Cedar Bayou Plant's 50th Anniversary

50

A look back on

years

of excellence

This is part 1 of a two-part series.

Look for the “Next 50 years” in February.

What makes greatness is starting something that lives after you...

“For the past 50 years, the men and women of Cedar Bayou have left a legacy to be proud of — the greatest of all is the family culture that this facility has.” ~ Plant Manager Van Long

2 The Baytown Sun

Gulf Oil - 1963 to 1984 50 Years of Excellence When Gulf Oil Corp. decided to build a new chemicals plant in 1962, Baytown was a growing community thriving on oil and gas production. Some 230 people attended a Baytown Chamber of Commerce lunch on March 13, 1962 to hear Gulf Oil Corp. vice president Dr. Alexander Lewis Jr. discuss his company’s plans for the 1,000 acres of prairieland just east of the town’s center. Attendees of the lunch paid $2.50.

“The growth rate of petrochemicals will continue to be substantially higher than that of both the chemical industry as a whole and the overall U.S. economy,” Lewis told the crowd.

It was an exciting time for Baytown as Gulf Oil Corp.’s new petrochemicals project was being represented as the initial development of what someday is expected to be a “vast complex of interrelated industrial facilities.” Named the Cedar Bayou plant, about 15 acres of the 1,000-acre site would be preserved for future expansion.

Baytown Mayor Al Clayton attended the historic Chamber lunch alongside County Commissioner V.V. Ramsey, County Judge Bill Elliott, Houston Chamber of Commerce executive vice president Marvin Hurley, and congratulatory telegrams were sent by Texas Governor Price Daniel and Texas Senators John Tower and Ralph Yarborough.

“The Cedar Bayou plant is another first for Gulf because it is the first chemical plant not situated within the confines of one of the company’s existing refineries,” Lewis said.

Mr. “Gulf” of Baytown On October 21, 1963, the Cedar Bayou plant’s first ethylene unit started up and production began.

The new ethylene unit would more than double Gulf Oil’s existing production. In 1967, a low-density polyethylene unit was also constructed on the plant’s vacant west end. The plant also added a normal alpha olefins production during this time. The Cedar Bayou plant would be state-of-the-art and include a laboratory, water treating system, maintenance shops, and administration facilities.

The geographic location of the plant was favorable in relation to raw material supplies from the growing pipeline grid in Texas and the nearby underground storage fa-

Gulf Oil donates derrick Gulf Oil installs new Cedar Bayou plant sign on I-10 frontage road in 1964. The new, lighted sign cost $14,000.

cilities, or salt domes, in Mont Belvieu. Initially, approximately 65 people were employed at the plant.

H.W. Blackwood was selected as Cedar Bayou’s first plant manager. He would serve for 11 years from 1962 to 1973 and was known around the community as Mr. “Gulf.” Blackwood started a long-standing legacy of community involvement in Baytown for Cedar Bayou, having served as director of the Baytown Chamber of Commerce, director of the Goose Creek Country Club, member of the Texas Chemistry Council, and named Executive of the Year in 1970 by the San Jacinto Chapter of National Secretaries Association.

When Blackwood retired in 1973, a fishing pond inside the Cedar Bayou plant’s fenceline often used by employees during their time off was named Lake Blackwood. The fishing pond is still known as Lake Blackwood today.

The first expansion John Strausser was named Cedar Bayou’s second plant manager. He served from 1973 to 1976. Strausser had left the company’s research headquarters in Pennsylvania to take the top job at the Cedar Bayou plant. Strausser was at the helm for the plant’s first expansion project in 1975 – 12 years after the facility was built and Gulf Oil Corp. first promised Cedar Bayou would become a vast complex.

A new ethylene unit was built in 1975 that is still in operation today. At the time, the new ethylene unit quadrupled the Cedar Bayou plant’s output of high-purity ethylene, raising the capacity to 1.6 billion pounds per year.

By 1976, the Cedar Bayou plant’s employee base had increased to 350 workers – 250 of which were Gulf Oil employees and 100 were nested contractors from Brown and

The “Beaumont No. 54” oil derrick was originally located in Tabbs Bay approximately threequarters of a mile southeast of where it is now in Bayland Park. It represents hundreds of oil derricks that were erected, beginning in the early 1900s, in what is commonly known as the Goose Creek Oilfield. It was donated to Baytown by Gulf Oil in July of 1984 and erected in Bayland Park after Hurricane Alicia devastated the Gulf Coast on August 18, 1983.

see expansion • Page 3

Cedar Bayou Plant Managers

H.W. Blackwood

John Strausser

Larry Lucchesi

Scott Meyer

Rick Roberts

Greg Hanggi

Dan Coombs

Van Long

(1962-1973)

(1999-2000)

(1973-1976)

(2000-2004)

(1977-1995)

(2004-2008)

(1995-1999)

(2008-Present)

The Baytown Sun

Expansion Continued from page 2

Root. During the expansion projects, construction workers peaked at 2,500.

“The majority of the labor force associated with the expansion work at the plant are area residents, and the project itself is pumping additional millions of dollars into Baytown. When complete, it is estimated that the expansion will create 100 new permanent jobs, thus, having a lasting impact on the community,” Strausser told the Baytown Sun in 1975.

Strausser left the Cedar Bayou plant in 1976 to work at the company’s Houston headquarters. He and his wife Ruth are still residents of Baytown.

What legends are made of In the early days of the Cedar Bayou plant, employees wore cowboy hats, western boots and blue jeans to work. Family Day events were held inside the plant and kids were welcome to

play inside large boxes of plastic pellets. The 1980s brought about a crash in the U.S. oil boom and halted Gulf Oil’s expansion plans. Cedar Bayou needed a strong leader to take the plant into the next era.

Larry Lucchesi is what legends are made of. He was Cedar Bayou’s third plant manager from 1977 to 1995. He remains the longest-serving plant manager in Cedar Bayou’s history. He is remembered as a strong-willed leader who knew what he wanted.

