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Activities

Promoting Understanding

Improving understanding amongst customers and suppliers

BRPPA promotes rubber products and its members' interests to customers and suppliers.

  • BRPPA answers about 1000 telephone and other enquiries per year from suppliers and potential customers of the rubber industry. It also supplies copies of the BRPPA Directory upon request.
BRPPA develops new links with customers
  • BRPPA develops new marketing initiatives according to members' wishes.
  • BRPPA runs training workshops for the industry in areas according to members needs
Improving understanding amongst users and the general public

BRPPA promotes the benefits of rubber and polyurethane products and industry

  • BRPPA updates & supplies copies of "World of Rubber" (providing information on the rubber industry) to public as appropriate

BRPPA monitors the media

BRPPA provides awareness reports, for example on:

  • Emissions and waste from rubber and polyurethane processing
  • Safety of rubber and polyurethane products

BRPPA counters misinformation
  • BRPPA reviews and develops PR strategy
  • Issues press releases
  • Provides proactive briefings to national and trade press
  • Maintains links with environmental press

BRPPA seeks opportunities to promote its members' interests

  • BRPPA presents papers at regional and other meetings of Institute of Materials
  • Participates in seminars/conference on waste management issues regularly liaises with key movers and stakeholders (especially within Government).
Influencing Legislation

Working to achieve an appropriate, and globally competitive, legislative and regulatory environment for the industry

BRPPA influences UK regulators and promotes members' interests with UK legislators

BRPPA influences key Government Departments to secure:

  • Changes to legislation
  • Improvements in Regulations
  • Satisfactory implementation of legislation in the UK
  • Fair and proportionate applications and enforcement of legislation in the UK
  • A level playing field for the rubber and polyurethane industry
BRPPA monitors application of EU Directives into UK law
  • BRPPA intervenes with authorities in members' interests
  • Contributes to relevant work on development of new standards
  • Prepares industry responses to new legislative consultative papers
  • Briefs DTI on industry position
  • Influences CEN Standards
  • Responds to HSC / Environment Agency proposals on health and safety and evironmental matters.
BRPPA seek to amend or discourage EU legislation where it is against the industry's interests

Helping members compete more effectively at home and abroad

  • BRPPA plays a determining role in projects to improve competitiveness of the rubber industry.
  • BRPPA (in association with DTI) was the driving force in the production and dissemination of the Good Practice Guide for the GRG sector.
  • BRPPA supports the Process Industries Centre for Management Excellence (PICME). It provides advice to it, monitors its work and promotes relevant activities to BRPPA members.

Improving training of industry's technical staff

BRPPA works towards ensuring that an adequate supply of staff with the right skills is available to industry

  • BRPPA actively promotes and facilitates the discussion of industry's training and education needs. Working closely with Cogent, PICME, RAPRA etc.
  • BRPPA has significant involvement in and commitment to the relevant Sector Skills Councils - Cogent for the GRG sector
  • In shaping training provision for the rubber industry
  • BRPPA facilitates the development of new courses at members' request. BRPPA contributes to discussions on forms of support from Rubber

Promoting members' export potential

BRPPA assists members in competing more effectively abroad

  • BRPPA can arrange for details of BRPPA members to be registered
  • Takes action to improve access to third party markets, providing valuable information
  • BRPPA undertakes new analyses & statistical reports of the market
  • Disseminates information on new legislation on employment
  • Provides guidance to members on sources of advice on developments
  • Ensures members have full awareness of new legislation/Government initiatives and sources of advice.

Facilitating research and development

BRPPA helps to preserve the rubber and polyurethane R&D base in the UK

  • BRPPA identifies projects of interest to the industry and, by liaising with R&D centres, promotes new research and development in memb
HEALTH AND SAFETY

Improving health, safety and environment management

BRPPA assists, advises and informs members:

  • BRPPA regularly issues HS&E bulletins on developments (c 5 per annum)
  • BRPPA provides specific advice to members by telephone, letters and site visits
  • BRPPA is involved in establishing a Safety Culture Benchmarking exercise for Accident Prevention
  • BRPPA, has together with RAPRA, is revised code of practice for polyurethane elastomer manufacturing
  • BRPPA organises HS&E seminars/workshops.
  • BRPPA represents members' interests on health and safety issues
BRPPA participates actively at meetings of:
  • HSC's Rubber Industry Advisory Committee (RUBIAC)
  • CBI's Health & Safety Panel
  • CBI working parties on relevant topics 
  • BSI Rubber Machinery Standards Committee.

BRPPA also:

  • Organises working parties as topics arise e.g. Accident Prevention Working Party
  • Collects statistics as a basis for assessing potential for improvements in employees' safety
  • Oversees further work under BRPPA's Health Research Project
  • Assists and advises in relation to legal claims.

ENVIRONMENT

BRPPA acts for members on a vast range of environmental issues

BRPPA advises members on environmental aspects, for example specifically on:

  • European Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control Directive
  • VOC Directive
  • BRPPA consults with Government on implementation of relevant EU Directives in UK
  • BRPPA assists members in awareness of other new waste management requirements
  • BRPPA influences policy. For example, BRPPA is providing high level input into new waste management initiatives.