Dow chemical plant in California sets safety records

Accidents are inevitable – or are they? Talk to any employee at Dow's Pittsburg Operations and they will tell you accidents – and injuries – are preventable. The site in Pittsburg, Calif., has recently achieved several key safety milestones working one year without a recordable injury and has established a new site safety record working 392 days injury-free (and still counting). This is a significant improvement from a site that had more than a dozen injuries several years ago.

Dow has always stated its top priority is the safety of its employees – employees should go home at the end of the day in the same shape they arrived at work.

"This milestone is not reached by accident," stated Dale Backlund, Responsible Care leader at the site. "For every task, the people on site have to plan their work, identify the hazards and risks, and then take action to mitigate the hazards. Exceptional safety performance takes a 100% time commitment from all of us, and for the past year, all 450 people servicing the site every day practiced and delivered safe work habits."

In fact, employees and contractors alike have been focused on attaining this record – and maintaining it well beyond. For the past 15 weeks, employees and contractors have embarked on a journey called "History in the Making: Going for the Gold." Every department took on a weekly safety message and looked for creative ways to communicate that message to the site. From handing out tire gauges (driving safely) to recording a rap song about teamwork, creating videos featuring employees sharing key learning experiences in their career and word games about rail safety and prevention of slips, trips and falls -- the messages were clear: hazards abound but injuries are preventable.

Going for the Gold was a reference to the Olympics and the three levels of recognition. The Bronze Medal was achieved on December 9th when the site surpassed the one-year mark (365 days) of no injuries. The Silver Medal was "awarded" on January 1 to recognize working an entire calendar year without injury. The Gold Medal was bestowed today as the site reached 392 days without injury – an all-time record in the history of Dow Pittsburg.

Site leader Tod Sutton is extremely proud of this record. "We finished 2009 with more than 1,000,000 man-hours worked without a recordable injury. Every employee and contractor on site is responsible for that. Safety programs are only as good as those who carry them out," he said. "And now, our focus is on maintaining and sustaining this performance level one day at a time, one person at a time, and one task at a time."

About Dow

Dow is a diversified chemical company that combines the power of science and technology with the "Human Element" to constantly improve what is essential to human progress. The company delivers a broad range of products and services to customers in approximately 160 countries, connecting chemistry and innovation with the principles of sustainability to help provide everything from fresh water, food and pharmaceuticals to paints, packaging and personal care products. In 2008, Dow had annual sales of $57.5 billion and employed approximately 46,000 people worldwide. The company has 150 manufacturing sites in 35 countries and produces approximately 3,300 products. On April 1, 2009, Dow acquired Rohm and Haas Company, a global specialty materials company with sales of $10 billion in 2008, 98 manufacturing sites in 30 countries and approximately 15,000 employees worldwide.