Tile Council of North America (TCNA) has launched The Ceramic Alliance to begin working with other associations and companies in the ceramic industry on interests common to all ceramic sectors, especially brick, refractories, roof tiles, and ceramic tiles. Through The Ceramic Alliance, members can share concerns, ideas, questions, solutions, and expertise on topics where individual resources may be scarce.“Together, we provide a strong voice to ensure that the ceramic industries’ perspectives are loudly heard by regulators and legislators,” said Susan J. Miller, TCNA’s Director of Environment, Health, and Safety Engineering Services.
The Ceramic Alliance participates in DC-based coalitions (e.g., Clean Air Forum, NAM workgroups, SBA Roundtables) and compiles information to create a digest of documents and activities of environment, health, and safety (EHS) importance. This information is distributed regularly through The Ceramic Alliance to provide members the opportunity to influence EHS regulatory programs early in their development, when more substantive input and flexibility is possible.
EHS areas of interest include EPA initiatives, such as National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), New Source Review (NSR), MACT/Residual Risk, Waters of the US, Greenhouse Gas (GHG)-related programs, OSHA’s Silica standards for construction and general industry, and reporting procedures required by EPA, OSHA, and other agencies, and will expand to additional EHS areas recommended by members.
The Ceramic Alliance achieved an early success in a recent meeting with OSHA, which agreed to add tile splitters (score and snap cutters) to the list of activities that do not require monitoring for silica exposure.
“Our staff will continue to work with OSHA on other clarifications and safety programs,” said TCNA Executive Director, Eric Astrachan. “This is a key example of how the collective voice of The Ceramic Alliance can have a major impact.”
For more information on The Ceramic Alliance, please contact Susan Miller ([email protected]).
About Tile Council of North America (TCNA)
TCNA is a trade association representing manufacturers of ceramic tile, tile installation materials, tile equipment, raw materials and other tile-related products. Established in 1945 as the Tile Council of America (TCA), it became the Tile Council of North America (TCNA) in 2003, reflecting its membership expansion to all of North America.
The Tile Council is recognized for its leadership role in facilitating the development of North American and international industry quality standards to benefit tile consumers. Additionally, TCNA regularly conducts independent research and product testing, works with regulatory, trade, and other government agencies, and publishes installation guidelines, tile standards, economic reports, and promotional literature.
