In November, the Vinyl Institute (VI) recognized several Westlake sites for Outstanding Health, Safety and Environmental performance during calendar year 2023. According to a press release issued by the Vinyl Institute, these awards “are given to VI-member companies for protecting the environment and improving worker safety at manufacturing facilities throughout the United States and Canada.” Erik Keracik, vice president, Westlake North American Vinyls, attended the VI’s annual meeting in November and received the awards on behalf of Westlake. Erik recently assumed his role as chairman of the VI for 2025.
Receiving safety recognition reflects the commitment and hard work of Westlake employees to keep Westlake’s core value of safety at the forefront every day. Westlake founder, T.T. Chao stated, “We have put safety first, and it will remain our number one priority. No job can be so important or urgent that people cannot take time to work safely. Life is precious and irreplaceable."
See below for the full list of Westlake sites that received recognition from the Vinyl Institute for their Health, Safety, and Environmental performance throughout 2023.
Safety Excellence Award
Awarded in recognition of plants with five or more consecutive years with no recordable incidents.
- Aberdeen, Mississippi Plasticizer/Additive Manufacturing Plant (8 consecutive years of performance)
- Calvert City, Kentucky PVC Plant (5 consecutive years of performance)
Safety Honor Award
Awarded in recognition of plants with no recordable incidents for calendar year 2023.
- Calvert City, Kentucky EDC/VCM plant
- Calvert City, Kentucky PVC plant
- Geismar, Louisiana PVC plant
- Geismar, Louisiana EDC/VCM plant
- Lake Charles South, Louisiana EDC-only plant
- Lake Charles North, Louisiana EDC/VCM plant
- Aberdeen, Mississippi Plasticizer/Additive Manufacturing plant
- Aberdeen, Mississippi PVC/CPVC Compounding plant
- Hazelhurst, Mississippi PVC/CPVC Compounding plant
- Prairie, Mississippi PVC/CPVC Compounding plant
Environmental Excellence Award
The Vinyl Institute describes plants that receive this award as having “an outstanding track record of performance for five or more consecutive years under EPA's National Emission Standards of Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAPs), and other environmental permit requirements.”
- Aberdeen, Mississippi Plasticizer/Additive Manufacturing plant (11 consecutive years of performance)
- Aberdeen, Mississippi PVC/CPVC Compounding plant (11 consecutive years of performance)
- Madison, Mississippi PVC Compounding plant (8 consecutive years of performance)
Environmental Honor Award
This award, presented to only two plants overall, requires emissions reduction under the NESHAPs, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, and EPA's Toxics Release Inventory data for air and water.
- PVC Category: Calvert City, Kentucky PVC plant
- EDC/VCM Category: Lake Charles South, Louisiana EDC/VCM plant