Engineering and design consultancy Beca took out the top prize at this year's Safeguard Workplace Health & Safety Awards for initiatives that have been largely driven by Tauranga-based civil engineer Tania Hyde and her Auckland colleague, project manager Jack Donaghy, and their teams.
Beca also won its category award.
The judges admired the determination of the company to sell the benefits of safety in design, internally and externally, said Peter Bateman, editor of Safeguard magazine and convenor of the judging panel. The judges noted that an internal competition to solicit projects in which safety in design made a demonstrable difference was well-supported.
"Beca's approach encompasses multiple stakeholders beyond the company's own staff and has raised the level of sophistication among large clients," the judges said.
Gavin Frost, who leads Beca in Tauranga, said winning the awards, which were announced earlier this year in Auckland, was a sign of the firm's increased focus on safety.