Associated Food Stores’ distribution center earns top insurance award

Salt Lake City-based Associated Food Stores (AFS) said its Farr West distribution center was recently awarded a Highly Protected Risk Award (HPR) from FM Global, the largest commercial property insurer. The award recognizes AFS’ dedication and efforts to protect the distribution center from fire, natural hazards and other property risks while meeting the highest standards for loss prevention. AFS was also presented a special award honoring its 30-year partnership with FM Global.

“Organizations that earn an HPR award are to be applauded for taking steps to safeguard their property, instilling a high-quality risk management culture and enhancing their overall resilience,” said Tom Lawson, president, FM Global.

Each year, the Farr West distribution center undergoes a comprehensive audit. FM Global compares the facility to similar structures and examines policies and procedures against safety and risk management best practices to determine an insurance ranking. Each FM Global audit usually includes recommendations for improvements. The Farr West distribution center’s audit was returned with zero recommendations for improvement for the second year in a row, marking their leadership status in the industry, AFS said.

“Our success is due to the initial engineering of the facility, the support from our executive staff and board of directors, the excellent team at FM Global [and] our maintenance technicians and safety team in Farr West,” said Carl Jensen, director of facilities maintenance at the distribution center. “We couldn’t do it without everyone’s help.”