Mississauga, Ontario – January 19, 2009 - IAPA (Industrial Accident Prevention Association) presented its first Health & Safety Achievement Award of 2009 to GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada Inc. Tubing earlier today. The Arnprior, Ontario-based firm received a Level III Health & Safety Achievement Award in recognition of its accomplishments in making its workplace healthy and safe. GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada Inc. Tubing manufactures zirconium tubes used to make nuclear fuel bundles and fuel channel components.

GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada Inc. Tubing was first recognized for its work in health and safety in March, 2008 when it received a Level I Award. It continued to demonstrate its commitment to health and safety and the well-being of its employees throughout the year and this resulted in a Level II Award, which was presented in September, 2008. Achieving the Level III Award has been a combination of a strong corporate environmental health and safety program, the GE Global Star program, and employees proactively making their workplace safe.

“Congratulations to GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada Inc. Tubing for reaching this milestone,” says Michael Abromeit, Vice-President Operations & Marketing IAPA. “Going from a Level I to a Level III in one year is a reflection of GE’s hard work and dedication to making its workplace healthy. Their journey has yielded great results so far and I’m confident that it will continue to do so in the future.”

“We’ve worked hard over the past year to develop a sound health and safety program and it’s a great honour to be recognized with this special Level III Health and Safety Achievement Award,” says Mark Ward, Fuel Operations Manager, GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada Inc. Tubing. “IAPA’s Health and Safety Achievement Award program has allowed us to set and achieve goals to ensure we have the healthiest and safest workplace possible for all of our workers. The journey continues as we strive for even greater health and safety excellence.”

GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada Inc. Tubing has achieved health and safety excellence through IAPA’s three-level Health and Safety Awards program. The program celebrates milestones in an organization’s journey towards eliminating workplace incidents by focusing on aspects of health and safety compliance and lost-time injury frequencies with each level building on the previous one.

To qualify for this top-level award, GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada Inc. Tubing’s Arnprior facility met IAPA’s Level III Award criteria as outlined in a self-assessment report. The firm successfully demonstrated legislative compliance, effective prevention methods and management practices, and a lost-time injury (LTI) frequency that met IAPA requirements specific for all three levels of the awards program. This includes how a firm assesses and controls its hazards, as well as a demonstrated and continued commitment to health and safety. An onsite assessment of the facility was conducted by IAPA on November 12, 2008.

GE is a diversified global infrastructure, finance and media company that is built to meet essential world needs. From energy, water, transportation, and health to access to money and information, GE serves customers in more than 100 countries and employs more than 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's website at www.ge.com. GE is Imagination at Work.

IAPA is a not-for-profit, member-driven organization operating in Ontario since 1917. Representing approximately 50,000 member firms and more than 1.5 million Ontario workers, IAPA is Canada’s leader in workplace health, safety, and employee well-being. IAPA is focused on providing industry-leading training, consulting, educational products, and informational services that meet our members’ needs and the needs of those in their communities. IAPA is also recognized as a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre in Occupational Health and an International Labour Organization – CIS Collaborating Centre. IAPA is ISO 9001 certified, has been awarded the National Quality Institute’s Progressive Excellence Program Level 4 for Quality Certificate and the Canada Awards for Excellence Gold Trophy Awards for Quality and Healthy Workplace.

ATTENTION MEDIA:   IAPA is now accepting applications for the 2009 IAPA Russ Ramsay Media Awards for Excellence in Health and Safety Reporting. All Ontario trade and consumer media – print (newspapers or magazines), radio, and television – distributed and broadcast in Ontario are invited to submit pieces of work focusing on workplace health and safety. Only work published or aired between January 1 and December, 31, 2008 will be eligible. For award consideration, all materials must be submitted to IAPA by Tuesday, February 3, 2009.

For more information on IAPA’s programs, products, services, and awards programs, visit IAPA’s website at www.iapa.ca.

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For more information, contact:

Lena Wan                                
Communications and PR Specialist, IAPA
Tel: 905-614-4272, ext. 2247
E-mail: lwan@iapa.ca