The government-set review panel on the readymade garment factory inspection has started functioning again after about one month of lull as the experts of global retailers’ groups and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology have given assurance that they would reduce their differences over safety assessment parameters. Sources involved with the process said the review panel comprising representatives from the government, Accord on Fire and Building Safety, Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, BUET and Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association would visit two factories in Dhaka and Narayanganj today.
The EU retailers’ group, Accord, in its inspection found structural faults at the factories and suggested immediate evacuation.
The review panel reassesses the factories for which the inspection teams of the retailers’ groups suggest closure.
Earlier, the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishment had kept halted the function of the review panel due to disagreements over safety assessment parameters between the experts of Accord and Alliance and BUET and had asked them to resolve the issues.
The parties held two meetings on the disagreements mainly about concrete strength with the International Labour Organisation moderating the meetings.
Accord has agreed to consider the concrete strength (brick chip) at 2,050 pound per square inch instead of 1,500, sources said.
From the beginning of the safety assessment, the BUET experts were considering concrete strength at 2,500 PSI, but Accord and Alliance were considering it at 1,500 PSI for brick-made structure and at 2,000 PSI for stone-made structure.
Following repeated urges from the factory owners and BUET, the North American retailers’ group, Alliance, had agreed to consider the concrete strength at 2,100 PSI but Accord had remained stick to its position.
‘We have heard that Accord has agreed to ease the standard of concrete strength and I hope that the differences among the parties will reduce soon,’ Syed Ahmed, inspector general of the DIFE told New Age on Saturday.
He said that the review panel had been faced difficulties to take decision on the factories referred by the global retailers’ teams due to disagreements between the foreign and local experts.
Syed Ahmed, also the chair of review panel, hoped that today (Sunday) they would visit a factory at Mirpur in the Dhaka city and it would be possible to take a unanimous decision.
Mehedi Ahsan Ansary, a professor at BUET, also a member of the review panel, said that they had received a letter from Accord where the retailers’ group assured them that it would ease the standard of concrete strength.
‘Tomorrow (Sunday) we will visit two factories in Dhaka and Narayanganj and on June 16 more two will be visited in Chittagong that all are referred by Accord.’
After the Rana Plaza building collapse last year that killed more than 1,100 workers , mostly women garment workers, North American apparel companies, retailers and brands formed Alliance and EU retailers formed Accord to improve safety in the Bangladeshi RMG factories.
The two platforms started factory inspection from February this year and have inspected over 900 units so far.
A total of 20 factories were shutdown due to structural faults in the factory buildings identified by the global retailers’ teams. – See more at: http://newagebd.net/20949/rmg-inspection-review-panel-resumes-operation/#sthash.JpyIyYTX.dpuf
-With New Age input