During his tenure, the Cedar Bayou plant experienced many great times and many great challenges. From the plant’s transition from one owner company to another to the Great Flood of 1994, Lucchesi’s name is still spoken on control room floors and is always followed by a “remember when ...” comment. When he retired in 1995, a pavilion on Lake Blackwood that employees use for meetings and social gatherings was named in his honor. The pavilion still stands today.

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Otis Mattiza, Gulf Oil’s superintendent of engineering, is pictured on the far left giving a tour of the operations control room of Cedar Bayou plant’s first ethylene unit to unknown community members.

Ethylene Unit

In August 1981, Gulf Oil sponsored the purchase of the scoreboard at Stallworth Stadium in Baytown.

Cedar Bayou plant’s current ethylene unit is shown under construction in 1975. This unit quadrupled the plant’s production capabilities and eventually replaced the original ethylene unit that opened the plant in 1963.

Proudly partners with Chevron Phillips celebrating 50 years in Baytown

Rotary Club of Baytown salutes Chevron Phillips Cedar Bayou Plant

50 Anniversary On Their

th “Leaving a Legacy in the Community”

4 The Baytown Sun

Chevron Corp. - 1985 to 1999

A groundbreaking ceremony was held at the Cedar Bayou plant in 1989 to commemorate the start of construction of two reactors for a new polyethylene unit.

The great merger The era of Gulf Oil ended for the Cedar Bayou plant in 1984. During this time, the company was negotiating what newspapers called the “largest business takeover in U.S. history” when Standard Oil Co. of California, also known as Socal, merged with the struggling Gulf Oil Corp. for $13.2 billion. The fate of the Cedar Bayou plant was unknown.

“A spokeswoman for the Gulf Oil Corp. in Pittsburgh said Monday it was too ear-

Bruce Marantis and Wilbert Huff are shown in the foreground of the newly built reactors of the polyethylene unit, which started up in 1991.

ly to know how the sale would affect employment at the company’s Cedar Bayou plant in Baytown,” reported the Baytown Sun on March 6, 1984.

When the deal was complete by the end of the year, Socal transferred its newly-acquired Texas Gulf Coast plants to Chevron Corp., which at the time was owned by Socal. A new era thus began for the Cedar Bayou plant as it became part of a multi-billion dollar see chevron • Page 5

WEST CHAM CHAMBERS COUNTY hambe of Commerce Chamber

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chevron Continued from page 4

oil, gas, and chemicals company.

Chevron Corp. wasted no time investing in the Cedar Bayou plant. In September 1985, the company announced an expansion of the plant’s existing alpha olefins unit by 50 million pounds per year. The company also built two new reactors for the polyethylene unit.

The greatest challenge the Cedar Bayou plant faced during its time under Chevron Corp. was the Great Flood of 1994. Thenplant manager Larry Lucchesi told the Baytown Sun “it was the worst disaster to strike the plant in its 32-year history.” The plant was shut down for eight weeks

The Baytown Sun

5

Cedar Bayou plant employee Craig Dickey remembers the day Tommy Lee Jones came to visit

while employees worked around the clock replacing electrical equipment, such as pumps and motors located near ground level. It would be Lucchesi’s last adventure before retiring as plant manager in 1995.

(To read more about the Great Flood of 1994, see page 7).

Safety above all else Scott Meyer was Cedar Bayou’s fourth plant manager, serving from 1995 to 1999. During this time, the culture in the petrochemical industry was rapidly changing. Security and safety requirements became more stringent. Hardhats, steel-toed boots, and fire retardant clothing became mandatory. Visitors were

Will Baird, left, and Bennie Ulrich are suited up in firefighter gear during one of the Cedar Bayou plant’s emergency response team training sessions.

required to present a photo ID before entering the plant.

With this focus on safety, the Cedar Bayou plant took on the challenge of becoming an OSHA (U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration) STAR site under the federal agency’s new Voluntary Protection Program (VPP). Employees started working on becoming a VPP member in 1991, creating safety, health, and security standards that are well above regulatory requirements. The Great Flood of 1994 delayed the OSHA audit until 1995. In 1997, only 340 companies in the United States had been able to achieve OSHA’s prestigious VPP designation, including Chevron Corp.’s Cedar Bayou plant.

“It’s a tough test and the standards are high,” Scott Meyer told the Baytown Sun on November 19, 1997.

Since then, the Cedar Bayou plant has maintained a strong safety culture amongst employees. The OSHA VPP designation has been re-approved five times since 1997, and the Cedar Bayou plant has coached 11 of its nested contractors into becoming VPP-certified as well, making the Cedar Bayou plant an OSHA STAR site. As of 2013, the Cedar Bayou plant surpassed NASA Johnson Space Center in having the most onsite contractors with VPP certifications.

Employees (from left) Kitty Allen, Craig Dickey, and Howard Davis pose with actor Tommy Lee Jones in 2004 during a movie location scouting trip at the Cedar Bayou plant.

I got a call one morning to come down to the old 1791 control room. I didn’t get any details but was told it might be interesting. Needless to say, my interest was piqued. I went down there and waited. Two vehicles filled with people pulled up and out of one, a black SUV, was Tommy Lee Jones.

I walked up to Mr. Jones and extended my hand and said, “Wow they didn’t tell me Clint Eastwood was coming today.”

We all had a good laugh and

come to find out they were all here to scout out a movie location. The old alpha olefins unit was still standing at the time so we toured it, Lake Blackwood, and the Lucchesi Pavilion.

While walking around the pavilion, Mr. Jones spotted a coral snake and was very protective of it, bending over and admiring its beauty.

I presume our site was not chosen since that has been a few years back, but it was a memorable moment none the less.

Belinda Ralston and Jerry Hale were the first employees assigned to lead the Cedar Bayou plant’s newly formed S.T.A.R. (Safety Together Achieves Results) team so that the plant could meet OSHA’s stringent requirements for a VPP certification.

