38 Finalists Chosen for Australia's National Safety Awards
The individual employees, safety managers, and companies represent a range of industries and hazard solutions, including highly successful first aid iPhone apps and an electrical engineer's contribution toward a national arc flash standard. Winners will be announced April 28.
Safe Work Australia on Monday announced the 38 finalists for the 6th Annual Safe Work Australia Awards, which are national safety and health awards commending efforts to prevent injuries and deaths on the job. Given in four categories, these awards will be presented April 28, World Day for Health and Safety at Work, in Canberra.
The four categories are Best Workplace Health and Safety Management System, Best solution to an identified workplace health and safety issue, Best workplace health and safety practice(s) in a small business, and Best individual contribution to workplace safety and health.
Finalists in the individual category include David Lynch, a safety supervisor for Hansen Yuncken Commercial Construction Division in Adelaide, who was site safety officer for the construction of the Adelaide Entertainment Centre project, which was completed with no lost-time injuries; and Danny Norton, senior electrical engineer for Sinclair Knight Merz, a design, consulting, and planning firm with projects in Asia, Europe, and South America. Norton developed risk assessment tools and workshops to help industry organizations and individuals prevent arc flash injuries at a time when there was no Australian standard addressing arc flash risks, and he has been instrumental in the progress toward development of an Australian standard in this area, according to Safe Work Australia.
One of the finalists in the Best solution to an identified workplace health and safety issue category is St John Ambulance Australia, a leading provider of first aid training, equipment, and services in the Australian Capital Territory. This organization developed three first aid iPhone apps -- MediProfiles, Resuscitate, and First Aid -- offering simple, interactive ways for Australians to review and retain their skills. Thousands of the apps have been purchased since they were introduced.
Safe Work Australia Chair Tom Phillips said the finalists "represent a range of industries across Australia, and these awards present an opportunity to recognise their outstanding contribution to reducing workplace death, injury and disease. Each year, the impressive list of finalists illustrates to me that the commitment to workplace safety is getting stronger and stronger."