SACHEM, Inc. - Executive Summary |
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SACHEM, Inc. is a specialty chemical manufacturer located in Cleburne's Industrial Park. We provide high purity chemicals and services worldwide to electronics, catalysts, and pharmaceutical markets and to most major chemical manufacturers. The company was started in Austin in 1950, expanded to the current bulk production facility at Cleburne in 1990 and most recently, has opened a facility in Osaka, Japan. SACHEM's Mission Statement and Environmental Policy speaks to Safety, Health and Environmental stewardship being a precondition to anything that we do. All associates operate under that philosophy. We work hard every single day to be a safe, environmentally friendly neighbor and we are involved in many voluntary programs at the local, state and federal level. We are proactive in various civic activities in Cleburne and are active members of the Johnson County Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC). The President of SACHEM has said many times, "There is not one pound of ch emical worth making that jeopardizes safety, health, and the environment." SACHEM, Inc. is an ISO 9000 certified facility and is committed to continuous improvement in all aspects of its production processes. We are members of SOCMA, Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturer's Association, which is equivalent to the Chemical Manufacturer's Association. As a member of SOCMA, SACHEM is required to implement the Responsible Careb Codes of Management Practices and Guiding Principles. Some of the key Guiding Principles are: 1. To recognize and respond to community concerns about chemicals and our operations, 2. To make health, safety and environmental considerations a priority in our planning for all existing and new products and processes and 3. To operate our plants and facilities in a manner that protects the environment and the health and safety of our employees and the public. Process Safety Management (PSM) is also part of SACHEM's daily operating philosophy. PSM includes the fo llowing components: process safety information, process hazard analysis, operating procedures, training, contractors, pre-startup safety reviews, mechanical integrity, hot work permits, management of change, incident investigation, emergency planning and response, compliance audits, and trade secrets. The hazards of the chemicals are found in the Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS), which SACHEM retains, for each chemical it has on site. Operator training is a major undertaking at SACHEM. Before a new operator is allowed to operate a process, he goes through extensive training using the SOCMA Training Manual. There are operating associates on-site 24 hours a day, 365 days a year ensuring that the plant is operating in a safe manner. Daily leak checks and inspections are performed on all process piping, reaction vessels and storage tanks. All process equipment and storage vessels have safety controls, including warning alarms, automatic shutoff devices and relief valves and continu ous computer monitoring to prevent problems. There are yearly integrity inspections on vessels, piping and electrical equipment which includes storage vessel thickness inspections. The pressure relief valves from storage vessels and process equipment are sent to a factory representative for yearly inspection and testing. SACHEM has received OSHA's SHARP Recognition for the 4th year, which exempts OSHA inspectors from doing programmed inspections. As previously mentioned, SACHEM manufactures specialty chemicals. The chemicals that are on site above threshold quantities are methyl chloride, trimethylamine, ethyl chloride and formaldehyde. The maximum storage quantities of each are 150,000 pounds, 130,000 pounds, 52,000 pounds, and 52,000 pounds, respectively. Methyl chloride and formaldehyde are on the toxic list, while trimethylamine and ethyl chloride are on the flammable list. Methyl chloride, formaldehyde and trimethylamine worst case scenarios impact off-site receptors using the OCA Guidance Document. Written operating procedures and high-level alarms prevent more than 150,000 pounds and 130,000 pounds, for methyl chloride and trimethylamine respectively, from being present in the 30,000-gallon tanks. Currently, 2 - 3 tank truckloads of each of these are unloaded weekly. There was some consideration to reduce the storage of methyl chloride and trimethylamine even more, but that would mean daily shipments and the increased transportation hazard would start becoming a cause for concern. For the alternative release scenario (ARS), the storage tank was assumed to overpressure causing the pressure relief valve to vent the excess pressure. The ARS for trimethylamine and methyl chloride impacted off-site receptors using the OCA Guidance Document, while the ethyl chloride and formaldehyde did not reach off-site. Trimethylamine and methyl chloride are liquefied compressed gasses and kept under pressure for storage at ambient temperature. The pressure relief valves are installed to prevent the worst case scenario. They are designed to relieve the pressure prior to tank failure. Other systems in place to manage the risk include daily visual inspection of the storage tanks, daily raw material inventory, contractor safety training, preventive maintenance program, and incident investigations on all near misses. The five-year accident history shows that there have been no RMP reportable accidents in the 9 years SACHEM has been in Cleburne. This means there has been no on-site deaths, injuries, or property damage and no off-site deaths, hospitalizations, medical treatment, evacuation, sheltering-in-place, property damage and environmental damage, which includes fish or animal kills, tree, lawn, shrub, or crop damage, water contamination, or soil contamination. As mentioned previously, there have been no RMP reportable accidents in the 9 years SACHEM has been in Cleburne. There have, however, been 3 incidents that released trimethylamine, m ethyl chloride or ethyl chloride, the first two releases in sufficient amounts to cause odors in the immediate area and were reported to the proper state, local, and federal agencies. Those incidents are: 1. On June 24, 1995, 1039 pounds of methyl chloride and 82 pounds of trimethylamine were released from a reaction vessel because of a malfunction of a rupture disk. A piece of the rupture disk lodged in the seat of the pressure relief valve (PRV) causing the PRV to not completely close after venting the excess pressure. Two problems occurred with the rupture disk. The rupture disk blew below the stated tolerance and also the rupture disk fragmented. As a result of this incident, a new supplier for rupture disks has been found. 