Staff Excellence: Environmental Health and Safety

Safety isn’t just a priority at Purdue. Measures to achieve it have been a proven success. With record-low injury rates across the university system in recent years, the Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) department continues to set the standard for a safe, healthy and compliant campus environment.

Through proactive risk management, training and regulatory oversight, EHS supports the well-being of students, faculty and staff. This is achieved with laboratory and workplace safety, proactive emergency planning and environmental protection. Its commitment to fostering a culture of safety allows Purdue’s research and academic community to thrive as EHS maintains the highest standards of compliance and operational excellence.

EHS is composed of four highly collaborative subunits — Research Safety, Occupational Safety, Hazardous Materials Management, and Building and Construction Safety — each playing a critical role in campus safety initiatives, such as the Integrated Safety Plan. With a committed support team at research centers, regional campuses and in Indianapolis, EHS serves the entire university system with excellence.

The Research Safety team serves as Purdue’s primary lab consultants, ensuring compliance with federal, state and university safety regulations. Team members provide risk assessments, laboratory inspections, lab outreach presentations, safety training and the development of standard operating procedures.

They also enhance safety practices through equipment inspections, chemical fume hood evaluations and incident reviews. This past year, the team partnered with the Administrative Operations Sustainability department, the Office of Research and the Institute for a Sustainable Future to launch the Safe and Sustainable Labs program, integrating sustainable practices into research environments while upholding the highest safety standards. Additionally, the environmental health team helps safeguard public health through food safety inspections and compliance in pool operations.

Focusing on minimizing injury risks and maintaining OSHA compliance, Occupational Safety works to enhance workplace safety for faculty, staff, students and visitors. Given the diverse range of work environments across Purdue’s campuses, team members constantly seek innovative ways to keep workspaces safe and secure. Their responsibilities include conducting building inspections alongside the Purdue University Fire Department, investigating injuries and incidents to identify trends and prevent reoccurrence, facilitating safety teams, improving safety measures, and offering ergonomic assessments to enhance workplace efficiency and comfort. They also lead employee engagement initiatives like Safe + Sound Week, which occurs every September, and oversee safety training programs, including the Slip Simulator, a hands-on tool designed to help individuals navigate slippery surfaces safely.

Hazardous Materials Management plays a pivotal role in safely handling, processing and disposing of hazardous and biological waste generated by Purdue’s research laboratories. This team oversees the collection and management of more than 750,000 pounds of waste annually from across campus. By operating a permitted waste storage and processing facility through the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, the team can bulk and treat waste on-site — resulting in cost savings of more than $2 million per year. Additionally, 70% of Purdue’s hazardous waste is diverted for use as fuel in cement kilns instead of being incinerated, giving the waste a “second life” and reinforcing the university’s sustainability efforts.

The Building and Construction Safety team supports a safe and healthy campus environment by assisting with safe construction sites and projects and assisting with emergency response services. Operating 24/7, 365 days a year, the team is responsible for flood and restoration response, hazardous materials containment, and cleanup across university system buildings and construction sites. Additionally, the team plays a crucial role in property loss management, responding to incidents such as floods, fires and structural damage to ensure swift mitigation and restoration of normal operations.

“We serve as trusted advisors to the campus community, fostering a culture of safety while maximizing the impact of every initiative we support. Building a strong safety culture is a collective effort — one that requires the dedication and collaboration of the entire campus,” said Eric Butt, EHS senior director. “We deeply appreciate our partners in this shared mission, and we celebrate their contributions each year at our annual safety chair meeting, safety recognition event and throughout the year with our safety recognition program.”

Environmental Health and Safety is part of the Administrative Operations organization, which supports the university by providing safe, reliable and transformative services. Helping to instill a culture of safety campuswide is just one of the ways the organization helps power Purdue. To learn more about the daily operations of the organization, follow AO on Instagram at @purdueoperations and Facebook at Purdue Administrative Operations.