Our Performance and Achievements

We actively monitor accidents and compile detailed statistics on a monthly basis at a group level. We report on our incidence of greater than three day accidents, the total number of lost time accidents and total accident rate. As part of managing performance and preventing recurrence, we investigate all accidents thoroughly to determine root causes and put in place appropriate preventative and corrective actions. In the section below we report our safety performance data over the period from March 2003 to March 2008 and health performance data for calendar year 2007. Data has been restated to reflect changes in the business, for example divestments and site closure. The group sold its Ceramics Division on 28th February 2007 and, as such, the data presented below excludes any contribution from Ceramics Division.

Safety Performance

Our safety performance improved again over the last year. We made good progress towards our target of zero greater than three day accidents, reducing the incidence by 39% from 4.38 per 1,000 employees in March 2007 to 2.65 per 1,000 employees in March 2008. The total number of lost time accidents was down by 11% from 76 to 68. Our total accident rate also fell during the year by 8% from 8.77 to 8.05 per 1,000 employees per year.

Health Management Performance

Over the last three years we have successfully implemented a corporate health management strategy. This year we have continued to build on its success by incorporating longer term health planning into the businesses sustainability plans. This reinforces existing programmes to invest in more sustainable methods to protect employees from exposure to workplace health hazards, such as specific health protection and ergonomic features in the design of new plants and improving the containment of older chemical manufacturing processes. In 2007 80% of business units reported undertaking a formal health performance review and putting in place a written health improvement business plan. This increased from 64% of business units in 2006.

The incidence of occupational illness conditions was 5.8 cases per 1,000 employees during calendar year 2007, an increase from 4.5 per 1,000 employees in 2006. We have a group reporting system to record and investigate occupational illness incidents arising as a result of exposure to workplace health hazards. Despite the increased incidence of cases in 2007, we have achieved an overall reduction of more than 25% in the annual incidence of occupational illnesses since the reporting system was introduced in 2005.

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