MILWAUKEE - At a ceremony held recently, Paul W. Jones, A. O. Smith Corp. chairman and CEO, presented the 450 Fabricantes Motores Electricos (FME) employees with the Lloyd B. Smith President’s Safety Award. The award is given annually to the A. O. Smith facility that makes the most improvement in workplace safety.

The electric motor assembly plant has stressed the importance of preventing accidents through improved procedures, extensive training, and timely communications regarding safe working practices, according to Arturo Vazquez, operations manager.

Workplace safety is a part of FME’s daily department meetings as well as a regular topic at the plant’s zero-defect meeting, Vazquez explained. One of the plant’s goals is to achieve an accident incident rate of zero, and regular, daily communications play an important role in keeping employees aware of the goal.

A total of 35 A. O. Smith plants throughout the world competed to earn this year’s President’s Safety Award. Each facility is evaluated based on three statistical measures as well as through evidence of a comprehensive plant-wide safety program.

FME either placed first or was tied for first in the three statistical measures: lost workday case incidence rate, recordable case incidence rate, and lost workday incidence rate.

This is the second time FME has earned the President’s Safety Award. The plant received its first President’s Safety Award in 2002.

Publication date: 06/13/2011