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| OSHA Small Business > Small Business Success Stories > Odell Brewing Company |
 Printing Instructions |
| Major DART Rate Reductions at Odell Brewing Company |
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In 1997,
Odell Brewing Company (OBC), a microbrewery located in Fort Collins, CO,
contacted OSHA’s Colorado Occupational Health and Safety Consultation Program
for help. At the time, the company’s DART rate was three times the national
average. (A DART rate is an injury and illness reporting term that stands for
Days Away, Restricted or Transferred from work.) Today, Odell’s DART rate and
number of illnesses and injuries is zero! In fact, Odell has experienced only
two lost-time injuries over the past six years, for a total of just seven
lost-days. This is exceptional for a company the size of ODB, which employs 27
workers. As a family owned and operated business, the Odell’s have a strong commitment to the safety and well being of their employees. “Our employees are like family and there is no operation or aspect of our business that is worth an injury,” explained Ms. Corkie Odell, the company’s CEO. Their pro-safety operating philosophy fit perfectly with OSHA’s Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP). In fact, OBC is Colorado’s oldest SHARP company with six consecutive awards dating back to 1998. “The average beer drinker doesn’t taste it. But the staff at OBC considers it (safety) the most important ingredient,” Ms. Odell stated in an article detailing the company’s success in the Coloradoan News. Direct, continuous leadership and involvement by the CEO, and the production supervisor, Brendan McGivney, is an important reason why the company has such a good health and safety record. Also, safety performance is part of an employee’s annual performance review, thus having accountability built-in. Among other things, the company maintains outstanding programs in hazard communication, hearing conservation, emergency preparedness, Lockout/Tagout (LOTO), materials handling, and back injury prevention. (LOTO means the implementation of workplace practices and procedures to shut-down equipment, isolate it from its energy source(s), and prevent the release of potentially hazardous energy while maintenance and servicing activities are being performed.) At OBC, safety is an employment requirement. While awards and prizes for working safely are not routine, OBC holds quarterly all-employee meetings after normal work hours which include catered meals. During these meetings employees are compensated for their attendance and recognized for their total performance – which includes safety. Other OBC attributes which also help lead to the company’s safety success rate include: Continuous safety training; state of the art lifting equipment; and bi-weekly production meetings where incidents and near misses are discussed. The company credits much of its success to the continuous involvement and dedication of its leadership. |
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Page last updated: 03/27/2006 | |
