Eastman Global Supply Chain Wins BNSF Product Stewardship Award

July 24, 2024 /3BL/ - For the second year in a row, Eastman has received the BNSF Product Stewardship Award for exceptional commitment to the safe transportation of hazardous materials by rail. The award recognizes shippers who transport a minimum of 500 loaded tank cars of hazardous materials during the previous year and record zero non-accident releases. BNSF is a serving railroad and valued partner of Eastman’s Longview site.

“Rail is a complex entity with limited options. It feels good to receive this recognition for our work," says Agustin Argibay, vice president of Global Supply Chain and Quality (GSC). “The award represents our commitment to world-class safety and environmental performance.”

Accomplishments such as these are made possible by the safe planning, handling, and shipping of hazardous materials by GSC team members like Anna Combs, a rail procurement manager.

“Rail is a big part of what we do at Eastman and keeps our supply chain going,” Combs says. “It’s not just getting material to our customers; we also ship material back and forth between our plant sites so manufacturing can make other products. We also bring in raw materials via rail like coal, methanol, and lots of other key raw ingredients.”

Combs, part of a growing group of women in supply chain, calls the award "a great achievement, because it involves folks setting our corporate strategy, all the way through to those out in the plants actually doing the materials handling and loading rail cars day-in and day-out.”

Eastman was among 108 other BNSF customers that met stringent criteria for the Product Stewardship Award. Eastman currently forwards around 2,500 shipments annually via BNSF controlled railroad.