plants.
Given that IVL’s staff spend a full workday at the office, it is unavoidable that posture becomes an issue. IVL provides ergonomic workstations and chairs, adequate lighting, temperatures in-line with approved practices, quiet meeting rooms, and sufficient workspace and break areas to encourage a healthy work life and to alleviate contact stress and fatigue, boost morale and encourage engagement and productivity. At all levels, managers are required to maintain regular communications with their staff and flag any serious workstation or workplace concerns to senior management.
Healthy employees make our business stronger by reducing absenteeism from accidents and illness, and improving productivity and engagement. IVL supports voluntary health practices for employees including subsidized or free access to fitness centers, in addition to a variety of sports clubs including badminton, cycling and yoga, which staff is encouraged to join. Moreover, our fitness center program arranged at our headquarters and our operating sites support stress management and help build employee engagement and motivation. These programs are organized and run by employees, supported by management, and involve a large number of staff. The objective of these programs is to strengthen well-being and reduce stress. We also encourage staff to take breaks to stretch, exercise, or simply rest during the workday to clear their minds, relieve stress and re-energize.
Protective Personnel Equipment (PPE) is provided to IVL employees’ in-line with their responsibilities, with the purpose of preventing any hazards that may arise from their work. Health and safety training is mandatory for all new staff, and advanced topics such as, practice on CPR and special emergency cases, are scheduled on an annual basis which employees can freely attend at no cost.
IVL recognizes the value added from the Health & Safety Management System (ISO 45001/OHSAS 18001). An annual audit performed by professional third parties is scheduled periodically where the auditor is free to critically evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of our OH&S system. The plant manager, together with relevant OH&S staff, are proactive in addressing any observations regarding gaps or areas for improvement raised by the auditor. Their recommendations are conveyed to senior management. As of December 2023, 69% of our plants were certified with ISO 45001:2018 / OHSAS 18001:2007.

Results

Goal of no harm

Engaging workers through consultation, communication, and collaborative processes are important ways to achieve our target of zero fatalities. Discussions on safety, including near-miss incidents, raised by on-the-ground staff are periodically conducted to provide lessons learned, and to establish a practical response. This is then circulated among relevant employees to prevent reoccurrences. Increased awareness and achieving continuous improvements is the key to zero fatal, zero accident and safe work environment. As EHS incidents are reported, the level of severity is determined, and management reviews are conducted according to the severity of the incident. Investigation rigor is determined according to the severity level and potential. Lessons learned and best practices are consistently shared throughout IVL to continuously improve together. The conclusions are shared with other entities.

Zero fatalities

Monitoring performance to encourage continuous reduction of injuries, illnesses, process safety and environmental events

Any injury or occupational disease is carefully handled by the supervisor and related OH&S staff. All IVL plants around the world have established various measurable indicators that cover total recordable injuries, total lost time, the number of lost days, and the number of absentee days, etc. These indicators are monitored on a routine basis, then the root cause is identified including any possible factors that trigger the incidents. All of the indicators and accompanying data are centralized, consolidated and presented to the Sustainability and Risk Management Committee (SRMC) annually ensuring that any injuries or occupational disease that occur in the workplace are discussed resulting in more robust actions that reduce the rate of injury/occupational disease. The root cause analysis, relevant details, and lessons learned are shared with the other entities.

Continuous reductions in injuries and process safety