Stellar, an architecture, engineering, construction and mechanical services firm, has earned the Associated Builders and Contractors' (ABC) highest national safety designation for 2011-the Safety Training Evaluation Process (STEP) Diamond-level award. Stellar was the only contractor in the Florida First Coast Chapter (with more than 140 member companies), and one of only four in Florida, to earn Diamond status.
There are six levels of STEP achievement: Participant, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. Member companies that achieve Diamond status-a new level established just last year-are an elite group. More than 2,100 ABC contractor members applied for the STEP program in 2011, with just 94 members achieving STEP Diamond status.
"Our most important goal is to send our employees and subcontractors home safe to their families, every day," said Philip Hinrichs, Stellar's Vice President of Risk Management. "That's why we develop a job-specific safety plan for each and every project and perform safety audits on a regular basis. We're proud to see these efforts recognized."
Stellar has achieved STEP certification 16 years in a row. Now widely accepted as the construction industry's standard measure of safety performance, the STEP awards were established in 1989 to evaluate and improve safety practices and recognize outstanding safety efforts. The award criteria include two industry benchmarks-the experience modification rate (EMR), which is applied to workers' compensation premiums, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) recordable injury and illness incidence rates (measured by the number of incidents per 100 employees per year).
STEP Diamond recipients must have long-term records of exceptional safety performance, with EMRs at or below 0.7 (a significantly lower rate than the national average of 1.0) and average incidence rates at least 50 percent below construction industry averages. EMRs, developed by the insurance industry, are based on comparisons of firms doing similar types of work. Lower rates, meaning that fewer or less-severe accidents occurred, result in lower insurance costs. BD+C
Related Stories
Office Buildings | Apr 2, 2024
SOM designs pleated façade for Star River Headquarters for optimal daylighting and views
In Guangzhou, China, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) has designed the recently completed Star River Headquarters to minimize embodied carbon, reduce energy consumption, and create a healthy work environment. The 48-story tower is located in the business district on Guangzhou’s Pazhou Island.
K-12 Schools | Apr 1, 2024
High school includes YMCA to share facilities and connect with the broader community
In Omaha, Neb., a public high school and a YMCA come together in one facility, connecting the school with the broader community. The 285,000-sf Westview High School, programmed and designed by the team of Perkins&Will and architect of record BCDM Architects, has its own athletic facilities but shares a pool, weight room, and more with the 30,000-sf YMCA.
Market Data | Apr 1, 2024
Nonresidential construction spending dips 1.0% in February, reaches $1.179 trillion
National nonresidential construction spending declined 1.0% in February, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data published today by the U.S. Census Bureau. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $1.179 trillion.
Affordable Housing | Apr 1, 2024
Biden Administration considers ways to influence local housing regulations
The Biden Administration is considering how to spur more affordable housing construction with strategies to influence reform of local housing regulations.
Affordable Housing | Apr 1, 2024
Chicago voters nix ‘mansion tax’ to fund efforts to reduce homelessness
Chicago voters in March rejected a proposed “mansion tax” that would have funded efforts to reduce homelessness in the city.
Standards | Apr 1, 2024
New technical bulletin covers window opening control devices
A new technical bulletin clarifies the definition of a window opening control device (WOCD) to promote greater understanding of the role of WOCDs and provide an understanding of a WOCD’s function.
Adaptive Reuse | Mar 30, 2024
Hotel vs. office: Different challenges in commercial to residential conversions
In the midst of a national housing shortage, developers are examining the viability of commercial to residential conversions as a solution to both problems.
Sustainability | Mar 29, 2024
Demystifying carbon offsets vs direct reductions
Chris Forney, Principal, Brightworks Sustainability, and Rob Atkinson, Senior Project Manager, IA Interior Architects, share the misconceptions about carbon offsets and identify opportunities for realizing a carbon-neutral building portfolio.
Reconstruction & Renovation | Mar 28, 2024
Longwood Gardens reimagines its horticulture experience with 17-acre conservatory
Longwood Gardens announced this week that Longwood Reimagined: A New Garden Experience, the most ambitious revitalization in a century of America’s greatest center for horticultural display, will open to the public on November 22, 2024.
Office Buildings | Mar 27, 2024
A new Singapore office campus inaugurates the Jurong Innovation District, a business park located in a tropical rainforest
Surbana Jurong, an urban, infrastructure and managed services consulting firm, recently opened its new headquarters in Singapore. Surbana Jurong Campus inaugurates the Jurong Innovation District, a business park set in a tropical rainforest.