Pennsylvania Governor Corbett Announces Winners of Governor's Award for Safety Excellence Honoring Employers Who Have Achieved High Standards in Workplace Safety

HARRISBURG, Pa., Feb. 24, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Governor Tom Corbett announced today the ten employers who will be honored this year with a Governor's Award for Safety Excellence. The Governor's Award for Safety Excellence recognizes employers that have achieved the highest standards in workplace safety.

"Since Pennsylvania has the best workforce in the world, I am glad to honor employers who make safety a priority in the workplace," said Corbett.

Any Pennsylvania employer is eligible for the Governor's Award for Safety Excellence. Information and criteria used to determine finalists include workplace injuries/illnesses vs. industry standards; and innovation and strategic development of safety policy and approaches.

"Maintaining a safe workplace means maintaining a productive workplace and these employers' commitment to safety should serve as an example to all Pennsylvania employers," said Labor & Industry Secretary Julia Hearthway.

The application process for the Governor's Award for Safety Excellence is highly competitive. The award recognizes successful employer-employee safety programs that produce tangible safety improvements.

The ten 2013 Governor's Award for Safety Excellence winners are:

Voith Turbo Inc., York County
Voith Turbo Inc. had zero lost time work injuries in 2012, and has gone 811 days, or more than 818,000 hours, without a lost time injury. They have also reduced their OSHA recordable rate from 2.31 in 2011 to 2.07 in 2012. The company has undertaken ergonomic considerations of tools and methods, has replaced irritant-containing cleaning solutions with ultrasonic, non-offensive solutions that resulted in less physical labor, and has constructed special carts for holding and transporting large work pieces.

ABMECH, Inc., Allegheny County
ABMECH, Inc. is a Silver Contractor Award recipient of the 2011 Theodore H. Brodie Distinguished Safety Award. They are an active participant in the state-certified workplace safety initiative and have an extensive new employee training program. ABMECH also has a safety discipline program, a substance abuse program and daily worksite inspections and self-safety evaluations. Their mission statement is "To provide a workplace culture that is conducive to achieving maximum productivity in dangerous working environments by addressing potential safety deficiencies first and foremost."

Dynamic Manufacturing, Armstrong County
As of Sept. 13, 2013, Dynamic Manufacturing had worked 1,058,773 hours since their last work-related accident. The company keeps a safety log in the production area that has resulted in a high level of associate awareness and participation. Monthly town talk meetings discuss safety issues that are addressed with all associates. Dynamic Manufacturing also has integrated safety policies and procedures with all employees to stress the philosophy that safety is everyone's top priority.

Avery Dennison, Bucks County
Avery Dennison's location in Quakertown has achieved 627 days without an injury. Its workplace safety committee's dedication to safety is reflected by the company as a whole, whose motto is "Zero is achievable." They have implemented an "Ideas for Action" program, allowing employees to make suggestions to improve processes and procedures. The company also regularly posts and distributes safety "single point lessons," single laminated sheets explaining when a process or procedure is changed. Color-coded mats and walkways identify danger zones throughout the facility and the company recently implemented a wellness program and a nurse's station staffed by a certified nurse.

AFS Energy Systems, Cumberland County
Advanced Fabrications Systems, Inc., or AFS, has been a SHARP organization, OSHA's Safety and Health Achievement Recognition program, since 2009 and has been an innovator in safety programs including an inspection process that has been advanced by SHARP. Inspections include monthly assessments on equipment as well as preventative maintenance policies. They participate in a regular "Safety by Walkthrough" program that has staff walking through the premises, including the site's three buildings, campus and grounds, to find and rectify safety issues. The company also shares their safety program on the Internet to aid other organizations in achieving their safety goals.

MI Metals, Inc., Dauphin County
MI Metals has achieved certification under the OSHA Safety and Health Achievement and Recognition Program, or SHARP, in 2008 and continues to be a SHARP facility today. They were also awarded the Governor's Award for Safety Excellence in 2008. MI Metals reduced their injuries from eight in 2004 to zero in 2012, and their workers' compensation costs have dropped from over $12,000 in 2003 to $322 in 2012. The company maintains an Injury and Illness Prevention Program based on the American National Standards Institute Z-10 system.

MI Windows and Doors, Dauphin County
MI Windows and Doors, LLC has been an OSHA Safety and Health Achievement and Recognition Program, or SHARP, for five years and is currently moving toward obtaining VPP status from OSHA. MI has instituted a stretching program for all employees, wherein all employees are given instruction in appropriate stretching exercises prior to starting work or when completing certain tasks. They require all contractors to be trained using MI's Safety & Health Program, and "Safety Alerts" are sent out corporate-wide any time a serious safety incident or near-miss occurs, so other facilities can be proactive in preventing these issues.

Equipower, Delaware County
Liberty Electric Power is one of 11 plants that make up the Equipower fleet. The plant achieved recognition as Star site under the OSHA Voluntary Protection Program in May 2011 and continues to be a Star facility. The company makes use of a new employee training and shadowing program, and requires contractor orientation with safety videos. They also use a user group email for dissemination of safety issue information, as well as an anonymous "call box" for communicating in-house safety issues.

Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, Lackawanna County
Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control is an OSHA VPP Star site, receiving its five-year certification in March 2013. The company operates a "Close Call" system, an intranet reporting system that allows for proactive and post-accident reporting. A Global Recall system oversees the regular calibration of all equipment in use, and their "Generating Ideas for Tomorrow," or GIFT, program rewards employees for safety suggestions from suggestion boxes located throughout the facility.

Tobyhanna Army Depot, Monroe County
Tobyhanna Army Depot has been an OSHA VPP Star worksite since 2010. Its safety red card program allows employees to show a red card notifying a supervisor to stop and correct unsafe acts. In order to reduce fossil fuel vehicle emissions, the depot initiated an indoor electrical vehicle program. A "Fire Safety House," a contained unit designed to train families about emergency response in the event of a fire or other emergency, can be transported through the community as well as the base itself.

For more information on making Pennsylvania's workplaces safer, visit www.dli.state.pa.us and click "Workplace and Community Safety."

Media contact:
Valerie Caras, Governor's Office; 717-783-1116
Sara Goulet, L&I; 717-787-7530

SOURCE Pennsylvania Office of the Governor