NSW EH&S Awards Winners Announced

CCAA’s NSW Environment, Health & Safety Awards (EH&S) were awarded at the Construction Materials Industry Dinner, held at the iconic Sydney Cricket Ground on 15 July 2016.   This is the 38th occasion that the EH&S Awards have been presented in NSW with the Minister for Industry, Resources and Energy, the Hon Anthony Roberts in attendance as this year’s guest speaker. 

“In total there were 34 impressive nominees over four award categories making it a difficult task for our judges.  All of these entries, whether winners or not, inspire new thinking and lead to the development of safer ways to work and minimise the impact on our environment,” Todd Hacking, NSW State Director said. 

Click here to view the EH&S Awards Booklet, which includes a summary of all entries. 

      

HEALTH & SAFETY INNOVATION - WINNER

HY-TEC INDUSTRIES PTY LTD – GRANTS HEAD QUARRY, EMERGENCY RESPONSE SAFETY STATION 
Responding to an observation that most mobile equipment has the fire extinguisher attached to it, requiring personnel to move towards danger in the event of a fire, led Hy-Tec to consider if there was a better, safer way to ensure access to these controls.  

This brainstorm led to the development and construction of a mobile Emergency Response and Safety Station, which is a one-stop-safety-shop, home to fire extinguishers, a spill kit, first aid kit, isolation and padlock station and lock-out-tag-out register, emergency air horn, PPE kit as well as a safety paperwork bench.  The Station is painted bright red, secure, easily transportable and may save valuable time in an emergency. 

HEALTH & SAFETY INNOVATION - HIGHLY COMMENDED

CONCRITE PTY LTD – CONCRETE PUSH TO TALK TO WAY RADIO 
We all know of the need and the regularity of two way communications in concrete agitators.  It is a necessity. Whilst use of a two way radio when driving is legal, there is always a risk when a driver takes their hand off the steering wheel to reach for the two-way radio and communicate by it.  Obviously, the risk to drivers, other road users and pedestrians could have catastrophic consequences.  

Recognising the need to operate smarter, Concrite has worked with a vehicle manufacturer to use a redundant button on the steering wheel and convert it to a push to talk communication system.  Once engaged, the radio is muted automatically and messages can be heard clearly all without the driver having to remove a hand from the steering wheel. 

HEALTH & SAFETY INNOVATION - HIGHLY COMMENDED

HY-TEC INDUSTRIES PTY LTD – AUSTEN QUARRY, EXCAVATOR BUCKET TOOTH EXCHANGER 
The team at Austen Quarry has custom built an apparatus, which has eliminated the need to manually handle the bucket teeth for their excavator. These excavator teeth wear relatively quickly and are replaced on a weekly basis.  Prior to the use of this new apparatus, the teeth needed to be held stable by an employee in the removal and fitting process. 

The apparatus supports the teeth, negating the need for an employee to be placed in the potentially dangerous situation of having their arm or hand crushed whilst supporting the teeth in the event of an issue arising.  New teeth weigh 29 kg and worn teeth typically weigh about 10 Kg. Worn Teeth are then easily disposed of into a recycling bin by use of the telehandler unit.  This device has significantly reduced the risk of injury and has reduced the time taken to complete the task. 

ENVIRONMENTAL INNOVATION - WINNER

HOLCIM (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD – JANDRA QUARRY OIL TROLLEY 
The team at Jandra Quarry got together to discuss methods to improve oil collection and disposal following a review of the task.  Like most workshops servicing heavy mobile equipment a 44 gallon drum, cut in half, was being used to collect the any oil spill.  This drum was then carried by hand to the oil storage tank to await disposal.  The risks of oil spills in the workshop and as staff carried the drum to the tank was high.  In addition the risk to staff in placing, retrieving, manual handling and disposing the oil was high.  

To solve this problem the team built a new mobile oil storage trolley, which is easily wheeled into the correct position, the trolley is then wheeled to the disposal tank and pumped into the tank.  The device has solved the risk of an environmentally harmful oil spill, whilst at the same time, reducing the frequency of the task and the number of employees required to empty the device.  As such, manual handling for staff in the workshop has also been eliminated.    

HEALTH & SAFETY BEST PERFORMANCE - WINNER

METROMIX PTY LTD – CONTRACTOR MANAGEMENT ACCESS AND INDUCTION SYSTEM 
Effectively managing the health & safety of contractors on site is often a challenge for operators.  Metromix, in an effort to proactively manage such risks, has implemented an integrated system that not only tracks contractors and employees working across their sites, but inducts them and records licencing information and other relevant documentation over time. 

The system confirms insurances, licences, inductions and vehicle registrations are up to date for all contractors and employees attending the site. Reminder notifications are sent when stored documentation is going to expire and sign in suspended if documentation is not up to date. The system has been tailored to meet Metromix’s requirements and is now used as a time card system to assist with Chain of Responsibility requirements.  They system uses QR code technology and is quick, efficient and reliable.  



  

ENVIRONMENTAL BEST PERFORMANCE - WINNER

HANSON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD – KULNURA QUARRY, REHABILITATION & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT INITIATIVE 
Kulnura Quarry has been progressively rehabilitating an earmarked overburden placement area for over 20 years.  In an effort to further the site’s successful rehabilitation efforts Kulnura decided to open up a new area for rehabilitation whilst furthering their engagement with the community at the same time.     

In doing so, they hosted 24 students from a local primary school to be involved in a rehabilitation initiative. The school was engaged from the start and the company took all precautions on the day of engagement to ensure a safe environment.  The NSW Department of Education was also consulted to ensure the visit was educational.  Approximately 150 saplings were planted by the students, with a further 350 planted by Hanson.  The day was a great way to extend an important environmental initiative, by promoting community engagement with key educational outcomes and has been a successful pilot, which can now be extended to other sites. 

ENVIRONMENTAL BEST PERFORMANCE - HIGHLY COMMENDED

HOLCIM (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD – BOAMBEE BEACH COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT 
In 2015, Holcim were given development approval to extract sand from Boambee Beach on the mid-north Coast.  It is a site with high visibility, an engaged local community, lots of interstate and international visitors and negative perceptions from previous extraction on the beach.  As such, it was necessary for Holcim to have industry-leading community engagement. 

All staff on site were specifically trained and inducted on the future operations and community engagement. The strategy ensured that every member of the public visiting the beach was engaged directly, that members of the public had access to information during operations and that all staff involved in the operation took responsibility for engaging with the community. As of today, there has not been a single negative comment received regarding the site, an amazing turnaround from previous attempts to extract from the site.     

          


For further information, contact Monique Andrew on (02) 9667 8300 or email [email protected]