By Elizabeth Morrisey
SCBIZ Daily Staff

GREENVILLE -- Fluor Corp. has been selected by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration as a participant in the Voluntary Protection Programs Corporate Pilot.

VPP recognizes companies and organizations that are committed to safety and health and have systems in place that have surpassed OSHA’s standards. The program allows participating companies to streamline their application and onsite evaluation processes.

Fluor and five other companies are participating in the program. The announcement was made Friday during an event on Fluor’s Greenville
campus.

“We’re proud to join General Electric Co., Georgia-Pacific Corp., The Dow Chemical Co., the United States Postal Service and URS Corp.,” said Dwayne Wilson, industrial and infrastructure group president of Fluor. “Construction is one of the most hazardous occupations in the world. When they go out, we want our people to come back with 10 fingers and 10 toes.”

This year, Texas-based Fluor is on track to have zero lost-time incidents, a mark it nearly attained in 2007.

“Every year our goal is zero incidents,” Wilson said.

Fluor has active OSHA VPP sites in Indiana, North Carolina, Minnesota and Texas.

“We noted how Fluor has demonstrated and committed itself and the importance they place on safety and health regardless of where they are located,” said Donald Shalhoub, deputy assistant secretary for OSHA. “Fluor has stepped up to the challenge. It’s the beginning of something even bigger.”

As projects are added, Fluor plans to add several more active sites to the VPP program.