Coating Companies Top Safety Awards

WEDNESDAY, MAY 20, 2015

CHICAGO—In an era where shortcuts have become standard, five industrial coating contractors have been honored for staying a safer course.

FCA International (formerly, the Finishing Contractors Association) presented the honorees with its CREST (Contractors Recognizing Excellence in Safety Training) Award. Winners of the fifth annual award were announced May 8 at the organization's Leadership Council meeting in Chicago.

Photos: FCA International

Among the award winners honored May 8 (from left): Tom Carney, TEC Protective Coatings; LMCI's Steve Havens, representing HCI Industrial & Marine Coatings Inc.; Dave Johnson, Anderson Carpet; Brenna Bittner, Fryer-Knowles Inc.; Bobby Taylor, Mid-Illinois Companies Corp. At the dais is FCA chairman Mike Cassidy.

Photos: FCA International

Among the award winners honored May 8 (from left): Tom Carney, TEC Protective Coatings; LMCI's Steve Havens, representing HCI Industrial & Marine Coatings Inc.; Dave Johnson, Anderson Carpet; Brenna Bittner, Fryer-Knowles Inc.; Bobby Taylor, Mid-Illinois Companies Corp. At the dais is FCA chairman Mike Cassidy.

FCA is the largest community of finishing contractors in North America, representing more than 7,000 contractors.

A Priority on Protection

The awards were launched in 2011; winners "earn the right to say they are the safest contractors in their respective category," according to FCA.

"The FCA CREST Awards were created to encourage and recognize contractors who have led an effective safety program throughout the year," said Anthony Darkangelo, CEO of FCA.

"CREST Award winners have proven that protecting their employees is a priority at their company, and that they are a leader in construction safety."

Companies are recognized in several categories: Architectural Glass & Metal (four winners); Drywall Finishing (four winners); Flooring (two winners); Industrial Coating (five winners); and Painting & Wallcovering (seven winners).

"CREST Award winners have proven that protecting their employees is a priority at their company, and that they are a leader in construction safety," said FCA CEO Anthony Darkangelo.

The award criteria include:

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• Age of a company's safety program;
• New-employee and ongoing safety training;
• Injury/illness rates;
• Recordable incident rates; and
• Experience Modification Rate (EMR) trends.

FCA also recognizes entrants in the "Top 10 Finishers" category, which had 15 winners this year.

Industrial Coating Winners

The industrial coating winners were:

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• Coatings Unlimited Inc., St. Louis, MO;
• HCI Industrial Coatings Inc., Brush Praerie, WA;
• Niles Industrial Coatings, Fenton, MI;
• Redwood Painting Co. Inc., Pittsburg, CA; and
• TEC Protective Coatings, Waterford, NY.

Three others were recognized as Top 10 Finishers:

• Cannon-Sline Industrial Inc., Hammond, IN;
• CL Coatings LLC, Mokena, IL; and
• Murphy Industrial Coatings, Signal Hill, CA.

Painting Kudos

Honored in the Painting & Wallcovering category were:

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• Color Inc., Bettendorf, IA;
• Mid-Michigan Pride Painting, Flint, MI;
• Midwest Decorating Inc., Hampshire, IL;
• Postupak Painting Co. Inc., Wilkes-Barre, PA;
• Pyramid Painting Inc., Mountain View, CA;
• W.F. Scott Decorating, Rock Island, IL; and
• Wilson & Hampton Painting Contractors, Anaheim, CA.

The awards were launched in 2011; winners "earn the right to say they are the safest contractors in their respective category," according to FCA. The event was held May 8 at FCA's Leadership Council event in Chicago.

Painters recognized as Top 10 Finishers were:

• All-Tech Decorating Co., Romeoville, IL;
• Fine Group Inc., Mountainside, NJ;
• Grund & Company Inc., Seattle, WA;
• Hester Painting & Decorating, Skokie, IL;
• Lankford-Painting Division, Johnsburg, IL;
• M. Shiroma Painting Company Inc., Waipahu, HI; and
• Wm. B Saleh Co., Bakersfield, CA.

The winner of this year's Chairman's Award, for greatest improvement in a safety program, is T.J. Wies Contracting Inc., based in Lake St. Louis, MO.

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Editor's Note: This article was updated at 8:55 a.m. May 20, 2015, to correct a reference to EMR.