Press Release - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 28, 2009
Doss employees at the Pueblo facility show off their SHARP award
DOSS AVIATION RECEIVES OSHA’S PRESTIGIOUS SHARP AWARD
In a ceremony held 27 Jan. 2009, Doss Aviation’s Initial Flight Screening contract, located in Pueblo, was recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) through their Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program. SHARP is the Department of Labor’s premier national recognition program for small business safety excellence.
The Assistant Secretary of Labor-OSHA, Edwin G. Foulke, Jr., signed Doss’ SHARP certification followed by letters from Federal OSHA Region VIII, Denver, acknowledging their award and granting OSHA inspection exemption for the company until November 2009. Of the 7 million eligible small businesses in America, only 1,200 have achieved this status and only 42 businesses in Colorado have been recognized as SHARP employers.
Doss Aviation President Ken Smith accepted the award on behalf of the company from Department of Labor representative Mary Lynn, OSHA Coordinator for Region VIII and Del Sandfort, Health and Safety Consultation Program Manager at CSU, Ft Collins. Smith thanked the employees for their focus on safety, adding, “I am extremely proud of the efforts of our Doss team. This is a milestone that has never been achieved at our other Doss contract locations. You have raised the bar for safety awareness.”
Site Program Manager, Paul Walker is very proud of this award. In an interview, Walker stated, “this recognition represents the superb efforts of all our employees, but especially my safety office and department heads, and it reflects the dedication of our employees in their day-to-day attention to Doss aviation safety and employee health and safety programs.”
Every day in this country, 15 workers are killed on the job and 14,000 are injured…staggering losses for families and our economy. According to Troy McCuskey, Colorado State OSHA Program Safety Consultant, “SHARP is difficult to earn and harder to keep as it requires onsite audits and documented, sustained safety performance well above OSHA compliance. There is a high bar of success required for SHARP status and it's refreshing to see a small company really invest in safety for their employees.”
Doss Aviation partnered with Colorado State University’s OSHA Consultation Project in 2007 in order to improve their safety and health programs. OSHA’s Safety and Health Consultation program is a voluntary and cooperative service between OSHA and small business in all 50 states and 4 territories. Through engineering and administrative controls, Doss Aviation was able to reduce employee exposure to the hazards associated with their industry.
The Initial Flight Screening contract operated by Doss Aviation supports the US Air Force by screening all pilot and combat system officer candidates before they attend formal Air Force flight training programs. The program provides basic flight instruction and screens up to 1,900 students per year using 44 contractor-owned Diamond Aviation DA20 aircraft. It also provides lodging, food service, fitness programs, aircraft maintenance and security at their 209,000 square foot facility located at Pueblo Memorial Airport.
