KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, June 19 –
The Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS), an industry-technology alliance of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP), a Malaysian research institute, to collaborate on enhancing scientific, technical and engineering competencies in the areas of process safety.
The collaboration will cover a variety of activities, including technology transfer and sharing through short courses and certificate programs, cooperation on industrial contract research, joint-hosting of scientific forums and conferences, and other projects of mutual interest.
UTP is a private university, wholly owned by PETRONAS, Malaysia’s national oil company. The MoU was signed on June 19, 2015, by Datuk Ir (Dr) Abdul Rahim Hashim, Vice Chancellor of UTP, and Umesh Dhake, Regional Manager of CCPS’s Asia Pacific regional branch, on behalf of the two organizations.
In announcing the cooperation, Shakeel Kadri, Executive Director of CCPS, said, “This MoU between UTP and CCPS will enhance collaboration with stakeholders and improve process safety knowledge across many industries. The collaboration will bring the American Institute of Chemical Engineers’ and CCPS’s initiatives and programs to the university level in Malaysia, and provides a mechanism to develop new process safety initiatives in the Asia Pacific region.”
Since 1985, CCPS has helped industries to develop tools and practices to keep workplaces and communities safer. CCPS addresses these critical needs, and promotes its vision of a global process safety culture, by collecting and sharing the knowledge of safety experts from around the world. More than 180 organizations participate in CCPS, including many of the world’s leading chemical, petroleum, pharmaceutical, and related manufacturing companies. CCPS has documented its techniques and recommendation for process safety excellent in more than 100 books.
Speaking on behalf of UTP, Abdul Rahim Hashim said, “The university, through its Centre of Advanced Process Safety (CAPS), is proud to have this opportunity to collaborate with CCPS, the top process safety center recognized by industries worldwide.” He added, “The signing of this MoU is another important milestone for UTP, as it will become one of the very few select universities in the world to have such a collaboration with CCPS.”
UTP established the Centre of Advanced Process Safety in July 2014, to extend the university’s pursuit of process safety knowledge and expertise. CAPS is now developing strategic partnership with industries, government bodies, regulators and international institutions to align its program with the industrial needs of the region. Additionally, Malaysia’s Dept. of Occupational Safety and Health has appointed CAPS to help revise and improve of the country’s 1996 Control of Industrial Major Accident Hazards regulations, by incorporating process safety management elements.
The first activity that UTP and CCPS will carry out jointly is their co-organizing of the 2015 Global Summit on Process Safety. The summit will be the first global process safety conference conducted in Malaysia and the second in Asia Pacific region, and will be held November 3–5, 2015, at the Hotel Istana in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Information about the Global Summit on Process Safety is available at www.aiche.org/ccps/conferences/ccps-global-summit-on-process-safety/2015.
Photos
See additional photos of the agreement signing on Flickr.
About CCPS: CCPS is a not-for-profit corporate membership organization within AIChE that identifies and addresses process safety needs in the chemical, pharmaceutical and petroleum industries. CCPS brings together manufacturers, government agencies, consultants, academics and insurers to lead the way in improving process safety. Members, working in project subcommittees, define and develop useful, time-tested guidelines that have practical applications that run the gamut from human factors to qualitative and quantitative risk analysis to security vulnerability to inherently safety design. With more than 100 publications, CCPS is at the forefront of efforts to improve process safety performance. More information about AIChE is available at www.aiche.org/ccps.
About AIChE: AIChE is a professional society of more than 45,000 chemical engineers in 93 countries. Its members work in corporations, universities and government using their knowledge of chemical processes to develop safe and useful products for the benefit of society. Through its varied programs, AIChE continues to be a focal point for information exchange on the frontier of chemical engineering research in such areas as nanotechnology, sustainability, hydrogen fuels, biological and environmental engineering, and chemical plant safety and security. More information about AIChE is available at www.aiche.org.