Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), a leading industrial company in the UAE outside of oil and gas, has won two gold awards at Ideas Arabia for innovative suggestions made by employees.

EGA has operated an employee suggestion scheme since 1981. Last year, EGA staff submitted a record 34,419 ideas, generating Dh36 million ($9.8 million) in cost savings, said a statement.

EGA employees share in the financial benefits of their ideas that are implemented by the company, it said.

EGA’s winning submission at Ideas Arabia in the ‘Productivity – Individual Idea’ category was developed by Vimal Raj, Sugumar Srinivasan, and Srinivasa Kumar Talluri from power operations, Al Taweelah, it added.

The suggestion improved the efficiency and responsiveness of EGA’s steam turbines. As a result of the team’s efforts, EGA will save Dh625,000 ($170,153) per year and reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by over 13,000 metric tonnes – the equivalent of taking 2,792 passenger vehicles off the road, said a statement.

In the ‘Innovation – Individual Idea’ category, EGA’s Rafael Panga, Leyson Barbado, and Anurag Mohanty from the potroom maintenance department were recognised for designing and building a robotic cleaning machine that removed material debris at production lines, it said.

The company saved over Dh800,000 ($217,796) through this suggestion and reduced potential safety risks for employees through heat stress and dust exposure, it added.

Abdulla Kalban, managing director and chief executive officer at EGA, said: “Through our employee suggestion scheme, we strive to cultivate an environment that encourages employees from all levels to contribute ideas that create value and continuously improve the way we conduct our business operations.”

“As a result, we have received and successfully implemented truly impactful suggestions that not only result in greater efficiencies, but that have also led to global and regional recognition,” he said.

EGA has participated in Ideas Arabia since 2006. The ideas also won the Gold Award for Energy Saving and Idea of the Year category respectively at the Rashid Awards, an annual internal award ceremony that recognises the best suggestions put forward by EGA’s employees, it stated. – TradeArabia News Service