The East Harris County Manufacturers Association congratulates our Neighbor in Industry

Congratulations to the Cedar bayou Plant for 50 years in Baytown

Past

Present

6 The Baytown Sun

2011

This photo, taken in 2011, shows eight process units and 1,400 acres before the next big expansion in 2013.

1990

By 1990, the year this photo was taken, the Cedar Bayou plant was under construction once again as Chevron Corp. built an additional polyethylene unit 1796 on the northwest side.

1981

This aerial photo taken in 1981 is looking to the west.

It shows the plant’s second ethylene unit 1592 to the south, replacing the original ethylene unit that opened the plant in 1963, and the olefins units in the middle. To the north is the original polyethylene unit 1792.

1977

This 1977 aerial photo shows how much Cedar Bayou grew in a decade. The 1792 low density polyethylene unit was expanded several times through 1974.

Its capacity almost doubled by the addition of two new reactor lines in 1976. The plant’s ethylene capacity more than tripled in 1977 with the start of 1592, a new, world-scale olefins facility.

1968

This photo, taken in 1968, is one of the earliest aerial views of the plant. At this time, three units were in operation: the original 1591 ethylene and utilities unit, the 1791 normal alpha olefins unit; and the 1792 low density polyethylene unit.

The Baytown Sun

7

The Great Flood of 1994 The biggest challenge Cedar Bayou faced

Flood waters covered I-10 and the frontage road in front of the Cedar Bayou Plant.

S

oon after sunrise on October 18, 1994, the normally placid Cedar Bayou – the plant’s namesake waterway – overflowed and flooded much of Baytown. No one was hit worse than the Cedar Bayou plant.

In just over two days, 30 inches of rain fell on the bayou’s watershed.

When the rain runoff began spilling into the plant’s electrical substation, the facility lost all outside electrical power forcing operators to shut down most process units. Employees watched in disbelief as temporary barriers failed and control rooms, warehouses, and offices were submerged.

In a newspaper interview shortly after, then-plant manager Larry Lucchesi said it was the worst disaster to strike the plant in its 32 years.

“It was a real disaster. Everything was floating around in the water and the water was moving the wrong direction. It wasn’t going to Cedar Bayou it was coming from Cedar Bayou into our plant. Everything was floating from the bayou into our plant,” said Michael Keithly, Project Controls and Engineering Services Team Leader.

With the ever-rising floodwaters, workers raced nightfall to elevate electronic equipment and records above the water’s reach. By the time the flood finally crested early the next day, only the plant’s linear low-density polyethylene and normal alpha olefins units stood above the water line, having been recently added and built on higher ground. The acetylene black unit was spared from the onslaught by an elevated railroad track.

Most units, however, lay three to six feet under water, and at off-site areas, the water was even deeper. More than 50 vehicles in the main parking lot were covered by water, and the main entrance was impassable.

Soaked workers waded through the currents, securing equipment and displacing volatile gas-

Employees don raincoats as they rush to keep equipment dry.

es in the process lines, while managers, supervisors and safety specialists organized an emergency command post to manage the growing crisis.

“We actually moved operations and our emergency operations center to a place in the plant we called the hill because that was the only place that was not under water during the 1994 flood,” said Terry Boyett, Fire and Safety Specialist.

Many workers stayed in the post, which was filled with cots and stockpiles of emergency rations, recalled then-operations manager Jim Lomax.

“Our first priority was to take care of people,” Lomax said. “We wanted to make sure everyone was safe.”

Communication was minimal at best

Above: Vacuum trucks worked around the clock for eight weeks to remove flood waters from the plant.

with two-way radios used within the plant, and one cellular phone as the only outside link. Plans formed quickly for the assessment of the damage, removal of debris, and repairs and replacement of equipment.

Cedar Bayou was to be up and running as quickly as possible. After the waters began to recede on Oct. 20, another kind of flood began – a flood of equipment. Countless generators, light plants, cherry pickers,

cranes and fork trucks poured into the plant. Tank trucks ran daily, bringing in up to 8,000 gallons of diesel fuel to power the machinery.

“We were working sixteen days in a row, sixteen hours a day,” said Steve Goulder, Instrumentation Technician.

“They even brought in psychiatrists to assess how we were handling all the work, all the stress.”

The hectic pace continued with all hands on deck. Employees worked around the

clock for eight weeks straight to get the Cedar Bayou plant back. It was done in record time. The success of the Cedar Bayou plant has always relied on the men and women who work there. They are known for rolling up their sleeves and pulling together in the face of challenges.

“My first thought is that there were at least a hundred heroes,” said Lucchesi. “If you can see anything good in a disaster like this, it was the focus.

Everyone was told to focus on one thing and one thing only: get the plant up and running. And we did.”

8 The Baytown Sun

Chevron Phillips Chemical - 2000 to Present The new millennium The fifth plant manager at Cedar Bayou was Rick Roberts.

His tenure was short from 1999 to 2000 because he was asked to lead the manufacturing division of a new company called Chevron Phillips Chemical Co. In 2000, Chevron Corp. invested in a 50-50 joint venture with Phillips Petroleum, later known

Chevron Phillips Chemical works closely with more than 500 nested contractors at the Cedar Bayou plant. Pictured is Roy Watson, Training Supervisor, and a contractor employee examining a gasket.

as Phillips 66. In this joint venture, Chevron Corp. moved most of its petrochemical operations into The Woodlands-based company, including the Cedar Bayou plant. Roberts was named senior vice president of manufacturing of the newly formed Chevron Phillips Chemical and Greg Hanggi the new Cedar Bayou plant manager.

Hanggi served from 2000 to 2004 and was initially the operations manager at the Cedar

Bayou plant. During his time at Cedar Bayou, Hanggi implemented the plant’s Tenets of Operations, a list of 10 principles employees abide by to run the plant safely and environmentally. Those tenets are still followed today. Much of the land surrounding the Cedar Bayou plant was purchased by Chevron Phillips Chemical, expanding the Cedar Bayou plant to 1,400 acres. Hanggi said it was mainly a natural buffer between the plant and residential near neighbors, but gave some insight into the plant’s future.

