Todd Lapointe, Director of the Office of Environment, Health, Safety and Security, recertified Battelle Memorial Institute's operation at PNNL as a Star participant, the highest level of recognition in the DOE Voluntary Protection Program.
Office of Environment, Health, Safety & Security
February 2, 2024
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The U.S. Department of Energy Voluntary Protection Program (DOE-VPP) Team from the Office of Worker Safety and Health Assistance (EHSS-12) recently completed a review of Battelle Memorial Institute’s operations at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. After a 2-week virtual assessment and a 2-week onsite assessment by the DOE-VPP team, Mr. Todd Lapointe, Director of the Office of Environment, Health, Safety and Security, recertified Battelle PNNL as a Star participant, the highest level of recognition in the program. Battelle PNNL entered the DOE-VPP in 2001 at the Star level and it has maintained this level of participation for over two decades.
The DOE-VPP recognizes contractor participants for going above and beyond the basic requirements of DOE safety and health regulations, Orders, and Standards and promotes excellence in contractor safety and health programs. DOE-VPP encourages participants to seek continuous improvement in safety and health through cooperative efforts by managers, employees, bargaining units, and DOE.
A review of the last three years of Total Recordable Cases (TRC) and Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred (DART) cases revealed that Battelle PNNL, including subcontractors, maintained rates well below the industry average for its North American Industry Classification System code as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
During the course of the assessment, Battelle PNNL demonstrated that its commitment to ensuring it accomplishes its mission safely and without any unanalyzed risks. It actively engages its workforce in maintaining a strong safety culture, empowering workers to identify issues, recommend improvements, and stop or pause work when questions or issues arise. With continuous innovation in mind, Battelle PNNL leverages mechanisms such as its Lab Assist work planning and control process and “right-sizing” to empower managers and workers to integrate safety into all laboratory activities. Workers have a voice to identify concerns through multiple avenues, receive high-quality support from safety professionals and subject matter experts, and encounter strong safety committee engagement to keep safety expectations at the forefront.
The Team consisted of Mr. Moises Atiles, Mr. Wallace “Gator” Czapla, Mr. Michael Gilroy, Mr. Robert “Bob” Meloche, and Mr. Matthew Ramsey, who served as team leader for this assessment. Also, assisting with the assessment were volunteer Team members Mr. Wade Bruemmer of Washington River Protection Solutions and Mr. Bruce Hill of Mission Support and Test Services, LLC. Lastly, the support of Ms. Renee McGaughy and Ms. Adrienne King of Battelle PNNL was instrumental in coordinating and executing the assessment.
More information on the DOE-VPP can be found here or you can contact the team at [email protected].