2008 was a milestone year for Leighton A. White, Inc. We celebrated 30 years in the business of providing exceptional construction quality, value, and timely work, underlined with the consistency of employee and customer safety. We have had another exemplary year with regards to our safety record, with no work-related injuries or illnesses. To further accentuate this landmark year, our product was delivered during one of the most disturbing economic years recently experienced in the United States.
During the past 30 years Leighton A. White, Inc. has focused resources on specialty and retrofit types of commercial, industrial, and municipal site work, plus athletic field construction and maintenance. Our clients include general contracting companies of varying sizes, engineering and architectural firms, manufacturing companies, and large-scale personal site work for home and business owners. In the communications field, our company provides road and tower site construction, drainage, and site maintenance during the harsh winters and heavy rainfalls prevalent in this clime. Job sizes range from $2,000 to $750,000, demonstrating the broad spectrum of situations we encounter. Our employees and jobs primarily cover the southern New Hampshire region, with frequent requests for services in the surrounding New England states. Due to typical cell tower locations, we often find ourselves working remote and rugged terrain, requiring special vigilance and expertise. Because of the varied and unique jobs we undertake, our employees have to be cognizant of multiple factors, including other tradesmen working on-site, civilian traffic levels in downtown areas, deep trenches, live utilities, and potential buried environmental hazards. We perform on tight sites where glass storefronts, existing buildings, and vehicles demand intricate care, and we have successfully completed our work under the utmost difficult weather conditions. As a licensed NHDES/Asbestos Disposal Site Contractor, our employees continually maintain certification which allows Leighton A. White, Inc. to continue its reputation for accepting the “impossible” jobs that no one else wishes to tackle, thus predisposing us to unusual and occasionally extreme work sites.
Our company has proudly received the following awards:
- 1999 1st Place SIC Code 16 NH/VT ABC Construction Safety Awards
- 2000 1st Place SIC Code 16 NH/VT ABC Construction Safety Awards
- 2001 1st Place SIC Code 16 NH/VT ABC Construction Safety Awards
- 2002 1st Place SIC Code 16 NH/VT ABC Construction Safety Awards
- 2003 1st Place SIC Code 16 NH/VT ABC Construction Safety Awards
- 2003 STEP Platinum Award
- 2003 National Safety Merit Award
- 2004 1st Place SIC Code 16 NH/VT ABC Construction Safety Awards
- 2004 STEP Platinum Award
- 2005 2nd Place SIC Code 16 NH/VT ABC Construction Safety Awards
- 2005 NH/VT ABC Excellence in Construction Award
- 2005 National Safety Excellence Award
- 2005 NH Construction Industry Ethics Award (Leighton A. White)
- 2005 STEP Platinum Award
- 2006 2nd Place SIC Code 16 NH/VT ABC Construction Safety Awards
- 2007 STEP Platinum Award
- 2007 2nd Place SIC Code 16 NH/VT ABC Construction Safety Awards
- 2008 1st Place SIC Code 16 NH/VT ABC Construction Safety Awards
- 2008 STEP Platinum Award
In 2008, Leighton A. White, Inc. faced some unusual work site circumstances. The New England area had experienced a crippling ice storm in the month of December. As the initial hours of immobility passed (i.e.: no functioning utilities), the requests to our company for emergency assistance began in earnest. We provided around-the-clock service to the cellular companies needing emergency access to remote, mountaintop sites. Heavy equipment and generators were desperately needed at the buildings at many locations all over Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Vermont. Due to the lack of regular landline telephone service, cellular use was all the more important and essential. Just getting to the work sites was very difficult, with power lines down across roads, and icy travel conditions. Our employees logged in 80-100 hour weeks while keeping vital technology, transport vehicles (i.e.: skidders, snowmobiles and ATV’s), and personnel safe in treacherous situations. One particular site required “visualizing” the transport of a large generator up an icy mountain and positioning it into a narrow spot prior to even beginning the job, allowing our employees to anticipate any safety issues and plan out their approach. During this ice storm event, our transport vehicles were continuously replenished with all anticipated tools and supplies necessary for known and unknown circumstances. Improvising was frequently necessary, yet vigilance with regard to safety remained paramount. It was no “accident” that we thankfully accomplished what was necessary without a single mishap on such short notice.
The single most critical element to the 2008 safety performance of Leighton A. White, Inc. could also be considered the most basic, fundamental concept. It incorporates common sense, known and accepted safety standards, daily verbal reminders to increase employee awareness of any potential hazards to themselves, to other tradesmen working alongside them, to buildings, and to underground construction. Simply put, our employees respect and practice the concept of “you can never be too safe”.
In 2008, our company continued our safety awareness practices and training, coupled with purchasing and implementing up to date equipment and technology, such as GPS instrumentation in many of our vehicles. This allows supervisors and owners to be in contact with employees, who in turn, have access to the safest, most efficient routes to remote and/or congested sites. The majority of the trucks in our work fleet are three years old and newer. The staff also has the benefit of an 8-hour Heart Saver CPR Certification Course and the 10-hour OSHA Safety Training Course in their safety portfolios. We also continuously strive to promote strict and safe equipment tie-down and moving procedures, utilizing hooks, straps, and fasteners. Our people have been involved in updating our full equipment list, thus making the tracking of maintenance easier and more thorough, as well as, adding to the overall safety in the workplace. It is obvious in interacting with our staff, that the daily reminders, the biweekly meetings, the specific classes, and the employee involvement in celebrating the receipt of safety awards all have a great impact on the minute-by-minute behavior of our people in the field. Frequently overheard by foremen and laborers as they go about their work is the phrase, “Safety first!”
Leighton A. White, Inc. is honored to once again be considered for this prestigious recognition, especially because it makes our 30th Anniversary Year all the more meaningful.
