Amid the sweeping impact of fire accident at Tarzeen factory on garment sector in Bangladesh,readymade garment(RMG)manufacturers in the country are enforcing fire safety norms in factories.
Mr.Mohammad Hatem,first vice-president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association(BKMEA),told fibre2fashion,"The Tarzeen factory fire incident has raised the level of awareness among the apparel makers.Factory owners are now paying their top attention to prevent any future incident like the recent fire accident."
"Many factory owners are regularly conducting fire drills and many have employed new officials in their initiatives to make factories even safer,"he adds.
Talking about the various safety measures adopted by BKMEA,Mr.Mohammad Hatem says,"We have already strengthened our monitoring activities and doubled the capacity of BKMEA fire safety cell."
"We have set up a dedicated wing to advise our member factories in their efforts to enhance fire safety in their manufacturing units,"he continues.
He further says,"We are also arranging sessions with factory owners to share experiences in the area of fire safety."
"We are intensively working with Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association(BGMEA)as coordinated efforts will yield better and wider outcomes,"he informs.
According to Mr.Mohammad Hatem,BKMEA is drawing up new projects in order to deal with fire safety related issues.
Mentioning about the recent slowdown in garment exports,he says,"We have undertaken several steps to minimize the impact of slowdown in the RMG sector,such as promoting efficiency and productivity,arranging promotional activities like fairs and exhibitions,etc."
"We are counseling our member factories to adopt state of the art technology which will address national and international compliance standards,"he adds.
He also informs,"We are dispatching regular teams in order to expand our reach in unconventional markets."