Employees of Norfolk Southern's mechanical department had the lowest-ever reportable injury ratio by any operating department at the company in 2008. The department, which has 5,800 employees, is responsible for maintaining the railroad's 3,976 locomotives and 94,660 freight cars.
Employees of the department, which is run by by Tim Heilig, vice president-mechanical, worked a total of 11.9 million man hours and completed the year with a reportable injury ratio of 0.53. The ratio represents the number of reportable injuries for every 200,000 man hours worked.
The mechanical department was recognized at NS' annual safety awards meeting along with other departments and employees with outstanding safety accomplishments, including 31 employees who performed heroic acts in 2008.