In recent years, stricter regulations to enhance safety at U.S. industrial facilities has caused debate between the chemical industry and a coalition of environmental, labor, and other activist organizations.

On August 1, 2013, the Executive Order on Improving Chemical Facility Safety and Security (EO 13650) directed the federal government to:

1. Improve operational coordination with state and local partners.
2. Enhance Federal agency coordination and information sharing.
3. Modernize policies, regulations and standards.
4. Work with stakeholders to identify best practices.

Since its release more than two years ago, the Environmental Protection Agency has updated its Risk Management Plan (RMP) regulations, and the two-decade-old RMP is an accident prevention program under the Clean Air Act for high-risk chemical facilities.

The agency’s action was issued after a string of chemical disasters, notably the tragic explosion earlier that year at a fertilizer storage and distribution facility in West, Texas. That incident killed 15 people and injured more than 200. Since the order came from the highest executive level, a multiagency group has explored ways to improve chemical facility safety standards.

At the 100^th Chem Show—The Event for Processing Technology—more than 300 companies and attendees from more than 70 countries gathered at New York’s Javits Center to discuss these critical chemical industry safety topics as well as best practices and the latest technological advances.

The Chem Show is a well-acclaimed event that aims to bridge the gap between buyers and sellers and provide attendees with an interactive platform where they can network and foster business deals. With the latest equipment and solutions, the show has a high concentration of engineers and plant managers with about more than 72 percent of the attendees involved in the purchasing decision for their companies.

About 28 percent of the total U.S. chemical production happens within 500 miles of the event site in New York, N.Y. There is about $78 billion in chemical production activity in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and the American Chemistry Council anticipates a 3.5 percent yearly projected increase in Northeast chemical-related production through 2023.

At this year’s Chem Show, Empowering Pumps was involved in a big way. I was honored to present a seminar about using social media to network and connect with industry leaders. I demonstrated how to create an online profile and connect with industry leaders who are critical to business growth. We also discussed how to gather information or inform an audience using social media tools.

Mixer Direct named Empowering Pumps one of the 13 most fascinating companies at the Chem Show. These 13 companies participated in interviews specific to the chemical industry. Please follow this link to see my video interview, http://blog.mixerdirect.com/13-fascinating-companies-at-the-nyc-chemshow.

The Empowering Pumps sponsors were well represented. Here are some of the highlights.

1. Automation Products Group—APG designs and manufactures high-quality, rugged, and versatile level sensors, pressure transducers, ultrasonic sensors, and network controllers for indoor, outdoor, and hazardous location applications. Whether it’s heavy duty, Class I Division 1 certified pressure transducers, highly configurable ultrasonic sensors, or controls that allow you to monitor them all via local or remote TCP/IP, Automation Products Group has the sensors you need to make your operations run efficiently.
2. ARI Valve Corporation—ARI Valve is a direct importer for ARI-Armaturen of Germany. ARI specializes in heat transfer applications such as thermal heat transfer fluids and steam. Industries served include chemical, food processing. ARI products are in service around the globe, whether it is manufacturing automobiles, asphalt, chemicals, cosmetics, food processing, heat transfer, or ship building.  You will find ARI products where any fluid, gas, or vapor needs to be controlled, isolated, regulated, or secured.
3. Dickow Pump Company—Dickow Pump Company has produced pumps for more than 100 years. Dickow pumps are working steadily and dependably in all corners of the globe. As a technical world leader in magnetic drive pumps, Dickow holds many patents, is ISO 9001 certified, and is a supplier-partner of major chemical companies. Dickow showcased its magnetically coupled model PRM/PRMW which are heavy duty sealless centrifugal pumps according to API 685. The containment shell forms a closed system to separate the pumped liquid from the atmosphere.  The bearing bracket design allows for the removal of the complete unit including outer magnets and ball bearings without exposing the liquid to the atmosphere. The model features a standard volute casing with centerline mount. The sandwich containment shell is a design pressure vessel to enclose the liquid only, and is not an additional bearing holder, therefore no dynamic stress occurs.
4. Donit Tesnit—Donit Tesnit is among the leading gasket, gasket sheet and sealing solution providers. It offers solutions for all sealing challenges with understanding customers’ needs, quality products and application engineering. Grafilit ® is a high grade range of gasket materials based on flexible graphite sheets and available with different stainless steel insertions suitable for a wide range of applications especially at high operating temperatures, pressures and tightness rate. The unique composition of Grafilit IQ results in outstanding antistick properties.
Removing a stuck gasket from the flange surface can be a tedious and labor-intensive task that can end up damaging the flange surfaces. The amount of time spent on cleaning flanges can be significant, and in many services, the plant must remain off-line longer while the gaskets are removed, resulting in a loss of production.
By using Grafilit IQ Donit enables you to optimize your resources and shorten your maintenance duration.
5. Lutz Pumps—The Lutz brand stands for fluid handling using drum and container pumps. In 1954 the company founder Karl Lutz started making electrical drum and container pumps in Wertheim. In recent years, the brand has developed into a synonym for complete systems designed to handle any fluid filling and transfer job. The Lutz B70V Sanitary Pump is a gentle, reliable, and hygienic pump designed to 3A Sanitary Standards – the optimal solution for pumping thin-bodied to highly viscous media. Features include: Newly designed torsion shaft, stator locking device, choice of mechanical seals and motors, Tri-Clamp and a specially designed flange for quick assembly and disassembly. Its low shear rate makes for gentle pumping and safe product handling.
6. Hydraulic Institute–HI develops industry standards, guidebooks, educational tools and platforms to expand the knowledge of the effective application, testing, installation, operation, maintenance, and performance optimization of pumps and pumping systems.

The 2015 Chem Show’s “best practices” seminars highlighted the industry’s latest and most relevant trends, including 3D printing/additive manufacturing, pollution control modifications for compliance, and loop calibration strategies for chemical plants. Other subjects included wastewater treatment and converting polymer formulations into flowable powders, wireless and software simulation for pump efficiency and industry networking via social media.

The 2015 Chem Show’s exhibits featured the importance of everything from electronics and wastewater management to the latest practices in sustainability, while exemplifying that, 100 years after its inauguration in 1915, controls and automation have dramatically changed the face of the industry.