The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education has been given a 2014 Legacy of Stars award.
This is the third consecutive time ORISE has received the prestigious designation and only one of 10 such awards granted nationwide in 2014, a press release said. ORISE first achieved this designation in 2008.
The award is presented by the U.S. Department of Energy, and it recognize outstanding safety and health performance.
ORISE is managed for DOE by Oak Ridge Associated Universities.
““Safety is engrained in our culture,”” said Andy Page, ORAU president and ORISE director. ““That ownership and accountability embodied by every employee trickles down into our management of the ORISE contract – as well as other customers we serve, and as a result, demonstrates significant value by keeping costs low and maintaining a consistent rate of high-quality performance.””
The Legacy of Stars designation is awarded to organizations that participate in the DOE Voluntary Protection Program, or VPP, and have received the agencyÂ’s Star of Excellence Award for four consecutive years. In 2014, ORISE received its 10th consecutive Star of Excellence award.
To accomplish this, ORISE— —has maintained its STAR status through the continued pursuit of safety and health excellence, the implementation of outstanding outreach and mentoring efforts, and by maintaining a recordable injury rate that is 75 percent better than the average of comparable U.S. businesses, the press release said.
“”As one of more than two dozen DOE sites to achieve VPP STAR status, we have an obligation not only to maintain our commitment in safety excellence, but also share our success by mentoring other organizations,”” Page said.
Since 2003, ORISE employees have worked closely with representatives from Honeywell, Shaw Environmental, Pro2Serve, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help these organizations in their pursuit of VPP certification, the release said.
ORISE also assisted the Oak Ridge Transuranic Waste Processing Center contractor EnergX LLC in earning VPP Star status, making them the first Oak Ridge DOE environmental management program contractor to do so.
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