Vallourec promotes importance at safety at local plants

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

Tuesday was “Safety Day” for the Vallourec companies.

More than 18,000 employees – 550 locally at the Vallourec Star and VAM USA plants – took the day to discuss the importance of safety.

Vallourec Star produces steel pipe on Martin Luther King Boulevard while VAM USA provides premium threading for the pipes on Ohio Works Drive.

“Our talk today mostly focused on looking out for everyone’s safety,” said Kristin Malosh, director of environmental, health and safety for Vallourec North America. “It’s a heavy manufacturing industry. We have a lot of machinery. We are making big steel pipe, and we have overhead cranes and forklifts.”

Ricky Rollins, a safety advocate and owner of Ricky Rollins Safety Speeches, talks about safety at the workplace and at home.

“Life is Russian roulette,” Rollins said.

Rollins worked in the steel industry for more than 30 years. After retiring in January, Rollins decided to start his safety-speaking company.

“I enjoy it ... knowing that you can change someone’s life,” Rollins said.

Rollins tells the story about how a guy he worked with had burns on more than 40 percent of his body from an on-the-job injury.

“We will never remember how many tons [of steel] we will make a day, but if someone is seriously injured, we will remember that for the rest of our lives,” Rollins said.

Rollins thought it was “remarkable” that Vallourec took so much time to focus on safety.

“It’s always important,” said Garrett Francis, Vallourec Star vice president of operations. “People come here to provide for their families. They expect to come and go the same. We want them to think about how they can contribute to an improved safety environment.”

Vallourec has seen a recovery recently along with the industry and is hiring for both hourly and salary positions.