Responsible Care® Process Safety Code

Responsible Care® Process Safety Code


Responsible Care companies are committed to safe operations. The Process Safety Code sets forth this collective commitment to a culture of process safety throughout chemical facility processing operations, management systems and leadership organizations.

This Code aims to supplement existing process safety requirements contained within the Responsible Care Management System® (RCMS®) and RC14001® technical specifications, by specifically addressing process safety concepts such as leadership, accountability and culture in order to drive overall process safety performance improvement.  It is also intended to complement existing regulatory requirements, such as OSHA’s Process Safety Management (PSM) standard and EPA’s Risk Management Plan (RMP) standard.

The Responsible Care Process Safety Code differs from regulatory standards that, by necessity, focus on process safety at an individual facility. The Process Safety Code is more universal—it addresses issues across a division or corporation, and includes a company commitment to set process safety expectations, define accountability for process safety performance and allocate adequate resources to achieve performance expectations.
Responsible Care companies commit to systematic, continuous improvement in process safety through applying the Code’s seven management practices, which address:
    Leadership and culture
    Accountability
    Knowledge, expertise and training
    Understanding and prioritization of process safety risks
    Comprehensive process safety management system
    Information sharing
    Monitoring and improving performance

Implementing the Process Safety Code is mandatory for all ACC Responsible Care companies.