Photos: ARPM's EHS Summit a win for worker safety

COLUMBUS, Ohio—For a day-and-a-half, members of the Association for Rubber Products Manufacturers and the Manufacturers Association for Plastics Processors made it a priority to make their companies safer.

And organizers of the 10th annual Environmental, Health and Safety Summit May 24-25 at the AC Marriott Downtown Columbus can successfully say they offered invaluable safety programming to make that possible.

"It was truly incredible to have all of our safety peers back in the same room together after three years of this being a virtual event," said Kaitlyn Triplett, managing director at ARPM. "These leaders have spent 36 hours learning, sharing and networking with each other and have some great takeaways to take back to their facilities."

The programming itself held rapt attention throughout.

The interactive and energy-filled session May 24 on how to "Stop the Bleed," put on by former military veterans, firefighters and EMTs George Hupp and Bruce Whitney, was a highlight.

Panel discussions on the composition and thrust of safety committees, and valuable updates on the EPA and OSHA also were well-attended, with insightful questions at the conclusion of each.

And in between the sessions, the 50 or so company representatives in the room—about two-thirds plastic and about one-third rubber attendees—did not waste any time in networking and sharing best practices.

"That tourniquet class yesterday was big," said Alec Pierce of Par4 Plastics Inc., the safety specialist at the injection molder in Marion, Ky. "I am going to implement that first thing when we return."

And as was mentioned at the safety committee panel discussion, safety is about culture and open communication—both of which were on full display by attendees at the EHS Summit.