The Don B. Daily Memorial Fund was established in 2011 by the Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA) and the Association for Iron & Steel Technology (AIST) Foundation to commemorate the life and industry 
service of Mr. Daily, a compassionate man who truly cared about the safety of all employees working in the steel industry. His enduring mark on the mini-mill steel industry of North America has been the establishment of numerous safety and health initiatives that have significantly improved the work place.
The Don B. Daily Memorial Fund challenges North American university teams (students and professors) in the theme area of safety and health awareness within the steel manufacturing industry. Support given to professor(s) and undergraduate students will approach the challenge to safety and health awareness within the steel manufacturing industry. Potential topics include safety management, project safety, railroads, mobile equipment, machinery, electrical apparatus, falls, confined space, industrial hygiene, personal protective equipment, communications, technology, etc.
Dr. Teizer said he was “first of all honored to be selected, but it also clearly demonstrates that ideas emerging from research related to heavy industrial construction can be applied to manufacturing or assembly work environments. This has been typically the other way around. So I am very proud of my student team and that support beyond the regular award level is provided to us.”
As part of the project Dr. Teizer will investigate existing safety and health best practices in steel 
production facilities and then field test proximity and alert technology that have been developed and tested in his RAPIDS Construction Safety and Technology Laboratory. The field validation will specifically relate to the operation of large forklifts and other large material handling equipment that poses hazards to workers on the ground or standing nearby. Dr. Teizer and his student team (led by Ph.D. student Eric Marks) will be teaming up with Gerdau Ameristeel Corporation, a Brazilian owned company which is one of the largest minimill steelmakers in North America with a steel mill operation in Cartersville, Georgia. At the completion of the project, a report and presentation will be given to the AIST Foundation defining the effective outcome of the team effort. The research team will also present at next year’s annual AISTech conference in Atlanta, Georgia.
