Kuwait gears up to hold 4th International Mega Safety and Environment Conference and Exposition

Under the patronage of His Highness Sheik Al- Jarah Al-Sabah, Minister of Energy of the State of Kuwait American Society of Safety Engineers is holding the 4th International Conference and Exposition on Health, Safety, Environment and Loss Prevention.

The Conference and Exhibition will bring together industry leaders, experts, regulatory authorities and practitioners under one roof to facilitate knowledge exchange and raise the profile of the HSE profession in the area. In addition, the event is working to encourage public involvement by initiating different awareness programs through out the conference activities. The noted safety, health and environment expert and the Organizing Committee President Ujwal Ritwik informed that the conference titled "Business Excellence through HSE" will be held over two days period. The event program involves delivering technical sessions which will occupy three parallel rooms.

After the grand success of the previous three Professional Development Conferences held in 2001,2002 & 2004 the Kuwait Chapter of American Society of Safety Engineers is holding its 4th International Professional Development Conference and Exposition from 15th - 17th April'07. The event will cover the disciplines of Occupational health, Safety Environment, and Loss prevention and will feature presentation of papers from professionals and invited international experts and also presentation of posters from students, researchers, and young professionals. There will also be an exposition of products and services on HSE (Health, Safety & Environment). Titled "Business Excellence through HSE ", the conference's focus is on the future of the industry and it is designed to inspire innovation, discovery, creativity, and growth.

In a largely attended meeting of session chairs, the organizing committee representative, Dr. Ebrahim Al Mahdy informed HSE leaders in the country shall be participating in the conference as Session Chairs. This will keep the standard of conference high. The head of Technical Committee Mr. Deven Kotecha informed technical presentations will be on topics like, Environmental Engineering and Management, Process Safety Management, Personnel Safety, Fire Safety, Loss Prevention & Occupational Health and Industrial Hygiene and will be conducted by Professionals, Engineers, Managers, Teachers, Research Scholars and Students from USA, Canada, Europe and Kuwait. The event will feature a thoroughly interactive symposium conducted in parallel to other concurrent sessions. Compliance to the rules and regulations of the land is one of the primary requirements of any management system such as ISO 9000-2000, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18000, and EMAS.

Mr. G. Muthukumar, the head of planning committee, took the opportunity to explain the audience about details of the conference. An event of great prestige for Kuwait, as for the first time in the region such specialty event is being held with a wide variety of value loaded features. He said 'We thank forward looking companies like Kuwait National Petroleum Co., Saudi Arabian Chevron, Du Pont, and Equate, to name a few who have come out in full support of the conference. Even public bodies like EPA, Kuwait Fire Brigade, and Ministry of Energy are participating in high value deliberations'. He hoped companies and agencies will derive full benefit of the event.

On March 23, 2005, the BP Texas City refinery experienced a catastrophic process accident. It was one of the most serious U.S. workplace disasters of the past two decades, resulting in 15 deaths and more than 170 injuries. In the aftermath of the accident, on recommendation from US government BP formed an independent panel to conduct a thorough review of the company's corporate safety culture, safety management systems, and corporate safety oversight at its U.S. refineries. The panel headed by James Baker, ex-Secretary of State, issued its findings and made specific and extensive recommendations. Jack McCavit served as an expert by the panel. Apart from McCavit, the event will be addressed by several well known international and Kuwaiti experts in the HSE field such as Dr. Sami Al Yakoub, Dr. Jas Singh of American Industrial Hygiene Association and Dr. Wate, Director of National Environmental Engineering Research Institute.

The exhibition associated with the conference will feature some of the well known industry leaders that will bring to the table best available technologies and practices. The Exposition will cover products relating to Safety, Personal Protective Equipment, Fire fighting and protection equipment, foam, chemicals, occupational health and environmental measurement devices, instruments, technology, concepts, software, consultancy and studies.

A host of training workshops have been organized to add further value to the week long HSE Mega Event. The workshops feature some next generation topics which will be a high value to the attendees. Work-shops will allow industry practitioners to improve their skills and knowledge. Mr. V. Ravi, in-charge for training work shops, further emphasized the value of the training workshops. Some of these are for the first time in this region, for example the next generation developments in process safety management. The last day of the conference will also feature an exclusive symposium on Kuwait laws on health, safety and environment.

The objective of the conference is to promote safety, health and environmental protection in the region by providing a forum for practitioners from industry, academia, and government to share experiences, technological advances, new ideas and the latest in personal protective equipment, consulting services, training programs or services,

The event provides a unique opportunity for students, researchers and young professionals to learn and enhance the emerging frontiers in the fields of environment, health and safety. Their participation is encouraged in all forms. However, special modes have been planned to facilitate their involvement. Great effort has gone into providing programs that are diverse, interactive, forward-thinking, people-focused, change-orientated, and of the highest quality. Organizers are expecting well over 500 delegates from Kuwait and outside to participate in the conference and exposition.

The event will make Kuwait proud and Mr. Fadhel Al-Ali, Chairman of the Organizing Committee, hoped the local and regional industries and institutions will utilize the opportunity.