The next IPGA Membership Meeting will be held Thursday, July 28, 2022 at the JW Marriott in Grand Rapids, Michigan in conjunction with the Great Lakes Propane Convention. Convention registration is not required to attend this membership meeting.

Propane retailers this year are asked to respond to the annual retail propane sales report directly on PERC’s website, propane.com/salesreport. Submit your survey by June 15 to help ensure the IPGA receives an accurate amount of state rebate funding from 20 percent of PERC’s annual revenues, and to see that your assessment dollars are used in the most efficient way to support market trends. 

Individual responses are kept confidential and anonymous. Only summary statistics are presented in the final report, and data is never disclosed to third parties. The final report is shared on propane.com/salesreport and incorporated into the National and State Propane Profiles, showing market trends by state and region. 

If you’re unsure which person at your company is responsible for submitting, please email PERC at salesreport@propane.com. 

The material handling industry recognizes June 14 as National Forklift Safety Day, a time they emphasize the importance of worker safety in all aspects of forklift operations. Most equipment operators depend on the expert guidance of their propane supplier to ensure they are safely handling the propane that powers their business. 

“It’s important to keep our material handling customers safe all year long, but June is a great opportunity to tell them all they need to know about forklift safety and share resources that PERC has developed to keep them and their employees safe,” says Eric Kuster, vice president of safety, education, and compliance for the Propane Education & Research Council. 

“Whether teaching new employees or reminding seasoned veterans, your expert guidance in the safe storage, use and filling of cylinders can prevent accidents and incidents.” Topics Kuster recommends reviewing with forklift customers include:  

• Proper position of the pressure relief valve 
• Opening service valves slowly and checking for leaking valves 
• Storage of cylinders in properly located cages 
• Wearing protective gloves and eyewear 
• Cylinder inspections for dangerous rust, dents or cracks in welds 
• Inspection for wear or damage to O-rings, hoses, and fittings 
• Ensuring that cylinders are within requalification date 
• Check for propane leaks in cylinder 

Take some time next month to visit or call your forklift customers. Start the conversation with PERC’s free videos, posters, handouts and more and share the safety resources compiled on the Forklift Safety landing page at propane.com/propane-forklift-safety. They include: 

• PowerPoint Presentation: Encourage your customers to use it during safety meetings to walk through reminders for workers. Better yet, attend one of your customer’s safety meetings in June and walk through these reminders with them. 
• Poster: Send this poster to your customers and encourage them to put it in a high-traffic area to remind everyone about essential safety tips for forklifts. 
• Safety Handout: Have your customers distribute this to their entire crew for quick 
• reference. 
• Videos: Use these quick animations on your website or social channels. 

Your customers will thank you for your concern and expert advice. 

The IPGA offers training for those employed in the propane industry or looking to obtain propane training certification. Consider registering to send your employees to this valuable training.

To make training more accessible to everyone, classes are held in multiple locations across the state:

• July – Classes available in Kokomo
• August – Classes available in Fort Wayne

Registration deadline is two weeks prior to the start of each class.