Genie hits health and safety record

Health and safety in the workplace is at an all time high at Genie Australia after the company recorded 365 days devoid of a Lost Time Injury (LTI).

The company decided to implement a series of measures to bring LTI to an all-time low as far back as 2010. Since then, Genie Australia has gone through a period of rigorous analysis to determine the causes of workplace injuries and then work to eradicate them.

“The workforce at Genie, from top to bottom, committed to a change in safety culture. Safety assumed a heightened status and we encouraged everyone in the Genie organisation to talk about hazards and report problems,” said national safety manager of Genie Australia, Chris Bond.

Changes were made in the workplace, with measures put in place to reduce the manual handling of heavy objects, while training focused on better ergonomics and the use of appropriate materials handling equipment.

In addition, workshops were critically assessed and problem areas rectified, while safety awards were introduced.

“We’ve established a new benchmark at Genie,” said Mr Bond. “The pressure is now on everyone here to ensure that our LTI record grows well past the 365 days logged.”

Having achieved a zero LTI record, the next objective is to achieve a zero injuries record.

Meanwhile, Genie Australia is also driving the Terex ‘Year of the Service Technician’ throughout 2014.

Ron DeFeo, chairman and CEO of Terex Corporation and Matt Fearon, president of Terex Aerial Work Platforms, are driving the global programme, which aims to acknowledge the contribution that field service technicians make to the success of the company and its customers.

“Customers rely upon the service technicians in our organisation to make our products do what they are supposed to do,” said Mr DeFeo. “In 2013, our technical team members in the field did a great job so we decided to dedicate 2014 to them in recognition of their continuing drive and support of the Genie brand.”