RoSPA Press Office : Press Release

May 25, 2007
CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY TRIUMPHS AT SAFETY AWARDS

The construction industry claimed more than 550 honours at the RoSPA Occupational Health and Safety Awards, including the premier accolade, the Sir George Earle Trophy.

The huge number of achievement awards and major trophies picked up by the industry underlined the growing commitment to health and safety by forward-thinking construction firms among the total of 1,400 winners.

The Sir George Earle Trophy went to Costain Major Civil Engineering Division of Maidenhead, Berkshire. Costain was also a joint winner of the Engineering Construction Sector along with British Nuclear Group Reactor Sites, Berkeley, Gloucestershire. Highly commended in the sector were: EMCOR Engineering Services, Manchester, and Interserve Industrial Services, Ellesmere Port, Cheshire.

Other successes in the competitive sections of the awards scheme, now in its 51st year, included: Construction Commercial Sector: winner – ISG InteriorExterior, London; highly commended - Balfour Beatty Construction Scottish and Southern, Edinburgh, and Haden Young Ltd, Watford; and commended - Morrison Utility Services, Stevenage. House Building and Property Development sector: winner – St George plc, Twickenham, Middlesex.

The Norwich Union Trophy for small to medium-sized organisations demonstrating an excellent track record and highest standards of health and safety management went to Ashridge Construction of Thatcham, Berkshire. Skanska Utilities of Leeds became the first winner of the RoSPA International Dilmun Environmental Award, sponsored by Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company of Bahrain, with Costain Ltd highly commended.

Tom Mullarkey, RoSPA Chief Executive, said: “Organisations and businesses which not only proclaim the importance of health and safety, but actually deliver consistent standards of health and safety risk management deserve full recognition.

“To be judged best in sector, contenders have to demonstrate outstanding approaches to issues such as director leadership, workforce involvement and the use of professional services.

“Winners of this year’s RoSPA sector awards and other major trophies have demonstrated commitment to preventing accidents and work-related ill-health and have not only saved lives and reduced injuries, but contributed to business excellence. Sector award winners stand as a beacon to other organisations and we urge others to learn from and emulate their achievements.”

The awards, sponsored by NEBOSH, were presented over three days (May 22-24) of gala dinners and ceremonies at the Birmingham Hilton Metropole Hotel, at the NEC, attended by nearly 3,000 people.
The presentations were made by Baroness Gibson of Market Rasen, President of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, Lord Jordan of Bournville, Deputy President, Lord Brougham and Vaux, Vice-President, and Tom Mullarkey, RoSPA Chief Executive.

+A list of winners and pictures are available on request.

For other sector winners see: www.rospa.com/awards/winners2007/