DAVIS X Jason Kibler

Jason Kibler is part of our dynamic EHS team and has been working closely with Maryland Occupational Safety and Health (MOSH) as part of the Strategic Partnership for Excellence in Construction Safety (SPECS) program to help elevate safety standards across the construction market. We talked with Jason about his career at DAVIS, the future of the SPECS program, and more!

How long have you been at DAVIS, Jason?

It’ll be seven years in April.

Looking after the safety and health of construction sites is a complicated field. What made you choose your path?

It’s very hands-on, and you’re better able to take a personal approach to a project, because you have so much interaction with people who are actually doing the work. Also, construction is so dynamic. There’s always a new hazard to plan for and to address with our trade partners, so it’s just an exciting place to be. I also just love seeing the finished structures we play a part in.

The SPECS program seems to be a great way for DAVIS to contribute to the industry at large. What do you find so special about SPECS?

One of our core values is building relationships, and with SPECS, we’re working on connecting with peers in our community. Within SPECS, members invite MOSH and other members onto their sites to do inspections. It’s exciting because when we can all share our best ideas for construction safety, everyone benefits.

What do you see for the future of SPECS?

We really want to help our specialty contractors get engaged in the program. There are a lot of positive aspects of SPECS participation—a proactive relationship with MOSH, mentorship and training for those seeking a higher level of safety, and continued collaboration. It’s a really exciting program.

Safety and health are on top of all our minds after a year of dealing with COVID-19. What have been your takeaways?

We’ve made a lot of strides in sanitation standards, and going forward beyond COVID, we’ll see a more health-centered focus on our construction environment, which is encouraging. It’s as simple as having running water and soap instead of just hand sanitizer on-site, but it makes a huge difference.

What is about DAVIS that helps us put that focus into our safety strategies?

Worker safety and health is integrated into everything that we do—DAVIS really puts people first. We’re not just building buildings, and we make that part of our approach to each project.

Read more about SPECS on the program’s website, and check out our post on the SPECS program itself on our News + Insights page!