CPA awards composite panel plants for safety
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NAPLES, Fla. - The Composite Panel Association recognized more than a dozen companies for safety achievements during the group's spring meeting held recently in Naples, Florida.
 
The 2018 Safety Award was given to participating manufacturing plants with exemplary safety records, including acknowledgments for long-term, annual, safety improvement, and safety achievement. For each award, plants are categorized by low worker-hours (Class I) and high-worker hours (Class II).
 
The awards for the best long-term safety record over the past three years were given to Arauco North America, Moncure, North Carolina (Class I) and Louisiana-Pacific Corp., Roaring River, North Carolina (Class II).
 
The annual safety awards for having zero incidents in 2018 were given to Arauco North America, Moncure, North Carolina and Timber Products, Martell, California for Class I plants, and Panolam, Huntsville, Ontario and Louisiana-Pacific, Roaring River, North Carolina for Class II plants.
 
Two plants recognized for safety improvement were West Fraser Mills, Whitecourt, Alberta (Class I) and Panolam, Huntsville, Ontario (Class II).
 
Ten plants were recognized for achieving an incident rate of less than 50 percent of the industry average over the past three years. Class I plants were Arauco North America, Eugene, Oregon; Arauco North America, Moncure, North Carolina; Roseburg, El Dorado Arkansas; Roseburg, Taylorsville, Mississippi and West Fraser Mills, Whitecourt, Alberta. Class II plants were Arauco North America, Malvern, Arkansas; Arauco North America (MDF), Bennettsville, South Carolina; Arauco North America, Sault Ste Marie, Ontario; Louisiana-Pacific Corp., East River, Nova Scotia and Louisiana-Pacific Corp., Roaring River, North Carolina.
 
 
2018 Safety Innovation Award
 
CPA also awarded Arauco North America’s Malvern, Arkansas, plant with its 2018 Safety Innovation Award. The Safety Innovation Award recognizes a mill that has instituted a new policy, process or technology that has made it a safer place to work. The Malvern plant’s use of the proprietary Hit-Not System is a state-of-the-art tool for reducing the risk to pedestrians in the wood yard.
 
Hit-Not uses low-frequency magnetic fields that can pass through walls and structures. A magnetic field generator is placed on all powered equipment and a personal alarm device is worn by all pedestrians in their high-visibility vest. The personal alarm device receives a signal from the generator on the equipment warning pedestrians and the equipment operators of possible danger. With this system in place, any time a pedestrian enters the wood yard, operators of front-end loader must place their bucket on the ground until the pedestrian leaves the area.
 
CPA said it will post summaries of all the safety innovation award submittals with the hope that best practices can be adopted industry-wide.

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About the author
Karen Koenig | Editor

Karen M. Koenig has more than 30 years of experience in the woodworking industry, including visits to wood products manufacturing facilities throughout North America, Europe and Asia. As editor of special publications under the Woodworking Network brand, including the Red Book Best Practices resource guide and website, Karen’s responsibilities include writing, editing and coordinating of editorial content. She is also a contributor to FDMC and other Woodworking Network online and print media owned by CCI Media. She can be reached at [email protected]