After achieving their best safety performance ever in 2014, Michael Gilbert and the Chevron Phillips Chemical Pasadena Plastics Complex team joined the best of the best in industry safety in 2015 as an OSHA Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) Star site. As plant manager, Gilbert considers it his “good fortune” to have been part of the Pasadena team when this milestone was achieved.
Gilbert has worked in plants in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Saudi Arabia during his 37-year career. After earning a degree in chemical engineering from Oklahoma State University, his first job was with Gulf Oil in Port Arthur, Texas. He served as plant manager for what is now Americas Styrenics’ (a Chevron Phillips Chemical joint venture) St. James Plant in Louisiana before spending five years in Saudi Arabia. He returned to the U.S. in late 2009 as operations manager at the Pasadena Plastics Complex and has served in his current position as plant manager since September 2013.
“As plant manager, I am responsible for the safe, environmentally compliant and reliable operations of the Pasadena Plastics Complex,” explained Gilbert. “Job one is to ensure we are focused on the most important tasks, specifically ensuring safe operations, and that we communicate our strategies to the workforce to ensure we’re all on the same page.
“A large part of my job is helping our people be successful by prioritizing resources.”
The Pasadena Plastics Complex has been in operation since 1949. It produces 2 billion pounds of polyethylene annually, which is used to produce a variety of consumer and industrial products such as pressure pipe, milk jugs, soap and detergent bottles, as well as food and beverage containers.
“We also work closely with the polyethylene business and research and technology to develop and commercialize new polyethylene products,” said Gilbert.
A dedicated team
The Pasadena site is the 19th Chevron Phillips Chemical facility to achieve the prestigious VPP Star designation.
“The Pasadena Plastics Complex has had a longstanding desire to become an OSHA VPP Star site,” said Gilbert. “To accomplish this, our entire team focused on making the plant safer every day. Our team has demonstrated that commitment to safety, and it is the people at the Pasadena Plastics Complex who made this possible.
“This is a well-deserved recognition for our employees and contractors who put safety first every day. Receiving the VPP Star designation is an extremely high honor, and I couldn’t be more proud of the dedication the team has shown to safety.”
The site also earned the coveted 2015 Chevron Phillips Chemical’s President’s Operational Excellence Award for exceptional performance in personal and process safety, environmental performance, product stewardship, reliability and security.
“In 2014, we deployed Chevron Phillips Chemical’s Life Saving Rules to help us focus our safety efforts,” explained Gilbert. “This initiative highlights nine fundamental safety rules that are easy to understand and easy to determine whether they are being followed or not. Our emphasis on the Life Saving Rules is critically important as we seek to attain our goal of zero injuries.
“This recognition motivates us to continue to set an example for safe workplace behavior in our industry.”
The team is also setting an example in the community.
“The Pasadena area is our community, and we want to be the best neighbor possible,” said Gilbert.
They give back by participating in dozens of community programs, including Pasadena Citizens’ Advisory Council, neighborhood home repair through the Pasadena Industrial Network, Armand Bayou Nature Center, The Bridge Over Troubled Waters and Project Joy and Hope. They also provide scholarships for students at the local community college and support various programs within the Pasadena Independent School District.
“In fact, we were recognized as 2015 Industry of the Year by the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce because of our community efforts,” said Gilbert.
Gilbert is a member of the boards of directors for the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce and Houston Regional Monitoring Corp. and the chairman of the East Harris County Manufacturers Association Pasadena Outreach Committee. He also attends the monthly Pasadena Community Advisory Committee meetings and is currently volunteering weekly at Morales Elementary School, where he mentors a fourth-grade student.
“We are a proud member of the Pasadena community,” said Gilbert. “We recognize our responsibility to our neighbors and are committed to local involvement and betterment. The organizations I am involved in all have those same goals, allowing us to multiply our positive impact to the community.
“Interfacing with the community through these organizations allows us to put a friendly and helpful face to the Pasadena Plastics Complex.”
Remaining strong
It is a busy time, both now and into the foreseeable future, as Chevron Phillips Chemical is in the midst of a $6 billion U.S. Gulf Coast Petrochemicals Project. The project, which includes an ethane cracker at its Cedar Bayou plant in Baytown, Texas, and two polyethylene units in Old Ocean, Texas, adjacent to its Sweeny facility, supports 400 long-term jobs and 10,000 construction and engineering jobs along the Texas Gulf Coast.
“This is a significant investment in our region, and the project is expected to be completed in 2017,” said Gilbert. “With this growth, one of our biggest challenges and opportunities is demand for top talent in our industry. Additionally, nearly 30 percent of our U.S.-based workforce becomes retirement eligible in the next few years, so the need for us to train and hire top talent is great.
“We not only want to be but we need to be an employer of choice in order to attract and retain the best talent. In 2015, Chevron Phillips Chemical was named ‘Texas Workforce Solutions Employer of the Year’ and a ‘2015 Top Workplace’ by the Houston Chronicle, so I think we’re on track.”
Gilbert and the Pasadena Plastics Complex are poised for what’s ahead.
“The demand for polyethylene remains strong,” he said. “In fact, we expect global polyethylene demand to grow slightly faster than worldwide gross domestic product in 2016.
“As always, our goal is zero incidents and zero injuries, and we will continue to work in the spirit of continuous improvement in building a world-class safety culture.”
Chevron Phillips Chemical
Pasadena Plastics Complex
1400 Jefferson Road
Pasadena, TX 77506
(713) 475-3666
www.cpchem.com
Employees: 500 employees, 100 nested contractors
Product: Polyethylene
Size: 650 acres
