Mary Schmidt
Phone: 920-284-7165
Email: mkschmidt@centurytel.net
The Boldt Company reaches safety milestone at four million hours without a single lost time accident
The Boldt Company is proud to announce its achievement of four million hours worked without a lost time accident. “It’s been the dedication to safety by each and every person in our organization which has gotten us to this milestone,” said Bob DeKoch, Boldt president and COO. “Our most important job is getting everyone home safely. Reaching this milestone is a testament to our commitment.”
Four million hours. That’s an average of over 2,600 continuous safe work hours completed by every Boldt employee—the equivalent of one person working 24 hours a day for over 450 years. Reaching this mark in one of the nation’s most dangerous professions has been more than just good fortune.
The dangers Boldt must plan for are many, as the company serves a diverse customer base. When Boldt employees are on projects in the power or wind industries, work must often be done hundreds of feet in the air while lifting extremely heavy components—where there is no room for error. “There are a lot of safety challenges on these jobs like extreme heights, confined spaces and adverse weather, but no matter what the condition, we still have to ensure our crews are working safely,” said Boldt Safety Director Jeff Schilleman. “Our goal is to meet the customers’ needs, but we won’t sacrifice safety for anything.”
Boldt safety personnel credit training and building a safety culture with their success. “Safety is not just about those on the jobsites, but their families and all of our employees both at work and home,” said Jeff Johnson, vice president of human resources and risk management. “We try to show our employees we care about their well-being and not just the bottom line, which then comes through in our safety results.”
Boldt has been named “One of America’s Safest Companies” by EHS Today Magazine, has won a record nine Wisconsin Corporate Safety Awards and was recently recognized by multiple awards from the Minnesota Safety Council. In 2002, CEO Tom Boldt was inducted into the Safety Hall of Fame.
To encourage safe work practices and conditions companywide, Boldt team members receive extensive training. Common safety communication and education materials focus on:
* Lifting from the knees to limit back injuries: Both at jobsites and in office environments, Boldt has been a pioneer in incorporating ergonomics in the workplace.
* Fall prevention: Boldt crews must be physically tied off if working 6 feet or more off the ground. Additionally, Boldt has purchased equipment specifically designed to minimize fall exposure such as aerial work platforms and specialized scaffolding.
* Housekeeping initiatives: Employees keep job sites clean and ensure no materials are carelessly left on the ground.
* Equipment use: Boldt stresses the importance of inspecting and removing damaged or broken tools—a critical step in workplace safety.
* Safety programs: Boldt tracks “near miss” events through its Continuous Safety Improvement Process to learn from potential accidents.
* Employee feedback: Boldt established a toll-free hotline so employees can call anonymously to report safety issues.
Boldt is proud of its safety achievement, but DeKoch insists this is just the beginning. “Four million hours without a lost time accident is a milestone we intend to build on,” said DeKoch. “Safety will always be our highest priority.”
ABOUT THE BOLDT COMPANY http://www.boldt.com
The Boldt Company, headquartered in Wisconsin, has 12 offices throughout the United States and is one of the leading sustainable construction services firms in the country. The firm provides professional construction services to customers in a variety of power, industrial, education, healthcare, commercial and renewable energy markets nationwide. The firm has been recognized as one of the safest companies in America.
Boldt Safety Record
The Boldt Company has logged over one million hours worked without an accident twice and recently logged over four million hours worked without a single lost time incident
Wisconsin Corporate Safety Awards: 1996, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011
2008 Boldt was named one of “America’s Safest Companies” according to EHS Today Magazine (formerly Occupational Hazards magazine), one of the leading safety journals in the nation
Recognition for incident rates at least 25 percent below national averages from the Associated General Contractors of America, National Constructors Association, and Wisconsin Health and Safety Congress
Formalized award-winning safety training programs, including eye protection, 100 percent fall prevention, blood borne pathogen/infection control measures and heat illness prevention plan
* Boldt CEO Tom Boldt was inducted into the Safety Hall of Fame in 2002.
