Tim Schmitt Receives DCA 2023 Safety Director Award; Dewayne Ward is the Safety Person of the Year

DCA named Tim Schmitt Safety Director of the Year for 2023 and honored Dewayne Ward as Safety Person of the Year at the 2024 DCA Safety Congress, April 22-24, at the InterContinental Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri. DCA President Mark Albert of AGI Construction presented the awards.

Safety Director of the Year
Tim Schmitt is the director of HSE for Michels Utility Services Inc., in Brownsville, Wisconsin, and has been with the company for over 10 years. Schmitt is credited with developing and implementing a Preventable MVI Accountability Plan that details the response and communication expectations following a preventable motor vehicle incident (MVI) across all groups of Michels Utility Services. In 2023, Michels Utility Services, Inc. experienced a 48% decrease in all auto incident occurrences and a 56% decrease in their preventable MVIs.

Schmitt’s dedication as a safety professional goes beyond the Michels organization. He participates in several industry organizations, including the DCA Safety Congress and INGAA PCSR, and has attended many customer events, making meaningful contributions. Through Schmitt’s efforts, Michels Utility Services, Inc. has won the DCA Arthur T. Everham Safety Award each of the past three  years. The driving force behind this continued success is a passionate and tenacious safety director working together with operational leadership to make safety personal for each team member.

In addition to Schmitt, 2023 Safety Director of the Year nominees were:
• James Goble, InfraSource
• Levi Lamp, R&R Pipeline
• Savannah Robin, Vector Force Development

Safety Person of the Year
Dewayne Ward is director of operations at InfraSource in Columbus, Ohio. He has been with the company three years.

Ward is an accomplished professional who has dedicated more than three decades to the natural gas industry. He began his career as a laborer, and through hard work, determination, and a focus on safety,  rose through the ranks. He was an operator, foreman, general foreman, superintendent, and area manager before being promoted to his current position. Ward has consistently emphasized the importance of implementing safe driving techniques and has personally overseen several initiatives that have improved the safety culture at InfraSource.

Ward is acutely aware of how dangerous driving can be, especially in the congested urban environments of Philadelphia where his team works. He has made it his mission to educate and remind his crews about the importance of following safe driving practices. His efforts have reduced vehicle-related general liability claims by 12% year over year (YOY) and vehicle-related worker’s compensation damages by 28% YOY. As a direct result of Ward’s outstanding safety leadership, training efforts in the field, and gate checks, his operating area was able to reduce motor vehicle accidents (MVA) by 13% YOY. His commitment to safety and quality has earned him the respect and admiration of his colleagues and peers, and his contributions to the industry will undoubtedly have a lasting impact for years to come.

2023 Safety Person of the Year nominees also included:
• Daniel Hopkins, Miller Pipeline
• Ryan Mounts, Q3 Contracting
• Cameron Segura, Carson Corp.

The DCA Safety Director of the Year award began in 1998 to recognize the importance of the safety director’s role in today’s construction industry. Company management nominates their candidate then finalists are selected by members of the DCA Safety & Risk Management Committee and voted on by their DCA peers. The winner receives a $1,000 cash prize and plaque.

The Safety Person of the Year award, which recognizes an individual who has made a lasting impact on safety, was suggested at a Safety Congress 10 years ago. Nominees can come from any department within a DCA member company. The winner also receives a $1,000 cash prize and plaque.

The 2024 DCA Safety Congress
This year’s Safety Congress attracted more than 55 construction industry safety professionals who gathered to network, share creative training concepts, discuss trends, and hear from leading safety training consultants, other safety directors, and risk management executives. 

The event included presentations on important issues affecting the industry and the U.S. Topics included:
• “Supersonic Success,” Jack Becker, U.S. Navy Fighter Pilot & Speaker.
• “Cutting-Edge Integration of Conversational AI in Hazard Recognition,” Barry Nelson, FactorLab.
• “Keeping our Workforce and the Public Safe,” Justin Steele & Chuck Bradley, NiSource.
• “Embracing the Audacity to be Resilient,” Erika Rothenberger, Henkels & McCoy.
• “Active Assailant,” Sargeant Matthew Payne, Kansas City Police Department.

There were also panel discussions on the Pipeline Safety Management System.
DCA wishes to thank 2024 Safety Congress co-chairs Eric Egelhoff of InfraSource and Ileah Henchel of Precision Pipeline for their efforts in organizing this year’s event. The dates and venue for the 2025 Safety Congress will be announced soon.