More than 50 national and global construction firms this month joined forces with Tappan Zee Constructors, LLC (TZC) in an annual, industry-wide education and awareness event: Safety Week.
The event, which kicked off May 2, focused on work-related injury prevention, reflecting the New York State Thruway Authority’s commitment to safety and TZC’s “Take Zero Chances” motto on the New NY Bridge project.
TZC has worked more than six million hours with a total recordable incident rate well under the national average for a project of this size and scope.
“We credit this achievement to the men and women who are focused on safety every day as they work to construct this mega infrastructure project,” TZC President Terry Towle said.
TZC upper management participated with crew members in on-site activities throughout the week to reinforce the safety practices taught in more than one thousand of the project’s training seminars. This commitment to educate and inspire is a vital part of the project’s safety-first culture. “That’s why, on this job, if crew members are asked to do anything unsafe, if they see anything unsafe, they are allowed to stop the work and get it fixed,” Towle said.
To visually symbolize the messages behind Safety Week, event coordinators developed the theme of Safety Ties. The theme’s logo is reminiscent of interwoven rope, symbolizing the strength of the thousands of workers whose collaborative efforts help make safety an integral part of every operation. In recognition of its exemplary safety record, the New NY Bridge project was one of three major U.S. construction sites chosen to host ceremonial “ribbon tying” events to kick off the event. Participating companies also launched social media campaigns, asking team members to share photos of bootlaces as a visible homage to Safety Week.
“Building two three-mile bridges across the Hudson River is an enormous undertaking, particularly with the challenging weather conditions that often exist on the water,” said New NY Bridge Project Director Jamey Barbas, of the New York State Thruway Authority. “Ensuring the safety of workers and the public have always been our top priorities and we are extremely proud of the exceptional safety record on this historic project.”
Safety Week is sponsored by members of The Construction Industry Safety Initiative (CISI) and the Incident & Injury Free Executive Forum (IIF™). Additional support comes from the Alliance Partners, many of which are non-profit associations.
