Safety is Our Job One

A commitment to safe commercial flooring projects earned Intertech Excellence in Safety

Did you know that injury rates in construction are 71% higher than injury rates across all industries on average, according to the National Institutes of Health? And that the construction industry accounts for 8.5% of all injuries that result in lost days of work, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics? The BLS says more than 130,000 construction workers missed days of work due to injuries in 2019.

It’s no revelation that construction can be an accident-prone industry. That is why we take safety seriously at Intertech Flooring. Our commitment to making safety one of our highest priorities is what garnered Intertech the Gold Level Safety Award of Excellence by the Associated Builders and Contractors Central Texas Chapter this summer.

What Does It Take to Earn Gold Level Excellence in Safety?

To earn ABC’s Gold Safety designation, Intertech had to first meet a 25-item checklist of criteria demonstrating its leadership commitment to providing a safe work environment; the processes used to ensure employee safety; a company culture that prioritizes safety training; and proven results. Contractor recommendations factor into nominations as well.

A Proven Track Record of Safety

Intertech Flooring also demonstrated a track record of safety on commercial flooring installation projects. A high Experience Modifier Rating or EMR is the insurance industry’s mechanism for rating a company’s safety record. “The EMR is usually viewed in three-year periods,” said Terry Bessire, vice president of Intertech’s Austin Operations.  “Our ratings for the last three years have been good, as our incidents have been minimal with no major injuries.”

Commercial contractors like Intertech Flooring also are rated on their safety performance through the OSHA’s legally required form 300. Companies must report any incidents or injuries their employees have experienced., and how many days of work were missed due to the injury. These reports factor into the company’s EMR by their insurance company since incidents result in worker’s compensation that they must pay out.

Intertech’s Safety Training Program

Intertech uses a multi-faceted safety training approach, consisting of its own training sessions along with training available outside the company.

Every Monday morning, for instance, you can find the Intertech team participating in a safety class. “We use a safety manual that gives us a new topic to cover every week,” said Bessire. First aid and CPR classes are offered to crew leaders and other key personnel. Defensive driving classes will become part of the safety curriculum soon.

In addition to these internal training sessions, Intertech requires its crew leaders to obtain OSHA’s 30-hour safety certificate. All installation crew members also must get the OSHA 10-hour safety certificate as soon as possible after joining the company. Only trained drivers are allowed to drive the larger Intertech trucks. Training also is required to operate other specialized equipment like forklift trucks, skylifts and demolition equipment.

Safety Because People Matter

“Ensuring the safety of our employees is a fundamental part of our company culture,” said Bessire. “One of our core values is “people matter” and prioritizing safety is one way that we live out that value every day. We also believe in “doing the right thing, always”, and by conducting ourselves in a safe way on every commercial flooring project we show our commitment to those words.”