AAR Honors Hazardous Material Handlers

Written by Andrew Corselli
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The Association of American Railroads (AAR) announced the 2019 recipients of the Holden-Proefrock Award, Danny Simpson, and the 2018 Non-Accident Release (NAR) Grand Slam Awards, presented to 41 companies. The awards are given annually to individuals, shippers and railroads operating in hazardous material fields.

Simpson, former Assistant Vice President, Safety and Emergency Response for Canadian National (CN), is the 2019 recipient of the Holden-Proefrock Award. With more than 28 years of service to the rail industry, Simpson played a “key role in the industry’s emergency preparedness and response efforts.” With CN, he provided direct support to the railroad’s hazardous material response program in both the U.S. and Canada. Simpson also served for 15 years at the industry’s emergency response training center at the Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo, Colo., where his work helped define hazardous material response standards and improved first responder training. Simpson also served on numerous rail safety committees—including the AAR Tank Car Committee—and partnered with federal, state, provincial and local agencies on domestic preparedness and emergency response training.

The Holden-Proefrock Award is named in honor of Roy Holden, a former AAR employee and an innovator in tank car design and safety, and Art Proefrock, a former Hulcher Emergency Services employee who pioneered hazardous materials transportation emergency response.

The 2018 NAR Grand Slam Award was presented to 41 companies. They are Archer Daniels Midland, ARLANXEO, Aux Sable Liquid Products, BP Products North America, Centennial Energy LLC, CF Industries Sales LLC, Chemtrade Logistics Inc., Crestwood Services, Eastman Chemical, Elbow River Marketing Ltd., ERCO Worldwide (A division of Superior Plus LP), ExxonMobil, Gibson Energy, Huntsman International LLC, Husky Energy Inc., INEOS North America, Kemira, Keyera Partnership, Koppers, Landing Trade Group LLC, Linde, LLC, Marathon Petroleum Company, Markwest, Methanex Corporation, NorFalco, NOVA Chemicals, Occidental Chemical Corporation, Olin Corporation, Oxbow Sulphur Inc., PBF Energy, Petrogas Energy Corp., Plains Midstream Canada, Poet Biorefining, Reagent Chemical & Research, Inc., Renewable Products Marketing Group, Targa Resources Inc., Tesoro Refining & Marketing Company, LLC, The Chemours Company FC LLC, Univar, Valero Marketing and Supply Company, and Westlake Chemical.

The NAR Grand Slam Award is presented annually to companies that are exemplary shippers of hazardous materials. An award winner must have been recognized by at least four Class I railroads and have had zero non-accident releases involving their shipments the previous calendar year. A hazardous materials non-accident release is an unintentional release of a hazardous material while in transportation, but not involving an accident.

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