Ziamatic’s Safety Record is Outstanding
– Darren Kelly, Warehouse/Production Manager of Ziamatic Gives His Insight –
Darren Kelly has been the Warehouse/Production Manager at Ziamatic for over 15 years and has worked in manufacturing for over 30 years. When Ziamatic approached him about running its production floor and revamping its safety program, he jumped at the chance. With Kelly onboard, Ziamatic’s approach to safety has been far-reaching.
Ziamatic has been a member of OSHA’s Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP) for the past 14 years. According to its website, the SHARP program recognizes small business employers who have used OSHA’s On-Site Consultation Program services and “operate exemplary safety and health programs.” The Yardley, Pennsylvania based company was also the recipient of the 2011 Governor’s Award for Safety Excellence.
Under Kelly’s direction, Ziamatic formed a state certified safety committee that meets monthly, and employees participate in training and daily inspections. “When you show employees that you truly care about them then they tend to really care how well their work gets done. It’s a model that continues to work for us.”
Kelly also takes pride in the Ziamatic’s high production standards, which he attributes to the company’s talented and dedicated work force. “I’ve always had the best success with manufacturing when my focus has been on the most important part, the assembly technicians. Your products can be spectacular but without a talented work force with attention to details your products lose their reliability.” He continued: “I enjoy putting the pride back into the work we do here. I try to lead by example and constantly ask our work force, “if you were receiving this product, is this what you would want to receive?”
With over 120 pages of products in its annual catalog – including the SURE-GRIP and Vehicle Cooling Units among others – maintaining such an exceptional model of productivity can be a challenge, according to Kelly. Ziamatic must maintain a steady schedule of cross-training to meet the high demand for its products. All technicians are qualified to work in multiple areas, doing numerous Ziamatic builds and tasks.
“Teamwork is the name of our game and the players have been exceptional,” Kelly said “Management trusts the knowledge of these technicians, who do most of the cross training, and the technicians trust the R & D staff and engineers when it comes time to kick off a new product and learn its assembly.”
According to Kelly, new products are always tested by Ziamatic employees first before receiving third party testing. Their input is noted and discussed, and safety protocols are put into place to make safe assembly procedures. Any new testing areas that are needed are run though Ziamatic’s safety committee members first to assure Ziamatic’s best chances of success without injury. Often a committee member will attend a testing session for the sole purpose of evaluating the safety of the product. “Safety first always wins,” said Kelly.
Kelly takes pride in Ziamatic’s ability to deliver its products in a timely manner. “We take pride in getting the product to a customer as its intended to be received and it’s not uncommon for us to be able to do that in a very timely manner. We offer same day shipping on most of our products and our record is outstanding with only an occasional supply chain issue slowing us down.”
Kelly continued: “Ziamatic employees take pride in their work. They take pride in how our customers perceive us. They take pride in doing all this without getting anyone hurt or injured.”
For over 50 years, Ziamatic Corp. has provided first responders with the tools and equipment they need to make their jobs safer, easier, and more efficient every day.
