The Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Greater Houston Chapter bestowed upon Tetra Tech the highest award—Diamond level—for its Safety Training Evaluation Process (STEP) program at its membership breakfast in on July 11, 2014 in Houston, Texas.

Tetra Tech’s Houston operation provided ABC with its most recent Occupational Safety and Health Administration safety performance data of recordable injuries and work-related illnesses and completed ABC’s “20 Key Components of Safety Self-Assessment.” Tetra Tech scored high in all self-assessment categories including the company’s safety policy statement, safety orientation and ongoing training, management involvement, and inspections.

“Every year we complete the OSHA 300 Log that ABC’s STEP program ties into,” says Terry Buza, health and safety director of Tetra Tech’s oil, gas, and chemical practice. “This was our first year applying for STEP in Houston, and they rated us Diamond level.”

ABC’s National Environment, Health & Safety Committee began the STEP program in 1989 to provide contractors the means to measure the effectiveness of their safety and loss prevention program, to identify and measure areas for improvement, and to benchmark performance with members of ABC nationwide. The STEP program helps to reduce incidence rates and days away, restricted, or transferred (DART) rates; and helps to lower experience modification rate (EMR), which in turn can lower annual workers’ compensation insurance rates.

Tetra Tech’s rate of recordable injuries, illnesses, and incidents ranks among the best in the construction industry in the United States and at the top in its oil, gas, and chemical operations throughout greater Houston.

“Obtaining ABC’s Diamond level STEP recognition shows that Tetra Tech runs a world-class safety program that addresses the unique risks inherent in the construction industry,” says Chris McClain, Tetra Tech’s vice president of corporate health and safety. “This level of safety achievement can happen only when the program is supported by leadership who embrace safety as a core value of the organization.”

ABC includes about 21,000 members in 70 chapters throughout the United States. It represents all specialties within the construction industry and is comprised primarily of firms in the industrial and commercial sectors.

“Recognition in the industry is so important, which is why this prestigious award from the Houston Chapter has extra significance,” Buza says. “This area has all the big players in oil and gas, chemical, and related industries. Without demonstrating an excellent track record in health and safety, developing business with them is virtually impossible.”