PLH GROUP NEWS
PLH Group Utility Safety Professionals Recharge at iP Utility Safety Conference
Date: November 7, 2021
PLH Group iP Utility Safety Conference and Expo attendees (L-R) John Morton, Power Line Services Safety Manager; Sandra Dominguez, Power Line Services Safety Coordinator; Kevin Marshall, Power Line Services Safety Manager; Elsie Bentley, PLH Group Vice President of Safety Health and Environmental; Michael Bencaz, Auger Services and Air2 Safety Director of Non-Union Electric; George Mersereau, Power Line Services Apprenticeship Program Manager; Stephen Crawford, Power Line Services Director of Operations
PLH Group’s Utility safety and operations professions joined fellow industry experts from across the country in Dallas, Texas, for the iP Utility Safety Conference and Expo. Held from October 26-28, 2021, safety-focused professionals from around the nation met for education, insight, strategy, product innovation, and networking, each with the common goal of elevating not just their own company’s safety performance, but the safety culture throughout the electric Utility industry. After all, as the conference slogan stated: Utility safety is better together.
“No matter how good our safety numbers are, we always want to be better. There is always a new way of thinking, new technology, and new discoveries out there that can make our teams safer each day. By joining with other Utility safety and operations professionals at the iP Utility Safety Conference, we had the opportunity to come together to learn how we can grow safer as a company and an industry,” said Safety, Health, and Environmental Vice President Elsie Bentley.
After keynote speaker and United States Air Force pilot Jeff “Odie” Espenship took participants Soaring to New Safety Heights, education sessions opened. Session topics were aligned with the unique challenges that Utility safety and operations professionals encounter, including:
- Insulation and Isolation
- Cognitive Impairment
- Identifying and Responding to Unique Storm Restoration Hazards
- Personal Protective Grounding
- ANSI Training Requirements
- Situational Awareness
- Thermal Hazard Safety
“We owe it to our employees to prepare for unprecedented challenges – like those stemming from the pandemic – and continually advance and enhance the PLH Group safety culture. Our attendees will now share their learnings and experiences throughout all 11 of PLH Group’s business units so we can all remain on the forefront of safety technology, education, policies, and discoveries,” added Elsie. “We don’t just do it for our company, we do it to ensure our employees go home safely every day.”
Planning for the 2022 iP Utility Safety Conference and Expo has already begun. Next year’s event will be held April 26-28 in Orlando, Florida.
PLH Group is a leading, full-service power line construction, pipeline construction, and specialty contractor that serves the electric power line, pipeline, oil field electrical, and industrial markets. Its top-quality business units deliver comprehensive services to customers throughout the United States and into Canada.
