BRADE Group has concluded its 2026 Safety Week with a renewed commitment to making safety a daily responsibility for every employee, contractor and member of management, following a week of practical demonstrations, emergency drills, health awareness sessions and interactive activities designed to strengthen the company’s zero-incident culture.

Held from August 24 to 28, the programme was organised under the theme, “Safe Operations, Stronger Future: Driving Zero Incident Culture in Oilfield Services,” with activities covering the company’s OCTG storage yard, warehouse operations and office environment. The programme was designed to strengthen safety awareness, promote health consciousness and reinforce operational discipline across the organisation and clients and vendors who work for the organization.

Opening the programme on behalf of the Executive Chairman, Ese Avanoma, Dr Kester Awani told employees that safety must be regarded as a shared responsibility and not as the sole preserve of the Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) department. In his opening address, Dr. Awani emphasised that safety should not be reduced to a checklist or an activity observed only during an annual safety campaign, but must remain the foundation of every operation at BRADE.

“Safety is not a department, it is not a checklist, and it is not something we observe once a year,” Dr. Awani said, stressing that the company operates in one of the world’s most demanding industries, where the handling of pipes, lifting of equipment and provision of oilfield services come with real risks that require discipline, preparation and vigilance.

He said the company’s pursuit of a zero-incident culture did not mean pretending that risks do not exist, but rather refusing to accept incidents as inevitable. According to him, achieving such a culture requires every individual, from the warehouse floor to the boardroom, to take personal ownership of his or her safety and the safety of others.

Dr. Awani identified simple but critical behaviours as the building blocks of a strong safety culture, including the proper use of safety equipment, reporting hazards instead of ignoring them and exercising Stop Work Authority whenever an unsafe situation is identified. He also urged team leads and supervisors to ensure that the lessons from the Safety Week were taken back to their teams and applied consistently beyond the duration of the programme.

The opening day, themed “Safety Begins with Me,” set the tone for the week, with employees signing a safety pledge as the company sought to reinforce the principle that every worker has a role to play in maintaining a safe workplace. Staff also participated in a presentation on building a zero-incident culture, a baseline safety quiz, a discussion on the importance of near-miss reporting and an office evacuation drill.

Addressing staff on Monday, the Chief Operating Officer, Mr Robinson Ogholo, further broadened the safety conversation by urging employees to apply the same safety practices they observe at work in their homes and everywhere they go. His message reinforced the idea that safety should become a way of life rather than something practised only within the confines of the workplace.

For Ogholo, the discipline of identifying hazards, following established safety procedures and protecting oneself and others should continue beyond the company premises, whether employees are at home, on the road or in other environments.

The emphasis on personal responsibility was complemented by a strong practical component throughout the week. On Tuesday, attention shifted to warehouse and OCTG yard safety under the theme “Safe Pipe Handling, Zero Lifting Incidents.” Employees participated in a warehouse safety walk-through, forklift and crane operation demonstrations, PPE inspection activities and a “Spot the Hazard” competition aimed at improving their ability to identify unsafe conditions.

One of the major highlights was a live fire-training demonstration followed by a practical fire-extinguishing exercise and an emergency response drill based on a dropped-pipe scenario.

The following day focused on fire safety, emergency response and office preparedness, with employees receiving hands-on training on the use of fire extinguishers and participating in evacuation and assembly-point accountability exercises. The activities were designed around the theme “Be Ready Before It Happens,” reinforcing the importance of preparedness before an emergency occurs.

Health, first aid and employee wellbeing also featured prominently during the programme. Under the theme “Every Worker is a First Responder,” employees participated in CPR and first aid demonstrations, medical emergency simulations, first aid response exercises and ergonomics sessions aimed at promoting safer and healthier working conditions.

The programme also incorporated health awareness discussions and a cybersecurity awareness session, reflecting BRADE’s broader approach to employee wellbeing and workplace safety.

Speaking during the programme, the Supervisor, Technical Assurance & Asset Integrity, Livingstone Maekae, urged employees to sustain the safety consciousness generated during the week and continue applying the lessons learnt in their daily activities.

Maekae’s call for continuity reinforced the central message of the programme that safety should not become a temporary priority that rises during Safety Week and disappears afterwards. Rather, employees were encouraged to remain vigilant, comply with established procedures, identify hazards and speak up whenever they observe unsafe practices.

The final day of the programme brought together the themes of behavioural safety, commuting and journey management under the theme “Safety is a Habit, not a Task.” Employees participated in interactive storytelling around real incidents, behavioural safety discussions, a safety suggestion challenge and sessions on safe driving and journey management, including fatigue driving, seatbelt use and vehicle inspection.

The week also featured a series of competitions aimed at making safety learning more engaging and encouraging employees to participate actively. These included daily safety quizzes, hazard-spotting exercises, PPE compliance challenges, first aid competitions and safety skits, with recognition for outstanding individual and team performances.

Beyond the activities of the five-day programme, BRADE is seeking to sustain employee engagement through its BRADE Green & Safe HSE Champions Programme 2026, which is intended to maintain momentum around safety and recognise positive contributions to the company’s HSE performance.

The conclusion of Safety Week therefore marked the beginning of another phase in BRADE’s safety journey rather than the end of its safety campaign. The company’s programme was designed to improve safety awareness and participation, reduce near misses and unsafe acts, strengthen safety culture across the warehouse and office, improve collaboration between departments and increase employee ownership of HSE performance.

The overarching message from management and the various safety sessions was that everyone is a stakeholder in safety. From the employee handling equipment in the warehouse to the professional working in the office, the supervisor overseeing operations and the manager making strategic decisions, every individual has a responsibility to identify risks, prevent incidents and protect lives.

For BRADE, the true measure of the Safety Week will therefore not be the number of drills conducted or activities completed, but whether the lessons become part of the company’s everyday culture.

As Dr. Awani noted in his opening address, the objective is for zero incidents to become more than a slogan. It must become a standard that employees and management hold themselves and one another to, long after the Safety Week activities have ended.

The company’s 2026 Safety Week ultimately reinforced a simple but powerful message: safety starts with every individual, but achieving a zero-incident culture requires everyone to take responsibility. Through sustained vigilance, discipline, preparedness and a willingness to speak up, BRADE is seeking to ensure that its commitment to safe operations translates into a stronger future for the organisation and, most importantly, that every employee returns home safely every day.