Widnes engineering firm scores top marks in international safety award

Apr 12 2012 by Daniel Mckenzie, Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News

WIDNES-BASED Hutchinson Engineering has won an International Safety Award from the British Safety Council after achieving a distinction and full marks of 60 out of 60.

The firm was up against companies in all sectors from across the UK, Middle East, India and Hong Kong. But Hutchinson was one of just 125 to achieve the maximum score.

The firm will celebrate its accolade during a ceremony and banquet at London’s Grosvenor House in Park Lane on May 18.

Tony Murphy, safety advisor at Hutchinson Engineering, a global market leader in the design and manufacture of steel structures for the telecoms and wind turbine sectors, said: “We have secured this international award with distinction by gaining highest marks for health, safety and environmental management.

“These are three areas where we obviously shine – and so it has been a rewarding experience to benchmark our performance, demonstrate continuous improvement, and gain external recognition.

“We are continually looking for areas where we can get even better as we strive to be the best when it comes to high standards of safety.”

Managing director Dean Drinkwater, who employs 76 people across three Widnes sites, said: “As a company we are committed to doing everything in our power to reduce the risk for our workforce while ensuring an efficient production line for our customers in the wind turbine and telecoms industries.

“I’m pleased that Hutchinson’s 30-year rich safety history has been recognised with this international award.”