Newsletter

Chester J. Bullard Jr. began his career in the terminals industry back in 1998 at Valero Refinery in Corpus Christi, Texas. A few years later while Bullard was still with the company in 2001, Valero purchased Diamond Shamrock, which meant the acquisition of all associated logistics.

“Valero created a logistics group called Valero L.P., and I was fortunate enough to be able to move from the refinery side to the logistics group,” Bullard recalled. “In 2004, Valero L.P. was renamed to NuStar Energy. I was able to work in various roles at NuStar, eventually becoming General Manager over the Central West North Region.”

During that time, Bullard was able to gain valuable experience in both the pipeline and terminal business. Today, as Vice President of Operations and EH&S for Howard Energy Partners, Bullard says his favorite part of the job is his colleagues.

“Getting to work alongside so many talented individuals that make up a great team is what keeps me excited about our industry,” he said.

Adam Miller, Area Operations Manager, Texas Refined Products System for Flint Hills Resources, got his start in the terminal industry after spending four years in the military after college. Miller found a job at a petrochemical company as a reliability engineer—a role that eventually led him to pursue a project manager position within Flint Hills Resources (known at the time as Koch Pipeline).

“I transitioned from the project manager role to various leadership roles, such as maintenance manager, operations supervisor and operations manager,” Miller said. “These leadership roles gave me my first experiences with the terminal industry. The best part of my job is helping my team enhance their capabilities and reach their full potential. It brings me a lot of fulfillment to see them succeed.”

Dennis Mendenhall, CSP, began his journey with Marathon Petroleum back in 2006, where he worked as a safety professional in the Terminal, Transport, and Marine organization. Over the years since, he’s transitioned through multiple experiences that have included all aspects of EHSS. In these roles, Mendenhall has supported domestic and international operations in downstream, midstream, and upstream business units.

Today, as Safety Manager of Logistics and Storage Terminals for Marathon, Mendenhall finds the best part of his job to be the people he works alongside each day.

“I am afforded the opportunity to lead and collaborate with a great team of people,” he said. “This team has become like family and truly makes each day a pleasure through the teamwork and collaboration exhibited, regardless of the issues and tasks in front of us. This team, coupled with Marathon Petroleum’s culture—which places the value of the safety and well-being of each worker ahead of competing interests—makes it a remarkable place to work.”

Again working with Conn Maciel Carey LLP (CMC), ILTA joined a multi-industry working group on OSHA’s Worker Walkaround Representative Rulemaking. The rule would expand the circumstances when non-employees, particularly union representatives at non-union workplaces, can accompany OSHA inspectors during enforcement inspections. For example, union representatives, other labor or community activist groups, and even plaintiffs’ attorneys (or their expert witnesses) could gain direct and early access to non-union workplaces and employees, potentially as a front for organizing campaigns where they otherwise would not have access or to advance personally injury lawsuits. Similarly, the rule could allow competitors, contractors, or others onsite to employers’ detriment.

On September 20th, ILTA hosted its second Energy Transition webinar, focused on the work being done at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to foster a hydrogen economy and how liquid terminals fit into their strategy. The webinar kicked off with a detailed presentation by Dr. Asha-Dee Celestine, representative for the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office (HFTO) at DOE, and was followed by a lively conversation between her and Christopher Hessler, Founding Partner at AJW Inc.