Duane Hicks
Not only can they boast some of the lowest power rates in the province, and tip-top infrastructure reliable enough to attract Tbatyel to brings its fibre services here, but they’re safety-conscious, too.
The Fort Frances Power Corp. celebrated more than 125,000 safe worked hours as of July during a special lunch last Wednesday at their operations centre at 939 Wright Ave. N.
FFPC president and CEO Joerg Ruppenstein, along with FFPC board chair Larry Cousineau, sincerely thanked all of the FFPC staff for contributing towards the milestone.
“It’s an absolute honour and privilege to stand in front of you to commend for a job well-done, to commend you for safe worked hours,” said Ruppenstein.
“There’s a lot of utilities out in the province that don’t have that luxury.
“We had a serious incident as close as Kenora happen this year, so we can’t take safety for granted,” Ruppenstein stressed.
“I hope that I can stand here in front of you for the rest of my career and commend you year after year for doing a hell of a job, working safe, and going home safe to your families,” he noted.
Ruppenstein said the FFPC staff “really feels like a family environment.”
“It takes everyone on our team to make us tick, and we’ve got an absolute ‘A’ team,” he lauded.
“If we were an NHL team, we’d be going for the Stanley Cup.”
Cousineau also praised the FFPC staff, noting that whether it’s in the office or out in the field, he can tell everyone is working as a team.
He added the FFPC board of directors also makes safety a high priority in its decision-making.
“We try to constantly consider all of the different safety factors, and we try to give you people the right equipment to be safe, too,” Cousineau said.
“And I hope we’re doing that. I think we are.”
Ruppenstein later noted 125,000 safe worked hours equals nearly 10 years, and he’s confident the FFPC can reach 200,000 safe worked hours in years to come.
Safe worked hours are defined as “missed time at work due to an accident,” he explained.
