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1946-2013
Jimmie Wayne Hinze
The National Academy of Construction lost one of its recently inducted members with the passing of Jimmie Wayne Hinze on September 12, 2013. Family and friends celebrated his life at a memorial service held at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Round Top, Texas, on September 16, 2013. Jimmie’s major long-term contributions in construction safety research and industry implementation of safety best practices mean he will be greatly missed by both academics and industry professionals. His name is consistently associated with safety as a result of over 35 years of excellent academic work in this area. He was truly the “Who’s Who” in safety as related to the construction industry.
Jimmie was born in the small Texas town of Burton on February 17, 1946. He grew up on a cotton and chicken farm in nearby Round Top, Texas. He graduated from Round Top Carmine High School after which he received an associate’s degree from Blinn College in Brenham, Texas. He earned a bachelor of science in architectural engineering with honors and a master of science from The University of Texas at Austin. He earned his PhD at Stanford University in 1976. He met his future wife, Maxine Mueller, when he moved to Columbia, Missouri, to begin his academic career at the University of Missouri.
Jimmie’s work in safety started with his dissertation at Stanford entitled, “The Effect of Middle Management on Safety in the Construction Industry.” His expertise in safety was directly related to research performed for various sponsors who either focused on safety or who acknowledged safety to be key to industry success. Prominent sponsors included the Construction Industry Institute (CII), the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the U.S. Department of State, and ConocoPhillips. His research also clearly demonstrated the breadth of his involvement in safety in such efforts as designing for safety, leading indicators of safety performance, making zero accidents a reality, the role of owners in construction safety, injury protection, and other related safety issues. During his career, he was a key driver of advancements in understanding safety that have since been continuously promoted by CII.
Jimmie taught for 12 years in the Civil Engineering Department at the University of Washington before accepting an appointment at the University of Florida, Gainesville, as the Director of the M.E. Rinker School of Building Construction. He also was the Director of the Center for Construction Safety and Loss Control and the Fluor Program for Construction Safety at the University of Florida. As the Director of the Fluor Program, his work with Fluor Corporation resulted in a unique, entrepreneurial relationship that culminated with joint professional development certification courses in construction safety.
Jimmie was a founding member of CIB W99, an international working group on safety in construction. The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) recognized his significant contributions to the advancement of construction safety by selecting him as the recipient of its prestigious Peurifoy Construction Research Award in 2003. That same year and again in 2013, he was honored as the Outstanding CII Researcher, an award that recognizes an individual for research that has contributed significantly to the improvement of the construction industry.
Jimmie was involved in many service activities. He served on the CII Safety Community of Practice. This is one committee where Jimmie’s safety research results are being exposed to and used by industry to enhance safety performance. CII member companies’ safety performance over the years clearly demonstrates the impact CII safety research has had on reducing total recordable incident cases and days away or restricted or transferred (DART) cases as compared to national averages. As part of his participation on the Safety Community of Practice, Jimmie prepared and conducted a survey in 2010 through committee members to assess leading indicators of safety.
Jimmie had students and colleagues from all over the world. He had an incredible sense of humor and knew how to turn a bad situation into something that could make one laugh. He was described as a gentleman and a most humble person, always putting his students and fellow colleagues ahead of himself. Many colleagues offered kind words in remembering their association with Jimmie. NAC member Ed Jaselskis said, “I am having lunch [in an Amsterdam restaurant] with a giant in the field of construction safety. It was a very moving experience for me.” Another NAC member, Ray Levitt, stated, “His character, life, and career have made the world a better and safer place for everyone who knew him and for many construction workers who never had that chance.” Well known safety expert and NAC member Emmitt Nelson described Jimmie as follows: “Dr. Hinze was widely known as the anchor point of construction safety research. He had throughout his academic career exhibited an acute interest and concern for safety in construction projects. He and his graduate students defined in many different construction venues what those who are successful are doing to eliminate injury as an unwanted by-product of construction projects.”
