Kennecott Utah Copper (KUC) employees and contractors have worked for more than 107 consecutive days without incurring a Lost-Time Injury (LTI).  This equates to more than 2 million consecutive hours worked without a LTI across all of KUC’s facilities.  As a substantial contributor to this record, KUC’s Bingham Canyon Mine has separately exceeded over 1 million hours worked without a LTI.  These significant achievements are the result of employees and contractors taking personal ownership for their safety and the safety of their colleagues, the company says.  “It also demonstrates the benefits from KUC’s disciplined approach to implementing strict safety standards set by KUC’s parent company, Rio Tinto.”Safety is a core value at KUC, and the company’s goal is to eliminate all injuries in the workplace through the development of an interdependent culture and application of world-class systems and procedures.  “Choosing to work safely is the single most important job we all have to do – every task, every shift,” said Andrew Harding, President and Chief Executive Officer, Kennecott Utah Copper.

“Achieving 107 consecutive days worked without a lost-time injury is a testament to our employees and the commitment they have made to safety,” said Ted Himebaugh, Bingham Canyon Mine General Manager, Kennecott Utah Copper.  “Our employees have prided and dedicated themselves to following Rio Tinto’s strict safety guidelines, and I applaud them on their hard work.”

In 2007, KUC was recognised by the Utah Safety Council with an Award of Merit for the Smelter, Concentrator and Power Plant.  The Award of Merit recognises organisations for improvement in lost time and total case incident rates, and maintaining rates that are consistently below the average for their industry as benchmarked against national averages compiled by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.  Applicants for these awards must have functioning safety programs that include a formal written safety and health plan, emergency plans, safety and health inspections, safety training and employee safety committees. 

A LTI is an occupational injury that either results in one or more days away from work or restricted work activity where, as a result of the injury, the employee could not perform the duties normally associated with the job.