Frank Risk Solutions, Inc.

Walter L. Frank

Walt Frank is President of Frank Risk Solutions, Inc., a process safety consulting practice.  He received his BSChE from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and has over 45 years’ experience in the process industries.  He is a Fellow of both AIChE and CCPS, a registered PE, and a CCPS Certified Process Safety Professional (CCPSC).  Mr. Frank served previously as a Director, then Chair, of the AIChE Safety & Health Division and Chair of the 2005 Loss Prevention Symposium.  An Emeritus member of CCPS, he has actively supported CCPS programs for over 25 years, co-authoring four CCPS process safety books and tools, and assisting in the development of nearly 20 others.  He is a CCPS Staff Consultant and an AIChE Academy instructor.    

Mr. Frank previously served on the Board of Directors of the Delaware Chapter of the American Diabetes Association and was an elected Council Member for the Delaware Association of Professional Engineers (DAPE), the state PE-licensing board, where he chaired the Law Enforcement and Ethics Committee.  He has been recognized for his service by AIChE, the Safety & Health Division, DAPE, and NFPA.

Statement:

I believe that there is no higher responsibility for chemical engineers and AIChE than helping ensure the safety of our facilities and operations.  AIChE and CCPS have been leaders in fostering advances in process safety.  But, additional opportunities remain to both broaden and reinforce these efforts.  Therefore, I believe important for the Board of Directors to have members who have worked in the process safety discipline, can bring appropriate insight and experience, and can advocate for and support the current and future process safety programs within AIChE and CCPS.  I am confident that I can provide that perspective and would be honored to have the opportunity to do so.

Over the last three decades, I have been fortunate to work with many of the thought leaders who have guided the development of process safety as we now know it.  Unfortunately, many of these talented people have retired or will soon retire.  At the same time, I have often noted that many of our brightest engineers do not elect to go into process safety practice, perceiving other career paths to offer greater opportunity.  As a Board Member, I will urge AIChE to work with industry to find ways to make process safety a more appealing career path, either as a long-term choice, or as an important career development step.  The CCPS Process Safety Professional Certification program is a good first step, but there is more that we should do.  Please share your thoughts with me at wlf@frankrisk.com.