Employee Safety
At Owens Corning, safety is a condition of employment. We believe that all accidents are preventable and have a clear goal for zero injuries.
2010 was our safest year in history, reducing our recordable incidence rate (RIR)1 by 21 percent from 2009 and achieving a new low of 0.66 per 100 employees. It is the ninth consecutive year that injuries were reduced. Since 2001, RIR has been reduced by 88 percent.
Employee Safety Incident Rates
We also use a leading indicator metric to track our progress in the pursuit of zero injuries called S.A.F.E. — Safety Assessment for Effectiveness. Our goal each year is to close the gap between the most recent score and a perfect score of 100. In 2010, our S.A.F.E. score increased from 87 in 2009 to 92.
To further reduce the severity and frequency of workplace injuries, we developed a second metric using the S.A.F.E. tool and identified the following six critical safety areas:
- Lock Tag Try
- Confined Space
- Machine Guarding
- Powered Industrial Vehicles
- Fall Protection
- Automobile Safety
In 2010, our score using the “critical six” module S.A.F.E. improved to 69, up from 52 in 2009.
2010 Owens Corning Safety Awards
Owens Corning Safety Awards are designed to recognize individual safety leaders for their contributions to improving safety and protecting our employees around the world. These employees have lived and exemplified the behaviors, actions and commitment needed to achieve a zero-injury workplace.
More than 30 individuals and teams, representing Owens Corning’s operations around the world, were recognized with the following 2010 Owens Corning Safety Awards:
- Implementing the Presence of Safety
- Outstanding Safety Innovation
- Outstanding Safety Solutions
- Outstanding Safety Outreach
- Outstanding Continued Safety Excellence
Third-Party Recognition
An increasing number of Owens Corning sites in the U.S. are achieving OSHA Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) Star status — the highest recognition level within the program. The program sets performance-based criteria for a managed safety and health system with heavy emphasis on employee engagement in safety processes. OSHA’s verification includes an application review and a rigorous onsite evaluation by a team of OSHA safety and health experts.
Currently, seven of the company’s facilities have earned this honor, with a number of other sites in the pipeline.
- Brookville, Indiana Roofing
- Linnton, Oregon Asphalt
- Denver, Colorado Asphalt
- Houston, Texas Asphalt
- Houston, Texas Roofing
- Tiffin, Ohio OEM
- Cleveland, Tennessee OEM
The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development recognized the Kearny Asphalt facility with the Governor's Continued Excellence Award, the highest award given to companies without any work-related lost time from injury or illness for five or more consecutive years.
The National Safety Council recognized our Napa, California, United States, Masonry Products plant for achieving the best safety performance within its industry. It is one of 81 sites honored with the award, which is based on lowest total incidence rate and employee work hours.
Injury-free Manufacturing Sites
Around the world, 10 of our manufacturing sites have been injury-free for five or more years:
- Denver, Colorado, United States, Asphalt
- Granite City, Illinois, United States, Asphalt
- Houston, Texas, United States, Asphalt
- Jacksonville, Florida United States, Asphalt
- Jiading, China, Non-Woven
- Kansas City, Kansas, United States, Warehouse
- Kearny, New Jersey, United States, Asphalt
- Louisville, Kentucky, United States, Automotive
- Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, Asphalt
- Novi, Michigan, United States, Automotive
In addition, the following sites have logged more than 1 million injury-free man hours:
- Gous-Kroustalny, Russia, Glass Reinforcements
- Kimchon, Korea, Glass Reinforcements
- Napa, California, United States, Manufactured Stone Veneer
- Rio Claro, Brazil, Glass Reinforcements
- Santa Clara, California, United States, Thermal and Acoustical Insulation
- Tlaxcala, Mexico, Composite Reinforcements
Contractor Safety
We expect the same unconditional approach to safety from our contractors as our own teams practice daily. In 2010, our contractor recordable incidence rate per 100 employees dropped by fifty-two percent.
Contractor Safety Incident Rates
1RIR — Recordable Incidence Rate, as defined by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics: Number of Recordable Injuries X 200,000 hours divided by the number of man-hours actually worked. The 200,000 hours represents the equivalent of 100 employees working 40 hours per week, 50 weeks per year, and provides the standard base for the incidence rates.
2LWIR — Lost Workday Incidence Rate, as defined by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics: Number of Lost Workday Injuries X 200,000 divided by the number of man-hours actually worked. The 200,000 hours represents the equivalent of 100 employees working 40 hours per week, 50 weeks per year, and provides the standard base for the incidence rates.
