Canyon State Electric: Current Events

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A powerful commitment to safety galvanizes Canyon State Electric

One of Inc.’s 5000 fastest growing companies, design-build electrical contracting firm Canyon State Electric (CSE) is attracting the attention of electrical safety experts throughout the nation. The Phoenix-based firm was recently lauded by the Independent Electrical Contractors Association (IEC) for superior achievement in safety and construction and is the only firm of its kind in Arizona granted that distinction.

CSE offers design-build services, virtual design and construction, pre-fabrication, maintenance, and service. In addition to their electrical construction services, CSE offers scalable fire and life safety systems with integrated emergency communications that connect across buildings and are readily monitored from any mobile device.

Out of 3,600 electrical contracting businesses across the country, CSE was among only 12 companies to be recognized for Superior Achievement in Safety by the national nonprofit trade association, which represents approximately 80,000 American electrical and systems workers.

“Safety is the company culture,” Sidney Hawkins, Canyon State Electric’s safety and training manager, said in a release announcing the honor. “Our staff focuses on the safety of the person working near them. They genuinely care about each other. That mindset makes Canyon State one of the safest companies I have ever worked for.”

Award contestants are scored in over 20 categories, including leadership commitment, employee participation, use of personal protective equipment, and recordkeeping. CSE earned the maximum number of points in all categories.

In addition to CSE, the organization’s membership includes a host of top-tier industry performers. IEC’s world-class training programs support roughly 14,000 American electricians and systems professionals each year through world-class training programs. Douglas Donnelly, foreman of Special Systems for CSE, was recognized as an industry rising star.

According to the IEC, Donnelly and the other six award recipients – who represent companies from across the nation – were evaluated on their impact on the growth of the electrical industry, as well as their contributions to their companies and communities, their commitment to leadership development, and other criteria.

“We want everyone to go home to their families healthier and wealthier each day,” company president Robert Hughes said. “Safety is our No. 1 core value, and we have ensured at each level of the company, it is our highest priority. We talk the talk and walk the walk.”

The recognition keeps coming for the 44-year-old firm, founded in 1978 by Steve Maderazzo and currently led by daughter Stephanie Maderazzo-Hughes and son Chris Maderazzo. As part of the 2022 Arizona Corporate Excellence Awards, CSE was ranked among Arizona’s top 50 private companies by the Phoenix Business Journal.

“We’ve been in business nearly 45 years in Arizona,” CEO Maderazzo-Hughes said in the announcement. “I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished and how we’ve established ourselves as one of the leading companies in the state.”

The largest woman-owned business in Arizona, CSE has been ranked as the best workplace in the state for five consecutive years.

Their commitment to best practices in health and safety is further supported by the Arizona Department of Occupational Safety (ADOSH). In October of this year, CSE inked a three-year partnership agreement with ADOSH to bolster their strategic safety goals. When the agreement ends, CSE hopes to have reduced injury, illness, and their “days away, restricted, or transferred” rates by 15%.

Once completed, CSE will apply to participate in OSHA’s elite Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) in the hope of becoming eligible for OSHA’s highest recognition, the VPP star.

“ADOSH is the expert and we are proud to be in a partnership with them,” Hawkins said. “Alongside ADOSH, CSE will improve and innovate safety not only within the company but industry-wide. Our passion for safety does not stop at our doors — it ‘bleeds’ into the entire industry.” He added, “We are already looking beyond VPP. What comes after VPP? That’s what we want.”

Since inking the agreement, they’ve scored exceptionally well on a key metric demonstrating their commitment to best practices that will also help to get great workers’ compensation insurance rates. CSE’s experience modification rating (EMR) is a stellar 0.7%, which is 30% lower than the industry average. The standard EMR rating is 1, reflecting an average safety rating.

The company’s ADOSH inspector, Brandon Stowell said, “CSE already has many of the elements of the ADOSH mission in place. Through this new partnership, CSE and ADOSH will advance the protection of life, health, safety, and welfare of CSE’s workforce.”