It great to see companies doing the right thing, like protecting its employees and the environment. That’s especially true for a company in an industry that is inherently dangerous and that produces enormous amounts of waste.
Last year on the Union Station project, Kiewit employees had zero safety incidents and zero accidents, as defined by OSHA’s standards, which, in my experience are clearly defined and strict. Company wide, Kiewit’s accident rate is more than 75% lower than its industry average.
The commitment to recycling is just as impressive. As of October 2010, Kiewit diverted 9,719 tons of construction waste from landfills, which is over 98% of the waste that left the Union Station construction site. That is equivalent to 748 filled trash trucks, or the waste of nearly 650,000 homes.
So how do they do achieve these superlative results?
On the safety front, cautionary signs and motivational posters are everywhere, above and under ground. They have an all-hands meeting on the first Monday of each month when they review safety issues and identify potential hazards. Each morning, small groups of workers gather in circles for stretching and warm-up exercises to prevent muscle pulls and other strains during their vigorous work. A unique approach is their reminder to workers on bulletin boards like the one in the photo below. It’s titled, “Why We Work Safe.” It’s plastered with snapshots of the workers’ family members and pets. There is one entertaining exception. One worker posted a picture of his motorcycle. You can see it toward the upper right corner of the bulletin board in the first photo below.
The bulletin board, signs and posters are great for prevention. But even the best prevention program may not eliminate every accident. Therefore, there is a readiness for treatment of accident victims. Here’s an example of such preparation. Medical supplies and other safety equipment hang on the front of the free-standing board, and a gurney is on the back.
Way back, 13 months ago in Update #6, I wrote about Kiewit‘s recycling program. Evidence of it was easy to spot since it was out in the open. But, even now that much of the work is being done underground and out of sight inside the bus terminal, recycling continues to be a top priority. I came across the following sight during my tour last week.
It looks like the workers are doing the “hokey pokey”