Builders AssociationSigns Deal with OSHA

The Des Plaines-based Builders Association of Greater Chicago has signed a partnership with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The agreement is reportedly the first of its kind in the Chicago area.
The goal of the two groups is to provide a safe and healthful work environment for employees engaged in construction in the Chicago area.
The partnership offers three levels of participation: gold, silver and bronze. Contractors are required to meet criteria for each level of participation, ranging from developing and implementing written safety and health programs to serving as mentors for other contractors.

Each level features incentives for participation, which might include a reduction in OSHA citations, penalties and inspections, an opportunity to market safety commitment to owners and use of BAGC as a one-stop safety resource.
For information on the partnership, call the BAGC at (847) 768-9420.
In related news, Chicago-based Paul H. Schwendener Inc. and the Chicago office of Minneapolis-based Ryan Cos. US Inc. have each received the 2003 Contractor Safety Excellence Award from the BAGC.

'SuperTech' CD on Refrigeration Available

The Des Plaines, Ill.-based Refrigeration Service Engineers Society has announced the availability of its HVAC SuperTech compact disk.
The CD is designed for HVAC service technicians as an aid in the field to help them troubleshoot R-22 light commercial air-conditioning systems.
The cost is $50 for RSES members, $67.50 for corporate members and $85 for nonmembers. Call (800) 297-5660 for information or visit the group's Internet site at www.rses.org and click on On-Line Bookstore and then On-Line Store.

NRF Receives $10K Donation

The Rosemont, Ill.-based National Roofing Foundation has received a $10,000 donation from the Carmel, Ind.-base Firestone Building Products Co.
The donation will be used to provide financial assistance to undergraduate students selected to receive NRF Roofing Industry Scholarships of $1,000 per person.
The NRF is the separate but related educational and research organization of the National Roofing Contractors Association, also based in Rosemont.
The check was presented to NRF during the Firestone Hospitality Event held at the 2003 NRCA Annual Convention and Exhibit in New Orleans.

PCA Elects Chief

The Skokie, Ill.-based Portland Cement Association has elected Dan Harrington its chairman.
He is the northern division president of Allentown, Pa.-based Lehigh Cement Co. The firm is a producer of cements and construction materials.

Safe Contractors Win Awards

Eleven members of the Downers Grove-based Plumbing & Mechanical Contractors Association of Northern Illinois have won the Commitment to a Safe Workplace award.
Six were two-time winners: Bensenville-based Abbott Industries; Mount Prospect-based Advance Mechanical Systems; Hampshire-based Bestler Corp.; Bensenville-based Ewing-Doherty Mechanical Inc.; Naperville-based Lenert Plumbing Inc.; and Morton Grove-based Roughneck Concrete Drilling & Sawing Co.
In addition, three members of the Lake and McHenry Plumbing Heating and Cooling Contractors Association have won the award.
One contractor, Antioch-based Colette & Ano Plumbing, has won the award twice.
The awards recognize improvements in safety over the last three years as measured by multiple criteria, such as workers compensation claims.