78th ABW sites move up VPP status Published Dec. 9, 2011 By Jenny Gordon 78th Air Base Wing Public Affairs ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. -- It can't be said that safety isn't everyone's responsibility on base. Since August of 2011, the 78th Air Base Wing has seen significant progress in promoting Voluntary Protection Program participation. As of mid-November, it had 48 green, 10 bronze, 23 silver, and 17 gold sites. According to Allen Quattlebaum, 78th ABW VPP program manager, 16 sites within the 78th Civil Engineer Group, 78th Medical Group and 78th Mission Support Group are scheduled to concurrently advance from green to bronze, and bronze to silver in December and January. A recent example of a similar VPP journey involves the 78th CEG horizontal office, which is responsible for pavement work on base. The shop, in Bldg. 1342, progressed from green to silver status in mid-November, skipping bronze altogether. Since August, participation in VPP has grown to include the vehicle maintenance and fuels shops, entomology, and 78th CEG operations sections, to name a few. Fire Station 1, located on Robins Parkway, was designated a VPP Gold Safe Site Nov. 3, bringing all three fire stations to gold. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration's VPP initiative here empowers workers to take ownership of their personal safety and the safety of others. Through comprehensive, effective work place safety and health management systems, nine separate VPP "Star" application areas have been designated at Robins - one of which is the 78th ABW. While each of the nine application areas has its own target dates for "Star" status, the 78th ABW has a goal of submitting its OSHA Star application by May 2013. That recognition demonstrates exemplary achievement by an organization in the prevention and control of occupational safety and health hazards, and the implementation and continuous improvement of its safety and health management system. It's important to note that prospective VPP site assessments are visits, not inspections, and now include a union representative, to reflect a true partnership effort among union, employees and management. Assessment team members tour areas to look for a culture of safety, and to verify if employees are practicing safety principles. The Warner Robins Air Logistics Center has developed a VPP Safe Site Challenge, which breaks the 78th ABW's OSHA application area into smaller areas, such as offices, shops or teams, which have embraced commitment to safety and health excellence. The challenge began in 2008 and has realized increased awareness and participation in the last year. The 78th ABW currently has 100 Safe Sites.