“There has been a good plan already established for Cedar Bayou. We want to attract new investment here. If we can work safely, productively and environmentally with the community we can make ourselves attractive for future investments,” Hanggi told the Baytown Sun on September 25, 2000.

The Cedar Bayou plant soon became the largest of 34 manufacturing facilities owned by Chevron Phillips Chemical and a shining star on the Texas Gulf Coast. The Cedar Bayou plant consists of eight process units making ethylene, polyethylene, propylene, poly alpha olefins, normal alpha olefins, and other by-products. These raw materials are used in making more than 70,000 consumer products, including plastic, fuel additives, waxes, and more.

Dan Coombs was the seventh plant manager at Cedar Bayou, serving from 2004 to 2008. He is well-known in Baytown for the same kind of community support that H.W. Blackwood started in 1963. Coombs is known by employees as having a warm heart and unique friendliness. He is famous for writing every plant employee a personal Christmas card every year and displaying his nature photography. He left the Cedar Bayou plant to oversee one of Chevron Phillips Chemical’s business lines, and as of 2013, is the senior vice president

The plant gets a new sign on the I-10 frontage road after becoming Chevron Phillips Chemcal.

of manufacturing.

The next 50 years The Cedar Bayou plant is vital to Baytown and the Texas Gulf Coast area. Today, the plant employs 750 people with approximately 500 nested contractors.

Employees continue to serve Baytown in numerous community events, including being a Partner in Education to Crockett Elementary for 25 years, cleaning parks and roadways during the annual city of Baytown’s Trashoff, and sponsoring scholarship and workforce development opportunities for Lee College students.

Van Long is the current plant manager at Cedar Bayou since

2008. He has been instrumental in prepping the 1,400-acre site for the largest expansion Cedar Bayou has seen since 1975.

Chevron Phillips Chemical is on track to build a new ethylene unit at the Cedar Bayou plant that, much like its predecessor, will be capable of increasing the plant’s production capacity. In addition, a 1-Hexene unit is under construction capable of producing 551 million pounds per year and a 20 percent increase in the plant’s normal alpha olefins production in underway.

“From its humble beginnings on the outside of town to becoming one of the premier chemical plants in the world, the Cedar Bayou plant has a history of excellence. Being a part of this

plant is the greatest opportunity of my career and has allowed me to work with the greatest group of people,” said Long.

The new expansion is expected to create an additional 200 long-term jobs at Cedar Bayou from 2013 to 2017 with as many as 4,000 temporary construction workers building the units.

History is certainly repeating itself. Dr. Alexander Lewis Jr. of Gulf Oil Corp. first promised Baytown in 1962 that the Cedar Bayou plant would be a “vast complex of interrelated industrial facilities.” He could have never imagined the plant would grow into the powerhouse it is today, giving Baytown 50 years of excellence.

Cedar Bayou Plant

the next

50 Years

Through it all, an attitude that has always existed at the Cedar Bayou plant has been one of pride.

We are proud of our company and its commitment to excellence.

We are proud of our plant and its ability to adapt and grow while maintaining a positive role in the environment and our community.

Most of all, we are proud of our employees.

This is part two of a two-part series.

The first part was published on January 26, 2014.

2 The Baytown Sun

Sunday, March 2, 2014

World’s largest 1-Hexene plant nears spring finish line ■

Operators build camaraderie while training on new plant

Another expansion project at Chevron Phillips Chemical’s Cedar Bayou facility in Baytown is nearing completion.

Starting in 2012, the company began building the world’s largest on-purpose 1-hexene plant on its already sprawling complex. Two years later, construction is almost complete and the company is w, from anticipating start-up during the first half s are (back ro ist ial ec sp r, d ine an Morin, Jay Jo of operators of 2014. han, Feliciano , ug na ant’s first team pl Va ss e h Ce et en y nn ex rr Ke 1-h Pe , The an McLaughlin er, Lou Hooks, Se en , Ho ey il dl “1-hexene is a critical component used n, Ph Ha so t): ck Jack left) Ri w, from lef ured are Todd ard, (front ro othro. Not pict in the manufacture of polyethylene, a Pr y Steven Blanch rr Te r, s, Wes Hutte Travis Steven ird. plastic resin commonly converted into Ba ill W d an , an Brad Goodm film, pipe, detergent bottles, and food and beverage containers.

Global demand is on the rise, and once this project is complete, Cedar Bayou will be the largest supplier in the world,” said R. Kim Perry, Chevron Phillips Chemical 1-hexene project manager.

Chevron Ph A project of this illips Chemic al hosted a 1-hexene pl ceremonial ant on June scale requires a lot groundbrea 13, 2012. Com (from left) king event fo memoratin W.A. Brooks r the g the start hire, S&B C of manpower, and Commission of th onstructors er Precinct CEO; Jack M e new project was . 2; Wayne State Sena as such Chevron orman, Har Smith, Stat tor; Stephe e Represen ris County n DonCarlo Plant Manag tative; Tom s, city of Ba er; Pete Cel Phillips Chemical m y yt W ow illi ams, la, Chevron n Mayor; Va n Long, Ced Phillips Che created 14 longmical Co. Pr ar Bayou esident and CEO. term jobs and over 1,000 temporary construction jobs. One of those new hires was Perry Cessna.

Chevron Phillips Cessna grew up in the petrochemical Chemical is building industry. His grandfather worked for the world’s largest a large oil and gas company and his on-purpose 1-hexene father worked for a small petrochemical plant at its Cedar company in his hometown of Hardin, Bayou facility Texas. in Baytown. The Cessna joined Chevron Phillips 1-hexene plant will Chemical two years ago and has spent be capable of the last year working directly on the producing up 1-hexene expansion project in a unique to 551,000,000 training program for new operators. pounds per Typically, new operators undergo year. The plant is extensive training on simulator consoles anticipated to start within their assigned units. They have up mid-2014. standard operating procedures to refer to, veteran co-workers to guide them, and an actual unit to walk through and learn from. However, since the 1-hexene unit is

a brand new plant, following the standard protocol wasn’t feasible.

