America's largest steel manufacturer equips teammates and communities with lifesaving Heartsine AEDs

Nucor Steel, a national steel mill facility with ties to Alabama, has taken a major step towards emergency preparedness through an innovative program designed to equip teammates and their local communities with lifesaving automated external defibrillators, or AEDs.

Mr. Paul Thurber – Safety Director at Nucor Steel – spearheaded the initiative to help Nucor teammates acquire AEDs and place them in homes, community centers, ballfields, churches, and schools across the region.  The program, which launched in early 2019, has since placed around 40 AEDs in critical areas so that rapid defibrillation is readily available in the event of a sudden cardiac arrest. “Our teammates are the real heroes here; they, much like our management team, care about people and recognize the importance of rapid defibrillation if/when the unfortunate need arises”, claims Thurber.

“Nucor has truly established an invaluable initiative to help reduce loss of life from the leading cause of pre-hospital death:  sudden cardiac arrest,” says Brady B. McLaughlin, CEO of Stop Heart Attack. “Places that simply did not have access to AEDs now are equipped and ready to respond when seconds count using the same technology provided by fire departments and EMS,” according to McLaughlin.

Teammates split the cost with Nucor for each AED and then get to select the location within their homes or communities that would benefit from having a lifesaving device on-hand.  “We believe that investing in this proven technology can not only have an impact on our team’s lives, but also to others in our families and communities where we live and work, said Thurber.”

Thurber goes on to say, “It’s pro-active safety at its finest; in fact, that’s how we do it here at Nucor.  We (together as a team) entertain an idea, invest in it, make it happen, and then evaluate the results to ensure we’re doing all the right things for continued success.”

Additional AEDs are expected to be placed in communities across the country using this program.  Interested organizations can contact Stop Heart Attack to help launch similar programs anywhere in the United States.