Jimmie retired from the University of Florida in May 2013, and moved to College Station, Texas. He pursued his hobby of bird watching and bird photography. His pictorial volumes on birds were incredible as was his art work in charcoal and watercolors. He also wrote poetry.
Jimmie was 67 when he went to be with his Lord and Savior after a courageous battle with cancer.
-Stu Anderson, 2014
Jimmie was born in the small Texas town of Burton on February 17, 1946. He grew up on a cotton and chicken farm in nearby Round Top, Texas. He graduated from Round Top Carmine High School after which he received an associate’s degree from Blinn College in Brenham, Texas. He earned a bachelor of science in architectural engineering with honors and a master of science from The University of Texas at Austin. He earned his PhD at Stanford University in 1976. He met his future wife, Maxine Mueller, when he moved to Columbia, Missouri, to begin his academic career at the University of Missouri.
Jimmie’s work in safety started with his dissertation at Stanford entitled, “The Effect of Middle Management on Safety in the Construction Industry.” His expertise in safety was directly related to research performed for various sponsors who either focused on safety or who acknowledged safety to be key to industry success. Prominent sponsors included the Construction Industry Institute (CII), the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the U.S. Department of State, and ConocoPhillips. His research also clearly demonstrated the breadth of his involvement in safety in such efforts as designing for safety, leading indicators of safety performance, making zero accidents a reality, the role of owners in construction safety, injury protection, and other related safety issues. During his career, he was a key driver of advancements in understanding safety that have since been continuously promoted by CII.
Jimmie taught for 12 years in the Civil Engineering Department at the University of Washington before accepting an appointment at the University of Florida, Gainesville, as the Director of the M.E. Rinker School of Building Construction. He also was the Director of the Center for Construction Safety and Loss Control and the Fluor Program for Construction Safety at the University of Florida. As the Director of the Fluor Program, his work with Fluor Corporation resulted in a unique, entrepreneurial relationship that culminated with joint professional development certification courses in construction safety.
Jimmie was a founding member of CIB W99, an international working group on safety in construction. The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) recognized his significant contributions to the advancement of construction safety by selecting him as the recipient of its prestigious Peurifoy Construction Research Award in 2003. That same year and again in 2013, he was honored as the Outstanding CII Researcher, an award that recognizes an individual for research that has contributed significantly to the improvement of the construction industry.
Jimmie was involved in many service activities. He served on the CII Safety Community of Practice. This is one committee where Jimmie’s safety research results are being exposed to and used by industry to enhance safety performance. CII member companies’ safety performance over the years clearly demonstrates the impact CII safety research has had on reducing total recordable incident cases and days away or restricted or transferred (DART) cases as compared to national averages. As part of his participation on the Safety Community of Practice, Jimmie prepared and conducted a survey in 2010 through committee members to assess leading indicators of safety.
Jimmie had students and colleagues from all over the world. He had an incredible sense of humor and knew how to turn a bad situation into something that could make one laugh. He was described as a gentleman and a most humble person, always putting his students and fellow colleagues ahead of himself. Many colleagues offered kind words in remembering their association with Jimmie. NAC member Ed Jaselskis said, “I am having lunch [in an Amsterdam restaurant] with a giant in the field of construction safety. It was a very moving experience for me.” Another NAC member, Ray Levitt, stated, “His character, life, and career have made the world a better and safer place for everyone who knew him and for many construction workers who never had that chance.” Well known safety expert and NAC member Emmitt Nelson described Jimmie as follows: “Dr. Hinze was widely known as the anchor point of construction safety research. He had throughout his academic career exhibited an acute interest and concern for safety in construction projects. He and his graduate students defined in many different construction venues what those who are successful are doing to eliminate injury as an unwanted by-product of construction projects.”
Jimmie retired from the University of Florida in May 2013, and moved to College Station, Texas. He pursued his hobby of bird watching and bird photography. His pictorial volumes on birds were incredible as was his art work in charcoal and watercolors. He also wrote poetry.
Jimmie was 67 when he went to be with his Lord and Savior after a courageous battle with cancer.
-Stu Anderson, 2014
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