Rockwell Automation was presented the Safety Innovators Award by the Safety and Health Hall of Fame International during the 87th annual National Safety Council Congress & Expo on Oct. 18 in New Orleans.
Honored as a leader and a pioneer in environmental, health and safety (EHS) worldwide, Rockwell and its 25,000 employees in more than 60 countries were recognized for the company's standardization and implementation of a comprehensive safety process. The result has been a reduction in injuries and illnesses.
Rockwell developed 67 standardized processes and 40 training modules in support of the safety process, which focuses on regulatory compliance and best management practices for all levels of employees. To ensure consistency, audits with closed loop management processes and safety workshops were developed. Standardization has reduced the cost of safety program development and implementation by reducing duplication of effort at the local level.
The National Safety Council also honored individuals during its Congress. It inducted two people into the Safety and Health Hall of Fame International and selected 15 professionals as Distinguished Service to Safety Award winners.
Frank E. Mirer, Ph.D., and A.J. Scardino Jr., Ph.D. were inducted into the hall of fame for their contributions to the EHS industry.
Mirer, a chemist and director of the Health and Safety Department of the International Union of Automotive Workers since 1982, has influenced health and safety through his publications, research, organizational role in collective bargaining and constant legislative efforts. He has raised awareness of health risks of metal-working fluids in the auto industry and workers' respiratory health. He also was key in establishing joint efforts between management and union health and safety programs.
Scardino has been a leader in investigation safety problems and determining innovative solutions for many years. He conducted the first in-depth study of personal flotation devices for employees working around water. Vest designs were altered so that semiconscious or unconscious workers would turn face-up to prevent drowning. He is the principal force behind the development of the Institute of Performance Procedures for Industry, a project dedicated to stressing good performance procedures rather than minimum standards.
Distinguished Service to Safety Award recipients:
- Business and industry: H.L. Boling, president, H.L. Boling & Associates, Pima, Ariz.; and Glenn D. Daviet, director of Federal Express Program, Sedgwick Claims Management Services, Memphis, Tenn.
- Labor: Homer L. Sterner, safety director and business representative, International Union of Operating Engineers Local 547, Detroit.
- Construction: V. Sherwood Kelly, senior vice president, Willis Corroon Construction, Nashville, Tenn.; and Daniel J. Murphy, vice president or risk management, St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Co., St. Paul, Minn.
- Utilities: Richard C. Biedenbach, director of safety, health and environmental affairs, Rochester Gas and Electric Corp., Ontario, N.Y.; Dean Chappell, director of safety (eastern zone), GTE Service Corp., Tampa, Fla.; and Michael J. Kowalsky, director of workplace safety, American Water Works Service Co., Voorhees, N.J.
- Highway traffic safety: Gary D. March, president, March and Associates, Springfield, Ill.
- Educational resources: Robert Bates, Health Studies Department chair, Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, Ill.; and John W. Palmer, director of Minnesota Highway Safety Center, St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, Minn.
- Campus safety: Jimmy D. Matthews, director of environmental, health and safety, Hudson Health Center, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio; Martha McDougall, director of environmental, health and safety, University of California, La Jolla, Calif.; and Robert Harry Stiteler Jr., manager of special projects, Environmental Health and Safety Department, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas.
- Community safety: John Rose, vice president or Risk Management Department, Irwin Siegel Agency Inc., Rock Hill, N.Y.