WASHINGTON—The U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association has recognized Goodyear and Michelin North America Inc. for their efforts in workplace safety and health with 2021 Innovation Awards.
The honors, presented virtually recently, are part of the USTMA's annual Sustainability Awards for Workplace Safety and Health.
In the technology category, Goodyear was recognized for a motion-capture app it developed that performs ergonomic risk assessments.
Goodyear's use of this technology allows employees to film their fellow employees performing a job and upload that clip to the app, which generates an ergonomic risk assessment, the USTMA said.
This tool has helped identify and implement actions to reduce risk and using it within the ergonomics process has reduced ergonomic risk by as much as 30 percent in jobs assessed.
"Goodyear is constantly innovating ways to improve the health and safety of our associates," Steve McClellan, president, Goodyear Americas, said. "Our use of the motion-capture app is just one example of how we've leveraged technology to improve our ergonomics processes and reduce the risk of injury on the job."
Michelin was recognized in the culture category for its "Bib Bowl" stretching initiative, which uses "healthy competition" to help employees get loose and prepared to perform their job responsibilities safely, the USTMA said.
Inspired by the Super Bowl and utilizing Bibendum, the Michelin Man, the Bib Bowl initiative encourages teams of employees to stretch prior to starting work in order to earn "yardage" to get closer to a touchdown. This initiative helped Michelin's factory in Ardmore, Okla., reduce ergonomic-related injuries by 7 percent year to year.
"At Michelin, the safety and well-being of our people is a top priority," Chairman and President Alexis Garcin said. "This Bib Bowl is a testament to the dedication of our employees who relentlessly lead and innovate in all aspects of our business, including the vital area of the well-being of our people."
This year's awards were especially meaningful, the USTMA said, given the safety hurdles presented by COVID-19, particularly in a manufacturing setting where essential employees were needed to be present in-person at the workplace.
"Last year was a challenging one for our industry and the country as a whole, and meeting the demands of workplace safety took on even greater importance," USTMA President and CEO Anne Forristall Luke said.
"With a vision to have zero workplace injuries and illnesses, USTMA members are constantly exploring innovative approaches to address safety, especially ergonomics, the most frequent injury in tire manufacturing."
Forristal Luke complimented Michelin and Goodyear for implementing programs that provide team members with the information they need to encourage safety and health.
