ICP Adhesives and Sealants recently announced that Paul Hunt, process improvement engineer, has been selected as a finalist for the 2017 Ohio BWC Safety Innovation Award. The award competition reportedly was established to encourage, recognize, and showcase innovative solutions that reduce the risk of workplace injury and illness.

Hunt’s process safety improvement design is a pneumatic valve closure designed to fill cylinders behind an enclosed Plexiglas box. This activity was previously performed manually, exposing workers to chemical releases and sprays. The pneumatic device has greatly improved the safety of the filling operation and reduced the frequency of chemical spills at the ICP Akron, Ohio, plant.

“The need for this innovation came from safety concerns in our cylinder filling department,” said Hunt. “Employees love the new clamping system, and reduction in safety hazards is evident. To date, there have been no safety incidents related to this equipment.”

Hunt reportedly sold his idea to ICP decisionmakers with a rough concept he created from spare parts in the maintenance department. The innovation reportedly was taken from concept to completion in one year, and fourteen units were in place and fully operational by November 2015.

For more information, visit www.icpadhesives.com.