8 July 2010

Two major Costain projects in Wales have achieved premier safety status.

The Costain A40 Penblewin to Slebech Park Improvement (or Robeston Wathen by-pass) has recently passed a safety milestone -  500,000 hours without a reportable accident and a zero Accident Frequency Rate.

The Early Contractor Involvement project for The Welsh Assembly Government commenced on site in the heart of Pembrokeshire in February 2009, with just under five kilometres of "2+1" carriageway to construct, 1.5km of side roads, four bridges, two underpasses, 10km of drainage pipe, 5 water treatment ponds, 250,000 m3 of material excavated and 8,000 trees and shrubs to plant.

With so many disciplines and a whole range of construction elements the planning and implementation is critical to ensure a safe and healthy environment for the Costain team, which averages a total workforce of 130.

Costain Project Manager, Mark Young, said: "The entire staff and supply chain had shown a dedication to the safe delivery of the project from day one, and I am extremely proud of the dedication of all contributors to this achievement. The support of the Client and his Agent has also been key to this achievement."

The Welsh Assembly Project Engineer, Martyn Leech, commented: "Reaching half a million man-hours of site work without a reportable accident is a significant achievement and is testament to the importance given by Costain to the safety of their workforce on site. The target now will be to maintain this throughout the remainder of the contract."

The Costain team working on the Dwr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW) framework has won the prestigious 'Occupational Health and Safety Excellence Award' at the 4th annual DCWW Health and Safety Awards held in Swansea.

In addition to this award, Project Manager, Mark Jones, was Commended in the award category 'Outstanding Individual Contribution to Health and Safety'.

John Madden, Framework Director for Costain said: "The whole Costain team in north Wales is delighted to receive these awards from Welsh Water. They recognise the team's contribution to Welsh Water's drive to improve Health and Safety standards. It is particularly pleasing that at the end of AMP4, Costain has been recognised as the winner of the much coveted Excellence Award."

The Excellence award was judged by an independent panel of assessors who commented:

"This was a comprehensive and focused presentation which clearly demonstrated Costain's commitment to the overall development of its health & safety management systems and resulting in demonstrable improvement - there was a clear commitment to 'raise the bar'. There was clear demonstration of leadership from the top and evidence of focussed risk management initiatives relevant to site challenges. These included initiatives such as health promotion and safety critical medicals for selected high risk operators, along with continued commitment to supervisor training and behavioural safety initiatives. Additionally, the company has innovatively undertaken a climate survey of its supply chain to engage its sub contractors in the health and safety drive for improvement."

Costain will receive a cheque for £2,500 from DCWW to be presented to a charity or charities; Costain staff in north Wales have been asked for suitable nominations.

 

Ends