Instead, Cessna and seven other coworkers spent half their day working through basic operations with piping and instrumentation diagrams and a 3-D model of the 1-hexene unit, and the second half of their day observing the piping and instrumentation on the physical unit as it is being built.

“It’s actually a more effective training program because they are getting to see a unit built from the ground up,” said Rick Hadley, Chevron Phillips Chemical operations specialist with the 1-hexene group. “It’s like buying a complete house versus watching one be built. When you build a house you can see everything that goes into it from the foundation to the overall structure.”

Cessna explained, “I am extremely fortunate to be part of the 1-hexene startup team. To be able to watch each valve, pipe, vessel, and piece of equipment installed is an invaluable learning experience. We’ve had the opportunity to sit down and ask the design team questions and learn exactly how the process works. Each member of the operations team is diverse.

We all brought experience and ideas from other companies and industries. We were able to learn from each other and help one another become fully immersed in every aspect of the 1-hexene unit.”

With any Chevron Phillips Chemical construction project, safety is always a top priority. “To date, the 1-hexene project has worked over one million man hours without an OSHA recordable,” said Perry.

“One of the reasons that I enjoy working at Chevron Phillips Chemical is its safety commitment. Many companies talk about having a safety culture, but here at Cedar Bayou each employee truly believes in and practices safety in each task, every day,” said Cessna.

Being part of a team that is responsible for building a multi-million-dollar plant from the ground up fosters camaraderie.

“Each member of the startup team has a sense of ownership, pride and commitment to see this unit succeed that is hard to describe in words. I am proud to call each member of the startup team family,” said Cessna.

Partnering for 50 years to advance the common good Saluting past community campaign chairs Charley Lenderman, 1986-87 Wilton Pate, 1994-95 Rod Conerly, 1999-2000 Dan Coombs, 2005-2006

Also saluting + Employee donors to annual United Way campaign + Annual corporate gift + United Way board members + Allocations Committee volunteers + United Way Day of Caring volunteers

The Baytown Sun

Sunday, March 2, 2014

3

Beyond the fence line

Lesli Trahan, a safety facilitator, and her daughter Madison help plant a tree at the Pecan Village Apartments during the United Way Day of Caring.

T

rtthe Texas Depa backpacks to 0 d 30 an d d te in bl na r do fo (DARS) you plant ative Services The Cedar Ba ere on and Rehabilit l volunteers w ive ra st ve si Se As . of ea t ar man n men Hu ow a, yt rit Ba e Zu th ren in , including Lisa ay aw s disabled child ck pa give the back hand to help r. siness partne bu s ce ur Reso

Jerry Caplin ger and Lola R laboratory experiments obinson, Quality Contr ol for Crocket Chemistry t Elementary Specialists, create fun Week. students du ring Nationa l

w w w . c e d a r c r o s s i n g t e x a s . c o m

CEDAR CROSSING INDUSTRIAL PARK A premier planned business and industrial park with 15,000 acres designed for commercial and industrial use.

Cedar Crossing Two Allen Center 1200 Smith St. #1260 Houston, TX 77002 (281) 822-2990

Congratulations to Chevron Phillips on 50 years.

he philosophy at the Cedar Bayou plant is to always be a good neighbor.

This standard was set years ago by the first plant manager, H.W. Blackwood, and has been maintained for fifty years. Most of the people who work at the Cedar Bayou plant live in the surrounding Baytown/West Chambers community. These employees believe it is a privilege to operate in Baytown, not a right.

And the Cedar Bayou plant is able to live up to this belief year after year by working safely, being environmentally sensitive, and giving back to the community that supports it.

Here are just a few organizations that the plant and its employees support annually:

■ American Cancer Society “Relay for Life” ■ Art League of Baytown ■ Barbers Hill Education Foundation ■ Barbers Hill Scholarship Association ■ Baytown Chamber of Commerce ■ Baytown Hispanic Chamber of Commerce ■ Baytown Nature Center ■ Baytown Sun “Newspapers in Education” ■ Baytown Symphony Orchestra ■ Baytown/West Chambers County Economic Development Foundation ■ Bay Area Homeless Shelter ■ Baytown YMCA ■ Baytown Youth Fair and Rodeo Association

■ City of Baytown “Mayor’s Summer Work Program” ■ City of Baytown Litter Abatement Program ■ Eddie V. Gray Wetlands Center “Summer Science Camp” ■ GCCISD Education Foundation ■ Habitat for Humanity ■ Lee College Foundation ■ Partners in Education with Crockett Elementary and Goose Creek Memorial High School ■ Project Graduation ■ Rotary Club of Baytown “Shrimp and Catfish Festival” ■ United Way ■ West Chambers County Chamber of Commerce

Employees and contractors at the Cedar Bayou plant donated more than 700 food items to Communities In Schools, a nonprofit that assists disadvantaged families in the Goose Creek school district.

The donations fed five Baytown families on Thanksgiving in 2013. Pictured (from left): Shea Robinson, Corey Brazenec, Scott Clary, Andrew Cousins, and Ashley Leitner.

The Cedar Bayou plant and Crockett Elementary celebrated 25 years as partners in education in 2012-2013 school year. The students marked the event by forming a human “25” in the playground.

4 The Baytown Sun

Sunday, March 2, 2014

Pictured is the existing ethylene unit at Chevron Phillips Chemical’s Cedar Bayou plant, which can produce up to 1.8 billion pounds per year. The new ethane cracker will be larger, capable of producing up to 3.3 billion pounds per year.

Chevron Phillips Chemical’s long-term investment in Baytown ■

New ethane cracker brings jobs and community investments

C

hevron Phillips Chemical is expanding its operations along the U.S. Gulf Coast and bringing with it more than 400 long-term jobs and 10,000 engineering and construction jobs over the next three years. Fifty percent of those jobs will be in Baytown. Hiring has already begun for multiple positions and the company expects to add over 100 new full-time permanent employees in 2013 and 2014.

