Canada’s leading provider of specialized rail operating services and terminal infrastructure, Cando Rail & Terminals, has been honoured a a 2023 RAC Safety and Environment Award by the Railway Association of Canada (RAC).

The award was in recognition of the company’s Good Catch campaign, which is an employee driven programme that recognises and rewards exceptional safety hazard identification and action.

Cando Rail & Terminals operates its Good Catch campaign throughout the company. It is designed to acknowledge employees who through their own initiative have prevented an incident or accident by proactively identifying and addressing safety hazards and near misses.

By formally and consistently acknowledging employees’ efforts, the company recognises company-wide and offers rewards of gifts.
Through education, re-enforcement and a more structured approach, Cando’s reporting of hazards and near misses was greatly improved, showing the benefit of implementing proactive measures to improve safety.

As Canada’s leading provider of specialised rail operating services and terminal infrastructure, Cando enables industrial shippers to optimise their supply chains so that they can connect to Class 1 railways by taking advantage of Cando’s operating capabilities and network of owned multi-purpose rail terminals.

As well as its terminal operations, Cando provides a wide range of rail services that include short line operations, industrial switching, material handling, terminal & transload services, railcar staging, train assembly, and related services.

Cando President & CEO Brian Cornick said “At Cando Rail & Terminals we strive for a spirit of consultation and cooperation. We recognize that when employees participate directly by providing their ideas, experience, and effort, we all benefit,

“Identifying and reporting safety hazards has always been a part of working safely. What our Good Catch Campaign adds is a systematic process, which was developed by our employees in the field, that not only engages our people to proactively identify risks but also acknowledges them for their role in preventing incidents.”

John Raymond, one of the Cando Safety Department team members who leads the initiative, said “The program was initiated several years ago when field employees felt there needed to be a more accessible way to report hazards. We transformed the company’s entire safety hazard reporting process.”

“Implementing initiatives by engaging our employees creates a culture of safety ownership from the ground up.”
“Most importantly, our record demonstrates that our cooperative dedication to consistently addressing and correcting hazards brings a reduced incident rate while further establishing our fair and just culture in the workplace.”