AMTA  E-News

May 2010

CF's Don Chapman, Safety Person of the Year

DON CHAPMAN (Canadian Freightways), was named 2010 Safety Person of the Year, at the AMTA Management Conference held in Banff (April 30 – May 2). The award is sponsored by Bow Valley Insurance Services Ltd. For more details about this year’s recipient, see directly below for the remarks delivered at the presentation ceremony:

It’s safe to say our Safety Person of the Year was born into the trucking industry. Don Chapman’s grandfather and father owned an operated Byers Transport and Truckers Terminal, a common carrier truck depot popular in the ‘50s and ‘60s. As a young teen, Don would spend the summer and other school breaks working at both sites, soaking up the atmosphere and developing a true love for the industry.

As a young adult prepared to embark on a career, there was no question that Don was going to enter our industry on a full-time basis; and that came to pass when he was hired by Canadian Freightways in 1973.

By 1996, well ensconced in his career, Don made a career move that resulted in us being here today – he transferred into CF’s Safety Department. At the time, the department was a one-man show featuring Dennis Pettit, a giant in the area of safety who became a great mentor to Don. Dennis retired in 2003, but still has a hand in CF’s highway driver recruitment and is always available as a sounding board for Don.

In is decade-and-a-half in safety, Don has been one of the mainstays of the Professional Truck Driving Championships and has worked on a number of important safety initiatives, the most notable for him being:
• The recent Fatigue Management Study which involved Alberta Transportation, the AMTA, the Canadian Sleep Institute and Transportation Canada;
• Adoption of Canadian Freightway’s Certification of Recognition or COR;
• The development of CF’s own PDIC presentation so the carrier could zero in with drivers on areas requiring improvement;
• The Transportation Training & Development Board;
• AMTA’s Greenhouse Gas committee;
• The PIC Standards committee;
• Alberta and British Columbia LCV Task Force; and
• AMTA’s Collision Review committee.

Don acknowledges that now is a good time to be involved in safety because the industry as a whole has bought into its importance. Whereas decades ago safety was viewed as a necessary evil that cost both time and money, today the industry views safety as an important part of doing business. Carriers embrace safety because it makes good business sense, especially with many customers now demanding safety benchmarks. Current safety incentives such as the COR program and the PIC program also help a carrier’s bottom line while making the industry safer for all.

Don’s personal approach to safety can be summed up in one word: ‘LISTEN’. According to Don, “Whether it involves conversations with drivers, dock workers or mechanics – these people are in the industry’s front line. They know what has to happen in order to produce a safe operation. I’d be foolish not to heed their expertise.”

An approach to safety that has paid dividends at Canadian Freightways has been the ‘deputizing’ of employees to become involved in the area of safety. It fosters ownership in individuals and makes everyone proud to be a part of a real team effort.

While safety is an important part of Don’s life, he does enjoy a rich family life with wife Doreen, their three children and five grandchildren. Don and Doreen team up to create some fabulous gourmet meals that are topped off with Don’s homemade wines. In the summer, the couple enjoys spending time at an RV park in beautiful Sundre, Alberta, 130 km northwest of Calgary on the banks of the Red Deer River.

No one should be surprised that Don was named this year’s recipient of the Safety Person of the Year award – but he was! According to Don, recent successes in the area of safety have been the result of a real group effort. He says everyone who has been involved in trucking safety is doing it because it’s the right thing to do, not for individual recognition. Having said that, he is most proud and grateful to be receiving this award – and award that we know he was born to receive.

Without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, please join me in congratulating our Safety Person of the Year, Mr. Don Chapman of Canadian Freightways.