Safety: Not just a slogan at Great Lakes Roofing

"It takes just as much time to do something safely as it does to do it incorrectly" is the right-minded motto of Mark Bartolutti, Safety Director and co-founder of Great Lakes Roofing Corp., Germantown, WI.

To emphasize how important proper safety procedures are at Great Lakes Roofing, everything at this company starts with safety, from the first day of its fiscal year to the first morning of each work week.

At the beginning of its fiscal year, Great Lakes Roofing devotes the day to a safety training program attended by all employees, not just field installers. To reinforce those fundamentals, every Monday starts with a 30-minute safety meeting.

Likewise, an employee's first day of work at the company begins with an introduction to the Safety Circle.

For its dedication to promoting excellence in all aspects of its business, Great Lakes Roofing has earned the prestigious 11th annual Contractor Achievement Award from SPRI. Great Lakes Roofing will accept SPRI's Achievement Award at the association's annual conference, scheduled for late January in Florida.

SPRI, the organization representing sheet membrane and component suppliers to the commercial roofing industry, created its award to spotlight excellence among roofing contractors who do at least 50% of their sales volume in flexible membrane roofing (including modified bitumen). Entrants must demonstrate qualifications in four categories: workmanship, health and safety programs, installation and equipment cost savers, and marketing initiatives.

SPRI Promotion Committee Chairman David Harrison reports, "The most striking elements of Great Lakes' entry submission were its focus on safety and its innovative incentive programs."

Circles of excellence
Within its company, Great Lakes Roofing constantly communicates its core values of service, safety and quality. Its forward-thinking management style is committed to continuous improvement in a wide variety of ways. For example, weekly meetings of employees in safety, quality and customer service circles keep Great Lakes Roofing on top of its game. Substantial investments in laptop computers and digital cameras facilitate the flow of information, both internally and to its external customers.

Bulletin boards on the crew meeting room walls highlight best practices through job photos and customer letters. Conversely, photos of things to avoid are posted on a Wall of Shame. "This reinforces what we discuss about safety issues," explains Bartolutti, by training people to recognize safety problems. "Attitude and awareness are the most important elements of a safety program," he adds. "Safety is not just a slogan on our letterhead - we see it reflected in the attitude of our guys."

Also displayed is a 29-point safety checklist, identifying the most common causes of injuries as well as the top safety violations. Safety awareness signage is everywhere. In fact, an insurance consultant's inspection report stated, "Safety goals, expectations and reminders are posted throughout the facility. I have not seen such safety advertising in a facility in the 21 years I have been in loss control."

Bright ideas
One of Great Lakes' brighter ideas involves painting the top three feet of its ladders in a fluorescent color so that installers can quickly see how to set them up in order that the top three rungs are above the roof edge.

Non-slip tread patterns are used on all of its ladders, and orange cones are placed on the ground around each ladder so people know to maintain a proper distance.

On large roofing jobs, Great Lakes Roofing crews place the fire extinguisher in an orange bucket marked with an orange flag to make it quickly visible.

Great Lakes Roofing, www.greatlakesroofing.net, specializes in heat-welded flexible membrane systems and was incorporated in 1987. Its founders, Mark Bartolutti and Don Puccetti, had started working together while they were studying engineering and economics, respectively, at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. Their company mainly focuses on industrial/commercial/institutional reroofing projects, but it is also increasing its participation in the new construction market. It now runs two offices, one in the Milwaukee suburb of Germantown and another 100 miles farther north in Appleton. This contractor stores all work trucks inside in heated truck bays, which reduces wear and tear on the vehicles as well as waste and loss of materials.

Crew trucks and repair trucks are outfitted differently to meet the specific needs of each sector. For example, reroofing trucks stock only system-specific tools while repair trucks contain tools to service any type of roof.

Crews who install flexible membrane roofs are cross-trained on all details. Job duties are rotated to maintain topnotch attitudes toward quality and safety.

Employee incentives
To help provide a positive work environment for its employees, Great Lakes Roofing's headquarters includes a shower, washer and dryer, lockers for each worker, a heated crew room with couches and tables, a weight room, a pool table, and microwaves and refrigerators/freezers. In the summer, all crews get coolers filled with ice and Gatorade. In wintertime, crew trucks include microwaves to heat food or beverages. Savings in insurance premiums and moneys from other areas are pooled to help fund employee rewards. For example, installers voted last year to purchase a Universal weight machine to add to the equipment in the company exercise room.

To acknowledge workers for a job well done, Great Lakes Roofing also periodically presents company certificates good for merchandise at its in-house store, as well as hosts special events.

Now that the economy has tightened up, Bartolutti believes it's important to communicate that to everyone as well. "We explain that if we're work efficiently, we'll get though this together."

"Honors like SPRI's Achievement Award and several annual Wisconsin Corporate Safety Awards are outside verification that what we're doing is working," Bartolutti gratefully admits.

While he is justifiably proud of how far Great Lakes Roofing has come, Bartolutti and company continue to work toward even greater success.

For more information on how to enter the next SPRI competition, contact us at our new address: 411 Waverley Oaks Road, Suite 331B, Waltham, MA 02452; e-mail info@spri.org; or visit www.spri.org. Please note: SPRI's new phone number is 781-647-7026 and its new fax number is 781-647-7222.