August 8, 2007 • The Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) announced the winners of its safety awards during its Annual Conference, April 10-14, at The Westin La Cantera Resort in San Antonio, Texas.
Gatwood Crane Service, Arlington Heights, Ill., won two awards this year: the Crane & Rigging Safety Award for its superior safety record, and the Crane & Rigging Zero Accidents Award for not having a single recordable accident or injury in the past year. Gatwood has had several accident-free years, which can be attributed to the company's emphasis on safety awareness. The company holds weekly safety meetings with employees to keep them up to date on any new hazards and the company reviews accidents in the Chicago area that may have circumstances similar to their own work environments to try to increase awareness.
“We at Gatwood Crane Service have always strived to have an accident-free environment,” said Ed Gatwood, president of Gatwood Crane Service. “It means a lot to receive an award like this that signifies that you are doing something right.”
In addition to Gatwood, eleven other companies won the Crane & Rigging Safety Award: AmQuip Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa.; Atlas Industrial Contractors, Ltd., Columbus, Ohio; Connelly Crane Rental Corp., Detroit, Mich.; W.O. Grubb Steel Erection Inc., Richmond, Va.; Hampton Cranes, Inc., Bettendorf, Iowa; M&R Constructors, Inc. Richmond, Va.; Modern Crane Service, Inc., Onalaska, Wis.; Southern Industrial Constructors, Inc., Raleigh, N.C.; Stevenson Crane Service, Inc., Woodbridge, Ill.; George Young Company, Philadelphia, Pa.; and George Young Installations, Humacao, Puerto Rico.
Seven other companies received the Crane & Rigging Zero Accidents Award: AmQuip Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa.; Connelly Crane Rental Corp., Detroit, Mich.; Hampton Cranes, Inc., Bettendorf, Iowa; M&R Constructors, Inc., Richmond, Va.; Modern Crane Service, Inc., Onalaska, Wis.; Stevenson Crane Service, Inc., Woodbridge, Ill.; and George Young Installations, Humacao, Puerto Rico.
Crane Rental Corp., Orlando, Fla., was one of three companies to receive the Crane & Rigging Safety Improvement Award for showing an improved incidence rate compared to the previous year's contest entry. The company's philosophy on safety is to promote a safety culture, letting employees know that safety is every employee's responsibility. Safety takes a front seat at this company, with safety meetings held weekly and minutes from those meetings sent out weekly as well. The company's in-house safety director, Mike Smith, heads up the safety program, which strives to combat some of the challenges the company faces, specifically a changing workforce and helping other nationalities in the workforce understand basic crane safety.
Crane Rental Corp. has received several other safety awards in recent years, including the ABC National Platinum Level Safety Award this year.
Other companies to receive the Safety Improvement Award this year include Atlas Industrial Contractors, Ltd., Columbus, Ohio, and Emmert International, Portland, Ore.
Six companies received a Fleet Safety Award for having the lowest accident frequency rate in different mileage categories: Landstar System Inc., Jacksonville, Fla., over 500 million miles; Bennett International Transport, McDonough, Ga., over 50 million miles; Ace Doran Hauling & Rigging, Cincinnati, Ohio, 20 to 50 million miles; Midwest Specialized Transportation, Inc., Rochester, Minn.; 5 to 20 million miles; Whitewood Transport Inc. Billings, Mont., 1.5 to 5 million miles; and Emmert International, Clackamas, Ore., 100,000 to 1.5 million miles.
Three companies received a Fleet Zero Accident Award for having no recordable injuries during all of 2006: Emmert International, Clackamas, Ore.; KMX International, Reading, Pa.; and George Young Installations PR, Humacao, Puerto Rico.
Four companies earned a Fleet Safety Improvement Award by showing a reduction in their accident frequency rate for miles traveled, compared to their previous year accident frequency rate: Ace Doran Hauling & Rigging, Cincinnati, Ohio; Emmert International, Clackamas, Ore.; George Young Company, Philadelphia, Pa.; and Landstar System Inc., Jacksonville, Fla.
