KANSAS CITY, Missouri — Burns & McDonnell, a 100% employee-owned engineering, architecture and construction firm, is joining forces with more than 80 construction firms across the U.S. and Canada to recognize Safety Week May 6-10. This weeklong spotlight on construction and workplace safety highlights best practices, tools and resources across the industry to enhance overall safety culture and performance.

“Safety is a value ingrained into our culture,” says Jamie Butler, vice president and director of safety and health for Burns & McDonnell. “This week, and every day, we recognize our continued commitment to keeping employees, clients and our communities safe. Together, we make safety our number one priority whether you are in the office or on a project site.”

To celebrate Safety Week, Burns & McDonnell will demonstrate a virtual reality safety training on Wednesday, May 8. This technology provides the opportunity to have workers practice safety procedures and processes in familiar environments through immersive, real-life project scenarios to help mitigate risks for potential hazards.

As part of the training demonstration, the firm will host a safety-focused panel discussion with the firm’s chief executive officer, Ray Kowalik, and Butler to highlight the importance of safety in the firm’s corporate culture. In addition, John Trottier, president and chief executive officer of AZCO INC., and Trey Myers, chief executive officer for Ref-Chem, will join Kowalik and Butler. AZCO INC. and Ref-Chem are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Burns & McDonnell, helping to expand the firm’s engineer-procure-construct (EPC) capabilities.

Throughout the week, Burns & McDonnell will also host additional safety trainings and deliver messages covering topics like the importance of integrating ergonomics in the workplace, safe driving, hazard recognition, construction-site safety and fall protection tips.

Burns & McDonnell ranks in the top 10 of Engineering News-Record’s top 500 design firms and is in the upper quartile of the top 100 design-build and construction management firms. With a focus on continuous safety improvement and training, Burns & McDonnell places in the top five percent of safest architecture, engineering and construction firms in the U.S.

About Burns & McDonnell

Burns & McDonnell is a family of companies made up of 7,000 engineers, architects, construction professionals, scientists, consultants and entrepreneurs with offices across the country and throughout the world. We strive to create amazing success for our clients and amazing careers for our employee-owners. Burns & McDonnell is 100% employee-owned and is proud to be on Fortune’s 2019 list of 100 Best Companies to Work For.

About Safety Week

Safety Week is sponsored by members of The Construction Industry Safety Initiative (CISI) and the Incident & Injury Free Executive Forum (IIF™). Additional support comes from the Alliance Partners, many of which are non-profit associations. For more information, visit constructionsafetyweek.com.