Alcoa 1996 Annual Report Download - page 13

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Global
Information. Alcoa
was named by Chief Information
Officer (CIO) magazine to its CIO-
100 list for global expertise and
leadership in 1996. Focus of the
award was on the role of infor-
mation technology in transform-
ing organizations into single
global entities. Voting was in
two rounds. In the first, judges
nominated 250 organizations
with reputations for excellence
in multinational businesses. In
the second, judges evaluated
each as a global leader, weighing
the business and information
technology practices contribut-
ing to success.
Reaffirming Values.
Recognizing a strong linkage
between environmental, health
and safety performance, Alcoa
has adopted a single value —
along with related policies and
principles — covering all three
issues. The new EHS value
states: “We will work safely in a
manner that promotes the
health and well-being of the
individual and the environ-
ment.” In announcing the
change, Chairman Paul O’Neill
reaffirmed Alcoa’s commitment
to its value structure. “When
that is correct,” he said, “every-
thing else will follow.” He added
that the unified EHS value is
also in keeping with the effort
to simplify multiple processes
whenever possible.
Foundation uses the Malcolm
Baldridge Quality Award crite-
ria for its audit process. The
award recognizes that Poços de
Caldas attained world’s-best
standards in leadership, man-
agement information systems,
strategic planning, human
resources management, process
management, focus on cus-
tomer satisfaction, and business
results. Brazilian President
Fernando Henrique Cardoso
presented the award to Alcoa
Aluminio on November 20, 1996.
Welcome to Safety Town. The
city of Fort Meade, Fla., home to
an Alcoa industrial chemicals
facility, and the Alcoa
Foundation collaborated to
create Safety Town, a program
designed to teach children the
fundamentals of traffic safety
while walking or riding bicycles
around the small city.
A Safer Workplace. Liberty
Mutual Insurance Company
presented its Gold Award to
the Stuarts Draft, Va., facility
of Alcoa Building Products.
The citation recognizes the
achievement of two million
work hours with an injury
rate less than one-half the
construction industry average.
The Gold Award is the highest
form of recognition Liberty
Mutual awards to its policy-
holders in the area of loss
prevention.
No Exceptions. In early 1996,
Alcoans at an industrial chemi-
cals plant asked a ceramic
chemicals customer to improve
safety practices in loading and
transport. When no action was
taken, Alcoans refused to load
the company’s trucks until safe
practices were adopted. The
customer took the business to a
competitor. Recently, the same
customer returned to Alcoa
with an order — and new safety
protocols for handling and
transporting the chemicals.
GE Picks
Alcoa Sheet
Product. Alcoa
aluminum will be
used in the exterior
door panels of General
Electric’s new dishwash-
ers. The differentiated 3004
H26 product from Aerospace/
Commercial Rolled Products
was chosen over powder-coated
steel for this application based
on superior aesthetics, weight
savings, equivalent dent resis-
tance, and cost savings. GE esti-
mates sales of two million units
per year, resulting in more than
five million pounds per year of
new business for Alcoa.
Standards for Education. At
the request of Pennsylvania
Governor Tom Ridge, Alcoa
Chairman Paul O’Neill headed
a commission empaneled to
develop statewide academic
standards. In three months, the
commission drafted public
school standards for math, sci-
ence, reading and writing.
Brazil’s Best. The Poços de
Caldas plant of Alcoa Aluminio
won the Brazilian National
Quality Award — the nation’s
highest honor for industry. The
Brazilian National Quality
Brazil’s President Cardoso (r)
with Aluminio’s Fausto Moreira