Ash Grove’s Durkee cement plant wins safety and maintenance awards

Durkee plant competed with eight other Ash Grove cement plants and two grinding facilities to win the L.T. Sunderland Safety Excellence Award and top honors in the company’s annual Maintenance Excellence Programme (MEP) competition. The plant won both awards for the first time in 2014.

For the L.T. Sunderland Safety Excellence Award, each facility is evaluated on an extensive matrix of data that is focused on health and safety processes and results. The Ash Grove Safety Leadership Steering Committee scores each of the health and safety metrics used in selecting the best overall performing plant. The plant with the highest score is selected to receive the award.

“Each year we select the top-performing plants as finalists for the award,” said Steve Minshall, Ash Grove Corporate Health and Safety Director, who also oversees the evaluation process. “For 2014, along with the winner, Durkee, the finalists were the Leamington, Utah, and Midlothian, Texas, cement manufacturing plants and the Rivergate lime plant in Portland, Oregon. These plants exhibited a high degree of health and safety competence by attaining Gold status in the company’s Safety Leadership Awards for 2014.”

“Winning the L.T. Sunderland Safety Excellence Award is an honor for our team,” said Durkee Plant Manager Terry Kerby. “We work hard on our ongoing commitment to the safety of each and every employee here, and winning this award is evidence of our efforts.”

For the top honors in the company’s annual Maintenance Excellence Program (MEP), each facility is assessed on several key performance indicators, such as the actual maintenance cost per equivalent t of cement. The MEP key performance indicators show both financial and functional performance as to how well plants are mastering the MEP concept and improving their overall maintenance performance.

“The Durkee plant consistently uses best maintenance practices to meet the demands of customers while producing a quality product,” said Bruce Newell, Ash Grove Vice President Manufacturing Services. “Ash Grove’s MEP process has been ingrained in the employees’ daily routines, making the plant a low cost producer in the industry. Durkee’s thorough planning, safe work execution and high equipment reliability make this plant a consistent MEP award winner. They’ve earned it six out of the seven years the award has been presented, the last five years in a row. That’s a great track record.”

“Winning another Ash Grove award for operational efficiency reflects well on our entire team. Our employees work hard to maintain and improve costs so it’s very satisfying to see their efforts recognised,” added Terry Kerby.

Edited from various sources by Harleigh Hobbs

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/the-americas/08052015/durkee-cement-plant-awarded-top-safety-award-and-top-maintenance-award-808/