A Darlington engineering company has won one of industry's highest health and safety awards.

Mech-Tool Engineering Limited earned RoSPA's President's Award after collecting ten consecutive gold awards.

George Hodgson, technical services manager, said: "It means that our health and safety standards have passed the highest examination for ten years running and that's a record we are very proud of."

He will be presented with the award at Safety and Health Expo 2010, Europe's leading annual health and safety exhibition, in Birmingham in May.

Mech-Tool designs and manufactures explosion, fire and noise protection systems, primarily for the offshore and nuclear industries.

Mr Hodgson attributes its exceptional safety record to a health and safety culture developed over more than 40 years of operating in some of the world's most hazardous work environments.

Last year, Mech-Tool became one of the first UK engineering companies to achieve OHSAS 18001, a relatively new international standard certified by Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance and subject to a rigorous third party audit.

Mr Hodgson said: "It has never been more important to be able to demonstrate to potential customers, not only that we take health and safety very seriously, but that our health and safety management systems live up to, and in many cases surpass, the highest benchmarks set by our industry's safety watchdogs."

The RoSPA award scheme examined the health and safety systems at Mech-Tool's head office and two fabrication centres in Darlington and Teesside, where it employs 130 people, as well as its offsite operations.

Mr Hodgson said: "We are determined not to rest on our laurels. After the President's Award, RoSPa awards the Order of Distinction for 15 consecutive golds and that is now our goal."