News

NEWS RELEASE April 20, 2007
For more information, contact Steve Houston at 314-721-2828.

St. Louis-Based PayneCrest Electric and Communications

Achieves One Million Man Hours Without a Recordable Injury!

In Nation's Most Hazardous Industry, Firm is Injury-Free Since August, 2005

ST. LOUIS – On April 4, 2007, workers for PayneCrest Electric and Communications put down their tools and closed out the day with an unprecedented milestone - one million consecutive hours of work without a recordable injury.  The last time PayneCrest experienced a recordable injury was August 29, 2005.  For the next 582 consecutive days it advanced thousands construction projects without recording an injury reportable to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

PayneCrest's recordable incident rate (RIR), which OSHA uses to compare safety levels of companies, is now zero.  The national RIR average for the construction industry - the most hazardous in the nation according to the U.S. Department of Labor - is 6.3.  RIR includes all work related deaths, illnesses, and injuries which result in a loss of consciousness, restriction of work or motion, permanent transfer to another job within the company, or that require medical treatment.

"When you consider how dangerous construction work is, it is a remarkable achievement to go more than one million man hours without a recordable injury," said David L. Payne, president of PayneCrest.  "It took diligence and commitment at every level, from project managers, supervisors and the journey workers of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local #1, who we employ."

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the private construction industry experienced 1,186 fatal work injuries in 2005 - more than any industry sector.  Four hazards account for the majority of fatalities and injuries in the industry:  falls, electrical shock, caught in/between and struck-by.

PayneCrest's Experience Modification Rate (EMR) is 0.72.  A measure of the insurance industry, an EMR rate of 1.00 is considered average for the construction industry.

At PayneCrest, new hires are trained in more than 30 areas of safety.  In addition to the new hire training, employees are trained in a dozen additional safety measures that are specific to the particular project to which they are assigned.  All office and field supervisors are OSHA 30 Hour certified and all electricians and communications technicians are OSHA 10 Hour certified.

Founded in 1954, PayneCrest has more than 400 employees and specializes in solution-oriented industrial, commercial and telecom electrical contracting services.  A current major project is the new downtown casino and hotel complex under construction for Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc.  Other recent projects include assembly line upgrades to the Daimler Chrysler automobile plant in Fenton, MO.; a new facility for The Boeing Co. at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport; The Boulevard-St. Louis mixed use development in Richmond Heights, MO.; the Enterprise Rent-A-Car data center in Weldon Spring, MO.; the Sam Fox Art Center at Washington University; and the St. Louis University Research Building.

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Editor’s note:
PayneCrest Electric and Communications is located at 10411 Baur, St. Louis, Mo. (63132).