Damuth Trane has announced it has achieved the Diamond rating in the Associated Builders and Contractor’s STEP Safety Management System, meaning the company is 655% safer than the industry average. They have now risen to the top ranking after previously achieving Platinum-level the past two calendar years. All local recipients were recognized at the ABC-VA Hampton Roads Chapter’s award ceremony held July 15.
Founded over 30 years ago, STEP has evolved into a world-class safety program that dramatically improves safety performance among construction industry participants. STEP participants measure their safety processes and policies on key components such as Experience Modifier Rate (EMR) and Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) among others through a detailed questionnaire with the goal of implementing or enhancing safety programs that reduce jobsite incidents. Ratings range from Diamond, the highest, to Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Participant. According to ABC’s annual Safety Performance Report, STEP participants, regardless of company size or type of work, and can reduce recordable incidents up to 85%, making the best performing companies more than eight times safer than the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics industry average.
In the past year, Damuth Trane achieved the “Million Work Hours Award” from the National Safety Council for the first year in the company’s history. This award was in recognition of reaching 1 million consecutive work hours with zero fatalities, occupational injuries, or illnesses resulting in days away from work. Additionally, Damuth Trane is currently in phase 2 of 3 of the Virginia Challenge Program in partnership with VOSH (Virginia Occupational Safety and Health), after just starting at the end of 2019. Virginia Challenge is a three-stage process that provides a road map for a company to become one of the safest and healthiest in the country. Companies that complete the Virginia Challenge Program will have an exemplary safety and health management system (SHMS) and will be prepared to apply for VPP STAR recognition*.
“Safety is an ongoing value of ours at Damuth Trane, and we’re able to keep excelling in this area because of systems like STEP which enable us to have a safer jobsite and ensure the health of our associates,” commented company president Clint Damuth; “We are proud of our associates for their commitment to continually raising the bar in safety performance.”
*Statistics taken from the ABC 2021 Safety Performance Report. To learn more about the STEP Program, visit www.abc.org/STEP
*For more information on the Virginia CHALLENGE, visit: https://www.doli.virginia.gov/voluntary-protection-program/challenge/