The World Refractory Association (WRA) is a non-profit organisation with headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.
WHO WE ARE
At a time when economic pressures call for stronger networks, the refractory industry is embracing increased global cooperation.
To this end, and following successful international meetings in 2013 and 2014, the major refractory industry associations and multinational companies joined together in November 2014 to set up the World Refractories Association (WRA).
World Refractories Association is a forum to debate regulatory issues affecting global trade, circulate aggregated industry statistics and promote the interests of the worldwide refractory industry. It also serves as a counterpart to other world industry organisations.
The WRA consists at the moment of 6 major refractory industry associations and 16 multinational companies. The secretariat is held by the European Refractories Producers Federation, PRE.
Mr. Parmod Sagar, MD & CEO of RHI Magnesita India and President of RHI Magnesita India, Middle East & Africa, has been appointed to represent the World Refractories Association as its president starting March 16, 2022. He is succeeding Ms. Carol Jackson, CEO and chairman of HarbisonWalker International, which was elected as WRA President in January 2020.
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The World Refractory Association's objectives:
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Enhance world-wide awareness of refractories unique and valuable qualities: “without refractories there would be no steel, no cars,…“
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Provide the global forum for refractories producers on matters of common concern and liaising with regional and national refractories associations to achieve efficient and effective co-operation.
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Encourage and assist in continuous progress in the healthy, safe and environmentally sound production of refractories, while working towards an ecological footprint reduction.
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Collect statistical and other relevant information and communicate it to the industry and its principle stakeholders.
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Identify issues of relevance to global standards development and promote appropriate research and other actions concerning them.
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Communicate the views and positions of the refractory industry to international organisations and other relevant parties.
OUR STRUCTURE
You can understand a little more the way the association works through the diagram below:
General Assembly
Board of Directors
Executive Committee
President
PARMOD SAGAR
Safety Committee
PATRICK ANDRE
Communication Committee
STEFAN BORGAS
Technical Committee
RAINER GAEBEL
Secretary-General
DANIELA VIGILANTE
Deputy Secretary-General
LEONARDO MOSCA
WRA PRESIDENT
Parmod Sagar
President
WRA COMMITTEES'S CHAIRMEN
Patrick Andre
Chairman of the Safety Committee
Rainer Gaebel
Chairman of the Technical Committee
Stefan Borgas
Chairman of the Communications Committee
WRA SECRETARIAT
Daniela Vigilante
Secretary-General
Leonardo Mosca
Deputy Secretary-General
Inês Ferrão
Projects Officer
Aurore De Schrevel
Office Manager
Sahaja Balla
Communication and Project Manager
CODE OF CONDUCT
This Code of Conduct aims at setting minimum standards with regards to socially acceptable production conditions and participants recognize that environmental responsibility is integral in producing refractory products.
WRA members:
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conduct their business with respect, integrity, reliability and responsibility.
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respect and protect intellectual property, trade secrets and copyrights and use such assets within the specified terms of use only.
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do not tolerate any form of bribery or corruption and are committed to fair competition and compliance with anti-trust and competition laws.
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respect all applicable embargos and sanctions.
Health & Safety
The Health and Safety of our people is our top priority and core value. Injuries, occupational illnesses and unsafe situations must not be considered a normal part of our industry. Everyone has a responsibility to prevent injuries, illnesses and unsafe situations.
WRA members:
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provide a safe and healthy work environment, written safety and health policies and procedures.
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provide training and adequate equipment to ensure workplace safety and practices.
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are committed to sharing their safety performance data with WRA and the continental associations to encourage knowledge exchange and benchmarking.
Social
WRA members respect and promote internationally recognized human and civil rights such as the International Labor Organization conventions, the United Nation’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN’s convention of children’s rights and the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women.
WRA members:
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comply with applicable labor and social laws, respect the freedom of association of employees and the right to collective bargaining in accordance with local laws.
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reject any form of forced or child labor and human trafficking.
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refrain from discrimination on any grounds and respect the principle of equal opportunities.
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do not tolerate any form of harassment.
Environment
The production of refractory products is inherently energy-intensive and emission causing.
WRA Members:
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recognize their environmental responsibility especially at their production sites and strive to minimize adverse effects of their operation on the environment and natural resources.
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comply with environmental laws, regulations and standards applicable to their operations, and encourage environmentally conscious best practices at all locations they operate.
Governance
WRA Members accept the Code of Conduct in its current version when joining the WRA. Furthermore, WRA Members also promote the principles laid down in this Code of Conduct in their supply chain and towards their business partners.