2003 Environment, Safety & Health Leadership Award Winners
The annual President's ESH Leadership Awards recognize those ITT Industries individuals and teams that have displayed commitment, creativity and value-creation in the area of Environment, Safety & Health. This year, there were nearly 40 nominations and four winners, all of whom were recognized by CEO Lou Giuliano at the ITT Industries Executive Forum in February. They are:
Leif Rydell: Flygt's Energy Ambassador
At our Flygt facility in Lindas, Sweden, "energy ambassador" Leif Rydell has worked tirelessly since 1999 to create one of the most energy efficient operations imaginable. Yet, even after five years of improvements, he continued to find innovative conservation projects in 2003. These included:
Installation of sun panels to heat the water for the building showers.
Reuse of heat from the foundry, meaning the facility does not need to buy energy for heating until the temperature reaches 0 degrees Celcius.
Installation of a new refrigerating machine in the foundry and a change in the hardening process for the N-impeller production, both of which have led to significant decreases in the need for water.
This handful of improvements resulted in reductions in annual energy consumption by nearly 4,000 MWh and water consumption by more than 10,000 m3. In the process, Flygt is saving more than $175,000 a year, strong proof that energy and water conservation is a win-win situation. Businesses can strengthen their bottom line without depleting the Earth's resources.
Night Vision: Tornado Recovery Team
When a tornado ripped part of the roof off our Night Vision facility in Roanoke, Virginia, in August 2003, the company's new business continuity plan was given its first test. A key part of the plan was the creation of an Emergency Response Team, and it was this team that conducted a textbook recovery effort.
The team notified key personnel, as well as the power company and local agencies. They then cordoned off the damaged portion of the building, purchased additional hard hats, secured alternative work sites for displaced workers, salvaged office equipment and documents, erected a temporary building cover and brought in contractors to repair the roof.
The plant suffered an estimated $250,000 worth of damage, but thanks to the team's quick actions, workers were back in business in one day and the site was operational in three weeks. Most importantly, there were no injuries from either the tornado or clean-up operations.
Fluid Handling Systems: Bending Tubes, Not Backs
Occupational injuries at the FHS automotive tube facility in Oscoda, Michigan, have dropped 82 percent since 2000, in large part due to ergonomic improvements developed by the Bend Fixture Task Force.
A huge conveyor belt - similar to those seen at drycleaners - runs through the plant. At various stations, employees insert straight plastic tubes into metal fixtures that bend them into predetermined shapes. These fixtures are then hung on the conveyor belt and taken to the ovens for hardening.
The team saw an opportunity to improve the ergonomics of this process. A 2.5 pound reduction in the weight of the fixtures means employees are lifting 600,000 fewer pounds per year. The team also eliminated five million unnecessary wrist actions, installed adjustable work tables and reconfigured the plant floor so employees don't have to reach over work stations to hang up their finished parts.
In addition to the ergonomic benefits, the improvements have reduced energy consumption because the lighter fixtures require less time to heat and cool.
ITT Industries, Cannon: Cleaner Water Discharge
One year ago, our Cannon Connectors facility in Santa Ana, California, was generating more than 5,000 gallons of wastewater and sludge every two days from its cleaning/plating process. This waste stream - containing spent bath chemicals, drag-out and chemical sludge - needed to be treated internally or shipped off-site for further treatment.
A team was put together to find solutions to this waste stream problem. They segregated the waste streams, added a third batch treatment tank, built a new wastewater store tank and installed an updated ion exchange regenerant reuse system.
By completely redesigning the wastewater system, the company is now using 80 percent recycled water and re-using cleaning and plating acids and caustics five times before disposal. The waste stream has been slowed considerably and on- and off-site treatment costs have been reduced by $600,000 per year.
 Flygt: Leif Rydell |
 Night Vision: Tornado Recovery Team Bernard Atwood, Ron Barbee, Don Beheler, Russ Bennett, Bud Blanchard, Randy Bush, Dennis Close, Tim Conway, Charlie Denny, Bruce Eubank, Phil Foster, Dave Huff, Ray Keeney, Rosann Kryczkowski, Jim Lewey, Marcus Lumpkin, Bruce Maass, Dave Petrie, Mark Ryan, Todd Smith, Sheila St. Clair, Gene Tucker, Steve White, Randy Wood, Steve Wright |
 FHS: Bend Fixture Task Force Randy Ball, Steve Durbin, Pete Grzesik, Matt Huitema, Mike Johnston, Alec Kaeding, Mark Kophman, Rob McDonald, Harold Rupert, Dan Vonzynda, Don Wright, Adam Yell |
 ITT Industries, Cannon: Cleaner Water Discharge Team Patrick Catellana, Emma Dalisay, Mark Givens, William Litten, Dan McNeice, Harvey Ruiz, Hank Toyooka, Frans van Beers |