Friday 24 November 2017

KADUNA ELECTRIC NEWSLETTER, NOVEMBER 2ND EDITION

Staff Train on Fire Extinguisher Use  

By Halima Shuaibu

In a continuous effort to make staff and the environment they work in safe, the Health, Safety and Environment Unit has organized a practical demonstration of the use of portable firefighting equipment/extinguisher for all staff.
Speaking on the relevance of the exercise, the Head, Health, Safety and Environment, Mr. J. C Adamu disclosed that the harmattan season records the highest incidents of fire outbreaks and enjoined every member of staff to be prepared for any eventuality.
He noted that the Safety unit or floor safety marshals might not always be available to manage an emerging situation; therefore it becomes necessary for all staff to know how to use the portable fire extinguisher.
The Area Offices according him are equally undergoing the same training based on the work plan available to them. He emphasized that safety is everyone’s business and therefore the exercise must be taken seriously.
Each group, made of members from every department, was asked to use the emergency exit leading to the demonstration point as a way of familiarizing them with the emergency exit.  Every staff member of the Head Office had a hands-on experience on the use of the fire extinguisher. 
The staff, he disclosed have already undergone evacuation drill which he said is the first stage in managing emergency situations.
Adamu however decried the unwillingness of some staff to participate in exercise, “a lot of them didn’t respect the time set for the training. We believe that anything concerning Safety should not be treated with levity”.
He warned that such attitude would be followed by punitive measure in subsequent training.
Engr. Gimba Saleh who was also on hand to address the staff stressed the importance of the training. According to him, there is usually a prevalence of fire outbreaks during the dry season, which he said staff must be sensitized on to prevent the occurrence.    
Engr. Saleh stated that staff were trained to identify the classes of fire to enable them to know the suitable fire extinguisher to use for different types of fire. 
On the availability of the fire extinguishers, he said: “On each floor there are six to seven fire extinguishers to enable every floor member to manage a fire outbreak, hence the need for everyone to be equipped with the knowledge on how to use the extinguishers”.

                                         
 MD Laments Low Revenue Collection in Gusau 
By Mohd Abbah Gusau


The Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Engr. Haruna Garba has decried the low revenue generation from Gusau Area Office. The MD was speaking in Gusau during his monthly assessment meeting.
He said the collection companywide is not more than 20 percent with Gasau Area Office as one of the lowest, a situation he described as a “very tragic for a business organization”.
"We cannot continue this way, when energy is wheeled to us, we are expected to collect revenue that equals to it but unfortunately we end up collecting 18 to 20 percent of the energy supplied to our customers. My question is:  are the monies being stolen or we are allowing our customers to use energy without paying for them?”
The MD said all staff must work hard and work as a team in order to achieve more, stressing that every staff will be assessed on competence while non-performing staff will be relieved of their duties.
On the new billing software, Engr. Garba said that it is to ensure smooth billing as well as harmonizing feeder consumption through the input of every Service Center Supervisor.  
He called on the Sales Reps to account for the consumption and tariff classification of every customer and the monitoring of PPM customers to reduce or eradicate energy theft and meter bypass. 
The Business Development and Relationship Officer (BDRO), Mallam Aminu Aminu, in his response, thanked the MD for visiting the Gusau Area Office and for the support the area office has received so far. 
"This type of visit motivates and makes us believe that the management is concerned about us"
Malam Aminu however appealed to management to deploy more prepaid meters and to register some of the motorbikes that will help staff in monitoring prepaid meters and solve other logistical problems.
Addressing the Service Centers Supervisors, the BDRO urged them to run the Service Centers as their personal businesses.  
To improve revenue collection, he advocated the need for more community engagement, meeting with district heads, ward heads, religious and political leaders. 
He added that increased customer enumeration and a mandatory reconnection fee for customers who were disconnected for nonpayment of bills will further boost the revenue collection.

 Make Operational Excellence Your Watchword- BDRO Sokoto
By Umar Mohammed Tambuwal          

The Business Development and Relationship Officer, Sokoto Area Office, Abubakar Hashim, has restated the company’s unwavering commitment to uphold the principle of ‘Customer First’ by ensuring customers satisfaction as a way of improving the company’s fortune.
The BDRO made this statement while addressing Feeder Supervisors and Sales Representatives during the monthly cash collection meeting recently in Sokoto.
Mr Hashim noted that customers are more inclined to pay voluntarily if they are satisfied with the quality of service delivery.
“There is nothing more rewarding than customers paying their bills without being compelled and without altercation. It makes the job easier while achieving one of our major reasons for being in business”. 
The BDRO explained that the management’s new corporate culture lays emphasis on discipline; accountability and integrity, which he said, will translate into qualitative service delivery. 
He urged them to imbibe these values as a way to improving the company’s cash collection adding that changing the company’s fortune requires a multi directional approach.
Explaining further, Hashim said for the company to excel, every employee must strive to make operational excellence their watchword by building on strength and minimizing our weaknesses.
He however reminded the staff of the three months probationary period granted by Managing Director to staff who have not met their target, adding that whoever fails at the end of the 3 months period will be sacked. 

Kaduna Electric Donates 7.5KVA Transformer To UDUS
By Umar Mohammed 

Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company Limited, has donated a 7.5KVA power transformer worth several millions of naira to the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto.

Speaking during the commissioning of the transformer at the main campus of the university, the Managing Director of the company, Engr. Garba Haruna, said the donation was made to replace the damaged transformer serving the University community.

According to him, the company decided to intervene quickly and address the problem so as to ensure that the atmosphere is conducive to learning in the University.

He said the move was part of the company's efforts to enhance qualitative service delivery to its priority customers.

"UDUS is our priority customer and we believed that supplying a 24 hours electricity is of great priority to us.

"The University is doing well in paying its bills promptly and we felt the need to quickly intervene to ensure a conducive atmosphere for teaching and learning in the institution".

The MD advised the management of the University to do proper energy utilization in order to reduce waste.

Responding, the Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof. Abdullahi Zuru, commended Kaduna Electric for the prompt intervention.

He noted that the University was in total darkness as a result of the damage of the transformer, which made life difficult for students, and staff of the institution.

He thanked the company for the gesture and promised prompt payment of electricity bills.

How to Prevent Fire Outbreaks in This Harmattan Season!

With the incessant outbreak of fire in this Harmattan Season, it’s crucial to alert Nigerians of the need to be more careful.

As we witness more harsh conditions in this harmattan season, Nigerians are advised to take precautionary measures against the effects of the harmattan in order to avoid fire occurrences.
There is urgent need to undertake the following precautions:

1.Improve on our housekeeping culture

2.Check indiscriminate refuse and bush burning

3.Avoid wrong and improper storage of petroleum
products 

4.Use of candle and firewood to light the house at night should at least stop for now. You can use torchlight or rechargeable lamp.

5. Ensure the use of proper electrical appliances to avoid sparks and electrical fires. Put off the power supply at the main switch or control board in the incident of power failure to prevent power surge once the power is restored.

6.Proper storage and handling of inflammable substances. Never spray your insecticides near your cooking stove or gas cooker!


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