2. On June 22, 1998, approximately 438 pounds of trimethylamine was released from a vessel that vented excess pressure through a pressure relief valve. A control valve leaked through causing the vessel to be filled beyond its limits. Also, operator erro r occurred preventing proper action to be taken after the fact. Since then, more in depth training on the equipment has occurred, the control valve has been adjusted for minimal leak through when closed, and a redundant high alarm has been programmed. 3. On April 23, 1998, approximately 15 pounds of ethyl chloride was released from a stainless steel hose from an ethyl chloride cylinder. The transfer hose failed causing the release. Since this incident, we are storing ethyl chloride in bulk and all piping is permanent. SACHEM's Emergency Response Program was developed with input from the Cleburne Fire Department, local LEPC, and Cleburne Emergency Management officials. If an emergency occurs, a plant wide alarm is sounded with instructions given over the intercom system. The emergency phone number, 911, is called to inform the City of Cleburne of our needs and the type of emergency present. If an evacuation is necessary, all associates, including contractors, are gathered and ro ll call is taken to ensure everyone that was in the plant made it safely to the rally point. The incident command system takes over from there. In using this system, all the emergency groups are talking and understanding the same language. The emergency is assessed and additional response equipment and associates are called, if required. SACHEM has 10 associates that are HAZWOPER, Hazardous Waste and Emergency Response, trained that are available to attend to most spills. We have a 24-hour emergency responder contracted to help us in an emergency, if needed. The Cleburne Police Department will assist SACHEM if evacuation or sheltering in place is required. We test the emergency alarm system weekly and have quarterly drills. At least annually, we have a joint drill with Cleburne Emergency Departments and our 24-hour emergency responder to ensure that SACHEM's Emergency Response Program is kept up to date. The HAZWOPER trained associates also go through annual refresher training. SACHEM believes strongly about its continuous improvement of all processes and equipment. Before a new process is added, a Process Hazardous Review and Pre-Start Up Review are completed to ensure that all aspects of safety, health and the environment are considered. As mentioned previously, all associates of SACHEM work hard every single day to be a safe, environmentally friendly neighbor and the associates consider it a privilege to operate in Cleburne. SACHEM will not make one pound of chemical that jeopardizes safety, health and environmental concerns, both on and off site. SACHEM, Inc. Corporate Mission Statement SACHEM is in the business of satisfying the needs of our associates - our customers, communities, personnel, governments, shareholders and suppliers. SACHEM will be a company that is innovative, dependable and easy to deal with. We will operate in a caring, open and ethical manner. Through the efforts of our personnel, SACHEM will focus on continually improving all aspects of our operation with emphasis on safety, health, environmental protection, quality and financial strength. As a result, we will contribute to the success of our associates in each of their individual endeavors. SACHEM, Inc. Environmental Policy Statement 7 SACHEM is committed to comply with all environmental laws and regulations in the communities, state and country in which we operate. Total compliance with the applicable laws and regulations will be our minimum level of acceptable performance. Continuous improvement is driven by our mission statement, our membership in the Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association's Responsible Careb process and our membership in the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission's Clean Industries 2000 program. Thus, our aim will be reasonable continuous improvement of activities within the scope of our environmental management system that has impacts on the environment. By being protective of the environment we will prot ect the privilege we have been given to operate in the Austin and Cleburne communities, we protect our property and we become better product stewards to our customers. Our guiding principles relative to this environmental policy and within the scope of our environmental management system will be: 7 Continuous improvement of the environmental management system performance is a management responsibility. 7 Every associate is responsible for environmental protection in the same manner that he or she is responsible for safety. 7 We will focus on the prevention of pollution, waste reduction and reducing the consumption of resources, and commit to recovery and recycling as opposed to disposal when technically and financially feasible. 7 The education and training of our associates in environmental concerns will be undertaken. 7 We will share our environmental experience with customers, competitors, suppliers and all other interested parties. 7 We will develop and track environmental perfor mance measures. Management will periodically review progress against these measures and modify our management system as needed to assure continuous improvement. |