Manny Cunha was pleased to see that “all the Issue Teams, Members Exchanges, Council and Board of Directors meetings took place with a considerable number of participants.” He also commented that “all the activities of the Fall Meeting were well attended, however, there was a reduced number of participants as some companies, especially international members, couldn’t travel due to the pandemic rules in effect at their companies and countries.” 

Chlorine Product Safety and Stewardship  

The Chlorine Institute exists to support the chlor-alkali industry in advancing safe, secure, environmentally compatible, and sustainable production, distribution, and use of its mission chemicals (CI Mission Statement). The mission chemicals include chlorine, sodium and potassium hydroxides, hydrogen chloride, and sodium hypochlorite, among others. 

Kuehne Team members join around a table at one of the first in-person CI meetings in 2 years.

Kuehne Company is dedicated to advancing chlorine product safety and stewardship. The company first became a member of the Chlorine Institute in 1976. Kuehne employees have been actively involved in multiple aspects of CI, including research projects, task groups, serving on the board, and even hosting CI staff for periodic training. Kuehne has also donated major equipment for research purposes such as testing the dispersion of a sizable chlorine gas release in the desert salt flats of Utah (Project Jack Rabbit).

Kuehne also played a major role in collaborating with the Chlorine Institute to produce an instructional video on correct tanker unloading which was produced about 4 years ago. Footage for the video was filmed at one of Kuehne’s sites. 

Kuehne Leadership at CI 

This year, four Kuehne employees in particular showed leadership in the CI meetings, raising topics of concern, contributing ideas in discussion groups, participating in the panels, and preparing and leading meetings.  

Manny Carreia leads the discussion at one of the Fall CI Meetings.

Jessica Bandera was unable to attend the CI meetings in person, but prepared information for the Packager/Sodium Hypo Member Exchange. Manny Correia presented this information at the meeting and led the discussion on safety, training, and supervision of delivery drivers, as well as preparing for extreme weather conditions.  

Manny Cunha and Azade Zare Tabibi formed part of the panel on Tuesday for the Product Stewardship Issue Team meeting, in which participants discussed topics ranging from certifications concerning the safety and purity of drinking water chemicals to making product stewardship visits to customers.

Azade commented that “it was great seeing everyone in person at CI. The issue team members had productive meetings, and as always, the rest of the Kuehne team members, especially the new faces, were well represented.”

Kuehne Company’s three plant managers enjoy dinner in Nashville. From left: Jamie Marsh, Manny Correia, David Ramsey

Manny Cunha has been a long-time contributor to CI and currently serves as a board member. Besides attending and sharing his expertise in many of the open meetings, he also attended leadership and board meetings with CI staff and other industry leaders.  

Team Building

The CI Conference was an excellent team building time for Kuehne’s three plant managers, who were able to share ideas and strategies between meetings. Ronda Kuehne, who was also in attendance, commented that “I felt so proud of the Kuehne Team. Mr. Frank Reiner, the president of CI, talked to me about how valuable our knowledge and support have been. I so enjoyed listening to the plant managers engage and get to know one another on a more personal level. I’m so very THANKFUL.” 

Looking Forward  

Zach Kuehne also enjoyed the experience, stating that “the 2021 Nashville CI Conference was a great get-away from the normal office (or home) routine. It was refreshing to see everyone in person, and I believe Kuehne Company had one of the largest groups in attendance. It was great to see all three of our plant managers together sharing information and best practices and getting to relax a bit after a long summer season. Looking forward to the next one!”