Employees of the Brandix Group, Sri Lanka’s single largest apparel exporter, donated 3,448 units of blood in 2015, earning the appreciation of the National Blood Transfusion Service (NTBS), which recently presented the Group with a special plaque for being the largest corporate blood donor in the country.
This is the sixth consecutive year that Brandix was acknowledged as the largest donor of blood among private sector organisations that donate annually to the NTBS.
The blood collected at Brandix factories in Sri Lanka in 2015 was the second highest volume contributed by the Group to the NTBS in a single year, and took Brandix’s cumulative contribution over the past nine years to 20,423 units.
“Our associates continue to be committed to support the annual blood donation drive the Group conducts with the support of the National Blood Transfusion Service,” said Col. Sujith Jayasekara, Senior General Manager – Group Works HR at Brandix. “Their sense of civic consciousness and social responsibility is inspiring, and amply justifies continuing and expanding this initiative. We will look at sustaining the next donation campaign throughout the year in collaboration with the NTBS.”
Among the highest contributing locations of Brandix’s 2015 blood donation campaign were Brandix Apparel Solutions Limited (BASL) – Athleisure, Polonnaruwa with 368 units, the most by a single factory to date; BASL – Essentials, Koggala with 262 units and BASL – Lingerie, Wathupitiwala with 249 units. The provinces covered were the Western, Southern, North Central, Sabaragamuwa and North Western provinces.
According to the NTBS, donations of this scale over a significant time period are necessary to meet the organisation’s requirements. By being geographically widespread, the Brandix campaign increases supplies of blood in many areas, including those that do not usually receive donations of significant volume compared with areas like Colombo. Brandix’s blood donation campaigns are also extra significant as they are conducted on weekdays instead of the general norm of weekends. This is particularly helpful in sustaining blood platelets, which have a lifespan of five days, for use during the course of the week. Brandix was also commended for the timing of its blood donation campaign, as the NTBS had experienced a shortage of blood during the September – December period of last year.
The Brandix Group employs more than 48,000 people at 42 operations in Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh and is one of the largest suppliers of apparel to top retail brands in the US and Europe. Brandix is also a benchmark and international award winner for eco-friendly manufacture and commitment to environmental best practice.
Photo Caption: Dr Anil Dissanayake, Director of the National Blood Transfusion Service (fourth right) presents a plaque of appreciation to Col. Sujith Jayasekara, Senior General Manager – Group Works HR at Brandix in the presence of representatives of Brandix and the NTBS.