Raytheon Company's Seapower Capability Center, Portsmouth, R.I., received a "Star" rating from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for its outstanding record and assessment results as part of the Voluntary Protection Program.
The Star rating is the VPP's most prestigious level of recognition. It is reserved for employers and employees who have implemented exemplary occupational safety and health practices and achieved injury-illness rates below their industry's national average.
Only a select number of facilities across the country receive a VPP Star rating each year due to OSHA's strict selection standards and the rigorous evaluation process. The VPP sets performance-based criteria for a managed safety and health system. OSHA's verification process includes a thorough on-site evaluation by a team of safety and health experts.
"Raytheon's Seapower Capability Center operates an outstanding safety and health management system, and all employees are enthusiastically engaged in the VPP process," said OSHA's Robert Sands, VPP manager, Boston regional office. "Our OSHA team was impressed with Raytheon's level of cooperation and the professionalism shown by the Environmental Health and Safety staff."
Through the VPP, Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) highlighted its strong safety-oriented communication from company leadership; extensive employee involvement in safety and health practices at the site; thorough analysis of worksite hazards; effective hazard prevention and control; and continuous safety and health training programs for management and employees. The OSHA team of safety and health experts conducted an extensive on-site evaluation and review, reporting results and the recommendation for a VPP Star rating to the U.S. Department of Labor for official approval.
"We encourage all employees to take a personal stake in safety, both at work and at home – and their results are validated by this OSHA honor," said Raytheon IDS' Charles "Tom" Bush, vice president and mission center executive of the Seapower Capability Center. "It's the right thing to do and ensures that we are doing everything possible to protect Raytheon's most valuable asset – our people."
Raytheon's Seapower Capability Center is IDS' primary naval systems mission center responsible for the development and integration of world-class submarine and surface ship combat management, anti-submarine, mine warfare, and integrated ship systems, as well as sensors and torpedoes for U.S. and allied navy fleets. The VPP star rating adds to the Seapower Capability Center's long list of accolades that make the facility a center for excellence and Raytheon an employer of choice in the state of Rhode Island. Of the state's six VPP Star-rated facilities, Raytheon is the largest employer and the only defense contractor.
Integrated Defense Systems is Raytheon's leader in Global Capabilities Integration, providing affordable, integrated solutions to a broad international and domestic customer base, including the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, the U.S. Armed Forces and the Department of Homeland Security.
Raytheon Company, with 2007 sales of $21.3 billion, is a technology leader specializing in defense, homeland security and other government markets throughout the world. With a history of innovation spanning more than 86 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration and other capabilities in the areas of sensing; effects; and command, control, communications and intelligence systems, as well as a broad range of mission support services. With headquarters in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 72,000 people worldwide.