Pedro De Filippo Vannucci Program Coordinator, Sustainability & Environment
At the second annual OCS CON, held in October 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana, more than 100 attendees from across the plastic industry gathered to collaborate on resin stewardship and award leaders advancing the goal of zero plastic resin loss.
In 2025, the OCS Difference Maker Award expanded to include three company-level awards and two individual awards recognizing resin leaders at both the corporate and facility levels.
The 2025 OCS Difference Maker Awardees are:
– OCS Blue Member: Chevron Phillips Chemical – recognized for notable improvements in OCS metrics within their facilities.
– OCS Logistics Member: Frontier Logistics – awarded for innovations in rail car washing.
– OCS Base Tier: Geon Performance Solutions – recognized for efforts to maintain exceptional resin stewardship in their operations.
– Corporate Leader: Inge Duran of Packwell – honored for her leadership and development of comprehensive resin loss procedures.
– Facility-Level Leader: Mike Lever of Plastipak – recognized for continued initiative to enhance OCS measures through creative solutions.
Collectively, these honorees exemplify how the plastics industry is advancing responsible resin handling as a central priority, encouraging others to embrace proactive strategies for preventing resin loss.
Company Awards
OCS Blue Member Chevron Phillips Chemical was recognized for its leadership in implementing OCS principles across its operations. As an early participant in the OCS Blue Verification Program, CPChem piloted one of its facilities in 2022 and has since contributed to strengthening the program’s rigor through ongoing engagement and continuous improvement. Building on this commitment, CPChem developed initiatives such as the Heel Recovery Project, which has helped inform excellent practices for railcar washing and further demonstrate the company’s leadership in preventing resin loss.
“At CPChem, we believe plastic should never end up in the environment, and that belief drives our commitment to preventing resin loss. Across our company, dedicated individuals and ‘best‑practice teams’ champion the OCS mission, constantly innovating and fostering a culture of care and accountability. We are especially proud of our manufacturing teams, who bring this commitment to life every day, and we appreciate our partners across the plastics value chain who help us continuously enhance our practices through the OCS program.”
OCS Logistics Member Frontier Logisticswas recognized for their leadership in preventing resin loss and their innovative use of air‑based railcar cleaning technology. Through weekly audits, continuous housekeeping, engineered containment controls, and rigorous documentation practices, Frontier has embedded OCS principles into everyday operations. Their work advancing air‑based railcar cleaning, shared in the OCS Railcar Washing Guide, reflects Frontier’s commitment to innovation.
“Being named an OCS Difference Maker for 2025 is a proud moment for the entire Frontier Logistics team. We prioritize Operation Clean Sweep because preventing resin loss protects the environment and strengthens the supply chain—it’s integral to who we are as a responsible logistics provider. Winning the 2025 OCS Difference Maker Award has only fueled our passion to think differently, challenge long-held assumptions and technologies, and identify solutions that advance this industry-wide endeavor toward zero resin loss.”
OCS Base Tier member Geon’s Performance Solutions was honored for their strong operational discipline and their commitment to incorporating resin loss prevention into everyday practices across their operations. An OCS Member since 2018, Geon has demonstrated a sustained focus on responsible resin handling by integrating OCS principles into routine workflows and reinforcing a culture of accountability at the facility level. This recognition reflects Geon’s continued efforts to strengthen environmental stewardship and make resin loss prevention a consistent operational priority.
“Being recognized as an Operation Clean Sweep Difference Maker reinforces Geon’s commitment to responsible manufacturing and preventing pellet loss at its source. The program has strengthened our sustainability practices and deepened our culture of accountability across all sites. OCS remains a priority because safeguarding our environment is fundamental to how we operate and how we help shape thriving communities.”
Individual Awards
While the company awards recognize broad organizational achievements, the individual awards celebrate the leaders whose personal commitment and day-to-day‑ initiative drive this work forward.
Inge Duran, Director of Quality Assurance at Packwell, was recognized for her exceptional leadership in advancing the implementation of the OCS program at Packwell. She strengthened and expanded Packwell’s internal framework for resin loss prevention, empowering a cross‑functional team to identify opportunities to improve processes and integrate OCS principles into everyday operations. Her leadership has brought greater alignment across teams and supported Packwell’s ongoing commitment to advancing resin loss prevention.
“Since joining OCS in 2012, Packwell has championed zero environmental resin loss—both locally and nationally. The Difference Maker Award celebrates our entire team’s commitment to turning vision into action with real momentum. We’re honored by this recognition and energized to keep pushing forward.
Mike Lever, Raw Material Manager at Plastipak, was honored for his dedication to resin loss prevention and his continued initiative to enhance OCS measures at Plastipak. Lever’s meticulous approach and direct involvement in daily operations enabled him to properly address potential risk areas for resin loss. His proactive initiatives embody OCS core values by developing targeted preventative solutions that have elevated responsible resin handling approaches beyond his own facility.
