US embassy cable - 05MANAMA762

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MANAMA 000762 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EB/CBA NSMITH AND NISSLEY 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: BEXP, EINV, ELAB, ETRD, SENV, BA 
SUBJECT: BAHRAIN NOMINATES GULF CLOSURES FOR SECRETARY'S 
AWARD FOR CORPORATE EXCELLENCE 
 
REF: STATE 66434 
 
1.  Summary:  Embassy Manama nominates small-to-medium size 
enterprise (SME) Gulf Closures W.L.L. for the Secretary's 
Award for Corporate Excellence for its exemplary work in good 
corporate citizenship and provision of a safe and healthy 
workplace.  Its efforts have resulted in 100 First Aid 
volunteers trained in the period prior to the 2003 war in 
Iraq, over eight years of no lost work days due to accidents 
or injuries, and greater environmental awareness.  End 
Summary. 
 
Company Profile 
--------------- 
 
2.  Gulf Closures W.L.L. is a joint venture between U.S. 
company Alcoa Inc. and Al Zayani Investments W.L.L.  It is an 
SME that manufactures plastic closures for the beverage and 
bottled water industry.  It employs 87 individuals and has 
fixed assets of $13.97 million. 
 
Good Corporate Citizenship 
-------------------------- 
 
3.  To promote good corporate citizenship Gulf Closures: 
 
A.)  trained 100 employees and family members as First Aid 
volunteers prior to the 2003 war in Iraq.  In the event of an 
emergency, Gulf Closures wanted to ensure that its employees 
were able to assist casualties. 
 
B.)  organized "Exercising for Health," an annual marathon 
walk to promote healthy living in Bahrain. 
 
C.)  planted 132 trees as part of Alcoa's worldwide program 
to plant 10 million trees by 2020. 
 
D.)  organizes an annual desert clean-up.  The last event in 
December 2004 drew 37 employees and resulted in 115 bags of 
trash being removed from a popular camping area.  Employees 
said they wanted to send a strong message to campers to 
preserve the desert and protect the environment. 
 
E.)  sponsored a local writer to publish a book for children 
on recycling ideas for bottles and caps.  The book was 
distributed free of charge to local schools to promote 
environmental awareness and encourage recycling. 
 
Safe and Healthy Workplace 
-------------------------- 
 
4.  Gulf Closures takes great pride in the environmental, 
health, and safety policies it developed to regulate the 
workplace:  "It is our policy to operate worldwide in a safe, 
responsible manner, which respects the environment and the 
health of our employees, our customers and the communities 
where we operate.  We will not compromise environmental, 
health or safety values for profit or production.  All 
employees are expected to understand, promote and assist in 
the implementation of this policy."  By enforcing this 
policy, Gulf Closures completed 3042 days (over 8 years) with 
"No Lost Work Days" due to accidents or injuries and made 
great strides in the areas of fatality prevention, ergonomic 
risk, and noise reduction. 
 
5.  Gulf Closures also stresses the health and well-being of 
its employees through various programs, including: 
 
A.)  blood donation campaigns; 
 
B.)  lectures on diabetes (Note.  There is a high-rate of 
diabetes in Bahrain. End Note.); 
 
C.)  smoking cessation programs; 
 
D.)  personal hygiene and dental hygiene lectures; 
 
E.)  free flu vaccinations. 
 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
6.  GOB officials in the environmental directorate often 
complain that the environment suffers at the cost of economic 
growth in Bahrain.  Gulf Closures is a perfect example of an 
SME that not only takes pride in its people and its product, 
but also in what it can contribute to the community.  Despite 
its small size, Gulf Closures makes a vital contribution to 
its community and sets the standard for a safe and healthy 
workplace.  Embassy Manama strongly recommends Gulf Closures 
as a recipient of the Secretary's Award for Corporate 
Excellence. 
MONROE