Norðurál prioritizes safety and health. All employees are aware of the importance of safety protocols and conduct in the workplace, and respect at all times the principle that no job should be done under unsafe circumstances. Active participation by employees in accident prevention and in making improvements is emphasized. Norðurál adheres to all laws and regulations concerning safety and health.

Use of personal protection equipment (PPE)

The use of safety helmets, safety goggles and safety shoes is required. There are also various areas with further safety requirements. Before entering an area you must study the safety requirements. The entrances of all areas requiring extra safety precautions are marked accordingly.

Driving on the premises
Maximum speed: 10 km/h indoors, 20 km/h outdoors.
The maximum speed of crucible carriers and forklifts carrying loads is 6 km/h.

Eye contact must always be obtained and followed up with hand gestures.

Pedestrian traffic
Eye contact must always be obtained and followed up with hand gestures. Always follow marked pedestrian lanes, indoors as well as outdoors and never walk through vehicle entrances. All vehicle entrances have doors for pedestrian traffic nearby.

When walking between pot room areas the so-called ELAS isles, located behind the pots in each pot room, must be used.

In areas with green lanes the wearing of personal protective gear is not mandatory. Green pedestrian lanes are located as follows:

• From Jökulheimar to the warehouse and the rodding shop office.
• From the bathhouse to Viska / Fróði, to the canteen and to the potroom offices.

Molten metal
All Norðurál’s employees that handle molten metal must wear protective clothing that the safety department has selected and deemed fit for the job.

• Moisture and liquids can become highly explosive when in contact with molten metal. Therefore beverages are prohibited in the production area.
• All tools that may come in contact with molten metal must always be preheated.

Working at height
All employees working at considerable heights must be trained in accordance with Norðurál’s Safety and Health Policy. The area below where work at height takes place must be fenced off.

Employees working on mobile platforms (boom trucks, work lifts etc.) must wear fall protection gear at all times.

Handling of hoisting equipment
Before using hoisting equipment make certain that the hoisting capacity of the equipment exceeds the weight of the load to be hoisted.

All hoisting equipment must be checked before use to ensure that the equipment is approved, undamaged and has a valid inspection certificate.

Lock out – Tag out – Verify
Lock out – Tag out – Verify is a process providing employees with protection against sudden startups or energy releases during servicing or maintenance work on equipment.

• Equipment owners are responsible for lock out procedures being updated and in order.
• Supervisors must ensure that their employees receive proper training.
• Employees are responsible for locking out the equipment they work on.

Confined spaces
A special entry permit must be applied for to work in a space identified as a “confined space”. Before entering, risk assessment for the space must be studied. Attendant must also be stationed outside the space while work is being done inside it.

Rules on the use of warning lights
There are four types of warning lights in use at Norðurál.

Blinking blue lights signify that work is being carried out on top of pots. Steady blue lights signify that a forklift working on loading and unloading containers is reversing. Red blinking lights signify the transport of molten metal. Yellow blinking lights signify maintenance work being carried out within an enclosed area.

Environmental conduct and housekeeping
We keep our surroundings clean and tidy by cleaning up as we go.

• Sorting waste for recycling in separate containers.
• Releasing chemicals into the environment is prohibited.
  • If large quantities, +/- 100 litres, get flushed into drains the Emergency response team must be immediately notified of spill.
• All chemicals must be accompanied by a safety document (MSDS) containing all information pertaining to the chemical, what to avoid etc.

Reporting of safety issues

All mishaps, accidents and damages must be reported to Norðurál’s report system or to the nearest manager. We believe that all accidents come with a forewarning and therefore we also encourage reporting on near miss incidents, safety- or environmental incidents. All reports are processed and improvements are made.

Knowledge, skill and Permits

Work procedures
All work at Norðurál must be performed in accordance with predetermined procedures that have been risk assessed. Work procedures are intended for that purpose. All work procedures can be accessed in the Quality Manual on Norðurál’s intranet or from the nearest supervisor.

Risk assessments and risk screening

In case no work procedures exist for a particular job it must be risk assessed before work on it begins.
Before work begins it must be screened for risks. Risk factors must be reviewed, work halted and risk minimized before proceeding, as applicable.

Special job permits
If a job requires a special permit, the permit is issued solely for that specific job.

Hot work permit
All jobs involving open fire or generating heat and/or sparks require hot work permits. This includes, but is not limited to, the following: welding, flame cutting, arc welding, metal polishing, tar paper application etc. Hot work permits are issued by the supervisor of the area concerned.

Excavation permit

Permit must be issued for all excavating on the premises in order to prevent damages e.g. on cables and underground ducting that may be located where the excavating is to be carried out. Excavation permits are issued by the supervisor of the area concerned in consultation with the site and buildings supervisor.

Work permit (contractors)
Starting work without a prior work permit by the supervisor of the area concerned is prohibited. The area supervisor signs the work permit at the start of each day.

Driving permit
Driving private cars or vehicles not owned by Norðurál on the premises is prohibited except with Norðurál’s driving permit. Entering an area in a vehicle without permission from the area supervisor is prohibited.

 

Visitors and contractors

Visitors or others entering Norðurál’s premises that are:

• Escorted within the premises at all times
• Do no physical work within the premises
• Receive visitor presentation
• Must wear safety helmets, safety goggles and protective coats or the appropriate safety clothing.

Before starting work, the employees of Norðurál’s contractors must:

• Be logged into Norðurál’s system
• Attend safety courses and agree to safety rules
• Be dressed in accordance with Norðurál’s safety rules
• Agree to electronic surveillance
• To sign in for all jobs and hold a work permit for work on the job concerned.

 

QMS document GSK-3609
Issued:10/27/2020 2.0