Community involvement is an integral part of the Verdi culture. Our employees are always working towards making lasting and meaningful contributions, both personally and professionally. If you visit our site, you will see five basic levels in which we engage the community. It goes beyond hiring local subcontractors and suppliers, beyond understanding and addressing concerns of residents and businesses who may be inconvenienced during the construction process. At Verdi, community involvement means finding the heart that pumps the blood and brings life to it.

At St. Rose of Lima School in Newtown CT, we build both structures and minds. Verdi recently assisted a Boy Scout in designing and constructing his Eagle Scout project: a covered sandbox for the preschool. Verdi donated all of the materials and project for the preschoolers to enjoy. Today’s sandcastle is tomorrow’s skyscraper.

In April, our Vice President and Senior Superintendent volunteered at the Bethel (CT) Middle School Color Burst 5K Run. These gentlemen assisted with the setup and breakdown of an obstacle course. The proceeds from this run helped offset costs for the 7th graders five-day trip to Nature’s Classroom, an environmental education program.

Last month, Verdi supported Newtown Congregational Church’s – Ecumenical Work Camp Servants (N.E.W.S.) trip to Biloxi, MS. N.E.W.S. work campers hail from several local houses of worship. An energetic group of 39 teenagers worked on repairing distressed homes, from roofs to siding, painting to plumbing. One crew even converted an old gazebo into a storage shed. Talk about design-build! The N.E.W.S. team volunteered their time to transform lives and to breathe new life into a community in need.

We can create new history with each demolition project. We can replace the old with the new and make dull things shine again. Most importantly, we cannot ignore the citizens that make these structures come alive. A little kindness and a coat of paint can brighten a wall and an entire community.

EXPERIENCE MODIFICATION RATE (EMR)

A company’s MOD Rate (EMR) is a numeric figure used by insurance companies to gauge the past costs of worker injuries and as a predictor of future behavior. Basically, the lower your company’s EMR, the less costly your workers compensation. An EMR of 1.0 is the industry average, so a higher EMR will cause your insurance premiums to increase, and sometimes, insurers will even drop you as a client.

No Injury = No Claim = Lower EMR. Oftentimes, the EMR reflects a company’s safety culture. At Verdi, our teams adherence to and support of safety rules and OSHA regulations, along with management’s commitment to providing and promoting a safe work environment, has helped reduce hazards and prevent injuries, therefore lowering our EMR to well below 1.0.

A lower EMR provides constructors with other advantages as well:

1. Lower overall bids as they do not have to carry as much insurance cost
2. Ability to bid on more work as certain projects require an EMR of 1.0 or below
3. Instills client confidence in contractor’s ability to deliver the project in the safest manner

Working safely, and keeping an eye on each other’s actions, as well as our own, is of the utmost importance.