The U.S. Gulf Coast (USGC) Petrochemicals Project includes a world-scale ethane cracker, capable of producing 3.3 billion pound per year of ethylene, at the Cedar Bayou facility in Baytown and polyethylene facilities to be built in Old Ocean, Texas with a total capacity of 2.2 billion pounds.

At Cedar Bayou, site preparations are in progress: buildings have been demolished while parking lots and personnel have been relocated. Critical equipment for the project has been ordered, expansion of the supporting infrastructure has commenced and the company has executed a contract for the fabrication of the rail cars needed to supply product to customers. Chevron Phillips Chemical anticipates construction will commence second quarter 2014.

In addition to prepping the Baytown facility, Chevron Phillips Chemical worked with the Harris County Precinct 2 Commissioner’s Office and the city of Baytown to establish a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ) to improve Sjolander Road. Through the TIRZ, Chevron Phillips Chemical provided $5.6 million dollars in funding to widen Sjolander Road from a two-lane asphalt road to a four-lane concrete road with a continuous center turn lane.

“During the peak of construction, we anticipate anywhere from 4,000 – 7,000 contractors will be onsite each day. Expanding and improving Sjolander Road

will help us minimize the construction traffic’s impact on the surrounding community,” said Steven T. Prusak, Chevron Phillips Chemical’s USGC Petrochemicals Project co-director.

“Chevron Phillips Chemical’s investment in the transportation system provides for increased transportation efficiencies in the surrounding areas,” explained Harris County Commissioner Jack Morman. “The project assists in alleviating traffic congestion and improving accessibility in the area. Not only will these improvements assist mobility in the area during the ethylene expansion project, but will also serve transportation needs in the future.”

Along with the investment in road construction, Chevron Phillips Chemical Company also amended its Industrial District Agreement with the city of Baytown to fund the hiring of six new full-time police officers and the purchase of three new police vehicles over the next four years. This $1.8 million investment is a joint effort with the city to mitigate the potential impact future construction activities might have on the local community.

“Shale resource development has provided us an enormous opportunity to grow at a significant pace and generate new jobs. In doing this, we are dedicated to keeping the Baytown community at pace with this boom so that everyone can enjoy the benefits,” said Van Long, plant manager at Chevron Phillips Chemical’s Cedar Bayou facility.

The benefits of Chevron Phillips Chemical’s USGC Petrochemicals Project can be felt all across the City of Baytown.

“The economic impact is significant, in direct, indirect and induced benefits in job creation, tax valuation and economic development. Construction investment, ongoing operations, employment and related multipliers will cascade through both local and regional economies, resulting in substantial economic growth,” said B. J. Simon, Associate Executive Director, Baytown-West Chambers County Economic Development Foundation.

Cedar Bayou Plant Manager Van Long, second from left, speaks on a panel during the 2013 Petrochemical and Maritime Outlook Conference hosted by the Economic Alliance Houston Port Region. Discussions revolved around the petrochemical industry’s expansion plans in response to shale gas development.

A widened Sjola nder Road was officially opened Dec. 4, 2013. Th to the public wi is project was th a ribbon-cutti a collaborative Chevron Phillips effort between ng ceremony on Chemical. Pict Harris County, ured (from left): Plant Manager the city of Bayt Baytown city co Van Long, Harr own, and un is County Comm cilman Bob Ho Mayor Stephen issioner Precinc skins, Cedar Ba DonCarlos, an you t 2 Jack Morm d Baytown Cham an, city of Bayt ber of Commer own ce Chairman Da vid Daspit.

The Baytown Sun

Sunday, March 2, 2014

Plant Manager Van Long sign ed a ceremon $75,000 in 20 12. The funds ial check to Le were used to e College in a scholarship purchase labo fund for stud ratory equipm the amount of ents studying ogy, and elec ent and to se process tech trical technolo t-up nology, instru gy. mentation tech nol-

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Laramie Valverde, a process operator, mentors Lee College student Christina Garcia, a recipient of the Chevron Phillips Workforce Development Scholarship program studying to be a process operator.

Chevron Phillips Chemical donates $75,000 to Lee College for scholarships and classroom equipment

orce hemical Workf vron Phillips C logy he C no e ch th te of s ts for proces 12 first recipien e 20 th in . of ge 13 e le 20 on n in was Lee Col Joseph Poole after graduatio tablished at es or at p hi er rs op la t ho an pl Sc Development a Cedar Bayou e was hired as students. Pool

Saluting Chevron Phillips as a Responsible Care manufacturer committed to our community for 50 years

5

Endowment designed to train future petrochemical workforce

After spending 16 years behind the wheel of a big rig, Mont Belvieu resident Doug Freeman looked out his windshield at what was quickly becoming a dead-end road. But at 40 years old, with a wife and five children, he didn’t have the luxury of changing careers and starting over in an entry-level position.

“Being a truck driver, I wasn’t going to have the kind of retirement I wanted.

I needed something more stable, a career that would provide for me and my family,” said Freeman.

A CNN story about Lee College’s Process Technology Program caught Freeman’s eye, as did the chemical industry’s expansion plans in Baytown. Freeman took a leap of faith, parked his rig permanently and enrolled in Lee College’s twoyear degree program.

Thanks to a $75,000 donation from Chevron Phillips Chemical to Lee College, many local residents will be able to do the same. Of the $75,000 donation, $10,000 has been used for classroom enhancements and the purchase of lab equipment. The remaining $65,000 was put into an endowment for scholarships that pays for 50 percent of a student’s tuition and books.

“The Chevron Phillips Chemical Workforce Development Scholarship Program was established to assist with what is rapidly becoming a shortage of trained petrochemical workers along the U.S. Gulf Coast,” explained Van Long, plant manager at Chevron Phillips Chemical’s Cedar Bayou facility in Baytown.

The scholarship is open to Lee College students working toward a two-year degree in Process Technology, Instrumentation Technology or Electrical Technology.

