Sarah Wortman, an underground facilities technician at SURF, operates a locomotive on the 4850 L.
The Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) is recognizing 1 million hours of time worked without an on-the-job injury that led to an employee taking a leave of absence.
“This is a monumental achievement that everyone at SURF should take pride in,” said Mike Headley, the executive director for the South Dakota Science and Technology Authority and the laboratory director at SURF. “The strong safety culture, maintained by all of our staff, makes SURF a fantastic place to work.”
Julie Ewing, director of the Environment, Safety and Health Department (ESH), credits this milestone to daily practices that reinforce the importance of safety to all employees at SURF and to the multiple partners who work at the facility.
“This culture includes our ongoing safety training for all employees and everyone who comes on site at SURF. It includes daily jobsite safety surveys, walkthroughs, and toolbox talks with each crew. It includes proper use and training of personal protective equipment. Work does not begin until everybody understands how the work is going to occur safely,” Ewing said.
Pete Girtz, ESH deputy director at SURF, agrees.
“We couldn't have reached this milestone without every employee's dedication to creating and living a culture of safety. To put this into perspective, one million hours of worked time would be equal to one full-time employee working 480 years,” said Girtz.
Ewing also points to SURF’s “stop work” policy, which states that anyone who feels unsafe or has a concern about safety is encouraged to halt operations until the concern is addressed.
“Stop work fits into all of SURF’s core values and the staff here have demonstrated that they lead with these values in mind. It is not only encouraged to stop work if something doesn’t feel right, it’s a responsibility,” Ewing said.
Ewing gives credit to the leadership at SURF for fostering this strong culture of safety. Additionally, she said, “Everyone is expected to be responsible for their own safety.
“The organization owns this achievement. All the people here, who take responsibility for themselves every single day, own this amazing milestone. I am so proud to work for an organization that fosters this kind of culture.”
