Belle Banne Conveyors has hit a major milestone, reaching 1 million hours free of a recordable injury.
More than 150 employees have worked in mines, power stations, quarries, manufacturing plants and paper mills across Victoria. The company has also provided supplementary labour to support projects from parent company, Fenner Conveyors, throughout Australia.
Team members take on high-risk activities every day in these environments, including conveyor maintenance, belt installations and refurbishments.
These risks are mitigated through safe systems of work, specialised training, verification of competencies, safe work procedures. Belle Banne also provides open two-way communication for employees to report all/any hazards and improvements.
Belle Banne Conveyors health and safety officer, Ane Soares Grass, said the nature of conveyor service work can be extremely high-risk if not conducted safely.
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“Our team members are required to move across sites and around systems with heavy-duty equipment moving at high-speeds. This is why we’ve invested in our team’s safety,” Soares Grass said.
“Initiatives such as SafetyCircle and HIRAC (Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment and Control) are among many competencies within the Fenner Conveyors Group’s training programs which all contribute to providing a safe place of work.”
The Belle Banne Conveyors team goes through monthly Safety Act Observations (SAOs), regular safety audits, and health and safety toolbox meetings, ensuring potential hazards are addressed promptly.
“Since beginning with Belle Banne Conveyors 12 months ago, I have witnessed the efforts our employees make every day to ensure their health and safety, as well as that of those around them. I am proud of the dedication and hard work of our people. While there is always room for improvement, we can achieve this through maintaining a strong safety culture and open communication,” Soares Grass said.
Belle Banne Conveyor’s team consistently utilise and update standard job instructions, including rigging procedures which encompass pictorial instructions taking out all the guess work.
Workshop supervisor, Duane Hill, said safety is embedded throughout all our job tasks.
“In our workshop we maintain SDS folders for all products on site. We provide all the safety equipment and PPE necessary to do the work. We complete mobile plant inspections daily and work within our customers rigorous plant access and permitting systems,” Hill said.
Yallourn branch manager, Ray Moretti, said every day is a huge milestone.
“Every day that we don’t hurt anyone, we’ve had a great day,” he said.
“To get to 1 million hours is outstanding, but ultimately every single day our utmost aim is to ensure all team members go home safe.”
“Now, and as we move forward together, Belle Banne Conveyors will remain focused on maintaining our safety culture and setting industry-standards for excellence,” Moretti said.