The chemical industry's future is safer — and smarter

Axios

14 hours ago

The chemical industry is evolving — and Chevron Phillips Chemical (CPChem) is helping shape what comes next. Through innovation, transparency and a deep commitment to safety, the company is proving that sustainability and innovation can go hand in hand.
"The chemical industry of today is not the industry of our grandfathers," says Steve Prusak, president and CEO of CPChem.
"We've come a long way in terms of the safety, the environmental stewardship of how we run our facilities."
How it's done: CPChem, an American Chemistry Council (ACC) member company, participates in Responsible Care® — an industry commitment and leading performance program to advance the health and safety of employees, communities and the environment.
"The program is intended to share best practices across the industry with an intent that all of us are continually improving," says Prusak.
The impact: At CPChem, safety isn't just a priority — it's a core value woven into every layer of the company's culture and operations. The company's incident rate has dropped tenfold over the past 25 years — from 1.0 to under 0.1.
That's "best-in-class performance," according to Prusak. But CPChem is still working to improve its safety standards. In fact, recently released Responsible Care safety performance data shows record lows in transportation safety, process safety and worker safety rates.
For more than a decade, Responsible Care companies have annually averaged less than one recordable injury or illness per 100 employees. This is better than major sectors including manufacturing, retail, agriculture, food stores and general merchandising.
For the second year in a row, ACC members reported a record low total recordable injury and illness incidence rate (TRIR).
Next steps: CPChem is focusing on the behavioral side of safety and how it impacts workers.
"Why do they make the decision that they do, and what are things that we can put in place to make it easier for them to succeed and harder for them to fail?" says Prusak.
Here's what else: CPChem also prioritizes authentic community engagement — a key part of its vision to be the neighbor of choice in the regions where it operates.
"We engage with the local community to let them understand what it is that we're doing, how we're performing, what our operations are like," says Prusak. "But we're also soliciting feedback from them as to how that we can become an even better neighbor."
An example: The Golden Triangle Polymers Project in Orange, Texas, illustrates that commitment in action. As part of the $8.5 billion joint venture with QatarEnergy, CPChem launched a local-first initiative to prioritize local hiring and procurement.
So far, the company has spent over $300 million with local suppliers and brought more than 2,000 local contractors onto the project.
The takeaway: CPChem is building more than facilities — it's building a safer, more sustainable future through innovation, accountability and care. With a focus on people, performance and community, the company is setting the standard for what modern chemical manufacturing can be.
"Our culture is defined by performance by design and caring by choice," says Prusak.