SAFETY, HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT (SHE) - Introduction

AECI's management of SHE-related issues is guided by a formal SHE policy, with performance being measured in the context of supporting SHE standards. The policy and standards, which are agreed to and approved by the Group chief executive, are reviewed periodically, and most recently in 2008, by the Corporate Citizenship Committee on behalf of the Board to ensure that they remain appropriate to AECI's diverse businesses and the changing operating environment.

At the beginning of each year, the managing directors of AECI's businesses are required to submit a Letter of Assurance with respect to SHE-related issues to the Group chief executive. This, inter alia, provides confirmation that the particular business complies in all material respects with AECI's SHE standards. In the event that such confirmation cannot be given, the Letter details the nature of the deviation as well as the intended corrective action.

AECI comprises a broad spectrum of businesses, ranging from large manufacturing plants producing chemicals and explosives, to small operations on customer sites which provide application services, and property leasing and development activities. Consequently, SHE-related issues faced by the various businesses are very different. It is inevitable, therefore, that a certain degree of generalisation occurs when commenting on such diverse activities within a single report.