It is also available to high school students enrolled in dual-credit programs. All three degree programs are designed to prepare high school graduates and skilled professionals seeking a job change for technical jobs in the petrochemical industry.

“As a community college, we have the responsibility of ensuring our educational programs prepare students for jobs here, within our local community. With the generous support offered through this scholarship, we are able to provide students with the tools, support, and most importantly, the opportunity to be successful in both the classroom and the workforce,” said Dr. Dennis Brown, President at Lee College.

In addition to helping the community at large, the scholarship program is a recruiting tool for Chevron Phillips Chemical’s Cedar Bayou facility. It provides a pipeline of potential employees to help fill the workforce needs created by numerous local expansion projects.

Each scholarship recipient is paired with an experienced Chevron Phillips Chemical employee mentor. Joseph Poole, one of the first students awarded a scholarship, was matched with David DeWitt, a Materials Handling Operator with 22 years of experience.

It was through DeWitt that Poole learned about the company’s Co-Op program. Similar to an operator internship, Co-Ops are highly coveted, paid positions that give second-year students 15 weeks of practical, hands-on experience working under the guidance of experienced Operators. The company gets a chance to assess a student’s knowledge and the student gains the opportunity to see if working in a plant environment is truly a good fit for them.

“The way Chevron Phillips Chemical conducted the internship program was productive because it enabled me to be a qualified operator by the end of the program,” said Poole. “Lee College’s Process Technology program definitely prepared me for working in the plant, but the scholarship and mentoring program from Chevron Phillips Chemical was a large contributor to my overall success.”

Both Doug Freeman and Joseph Poole applied for full-time operator positions after completing their Co-op programs, and today both are successful operators at Cedar Bayou’s 1792 polyethylene unit.

“The Co-Op Program was a great way for me to get my foot in the door. In fact, I made more money as a Chevron Phillips Chemical intern than I ever did as truck driver,” said Freeman.

Chevron Phillips Chemical’s investment in the education of Baytown and West Chambers County residents extends much deeper than just the scholarship.

“Cedar Bayou has been a proud member of the Greater Baytown area for nearly 50 years. We have established a positive, collaborative relationship with this community,” said Long. “Spurred by the development of shale gas in the U.S., Chevron Phillips Chemical is contributing to the largest renaissance this industry has seen in decades. The development of Baytown’s workforce is critical to our long-term success. It is our desire that this scholarship serve as a catalyst for individual, community and corporate growth.”

6 The Baytown Sun

Sunday, March 2, 2014

OSHA names Cedar Bayou plant as having most VPP-certified companies at one site in U.S.

All of the VPP flags are displayed in front of the Cedar Bayou plant along the I-10 frontage road. Each time a new contractor is awarded VPP certification, the plant honors that accomplishment by adding a new flag.

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he U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) confirmed in February 2014 that Chevron Phillips Chemical’s Cedar Bayou facility has the most Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) certified companies working at one site in the United States.

The Cedar Bayou facility and 11 of its contractors are VPP certified. The contractors include Brock Services LTD, Furmanite Technical Solutions, Jacobs Engineering Group Inc, Mobley Industrial Services Inc, Nalco Compa-

ny, QualSpec, S&B Engineers & Constructors, SGS Petroleum Service Corporation, TechCorr USA, LLC, Veolia Environmental Services and Zachry Industrial Inc. OSHA’s VPP recognizes employers in the private industry who have implemented effective safety and health management systems above and beyond federal regulations, while maintaining injury and illness rates below national Bureau of Labor Statistics averages for their respective industries. Chevron Phillips Chemical’s Cedar Bayou facil-

ity is also a STAR site in the VPP program and voluntarily mentor onsite contractors into VPP certification.

“This is a prestigious honor for Chevron Phillips Chemical,” said Van Long, plant manager at Chevron Phillips

Chemical’s Cedar Bayou facility. “Having a facility with the most VPP-certified companies in the nation is a true testament of our commitment to provide a safe work environment for both our employees and contractors.”

Baytown Chamber Congratulates

Emergency Rescue Team named World Champions 10 times

50th Anniversary

on their e

A city on the move...

MISSION – The Baytown Chamber of Commerce is a business organization created to provide the leadership to enhance economic growth and a better quality of life for the Baytown Area.

Cedar Bayou’s Emergency Response Team members who competed in the 2013 IRECA competition (from left): Kris Pollio, David Matthies, Kyle Hensley, John Hollaway, Alex Villarreal, Lou Hooks, and Ryan Nichter.

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he Cedar Bayou plant’s Emergency Response Team has represented Chevron Corp. and Chevron Phillips Chemical at the International Rescue Emergency Care Association (IRECA) conference for the past 23 years. Competing against other petrochemical companies from across the country, the Cedar Bayou plant has placed first above all others 10 times in technical rescue and named World Champions.

The competition is designed to test the skills and capabilities of plant rescue teams to locate, treat and move people

to safety during emergency situations, much like firefighters or EMS personnel would do. In fact, all of the Cedar Bayou plant’s Emergency Response Team members are either trained firefighters or paramedics.

“The fire, rescue and medical teams want to be the best trained, least used tools at a plant. But be rest assured, if needed, they will selflessly give of themselves to protect life and property,” said John Hollaway, Fire and Safety Specialist at the Cedar Bayou plant and the team’s captain in 2013.

David Daspit

Texas First Bank & Chairman of the Board

281-422-8359

Tracey S. Wheeler President & CEO

BAYTOWN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE “Your Business Is Our Business” 1300 Rollingbrook, Suite 400

www.baytownchamber.com ~ e-mail: info@baytownchamber.com

The Baytown Sun

Sunday, March 2, 2014

7

During the 50th anniversary celebration on Oct. 21, 2013, employees were treated to an 8-by-5-foot cake and visited by former plant managers. From left, Pete Cella, president and CEO of Chevron Phillips Chemical; Dan Coombs, plant manager from 1995 to 1999; John Strausser, plant manager from 1971 to 1974; Ruth Strausser; Larry Lucchesi, plant manager from 1974 to 1995; Rick Roberts, plant manager from 1999 to 2000; and Van Long, current plant manager since 2008.

