Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company (GPIC) has been presented the Royal Society for Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) health and safety shield for the chemical sector award.

The presentation, in Birmingham, UK, was attended among others by RoSPA chairman Lord Bill Jordan, who made the presentation to GPIC general manager Abdul Rahman Jawahery.

The award came the company's way for being at the top in the management of occupational health and safety following a field audit of its systems and operations in April last year.

It was chosen from among more than 5,000 companies worldwide, said Jawahery yesterday.

Jawahery said RoSPA seeks to achieve the best interest of the community by changing and enhancing awareness of the community and by providing the necessary information, advice and training.

'This award comes soon after we received the Sir George Earl Shield, the highest award given by RoSPA in the fields of safety and health,' he said. 'It is a significant achievement for the company.'

He said the company continued to maintain the highest level of performance in the area of safety, health and accident prevention.

'Our winning this award is not a random achievement but is the result of company policies in the management of occupational safety and health.'

He said the GPIC is now in a 'significant and prestigious' position after this international recognition.

'All this is in addition to the GPIC's contributions in serving the Bahrain community.'

He said the company has now been recognised for its outstanding leadership in the areas of health and safety; in selecting and incorporating the best international systems and standards in health and safety for building up a solid risk control system and involving the employees in adopting decisions related to health and safety in a transparent and effective manner.