When looking for petrochemical industry leaders to engage in an informative panel discussion for the annual Plant Reliability, Inspection, Maintenance and Engineering (PRIME) Expo in Pasadena, Texas, BIC Alliance knew it could count on East Harris County Manufacturers Association (EHCMA) members to participate.
Respected members of the ECHMA Industry Leaders Panel included Tifanie Steele with Chevron, Sharon Hulgan with Dow, Scott Halbrooks with OxyChem, Christina Penrose with Lubrizol and the moderator was Aaron Stryk with ExxonMobil.
Stryk opened the presentation with an introduction of EHMCA and its member companies that dedicate a significant number of resources to raise awareness within their respective communities about the economic value and benefits our industry brings to the region. He then orchestrated dialog among panelists on the many aspects of outreach, environmental standards, social media, workforce development, industry advocacy and partnerships with the community including the best ways to ensure safety inside and outside the fence lines.
From left are Aaron Stryk with ExxonMobil, Holly Kurth with EHCMA, Tifanie Steele with Chevron, Sharon Hulgan with Dow, Christina Penrose with Lubrizol and Scott Halbrooks with OxyChem.
"It takes two-way dialogue," Stryk said. "While we strive to inform our external stakeholders about the ways our companies benefit the communities in which we operate, we spend an equal amount of time actively listening to our communities to better understand and prioritize their needs, concerns and where we can improve as partners."
Halbrooks addressed facility operational integrity and said there’s nothing more important than some of the conversations that happened at The PRIME Expo that deal with reliability, inspection and maintenance. He explained how the facilities monitor and operate within strict guidelines and with systems in place, ensuring they are good neighbors to the communities in which they operate.
Educating community members is a significant focus for EHCMA. Steele highlighted this and said that educating folks about the value of O&G is important, adding that the future is a lower carbon energy system, but it takes time to create these technologies and make them scalable and affordable.
Building relationships and trust with elected officials is a big job for industry. To that end, Penrose spoke about being a part of EHCMA and serving on the Houston Regional Monitoring Board. "We make sure there are more air monitors in our area than any other part of the country and we can show data confirming the emissions and air quality here are significantly improved. We share that information and facts with policymakers, community leaders and members so they can make decisions to appropriately address emission reductions and not just consider steep blanket regulations."
When asked by an audience member about innovation, Hulgan discussed advancements in mobile monitoring that provide reports to operations in real-time, giving a sense of security and ensuring things are safe or remedied.
BIC designed The PRIME Expo for plant managers, maintenance, inspection, construction, safety and engineering professionals in the energy industry. Professionals from refinery, petrochemical, chemical and other energy facilities, plants and service providers came together to network, learn and contribute their expertise with fellow industry leaders. As EHCMA’s mission is to deliver value to its members with health, safety, environmental responsibility and economic growth in mind, The PRIME Expo offered a prime opportunity for collaboration.
For more information, visit ehcma.org.