Russ Clinton

Jerry Hale

Lesla Daniels

Belinda Ralston

Plant celebrates 50-year history

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ct. 21, 2013marked the 50th anniversary of Chevron Phillips Chemical Company’s Cedar Bayou plant in Baytown. Thus, Chevron Phillips hosted a birthday bash, complete with an 8-foot by 5-foot cake that could feed 1,000 people.

Also on hand were company executives, former plant managers and em-

ployees, three of which were honored with Legacy Awards.

The Legacy Award is a special recognition the plant created just for the 50th anniversary celebration. Employees were asked to nominate their peers for this award – current or retired. Thirteen nominations were submitted and a panel of judges narrowed it down to the top three.

The Legacy Award winners are people their peers feel have made a lasting impression on the Cedar Bayou plant. They are people whose dedication, passion, and unique ideas have forever left an impact. They have been visionaries, either by creating a program, implementing a new idea, creating change, or simply performing exceptional work. The work they have done will affect Cedar Bayou and its employees for years to come.

It is because of the legacy they have left behind that the next generation workforce will be successful in the future.

Russ Clinton The first Legacy winner is man who is described as innovative and creative.

He is always thinking outside the box. He is an inventor and holds seven

patents for analyzer and instrumentation equipment he developed at the Cedar Bayou plant.

Clinton is credited with creating and supervising the first advanced process control group, which was a significant technological leap. Before process controls, a unit’s reliability was up and down on any given day. By creating a process control, operators are able to maintain optimum productivity and stability in production.

Lesla Daniels The second Legacy winner is a woman who is known as the “care taker” of the plant because of the careful consideration and due diligence she gives to environmental efforts.

Daniels started out as an operator and moved into the Environmental Department. She oversees how Cedar Bayou and its employees manage waste, and does so with passion, enthusiasm, and complete dedication – not only for the plant, but for the betterment of the community and the environment.

Recycling efforts significantly increased throughout the facility when she joined the Environmental Department.

Daniels has embraced the environmental challenges presented to her, often going above and beyond what is expected to fulfill

a higher obligation to the community.

Jerry Hale and Belinda Ralston The third Legacy winner is a two-person team.

They are so well known as a team that people say both of their names even when just referring to one of them.

Jerry Hale and Belinda Ralston are responsible for the modern safety culture practiced at Cedar Bayou.

The two of them worked together for 15 years to reduce accidents and injury rates. Hale and Ralston led the first S.T.A.R. team – Safety Together Achieves Results. There are 66 S.T.A.R Teams at Cedar Bayou with leaders on every shift, in every unit, maintenance shop, or work group.

Hale and Ralston are champions of safety and personally care that each and every employee goes home safely at the end of the day. Most of the training employees are required to go through today was developed by this team, and they have been the driving force behind Cedar Bayou’s VPP STAR status.

Many employees have looked to Hale and Ralston as leaders in the plant. They are an inspiration to all and the legacy they have left behind on safety will forever be a part of the Cedar Bayou plant.

Chevron Phillips Chemical’s Pres ident and CEO Pe Strausser, Ceda te Cella hands a r Bayou’s second gift to John plant manager, in the facility. recognition of his service to

8 The Baytown Sun

Sunday, March 2, 2014

Leaving a Legacy in the Community More than 100 Cedar Bayou plant employees and contractors helped build the Habitat house in 2013. Pictured (from left): Keith Gaedchens, Robert Betancourth, Heather Kfoury, Rose Villarreal, Alex Villarreal, Janet Dyer, and Hubert Gonzalez

Chevron Phillips builds Habitat home in honor of plant’s 50th anniversary

Little. “I’m overwhelmed and appreciative. It’s the first house I’ll ever own.”

Little and his two sons, 18 and 21 years old, was n March 2013, city of Humanity house in Baytown, the second family to Baytown employee Austin emotions rushed through him. benefit from a Chevron Little looked at a pile of dirt Little is a single parent and firstPhillips Chemical-sponthat would soon be the construc- time homeowner. sored house. The tion site of his new home. As that “I thank God for it,” said Baytown re first was built Baytown Sun sident Austi year’s recipient of a Habitat for n Little rais photo/Alber th at he and hi in Montgomery es his hand t Villegas s sons, Ant to show the hony Little, Habitat for ke County and the y to his new left, and Tr Humanity p home e’maine Litt rese took the lea le will be liv second is Little’s d in construc nted the house to the ing in. fa ti m ng ily ni th ne at Chevron months ago home located Phillips . at 309 Alva Street near the Cedar Bayou plant. Chevron To date, Chevron Phillips Phillips Chemical chose Chemical has donated $120,000 Baytown as the site of good and countless volunteer hours their second Habitat for neighbor and add value to the Humanity project in toward building Habitat for communities in which we ophonor of the Cedar Bay- Humanity homes in areas where erate. We’re honored to have ou plant’s 50th anniver- the company operates manufacneighborhoods invite us in to be turing facilities. More than 100 sary. part of this process.” employees and contractors from On Dec. 11, 2013, Chevron the Cedar Bayou plant personPhillips Chemical and Habitat ally worked on the Little house for Humanity officially handed This project marks over an 11-month period. The over the keys to the Little home house was finished in record just in time for Christmas. the first time a single time and remains the fastest a “We are very happy to make private donor has solely Habitat home has been conthis a lasting legacy of the Chevsponsored a Habitat for structed in Baytown. ron Phillips organization. Over “It’s important for us to give a hundred of our employees Humanity house in the t back to the communities that and contractors spent time and of their Habita ting the frame ec er in ily Baytown community. m host us,” said Chevron Phillips worked on this project,” said fa le tt Li e th st si Employees as Chemical president and CEO Plant Manager Van Long. house in 2013.

Pete Cella. “We want to be a ■

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Congratulations on your Congratulates

on their th 50 Anniversary

50 A

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