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Alabama and Michigan foundries have DART rates of ‘zero’.

Ferrous foundry group Grede Holdings LLC reports that its plants in Bessemer, AL, and Kingsford, MI., have passed the “1 million man-hours” mark without a lost-time accident (LTA). Grede Holdings operates 13 gray and ductile iron foundries and machine shops in the U.S., and two foundries in Mexico.

"This safety milestone from these two Grede facilities represents the dedication and diligence that all Grede employees have toward maintaining a safe work environment, and is a great credit to our team," stated chairman Doug Grimm. "As an industry leader, safety continues to be a number one priority for us.”

Lost-time hours and recordable incidents are measured according to the U.S. Dept. of Labor’s Occupational Health and Safety Administration reporting requirements. OSHA requires plants to maintain records (OSHA Recordable Incident) on a range of work-related injuries and illnesses, including: restricted work activity (RWA); lost work activity (days away from work); medical treatment beyond first aid (OSHA recordable, non-lost time); transfer to another job due to injury; loss of consciousness; and fatality related to work. Injuries that require first aid and “near misses” are not OSHA Recordable.

Grede’s safety milestones were determined by the Days Away, Restricted or Transferred (DART) method, which references the total of man-hours worked to describe the number of recordable incidents per 100 employees that resulted in lost or restricted days.  For comparison, Grede Holdings explaned that the national average DART rate for foundries is 5.4 incidents resulting in lost or restricted days per 100 employees.  

Grede Holdings’ 15 domestic locations have a combined DART rate of 1.3 incidents; the Bessemer and Kingsford foundries have a current DART rate of zero.  

Grede’s Bessemer, AL, foundry produces low- and medium-volume sand castings in ductile iron. The plant has not recorded a LTA since October 2007, the company announced.  

Grede’s Kingsford, MI, foundry — known as the Iron Mountain facility — passed 1 million man-hours worked without a LTA on May 10, 2011, and its 433 employees and sustained only two injuries over the past two years, Grede announced.  The plant earned Grede Holdings’ 2010 Eagle Award as the company’s safest plant.