Tanzania Breweries Limited (TBL) is in a process of further improving its safety programme at the workplace by deploying modern equipment to control fire hazards.

This was revealed by Safety, Health and Environment manager Renatus Nyanda during an interview with this paper after receiving 45 soldiers from the Military School of Fire Brigade and Rescue Air Force Wing in Dar es Salaam at the weekend.

Nyanda said apart from fire extinguishing equipment they had, they would like to improve further their safety situation. “There is a new device we are considering to acquire it for use in case of any fire outbreak.

This is the DSPA-5, which is a new device that has just entered the fire extinguishing world. We have invited experts from a company that supplies the equipment today so that they can demonstrate for us how it works. We are in a changing world and we TBL are ready to embrace change.

That is why we strive to modernise our equipment to enable us to have a greater ability to manage any fire outbreak," he said.

He explained that the company had a good record of safety at the workplace, which had been made possible from contributions and support from the administration of the company and employees.

"Safety awareness training we give to our employees and guests, who visit our plants, makes anyone within the plant to be able to work or move within the company’s compound more safely. We have good programmes on health and safety at the workplace to ensure employees are working safely because we believe an employee who works in a safe environment will be more productive," he said.

He explained that the company also had facilities for various normal fire extinguishers containing powder, those that emitted gas (carbon dioxide) and those that emitted foam for fire fighting fire from fuel or diesel oil.

"We have a highly qualified team of 33 people specialised in fire control and safety management. This is to ensure that the factory and its workers stay and work in a safe environment,'' he said.

He also said TBL also collaborated with the National Occupational Safety Association (NOSA) and due to such effort, the factory had been emerging the best in terms of cleanliness and safety at the workplace.

Nyanda said the issue of safety at the workplace was still not being given priority by many companies in many parts of the world.

"I say this because without safety at the workplace, will are likely to create many workers with disabilities, who will decrease production. There is a possibility of losing the whole factory to fire. We witnessed how fire destroying part of our Dar es Salaam plant in 2009,” he said.

He explained that the safety training programme they gave to their staff helped them even at home to manage the scourge of fire before it was out of control.

"We do this by recognising that at the workplace, especially in industries/factories there are many things that can cause accidents including chemicals, electricity, gas, hot liquids, pieces of metal, glass and many other. Unless we become sensitive to safety, we are likely to cause great losses, beginning with employees, who, if they lack good health, will cut production," he said.

For his part, Military School for Fire fighters and Rescue head Maj Martin Kilugha said the visit had helped his students and tutors, who accompanied them to know a lot about workplace safety and the preparedness to fight any fire outbreak and apply rescue measures in a factory.