3rd Process Safety Symposium to Address Key Issues

3rd Process Safety Symposium to be Discussed Industrial accident risks, which hold significant importance in working life, and the methods to prevent these accidents will be addressed at the 3rd Process Safety Symposium in Kocaeli, which is home to 13 percent of Turkish manufacturing industry and 27 percent of the chemical industry. The KSO 3rd Process Safety Symposium and Exhibition, to be organized under the coordination of Kocaeli Chamber of Industry (KSO) and by Chem Media/Artkim Group, will take place on 10-11 May 2022 at Gebze Information Valley. National and international lawmakers, inspectors, industry workers, academics, product/service developers and certification bodies participating in the symposium, which will address regulations, products and services related to measures necessary to ensure effective and continuous protection for the sector, will share their knowledge and experience with participants through presentations and panels. The increase in production to meet developing consumer needs causes the number of industrial establishments to rise day by day. More industrialization, more new raw materials, and more new products bring with them the likelihood of major industrial accidents. Kocaeli Chamber of Industry, which has kept environmental-occupational health and safety and industrial security issues on its agenda since its early years of operation, aims to further raise awareness on this matter with the 3rd Process Safety Symposium it will organize this year.

Safety Issues in the Sector to be Discussed

Over the two-day period of 10-11 May 2022, the 3rd Process Safety Symposium and Exhibition will bring together national and international lawmakers, inspectors, industry workers, academics, product/service developers and certification bodies, who will present their knowledge and experience through presentations and panels. The symposium, where new products and technologies will also be showcased, will provide participants with the opportunity to establish new business connections and bring together potential customers. Among the main topics of the symposium, where relevant regulations, applications, technical knowledge, R&D, products and services will be shared with the sector, are SEVESO III Directive, ATEX Directives, Pressure Equipment/Equipment, CLP Regulation/SEA Regulation, REACH Regulation/KKDIK Regulation and the Effects of Digital Transformation on Process Safety, which are among the measures necessary to ensure effective and continuous protection.

"Increasing awareness against industrial accidents is important"

Sharing his views on the symposium, Kocaeli Chamber of Industry Board Chairman Ayhan Zeytinoğlu said, "We see that major industrial accidents are among the most important socio-economic problems of the entire world and our country today. If we look specifically at our country, both the industrial accidents that occurred in Sakarya Hendek in 2020 and those that occurred recently in Tuzla are lessons for all of us. Preventing major industrial accidents that can cause loss of many lives and property and even environmental disasters, or minimizing their potential effects after an incident, is possible through raising awareness and ensuring high-level, effective and continuous protection. At this point, it is of great importance to further strengthen the cooperation between our state and our industrialists," he said.

"Turkey is the country with the most SEVESO establishments"

Noting that, unlike other disasters, industrial accidents are events that can be prevented or their effects minimized through good planning and preparation, Ayhan Zeytinoğlu drew attention to the fact that Turkey is the 5th European country with the most upper and lower level SEVESO establishments, saying, "Turkey is the 6th European country with the most SEVESO establishments when compared to Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom and Spain. In fact, it has double the number of SEVESO establishments compared to the Netherlands, which comes after it. Our country hosts more industrial establishments than many European countries, but this also shows that our likelihood of encountering hazards is higher. This situation tells us that we need to work hard to prevent industrial accidents and reduce their effects," he said.

"We developed projects against disasters"

KSO Board Chairman Ayhan Zeytinoğlu, noting that as KSO they have been engaged in dedicated work since 2013 on the Regulation on the Prevention of Major Industrial Accidents and the Reduction of Their Effects (SEVESO Directive), one of the directives in the EU harmonization process, continued as follows: "Considering how important a stake Kocaeli has especially in heavy and hazardous sectors such as chemicals, automotive, metals and plastics, for our province, which produces 13 percent of Turkey's manufacturing industry and accounts for 27 percent of the chemical industry; environmental, occupational health and safety and industrial accident matters are a much more priority issue than in other provinces. From the very beginning of our operations, we have always kept these issues at the top of our agenda.   In line with this vision, we acted proactively and implemented many projects even in years when regulations did not yet exist. One of them was the APELL Project, which is a closed-loop radio project. Within the framework of the project we will continue updating this year, the relevant institutions and companies in the network can communicate seamlessly with each other in case of any industrial accident or disaster. Many pilot projects and first implementations regarding environmental, occupational health and safety and prevention of industrial accident risks are being rolled out from our province to the entire country. The Process Safety Symposium and Exhibition serves as a meeting point for all these sustainable activities and has taken on a mission of guiding the sector. For details on the presentations included in the two-day program, click here.