IHC Incorporated, a full-service aluminum coating facility located in Detroit, MI, was recently granted renewal of its Michigan Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (MSHARP) certification for outstanding workplace safety and health excellence from the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA). The MIOSHA program is part of the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA).
“The MSHARP recognizes successful, collaborative efforts of employees and management in partnership with MIOSHA toward achieving excellence in workplace safety and health,” said MIOSHA Director Bart Pickelman. “IHC received its initial MSHARP status in 2011 and has continued to demonstrate that the implementation of an outstanding safety and health program is an achievable goal that greatly benefits its employees.”
The MSHARP – designed to assist smaller employers with less than 250 employees at the worksite – provides an incentive for employers to emphasize accident and illness prevention by anticipating problems, rather than reacting to them. Priority is given to companies on the MIOSHA list of high-hazard industries, or that are a part of MIOSHA’s Strategic Plan, to help them develop, implement and continuously improve the effectiveness of their workplace safety and health management system. The program then targets resources where they are most needed.
The MIOSHA Onsite Consultation Program – within the Consultation Education and Training (CET) Division – operates the MSHARP. Onsite consultants work with employers to help them become self-sufficient in managing occupational safety and health. MSHARP worksites earn an exemption from “programmed” MIOSHA inspections on a yearly basis. The MSHARP requires a comprehensive consultation visit and the correction of all serious workplace safety and health hazards to achieve certification. Companies interested in the MSHARP can contact the CET Division at (517) 284-7720 to obtain more information, and to schedule an onsite safety and health survey.
IHC Incorporated has an excellent system in place which incorporates each of the seven required MSHARP elements:
- hazard anticipation and detection
- hazard prevention and control
- planning and evaluation
- administration and supervision
- safety and health training
- management leadership
- employee participation
IHC Incorporated (www.ihccorp.com) serves a variety of manufacturing industries throughout the United States, ranging from automotive, aerospace, military and firearms to food preparation, medical and recreational. Founded in 1962 in Detroit to provide hard coat and anodize services to the aerospace industry, today IHC operates one of the largest job shop anodizing plants in the country. They have 199 employees.
For more information about MIOSHA, please visit www.michigan.gov/miosha.
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For more information about LARA, please visit www.michigan.gov/lara.
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