Individual buyers, who are signatories of the Alliance for Bangladesh workers’ safety, will no more inspect apparel factories in Bangladesh they source from.
Instead, the job will be performed by local engineering firms the Alliance had hired earlier.
The decision emerged from a meeting between Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporter Association (BGMEA) and the executives of the Alliance in Dhaka yesterday.
The Alliance of North American retailers had appointed seven local engineering firms to inspect apparel factories. These are Shahidullah Associates, Bureau Veritas, Uttaran, MK, BD Technology and EIMS.
“These firms will continue to inspect the factories solely … none of the brands will directly inspect the factories individually,” BGMEA President Atiqul Islam told reporters, following the meeting on building, fire and electrical safety assessment of RMG factories.
The engineering firms have so far inspected over 222 factories from around 800 factories selected for inspection. They would now inspect the remaining factories.
The alliance said the factories already inspected would not be inspected again, which is good news for the sector, he added.
RMG factories, which already installed fire doors, alarm and others safety equipment, would not need to install further as they have already showed good intension. The remaining ones, however, will have to install certified products, said Atiq, quoting Alliance executives.
He said the Alliance had recommended factory owners of shared buildings for relocation, but now they would get time to do this.
As per the Alliance inspection standard, a factory having more than 22,000 square feet per floor will have to install sprinkler while factories with over 23-metre high also have to install sprinkler.
“We will install sprinkler, but it would take time,” Atiq said, replying to a question. “They (Alliance) would give the time.”
The US retailers took the initiative of factory inspection to ensure workers safety following the Rana Plaza collapse in April last year, which killed more than 1,100 workers, putting pressure on the manufacturers to address fire and building safety.
As a part of their initiatives, the alliance has set a five-year project to inspect RMG factories in Bangladesh, from which they source clothes, to improve safety standards.
Under the project, the Alliance had started inspection under a common safety standards on fire, building and electrical safety.
