About Safety Ahead Ltd.
Built from Alberta field experience, not boardroom theory.
Founder Allan Head has worked in Alberta construction since 1978 — 48+ years on jobsites. Safety Ahead has been turning that field experience into practical, audit-ready safety systems since 2007.
Allan Head
Founder
Meet the founder
On Alberta jobsites since 1978 — leading from the field, not a binder.
- 48+ years — Alberta construction & safety
- Safety Ahead — est. 2007
- 100+ Alberta contractors & employers served
- NCSO™ — National Construction Safety Officer
- CHSC — Canadian Health & Safety Consultant
- COR Auditor — certified in Alberta
- Alberta Centennial Medal — 2005
- Edmonton Chamber of Commerce Member
Certifications & Memberships
Allan started in construction in 1978 — apprentice, journeyman, supervisor — and opened Safety Ahead in 2007. Nearly five decades on Alberta sites informs every engagement. He built the firm on a conviction earned in the field: a safety program only protects people when it's lived on site, not filed in a binder. He created Safety in a Box™ — a starter kit that gives a company everything it needs to set up and run a real safety program.
In 2005, Alberta Education awarded him the Alberta Centennial Medal for his contribution to apprenticeship training and safety education — recognition shared with some of the most outstanding Albertans of the province's first 100 years.
Allan is a Certified COR Auditor. Most clients hire Safety Ahead to build their program and get COR-ready on site. When we're your prep partner, your certification audit is done by an independent auditor — that's the professional rule. Allan also conducts external COR audits for employers who need audit services without a prep engagement. Tell us your situation and we'll recommend the right path.
"His focus is on improving safety culture so every worker can go home safely."
"The road to safety excellence is always under construction."
The Safety Leadership Team
Your assigned advisor, backed by a senior-led firm — not a one-person shop.
Allan's experience anchors the firm — but Safety Ahead is a senior-led Safety Leadership Team, not a solo act. When you engage us, an assigned advisor leads your file and stays with you: field-experienced people who know what an auditor or OHS officer looks for, and work alongside your supervisors and safety staff, not over them.
Because the work is firm-backed, you get depth, capacity, and continuity — your program keeps moving when your advisor is on another site or the workload spikes. Senior oversight stays on every project.
Carrie Buursma
Senior Safety Manager
Carrie owns client relationships end to end — DES Engineering names her as the Senior Advisor on their file, with day-to-day responsibility for keeping their program audit-ready and their people supported.
Depth behind every file
Senior advisors with Alberta field experience
Your advisor is backed by a team that builds programs, runs on-site audits, and provides ongoing leadership. It means coverage when you need it and a program that never stalls because one person was unavailable.
"I have no reservations with recommending Safety Ahead, it has been a pleasure working with Allan, Carrie, and the team."
"Safety Ahead's team of dedicated safety advisors have a professional yet personable approach and have been an invaluable source of information and guidance for our managers and supervisors as well as our entire team."
The team stays
Average client relationship of 5+ years. Clients keep us on long after the first audit — that continuity is the proof that the relationship, not a single project, is what we deliver.
How we work
We come to your site — we don't hand you a binder and leave.
Your assigned advisor leads the engagement from the field, building on what you already have and working alongside your existing safety staff. Here's the path most engagements follow.
- 1
Base safety program
Start with a solid foundation built around your industry and how your crews actually work — not a generic template.
- 2
On-site audit
We come to your business and look at what's really happening: field practice, supervisor behaviour, records, and the gaps between paperwork and the site.
- 3
Industry-specific plan
Turn what we find into a clear, systematic plan mapped to your trades, your operations, and any COR or OHS requirements.
- 4
Implement & train
Changes start right away. We train and support your supervisors and crews while improvements go live — not after a binder is “finished.”
- 5
Safety culture
Help safety become how daily work gets done, with standards that hold up across every shift, site, and audit.
Who we're a fit for
Built for Alberta contractors and employers who want the real thing.
If you need senior safety leadership that shows up on site and holds up under an audit, you're in the right place. If we're not the right fit for what you need, we'll tell you straight — no pressure, no hard sell.
Alberta contractors & employers
Construction, oil and gas, trades, manufacturing, and more — operations that need practical, field-tested safety systems, not binders that collect dust.
Any size, same standard
We've supported everything from 5-person crews to 5,000-employee operations. Whether you have 3 people or 300, we build every program to a bulletproof, audit-ready standard.
Based in Edmonton, serving all of Alberta
Calgary, Fort McMurray, Grande Prairie, Red Deer, Lethbridge, and rural Alberta — plus Alberta companies running cross-border or multi-province work.
What we stand for
Our values
Safety above all
We practice what we preach — on every site, every day.
Integrity
We choose quality and honesty over the easy path. Every time.
Positive safety leadership
We set the tone, mentor by example, and lift the people around us.
What clients say
Practical, usable, and built to last.
Three voices from our reference letters — construction, engineering, and peer advisory.
Valard Construction
Construction & Civil · Heavy-civil contractor
“I have found Allan to be very knowledgeable, professional and extremely passionate for occupational health and safety.”
Shilo Neveu, EVP Health, Safety & Environment
DES Engineering
Engineering · 4-year partnership
“It is a pleasure working with Carrie Buursma as our Senior Advisor. Carrie is responsive, understands our business, and we have total confidence that we are being completely looked after.”
Thomas Kyle, P.Eng., Vice President
TAB Edmonton South
Peer advisory · Integrity & excellence
“I have been regularly impressed with their singular focus on integrity and their commitment to safety excellence.”
Everett Babiuk, P.Eng., MBA, Owner
Frequently asked questions
Straight answers about who we are and how we work.
Ready to work with Safety Ahead?
Tell us what you're working on. We'll tell you if we can help.
Request a Consultation