“We enthusiastically took the opportunity to participate in the Operation Clean Sweep initiative and contribute to its success from all points of view and for me personally, from the “Boots on the Ground” perspective. This award is meaningful, because it represents Plastipak’s long standing, and future position of stewardship with our environment, and our community. We look forward to Plastipak having the opportunity to become Best in Class regarding our contribution to Operation Clean Sweep and resin pellet containment across all of our sites.”
2026 OCS Difference Maker Awards
As we celebrate the achievements of the 2025 OCS Difference Makers, don’t forget that the 2026 OCS Difference Maker Award Submissions are open. This is an opportunity to recognize peers who go above and beyond, whether it’s an individual leading by example or an organization that’s doing exceptional work. Please reach out to info@opcleansweep.org for more information on how to submit nominations!
The OCS Difference Maker Awards will be presented at OCS CON 2026 in Houston, TX from October 14-16. Award recipients will be formally recognized as part of the conference program. OCS CON 2026 offers attendees the opportunity to see industry leadership in resin loss prevention recognized firsthand. Register now to join us in Houston, celebrate industry leaders, and advance the industry’s responsible resin handling goals.
Pedro De Filippo Vannucci Program Coordinator, Sustainability & Environment
Resin facilities are exposed to potential environmental risks in the event of natural disasters including hurricanes, flooding, wildfires, and tornadoes, which may significantly disrupt resin handling operations. As natural disasters approach, it is essential to integrate resin loss prevention measures into both storm preparedness and post-event cleanup protocols. In August, Operation Clean Sweep held a webinar dedicated to disaster preparedness for resin operations, highlighting practical case studies and sharing expert perspectives. The session, led by OCS Consultant Will Planter, featured Kevin Colomb, Polyolefins Manufacturing Advisor at ExxonMobil, and Dan Martino, Vice President Administration at Inteplast Group, who emphasized the necessity of adopting robust disaster preparedness plans within plastic resin handling operations.
Assigning Roles and Action Phases for Disaster Preparedness
Plastic resin facilities often have various responsibilities before, during, and after severe weather events. A critical part of effective disaster preparedness is the assignment of clear roles and the definition of action phases for staff. As Colomb highlighted during the webinar, having a structured plan that designates responsibilities to staff ahead of time, helps confirm that every aspect of resin containment is addressed. ExxonMobil’s strategy emphasizes cross-departmental communication, with administrative teams working alongside human resources to coordinate storm response and recovery. Colomb highlighted that Exxon’s facilities have benefited from establishing the following organization:
Pre-event Phase: Assign teams to inspect barriers, clean storm drains, and review containment systems.
Active Event Phase: Designate leaders for monitoring facility conditions, communicating with staff, and executing emergency shutdowns if necessary.
Post-event Phase: Allocate resources for rapid cleanup and assessment of resin containment integrity.
Multilayered Containment Strategies
The pre-event phase focuses on inspecting equipment like storm drains, silos, fence lines, and loading or unloading zones, which can be especially susceptible to flooding or high winds. Barriers and containment systems can become overwhelmed or compromised, potentially leading to plastic resin being released outside of the company’s facility boundary.
During the webinar, Martino explained that to minimize the company’s environmental and operational risks, they examine container seals and transport resin away from shallow areas, which will enable easier cleanup of plastic resin in case of a spill. Inteplast implements multiple layers of protection that are checked routinely to reduce the opportunities for resin releases:
“We have a massive filter protection program here on site to catch our pellets so that they are pulled out of the ditches immediately if anything does happen. Then, before it hits outfall ditches, our stormwater runoff, we’ve got a whole other series of screens to catch pellets if they make it there. Then finally, we have our outfall system, a double layer of protection, multiple screens again.”
For facilities looking to strengthen their containment systems with new equipment, the OCS Vendor Directory is a valuable resource. This member-only tool provides OCS Members with a comprehensive list of industry solutions for resin containment, cleanup, and prevention that can help facilities prepare for high-stress weather events.
Scenario Planning and Continuous Improvement
Just as containment technology plays an essential role in resin loss prevention, facilities may also benefit from strong communication and planning prior to a natural disaster event. By accessing resources offered through the OCS program ahead of natural disasters facilities can support staff preparedness efforts throughout each phase of response.
During the August webinar, Dan Martino described Inteplast’s proactive strategy that requires all staff to, “Explore all the what-ifs before the event materializes.” Scenario planning provides direct action items throughout the weather event that can be revised and improved continuously. Guest speaker Kevin Colomb underscored a vital aspect of this approach:
“The last step is the most important step in terms of this work organization which is that we learn from each storm what went well, what didn’t go well, and then we’re able to bring that back into our procedure updates to make sure it improves the next time.”
By leveraging resources, innovative technologies and a strong culture of resin loss prevention, facilities can refine their preparedness strategies and work to minimize environmental impact when natural disasters occur.
If your company is not yet an OCS member, click here to learn more about membership. OCS provides a variety of members-only resources, including webinars, educational materials, and unique opportunities to collaborate with resin loss prevention leaders from across the value chain!
