RTA awards: Construction firms honoured

A glittering ceremony has honoured safety-conscious construction companies that have been involved in creating transport projects.

The inaugural Road and Transport Authority's Safety Awards took place on Wednesday at the organisation's plush new headquarters off Marrakesh Road, in Dubai.

The awards aim to recognise the firms that have undertaken RTA projects and adopted the best health and safety policies.

Four awards were given out on the day.

Best contractor award was given to Dutco Balfour Beatty while the Best consultant award was given to Parsons. The same firm shared the best construction site category honours with Wade Adams.

The RTA Board of Directors Safety category award for the best operation team from the Traffic and Roads Agency went to Ashraf Abdul Monim, Haitham Fakhri Hussain and Mahmoud Ayash Al Amoush.

Grahame McCraig, general manager of Dutco Balfour Beatty, spoke to XPRESS after accepting the award.

He said: “We take health and safety very seriously and to be recognised by the RTA is a huge honour for us.''

He said he had seen an improvement in the levels of safety among companies during the 15 years he had been in Dubai.

He said: “Making sure your workforce operate in a safe environment should be of paramount importance to any company.''

Tarek Mahmoud El-Atawi, vice president Dubai operations manager for Parsons, said: “We are very proud to have been given the award and with it being the first, it is extra special.

“Health and safety should be the highest priority for construction companies and I think these awards will help firms to focus on this issue.''

The awards were handed out by Mattar Al Tayer, chairman of the Board and Executive Director of RTA.

Al Tayer said health and safety standards on RTA projects were crucial and must not be compromised under any circumstances.

He said: “All RTA projects are designed and built at the highest safety and security levels.

“Throughout construction phases they are subjected to thorough evaluation to verify compatibility of construction processes with the global standards of projects occupational safety.''

He said the awards aimed to support and build on existing good practice within the industry.

Inspections are regularly made on project sites to make sure they meet the required standards, he said.

He said: “The first edition of the award is dedicated to road projects undertaken by Traffic and Roads Agency, which apply the best practices to ensure occupational safety at work sites.

“In future, the award will be generalised over all companies implementing various projects for RTA agencies.''

The awards are decided by a committee headed by Ameer Saleem, Director of the Safety Regulation and Planning Department, along with seven other members.