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Contact:
Jill Kauffman Johnson,
Chemical Strategies Partnership
415-421-3405
http://www.chemicalstrategies.org
http://www.CMSforum.org
Leading Chemical
Service Providers Join Forces to Launch CMS Forum: Redefining
the Way Chemicals are Purchased and Managed
July 10, 2000
-- San Francisco, CA
Four leading
chemical management services firms have joined forces with the
Chemical Strategies Partnership to form the Chemical Management
Services (CMS) Forum to grow the awareness and practice of economically
and environmentally beneficial chemical management services.
"The chemical
services approach is redefining the way chemicals are purchased
and managed. In addition to reducing chemical management costs
for a manufacturer, this new strategic relationship creates incentives
for continuously improving economic and environmental performance,"
says Jill Kauffman Johnson, Manager of the CMS Forum and Director
of the Chemical Strategies Partnership.
"CMS Forum
will develop and coordinate initiatives designed to systematically
reduce barriers to widespread CMS adoption", says Leigh Hayes
of Radian International.
Ashland Chemical,
Haas Corporation, GW International (formerly Great Western Chemical)
and Radian International founded the CMS Forum with the private
non-profit, Chemical Strategies Partnership (CSP). CSP, a non-profit
organization founded in 1996, serves as an independent source
for information and guidance on developing chemical service programs
to optimize chemical use and reduce environmental impacts.
CMS Forum
membership is now open to chemical users, CMS providers, their
Tier II suppliers and any companies or organizations who want
to know more about how CMS can benefit the bottom line and reduce
the environmental impacts of chemical use. For
more information, visit the CMS Forum
website. To obtain further media announcements, please contact
Lauren Johnson, CSP, at 415-421-3405.
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First Initiatives
are CMS Industry Report and Provider Certification
In order to
develop the market for chemical management services "there is
a need to clarify what CMS is and to educate both customers and
Tier II providers about the benefits CMS can bring to customers",
says Tamie Mainero of GW International. CMS Forum is currently
conducting research with chemical service providers and customers
for the first-ever comprehensive CMS Industry Report, due for
release in October 2000. Haas Corporation's Thad Fortin says,
"we have never studied CMS as a separate industry before -- this
report will provide great insight into how CMS is handled with
all the major providers and customers in the aerospace, metalworking,
semiconductor and automotive sectors." CMS Forum is also developing
a certification program for CMS providers. With oversight from
CSP and an outside advisory panel, CMS Forum will be developing
a Code of Conduct and a set of industry standards to help customers
and other stakeholders identify qualified CMS providers.
Benefits
of Membership
All CMS Forum
members will receive the CSP Tools Manual, the comprehensive guide
for developing a CMS program; access to workshops by leading Tier
I providers; links to their organization's website; and a free
copy of the CMS Industry Report. Members will also have the opportunity
to participate in shaping industry conduct and standards in the
future through a certification program to be developed in 2001.
Membership
is open to Tier I and Tier II chemical companies, customers of
CMS, and other interested stakeholders such as non-profit trade
groups, environmental organizations and academic institutions.
"Ashland sees the value of joining CMS Forum first and foremost
for its power to educate customers and other stakeholders about
the benefits of CMS and also for ensuring Ashland's place at the
table in helping to shape this dynamic industry," says Mike Pregent
of Ashland Chemical.
Chemical
Strategies Partnership -- Shifting the Focus from Sales to Service
Chemical Strategies Partnership (CSP), a project of the Tides
Center, is a national non-profit organization founded in 1996
by the Pew Charitable Trusts. With additional support from the
Heinz Endowments, the San Francisco Foundation and the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, CSP continues to test and promote the chemical
services model as a cost-effective strategy to reduce chemical
use and environmental impact. Initial pilot programs and case
studies reveal significant chemical cost savings and chemical
use reduction when companies contract with a chemical service
provider to manage chemicals across the entire chemical lifecycle.
For more information
on the Chemical Strategies Partnership visit the CSP
website or call Jill Kauffman Johnson at 415-421-3405.
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