Responsible Care® is the chemical industry’s unique global initiative that drives continual improvement in health, safety and environmental (HSE) performance, together with open and transparent communication with stakeholders. Responsible Care was launched in 1985 by the Canadian Chemical Producer’s Association and is now implemented globally through international, national and regional associations such as the International Council of Chemical Associations, American Chemistry Council, European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC), Association of International Chemical Manufacturers (AICM) and
others.
Eastman adheres to the Responsible Care Global Charter, which goes beyond the original elements of Responsible Care. The charter focuses on new and important challenges facing the chemical industry and global society. It includes the growing public dialogue over sustainable development and public health issues related to the use of chemical products. The charter also addresses the need for greater industry transparency and the opportunity to achieve greater harmonization and consistency among the national Responsible Care programs currently implemented.
Eastman was a leader in the development of the American Chemistry Council’s Responsible Care Codes of Management Practices. We built our Responsible Care Management System on the Codes of Management Practices and our HSES management system. Our management system is comprised of our Responsible Care Pledge, Guiding Principles, procedures, policies and documents that govern our activities, operations and the way we conduct business. Core elements of our system includes:
Product stewardship
Eastman maintains a rigorous product safety review process, including a dedicated global product stewardship and regulatory affairs team, which leads intensive product safety reviews to ensure that our products are among the safest and most effective materials on the market.
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Distribution safety
Eastman is committed to ensuring the highest sustainability and safety standards possible throughout our global operations and supply chain, including transportation safety and logistics optimization across all sites.
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Health and safety
We continually strive to improve our workplace safety, with an ultimate goal of zero injuries and incidents.
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Process safety
Our commitment to protectthe environment and our communities starts with operational safety. Eastman has extensive, documented processes and procedures to prevent potential incidents from occurring and, if they do occur, to reduce their impact.
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Emergency response
Eastman has an unparalleled commitment to ensure safety both on and off our plant facilities. Through careful planning and diligent practice, our trained emergency responders employ specialized knowledge and equipment to help prevent incidents.
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Security
Eastman maintains performance-oriented security programs designed to protect company facilities, products, intellectual property, information, people on company property and the public. These programs are consistent with applicable regulations and with sound, industry-accepted security practices.
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Environmental stewardship
Eastman’s global environmental affairs team leads the charge for Eastman’s environmental focus. Our team members take environmental stewardship to heart.
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Communication
We regularly seek input from and openly communicate with citizens and community leaders. In 1990, we developed community advisory panels (CAPs) as part of our Responsible Care initiative.
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Community advisory panels
For nearly three decades, Eastman has organized CAPs in its plant locations. These are committees made up of local citizens and leaders who meet several times annually with Eastman representatives. Our CAP members help us ensure we’re keeping the community’s best interests in mind. Currently, we have 12 panels in place globally, representing about 22% of Eastman’s total manufacturing locations.
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Audits
A key part of HSES management systems is certification by an independent, accredited auditor. As part of our corporate RCMS certificate, our corporate headquarters is annually audited by accredited, third-party auditors.
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