Friday, October 2, 2020

PennDOT - District 6 News: PennDOT Honors Star of Excellence Recipients

An update has been published to District 6 News on the PennDOT website. Please see below for details.

PennDOT - District 6 News

PennDOT Honors Star of Excellence Recipients

​King of Prussia, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) Secretary Yassmin Gramian today recognized 29 PennDOT employees for their outstanding performance with the Star of Excellence Award, PennDOT's highest recognition. Two employees from PennDOT's District 6 which represents Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties were among the honorees.

"These employees exemplify the care and concern needed to serve the state of Pennsylvania," Gramian said. "Each puts effective and efficient transportation services at the top of their list daily, while demonstrating a strong commitment to the agency and roughly 12 million state residents." 

Gramian and other department executives honored winners Eric Lawrence and Hilary Fink during an online ceremony.

"Both Eric and Hilary's work performance show a dedication to PennDOT and our mission to provide sustainable and quality services to our communities," said District 6 Executive Kenneth M. McClain. They are each a tremendous asset to their respective units, as they are constantly looking for new ways to improve their workflows and continually offering guidance to their fellow employees."

Eric Lawrence is a Maintenance Repairman 2 and an integral member of the Montgomery County Maintenance team. Lawrence's work experience within the paving industry is beneficial to PennDOT's overall success but it's his dedication to safety that has helped ensure the sustainability of the paving program. As an effective mentor, Lawrence imparts his extensive paving knowledge on the Transportation Equipment Operators and thoughtfully provides instruction on the resurfacing process. He consistently stresses the need to be proactive to avoid potential hazards that could affect the well-being of his team and emphasizes to his co-workers the value of knowing the complete details for each piece of equipment. Under his direction, there is no evidence of an accident or violation with any member of his bridge crew or operators conducting snow removal operations. His ability to address bridge damage is a critical component used by the District Bridge Unit to determine the scope of the projects that he and his crew can handle. Through his hard work, he has become one of the county's most influential and respected employees. Lawrence continues to accomplish the most critical maintenance operations and works successfully with other state agencies, local municipalities, area legislators and their constituents.

Hilary Fink as a Roadside Specialist 1 is an enthusiastic worker and invaluable asset to the department. Fink attained Certified Arborist certification to help her assist in all tree-related matters across the district and has been instrumental in keeping the roadside unit aligned with the overall goals of productivity, efficient planning, and cost savings. She has taken the lead in driving a continuous improvement effort by helping to develop methods used to track certain aspects of the roadside unit including contract usage and tree inventory. Specifically, utilizing Maintenance IQ and Geosnap technologies, she helped compile tree inventory on Roosevelt Boulevard. The collected data helped target Ash Trees affected by the Emerald Ash Borer and any other dead species for removal, which will result in a cost savings of nearly $100,000. Fink is also often praised for her professional nature. During a recent encounter with high employee turnover in the county roadside positions, Fink continued to perform the duties of the Roadside Technician while performing all of her primary job responsibilities, essentially performing the dual role for over a year. She continues to be an exemplary employee striving to move the department forward.

The Star of Excellence Awards are presented annually to employees who represent the department's values of service, performance and integrity. The recipients represent a variety of organizational positions, spanning from highway maintenance and driver and vehicle services workers, to traffic control specialists, communications staff and design and engineering specialists.

For more information on PennDOT activities in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties visit www.penndot.gov/District6.

MEDIA CONTACT: Chelsea Lacey-Mabe, 610-250-6798

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