Linde North America's Oregon high-purity gases plant receives Responsible Care® Certification

MURRAY HILL, N.J. and NEW PROVIDENCE, N.J., Feb. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Linde Electronics and Specialty Gases has received certification of its Medford, Oregon, high-purity gases plant under the American Chemistry Council's (ACC) Responsible Care® management program.

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Linde Electronics and Specialty Gases is a division of Linde North America, a member of The Linde Group, a world-leading gases and engineering company. The ACC is an association of producers, manufacturers and suppliers of chemical products. Linde has been a member of the ACC since 1951.

Art Persteiner, Linde's Medford plant manager, said "The manufacture and distribution of specialty gases has inherent risks that demand world leading safety processes and behaviors. Responsible Care certification reinforces Linde's acknowledgement of those risks and underscores our commitment to our people and our neighbors."

The Medford plant, which has been in operation since 1998, produces high-purity gases and chemicals for major semiconductor manufacturers in the U.S., Southeast Asia and Europe. The plant employs 40 people.

Responsible Care is a globally recognized management system aimed at helping companies improve performance in areas such as safety, health, environment and security. Certification is mandatory for all ACC member companies, which must undergo headquarter and facility audits by an independent, accredited auditor to verify that they have a structure and system in place that manages and measures performance. Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance (LRQA) is Linde's independent auditor. Since 2008, 26 Linde plants in North America have been certified under the program.

Tim Wren, head of safety, health, environment and quality for Linde North America, said, "I congratulate Art Persteiner and his team at the Medford plant, who worked very hard for this certification. Recognition of the Medford plant demonstrates the employees' total involvement in Linde's commitment to sustaining the practices specified in the Responsible Care management system."

The Responsible Care management system offers an integrated, structured approach for driving continual improvement in seven key areas: community awareness and emergency response; security; distribution; employee health and safety; pollution prevention; process safety; and product stewardship.

The Linde Group is a world-leading gases and engineering company with around 63,000 employees in more than 100 countries worldwide. In the 2012 financial year, Linde generated revenue of EUR 15.280 bn (USD 19.9 bn). The strategy of the Group is geared towards long-term profitable growth and focuses on the expansion of its international business with forward-looking products and services. Linde acts responsibly towards its shareholders, business partners, employees, society and the environment – in every one of its business areas, regions and locations across the globe. The company is committed to technologies and products that unite the goals of customer value and sustainable development.

For more information, see The Linde Group online at www.linde.com

SOURCE Linde North America