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A. O. Smith motor plant in Acuña recognized for working one million hours without lost-time accident

The employees of the A. O. Smith Productos Electricos Aplicados (PEASA) Plant #1 today received special recognition for working more than one million hours without a lost-time accident.

The Acuña plant began its streak on Oct. 25, 2005, and surpassed the million-hour milestone on April 10, 2006. To date, the facility has worked more than 1,150,000 consecutive hours without a lost-time accident. This is the first time in the plant's 22-year history that it has surpassed the one-million-hour milestone.

In a letter, A. O. Smith Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Paul W. Jones congratulated the 950 employees of the plant for working together to create a safe workplace:

"Achieving the one million hour milestone is evidence that everyone associated with PEASA is committed to working together to minimize accidents at your plant. In the spirit of Continuous Improvement, your leadership team, the facility's supervisors, and the safety committee have worked together to identify opportunities to make your plant a safer, more efficient operation," Jones wrote.

A. O. Smith Director of Safety, Health, and the Environment Herbert L. Pirkey presented the plant with a plaque, commemorating the achievement. Accepting the award on behalf of the employees was the plant's Safety Committee, Plant Manager Raul Holguin, Rene Torres, Dr. Raymundo de los Santos, Ivon Perez, Hilda Escamilla, Sarita Guzman, Micaela Rodriguez, Osvaldo Chavez, and Hector Espino.

The Acuña plant, part of the A. O. Smith Electrical Products Company, assembles hermetic motors, a precision component used in residential and commercial air conditioners and refrigeration equipment.

"People are trying to improve our safety performance every year," Rene Torres, manager-human resources of the Acuna plant, observed. "We have emphasized training and have published statistics so that employees can see our progress. They are very motivated to maintain our safety performance."

The plant's Safety Committee, made up of employees from both shifts, oversees the safety efforts throughout the 96,000 square foot facility, meeting monthly to review plant performance.

Acuña conducts daily audits throughout the facility to ensure that employees are following safe working practices. The company nurses, who conduct the audits, check to determine that machine guards are being used and employees are using their personal protective equipment. The nurses also inspect department housekeeping, work flow, and material movement.

Since 2004, the plant has been presenting a special award each month to the department that achieves the highest safety rating, Torres pointed out. Each department earns points for the results of their safety audits as well as for having the least number of safety-related incidents in a given month.

"The employees enjoy this program, it has resulted in a lot of friendly competition," Torres said. The winning department is presented with a banner that it can display throughout the month, and each employee receives an incentive gift.

Earlier this year, the Acuña plant began participating in a new program developed by A. O. Smith's Mexican operations, the Administrative System of Health and Safety (SASST) program. This self-certification program requires that all processes in the plant are documented and reviewed to assure that safe working practices are in place and being followed. The program includes specific procedures for investigating and documenting workplace-related accidents.

Acuña plans to complete the documentation process by the end of this year, Torres said, and will fully implement the program by the second quarter of 2007.

A. O. Smith Corporation, with headquarters in Milwaukee, Wis., is a diversified manufacturer serving customers worldwide. The company is one of the world's leading manufacturers and marketers of residential and commercial water heating equipment, offering a comprehensive line featuring the best-known brands in the industry. It is also one of North America’s largest manufacturers of electric motors, with an extensive line of hermetic, fractional horsepower, and integral horsepower motors for residential, commercial, and industrial applications. A. O. Smith employs approximately 19,500 people at facilities in the United States, Mexico, China, Canada, and Europe and reported 2005 sales of $1.69 billion.