Bill B. Turney – SESHA Fellow and 1998 SESHA Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient

Bill Turney was one of the original founders of the SSA, representing Texas Instruments in Dallas. Bill had a long and distinguished career in the safety profession.

Bill found the time to germinate SSA after an already substantial career in safety management leadership. His strong support of other professional organizations enabled them to grow in the 1960s and 1970s – times of dramatic changes in the environmental, health and safety landscape. During that time, he served as a Regional Vice-President for the American Society of Safety Engineers and was a major developer for their Region III Professional Development Conference. Bill also contributed leadership and professional support to the American Red Cross, the Texas Safety Association, and the National Safety Council. Bill brought this experience and skill to the forefront, creating a technical program for SSA which made it the top venue for environmental, health and safety information exchange for microelectronics and related high-tech applications.

Bill was a member of the SSA Board of Directors for nearly two decades, and served as President of the association. When an SSA participant would seek help from Bill on a technical subject, he was quick to instruct them to “pass on” the support, rather than seeking anything in return. During Bill’s tenure with the association, he encouraged open debate about best strategies for environmental, health and safety issues, and championed education excellence for practitioners in the field. Bill was an SSA Fellow and was honored as the first recipient of SSA’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Each of us in the practice today benefits from the strategic knowledge and specialized communication network that Bill established for the industry.