Linde North America's Utah Plant Receives ACC Responsible Care Certification
Share:
Second production facility to receive certification in 2009
Murray Hill, New Jersey, U.S., July 15, 2009 - Linde North America has received certification of its Price, Utah, carbon dioxide plant under the American Chemistry Council's Responsible Care® program.
Linde North America is a member of The Linde Group, a world-leading gases and engineering company. The ACC is an association of producers, manufacturers and suppliers of chemical products.
Last year, Linde began the certification process with its North American headquarters facility in Murray Hill, New Jersey. During 2008, the company also completed certification of eight of its production facilities located throughout the U.S. The Price plant is the second of four locations requiring certification in 2009 to fulfill the ACC's requirement for membership. Linde's Delta, Ohio, air separation plant received certification earlier this year.
Don Erhardt, Rocky Mountain area supply manager, said, "It is a great accomplishment to be recognized by the American Chemistry Council. All Price employees can feel proud to have achieved this level of safety and environmental security to receive certification. The community and our customers can be assured that we will continue the best practices required by the ACC."
The Price plant has been in operation since 2003 and produces 200 tons per day of carbon dioxide. The product is shipped by truck to beverage producers, meat processors, welding distributors, oil and gas producers and aerospace suppliers throughout Utah, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and Wyoming.
Warren Arenz, head of safety, health, environment and quality for Linde North America, said, "I congratulate and thank the employees at the Price plant for their hard work in order to receive certification. They can be proud that, with the certification of the Price carbon dioxide plant, Linde is well on its way toward accomplishing the goals set forth by the ACC for 2009 under its Responsible Care Certification program."
Responsible Care is a globally recognized management system aimed at helping companies improve performance in areas such as safety, health, environment and security. Certification is mandatory for all ACC member companies, which must undergo headquarter and facility audits by an independent, accredited auditor to verify that they have a structure and system in place that manages and measures performance. Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance (LRQA) is Linde's independent auditor.
The Responsible Care management system offers an integrated, structured approach for driving continual improvement in seven key areas: community awareness and emergency response; security; distribution; employee health and safety; pollution prevention; process safety; and product stewardship.
Implementing the Responsible Care system is a multi-step process. Companies must first plan - identify, assess and evaluate potential hazards and risks associated with their products, processes and operations - and establish goals and objectives to address any significant hazards or risks. Next, they must do what they have planned, checking their progress along the way to measure performance and take necessary corrective actions. Communicating with employees and other stakeholders, including neighbors and customers, along the way also is essential.
The Linde Group is a world leading gases and engineering company with almost 52,000 employees working in around 100 countries worldwide. In the 2008 financial year it achieved sales of EUR 12.7 billion (USD 15.9 billion). The strategy of The Linde Group is geared towards sustainable earnings-based growth and focuses on the expansion of its international business with forward-looking products and services.
Linde acts responsibly towards its shareholders, business partners, employees, society and the environment - in every one of its business areas, regions and locations across the globe. Linde is committed to technologies and products that unite the goals of customer value and sustainable development.
For more information, see The Linde Group online at www.linde.com
