O&R: Northern Substation Operations Accident Free 17 Years; AGA Also Honors Company as a “Leader in Accident Prevention”
Orange & Rockland’s (O&R) Northern Substation Operations group has gone without a recordable accident for a remarkable 17 years – a milestone that O&R’s Vice President - Operations Francis W. Peverly called “an incredible testament to the awareness these team members have for each other’s safety.”
The Northern Substation Operations group is responsible for the maintenance, repair and overall operation of all of O&R’s electric substations in its service area in Orange and Sullivan counties.
The 14-member team is a mix of relatively new and veteran employees, blended into a cohesive unit by their common work performance goals, with safety chief among them.
Caption: Members of Northern Substation Operations, from left, Electrician Chief Jeff Stewart, Supervisor Scott Caruso and Substation Electrician First Class Fabian Estrada review plans for the day’s work in the control house at O&R’s Shoemaker substation in Middletown.
Safety is no accident at O&R. Positive, specific accident prevention results, like the Northern Substation achievement, is just one reason that O&R was recently recognized as a “leader in accident prevention” by the American Gas Association (AGA).
AGA presented the award to O&R specifically because the company’s Days Away Restricted or Transferred (DART) incident rate was below the industry average in 2019 for small combination electric and natural gas utility companies. The DART rate is a measure of the severity of injuries employees sustain from on-the-job accidents, and the length of time employees are out of work as a result of those accidents.
AGA’s Manager of Operations and Engineering Services Jackie Malatesta said, “AGA commends Orange & Rockland on its leading performance in accident prevention and as an elite performer in safety.” She also praised O&R for its “tireless commitment and dedication to advancing safety for your customers and your community.”
O&R V.P.-Ops Peverly said, “To be safe on the job takes a culture that values and nurtures the caring, concentration and commitment necessary to consistently perform work in a high-risk environment without injury. And, it takes employees willing to dedicate themselves each-and-every day to that culture’s mission.”
The American Gas Association (AGA) represents more than 200 local energy companies committed to the safe and reliable delivery of clean natural gas to more than 71 million customers throughout the nation.
Orange and Rockland Utilities, Inc. (O&R) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Consolidated Edison, Inc., one of the nation’s largest investor-owned energy companies. O&R is a regulated utility that provides electric service to approximately 300,000 customers in southeastern New York State (where its franchise name is Orange & Rockland) and northern New Jersey (where it’s Rockland Electric Company), and natural gas service to approximately 130,000 customers in New York.