Safety data sheet management, Phase I environmental site assessments, storm water permits, plans and reporting, asbestos sampling and inspections, indoor air quality testing, first aid classes, and more.

Establishing a safe and healthy working environment can be a daunting task. That’s why it’s important to know the right people who can help navigate the regulations and compliance issues that go hand-­in-hand with local, state and federal regulatory agencies, including the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Department of Environmental Protection.

That’s where the AG Aegis Company, Inc. (Aegis) difference comes in. Headquartered in northwest Pennsylvania, the consulting firm has been providing valuable environmental, health and safety services to employers of all sizes and industries for 30 years. Aegis professionals are often behind the scenes helping employers comply with regulations, advocating for progressive environmental policies and protecting workers’ safety. These industry experts assist lenders, manufacturers, commercial businesses, schools, hospitals, real estate developers, architects and engineering firms in 22 states and Canada in handling all of their environmental and safety management functions, or supplement their in-house programs on an as-needed basis.

“Our company has come a long way very quickly, and we now have the people with the talents and the skills necessary to tackle almost any type of environmental or safety project.” explains the Aegis President David Alexander. who recalls the formation of the company in 1988 when its primary role was processing (material) safety data sheets. “Today, we’re a one-stop-shop for environmental and safety compliance.”

For example. on the environmental side. Aegis services include SARA Title 111 reporting, storage tank removal, wastewater monitoring, asbestos inspections, Phase I environmental site assessments and compliance audits. to name a few. On the safety side, services consist of everything from safety audits, employee training (asbestos awareness. back injury prevention and CPR) to safety data sheet management. preparing a list of hazardous chemicals in the workplace and more.

“There are safety companies and then there are environmental companies,” explains Chad Jack. vice president of Marketing and Sales for Aegis. “Rarely, do we compete with one company that does everything we do.”

This one-stop-shop approach has been a catalyst for Aegis’ success and growth that has positively positioned the company in the long term. In fact, it was just two years ago that Aegis made a substantial investment in relocating and renovating a former police barracks into its new 6,000-square-foot office and training facility off Route 6 in Corry. The move has given Aegis more office space, a garage for vehicles and space for equipment storage, as well as a new conference room and classroom for its highly sought-after training courses. including respirator and confined space training, among others.

“That’s not to say we’re not experiencing growing pains. but this new office space has given us the room to grow,” adds Alexander.

Aegis presently employs 14 professionals with a combined experience of more than 200 years of industry knowledge and experience that clients have come to know and trust. Working with industries where regulations are constantly changing, these experts must be persistent in staying up-to-date with certifications and knowledge base. They also take the time to learn about their customers first. then tailor and design programs to fit their needs – be it an audit and maintenance program, simple report or training.

“With the different types of clientele we have, we’ve become so experienced and knowledgeable about regulatory compliance issues in a wide range of operations that most people probably wouldn’t be aware of,” states Alexander. “That has really moved us into a great position of being trusted and relied on to get it right the first time.”

And, in a competitive business world, where reputation is everything getting it right matters most. “In many cases,” adds Tim Coldren, vice president of Technical Operations, “we have clients that are owned by big corporations where just having a violation on your record is way worse than any fine they’ll get.”

Aegis aims to mitigate any problems employers may encounter so they can devote their time to what they do best – running their businesses. For some companies, this could be outsourcing all
of the environmental, health and safety functions; for others. it’s supplementing some of the work.

“The original plan was to go to these facilities and talk to the person who needed help because he or she was doing five other jobs and teach them what we know, and try to enable them so they can do that work themselves,” explains Alexander. “What we found was that wasn’t the case. There was no time for that person to do that as a sole job. There was no time for that person to learn. So what we saw was a need for a temp-like agency where you provide somebody to them for the short term or the long term. Whether safety or environmental, if we get our foot in the door, it doesn’t take people long to see that we want to wrap our business around the way they do business.”

Given that it has worked with more than 55 of its clients for 20 years or more, Aegis has a proven track record of client satisfaction. Bill Andrews, president and general manager of Monofrax, LLC, in Falconer, New York, which was purchased by a Germany-based company in June 2016, knows the benefits of working with Aegis firsthand. “Coming out of the sale. many of our functions were centralized internationally. Bringing in Aegis allowed us to be able to focus on what we needed here locally and domestically. as well as to work toward improvement and a change in our culture. making safety and environmental compliance and programs of vital importance to everyone here.”

“Bringing in a team with so much experience and so many ideas on things that we could do to improve, and providing different approaches to get there, as well as the training that we needed, was a real blessing to our organization,” Andrews continues. “They even hold a seat on our safety committee. We are proud to count them among our partners.”

At Aegis. finding new ways and flexible options to add value to their services is key. This could be providing all safety data sheets in a searchable on line or sever-based program within the workplace to a client or having an online client portal to access records and reports easily when needed.

The firm. which regularly conducts onsite training for clients around the country by Safety Program Manager Adam Sankey, recently added training sessions at its headquarters and online training programs, as well. “Although most of our clients want an instructor in front of them, this allows employees who have missed a training session or are newly hired to make it up online, and they can be compliant in a matter of minutes,” says Coldren.

For Alexander, the decision to go ahead with on line services took some convincing. “I thought at first there are so many online training programs out there, why would you choose ours? Because we’re able to make it specific to their needs, and our clients find that very useful.”

At Aegis, having the resources and the right people is what has set the company apart in the environmental, health and safety industry for 30 years – and what it expects will be many more to come.

“We have surrounded ourselves with a tremendous group of employees and also subcontractors that we trust and rely on. Our team builds a partnership with the clients so we get the job done quickly, efficiently and right.”

Source: June 2018 Issue of Manufacturer & Business Association Magazine