The employees of A. O. Smith Corporation’s offices and distribution center in Fergus today were presented with the Lloyd B. Smith President’s Safety Award for excellence in workplace safety.

President and Chief Operating Officer Kevin J. Wheeler praised the Fergus team for their efforts, noting they were the first Canadian facility to earn the award in its 63-year history.

“Many people think of safety as a factory-only activity, but this team knows better,” Wheeler said in presenting the award during a special ceremony at the facility.  “You have done a remarkable job of identifying possible hazards, preventing accidents, and continually improving the working conditions in the Fergus facility.”

The award is given annually to the A. O. Smith facility that achieves the best overall performance in workplace safety during a calendar year. To earn the Award, each facility is evaluated based on three categories: Lost workday case incidence rate, which relates to the most serious, work-related injuries or illnesses that result in one or more lost work days; recordable case incidence rate, which are significant, work-related injuries or illnesses beyond first aid as defined by the U. S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA); and lost workday incidence rate, which measures a facility's total number of lost work days and provides a measure of accident severity. 

The Lloyd B. Smith President’s Safety Award is the A. O. Smith Corporation’s highest honor in the field of workplace safety and the company’s longest-running employee recognition program. It is named after the late Lloyd B. Smith, a former chairman and chief executive officer of A. O. Smith Corporation and the great-grandson of the founder of the company.

Visit www.aosmith.com.