Enhancing Safety Communication to Eliminate Workplace Injuries

Brian Van, CSP, Safety Director at Atkinson Construction

Brian Van is a dedicated member of the Pacific NW Safety Community for over two and a half decades. After teaching in Japan, he pursued a degree in Chemistry, but fate led him to a career in professional safety as a Heavy Civil Contractor in Oregon. With extensive experience in construction, he now focuses on giving back to the industry through involvement with ASSP's Puget Sound Chapter and other networking groups, promoting safety education and career development. Brian's efforts have generated thousands of dollars for safety education programs and provided mentorship to aspiring professionals.

Could you share your journey and experience in the field of safety, leading up to your current role as the Safety Director at Atkinson Construction?

I graduated from Central Washington University (CWU) in 1990 with a degree in Loss Control Management with an emphasis on Industrial Safety. Upon graduation, I decided to work in Nagoya, Japan for a couple of years, teaching English and traveling. I then returned to CWU to pursue an undergrad in Chemistry so that I could apply for the Industrial Hygiene program at the University of WA. Just prior to completing my undergrad work in Chemistry at CWU, I was offered a job with Mowatt Construction in their SW Washington/Oregon office. Tired of being a starving college student, I jumped at the opportunity to make money. I worked in Oregon with Mowatt Construction for a couple of years while always looking for opportunities in the Puget Sound area, which eventually arrived with University Mechanical Contractors (UMC). 

UMC hired me as a site safety person at a project in Dupont, WA. After 8 years with UMC, I decided to move on with an opportunity as the regional Safety Director for Swinerton Builders, working in King County between Seattle and Bellevue. Unfortunately, this was bad timing due to the recession in 2008, so after a couple of years with Swinerton Builders, I made my final move to Guy F. Atkinson Construction, Inc., where I have been for the past 15 years.

As the Safety Director, what are your primary responsibilities and goals within Atkinson Construction?

I .am the Regional Safety Director for Guy F. Atkinson Construction, Inc., primarily responsible for the NW region, but provide guidance and some oversight for our other 2. regions when needed.

My goals are to provide mentorship and guidance to all three regions by building strategies to partner with local OSHA and State Plans and networking within regional safety communities to strengthen our program and create more effective communication systems to eliminate workplace injuries.

“Effective communication remains the cornerstone, fostering recognition, providing avenues for growth, and encouraging individual reinvestment in the company's success through innovation and professional development.”

In your opinion, what are the key factors that contribute to a successful safety program within a construction company?

Communication is the key to success. Communication can take many different forms, such as pictures, signs, color, but most commonly verbal. The main problem I have seen over the years is the lack of identifying situations that require communication and then clearly communicating expectations with some sort of follow-up, allowing for feedback both to and from those individuals given the initial information.

In the construction industry, what are some of the most common safety challenges that companies face, and how does Atkinson Construction address those challenges?

Over the years, the most common issue I have seen regarding self-performing construction companies is finding and retaining good employees that choose to reinvest in the company through retention and a sense of ownership in the longevity and success of the company.

Effective communication remains the cornerstone, fostering recognition, providing avenues for growth, and encouraging individual reinvestment in the company's success through innovation and professional development.

What advice or recommendations would you give to other construction companies looking to improve their safety performance and create a strong safety culture?

The one thing I see that seems to provide the most success is to clearly communicate expectations to all employees regardless of what these expectations are, to develop a method to measure employee participation regarding clearly stated expectations, create multiple avenues for feedback and "check-ins," and ultimately recognize those that participate and innovate to achieve goals within those expectations.

What are your future goals and aspirations in advancing safety within Atkinson Construction and the construction industry as a whole?

I started an annual Professional Development Conference roughly 10 years ago at my alma mater (CWU) with three goals – 1) promote CWU's program; 2) help students find jobs & internships; 3) increase networking and professional development within our NW Region. This event has undergone a name change and location change with the same 3 goals. At this point, we continue to grow year by year with more participation within the Professional Safety community, including OSHA and DOSH. Again, communication is the key. In this case, communication is achieved through networking, training, and partnerships promoted by our newly named PNW Safety Symposium.