MUSCATINE, Iowa–Muscatine Power and Water (MPW) is proud to announce it has been honored with multiple awards from the American Public Power Association (APPA) for its commitment to reliability and safety.
The Reliable Public Power Provider designation (RP3®), which lasts for three years, recognizes public power utilities demonstrating proficiency in four disciplines: reliability, safety, workforce development, and system improvement. Criteria include sound business practices and a utility-wide commitment to safe and reliable delivery of electricity. MPW joins 271 public power utilities nationwide that hold the RP3 designation.
MPW General Manager Gage Huston shared: “receiving an RP3® designation is a great honor and demonstrates MPW’s commitment to implementing industry best practices in utility operations. MPW, like other RP3 utilities, are consistently looking to improve their workforce, system reliability, and safety to serve their communities better.”
In the 18 years APPA has offered the RP3 designation, MPW has received one gold, one platinum, and four diamond-level recognitions.
“This is a great honor,” said Director of Utility Services Delivery Ryan Streck: “We take a lot of pride in the work we do to power our community. It’s nice to be recognized among the best of the best on a national level.”
MPW also earned APPA’s Safety Award of Excellence for safe operating practices in 2022 – the second time MPW has been recognized for its safety culture. MPW earned a third-place award in Category F for utilities with 250,000 – 999,999 worker-hours of annual worker exposure. MPW employees worked 504,913 hours in 2022.
Muscatine Power and Water celebrating its American Public Power awards. Photos courtesy Muscatine Power and Water.
“We could not have accomplished this without our staff prioritizing safety,” shared Huston. “One of MPW’s core values is creating a culture of safety with the belief that safety is everyone’s responsibility and all accidents are preventable.”
Overall, 283 utilities from across the country entered the annual Safety Awards. Entrants were placed in categories according to their number of worker hours and ranked based on incident-free records and the overall state of their safety programs and culture during 2022. The incidence rate is based on the number of work-related reportable injuries or illnesses and worker hours during 2022, as defined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
“Team members are empowered to stop work immediately – no matter what the work is – if there is a safety concern,” said Jim Garrison, safety manager: “Our most valued resource is our employees. There is always time to do the work safely to ensure our team members are not put in harm’s way.”
The APPA has bestowed safety awards annually for over 65 years and offered the RP3 designation for 18 years. To learn more about the safety awards or RP3 designation, visit publicpower.org.
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