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Partners

Andrew Scully | Gavin J. Murray | William J. Watson

Andrew Scully, CSP, ARM
Industrial Hygienist and Safety Consultant

Andy is President of the Synergy Group, Inc. and provides industrial hygiene, safety, and risk management consulting services to a wide range of industrial and commercial clients.

The first phase of his first career encompassed industrial hygiene and safety consulting work over 23 years with three major insurance carriers and service as the first Loss Control Administrator for the Puget Sound Schools Risk Management Pool.  In 2003, Andy started the Synergy Group with this long-time friend and colleague, Bob Schumacher.  The goal was to provide top-notch EHS services to organizations throughout the West Coast, and in the eight years since, we have partnered with some of the premier west coast companies, including Crunch Pak, Trident, SeaBright Insurance and REI.  Another core value set in place still remains today: to exceed customers’ expectations with unmatched technical ability, attention to detail, and listening.

Clients, colleagues, and audiences throughout the country have recognized Andy’s unique combination of imagination, humor, technical knowledge and superior interpersonal skills. His engaging personal style and superior communication abilities are keys to his success in industries as diverse as construction, food processing, hospitals and school districts. From seafood production vessels in the Bering Sea to the agricultural areas of Central Washington and California , Andy has a proven track record.

Andy is a Certified Safety Professional by examination in Comprehensive Practice, and is an Associate in Risk Management of the Insurance Institute of America.  On the practical side, a defining experience was the four years he spent as the full-time safety director for a major offshore Seafood processing company, spending several months at sea in remote Alaskan locations while designing and implementing a compre­hensive safety program.  

He is an accomplished public speaker, and has presented popular sessions at statewide, regional, and international seminars and conventions.  Among his speaking highlights was his presentation of a research paper at the International Fishing Industry Safety and Health (IFISH) Conference at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, sponsored by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health.  This was based on his successful work with offshore fishing vessels and processors in the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea .

Active in several professional organizations, Andy has been elected by his peers to lead the Puget Sound Chapter of the American Society of Safety Engineers as President for 2010-2011.  Andy's education and professional development background includes:

• B.A. (International Relations) - UCLA

• Board Certified Safety Professional (CSP) in Comprehensive Practice (Certificate #11767).

• Associate in Risk Management (ARM) of the Insurance Institute of America

• Professional Member of the American Industrial Hygiene Association  

• EPA/WA State Certified Lead Based Paint Risk Assessor (Certificate #6200)

Gavin J. Murray MS , CSP
Sr. Environmental Health & Safety Consultant

Gavin is a Senior Environmental Health & Safety (EHS) Consultant with the Synergy Group in Seattle , Washington . Drawing on three decades of experience, Gavin is passionate about crafting common-sense, innovative, and workable solutions for his clients in several industry sectors including food and agriculture, petrochemicals, power generation, mining and ore processing, heavy and marine construction, environmental remediation, shipbuilding, and manufacturing.

Gavin’s professional practice includes management and technical consulting for a range of international and domestic interests, many of whom operate in remote or challenging environments such as the Gulf of Mexico and Latin America, Central and East Asia, West Africa, the Mojave Desert, Arctic Alaska , the West Indies, and Russia .  His specialties include delivering results in practical EHS management systems, industrial and process safety, risk assessment, technical training and performance improvement, occupational hygiene and public health, emergency planning and response, waste management, environmental remediation and permitting, and ergonomics.

Beginning in 1981 as a Firefighter/EMT while an undergraduate at the University of California , Gavin later worked as a hazardous materials consultant and industrial hygienist during graduate school at the University of Washington . In 1988 he accepted an appointment as the first industrial hygienist for the world’s largest petroleum refinery – Hess Oil Virgin Islands Corporation on the island of St. Croix .  Gavin continued in increasingly responsible supervisory positions for Hess and later Texaco, returning to full time consulting in 2000.

Gavin understands that solutions to his customers’ problems must be specific to their unique needs, culture, budget, geography, etc.  He is an effective communicator from the executive board room to the shop floor, and is recognized as a results-oriented facilitator, creating value by working with owners and managers, union representatives, industry and trade groups, professional associations, agencies, litigators, clinicians, academics, insurers, corporate staff, analytical laboratories, vendors, politicians, and the public.  His courses in “Process & System Safety” for Central Washington University were highly rated by both staff and students, and he is an accomplished audit and incident investigation team leader.  Gavin has assisted in the development and implementation of several Process Safety Management (PSM) and Risk Management Program (RMP) programs, and has participated in numerous Process Hazard Analyses (PHAs) and program reviews over the years.

Gavin's educational and professional background includes:

• B.S. (Environmental Toxicology) – U.C. Davis 1996

• M.S. (Industrial Hygiene & Safety Management) – University of Washington 1998

• Board Certified Safety Professional (CSP) in Comprehensive Practice (Certificate #13522)

• Professional Memberships –

  • Puget Sound Chapter of the American Society of Safety Engineers

  • American Industrial Hygiene Association (Mnmgt Committee & Local Section officer)

  • Air and Waste Management Association

  • Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers’ Association

Bill’s experience includes five (5) years as Corporate Staff Fire Protection and Safety Engineer for Carnation Company, and three (3) years Highly Protected Risk (HPR) work for IRI, a major property insurance carrier.  In total, Bill has over 39-years of loss control experience in the Property and Casualty areas.  He has worked for 10 years on marine related industries such as public ports, marinas, docks, and both onshore and offshore seafood processing plants at Sedgwick. While at Acordia Northwest, Inc. he has worked on large recreational ski resorts, seafood-processing accounts and provided HPR consulting services to Lamb-Weston, a ConAgra Foods Co. He has served as an “expert witness,” and was an instructor for the National Safety Council’s Defensive Driver Course.

Bill had responsibility for 26 years at Acordia and Sedgwick for staff management and coordinating client-oriented loss control services. Industrial areas of specialization include seafood and food processing, educational institutions, aerospace, electronics, lumber and wood products, mercantile, steel manufacturing, petrochemical, recreational ski resorts, and public ports, cities, counties and transit districts.

Since 2003, Bill has worked with The Synergy Group, providing fire protection consulting services to insurance brokers and a large multinational food processing company.  He and Andy Scully have worked together in different settings for over 20 years.

Bill earned his B.S. from California State University , Northridge.  His professional development includes:

• ASSE Certified Safety Professional (CSP)

• Certificate in Fire Protection Engineering

• American Society of Safety Engineers (Professional Member)

• Puget Sound Chapter, Society of Fire Protection Engineers (Associate Member)

• Licensed Multiple Lines Insurance Agent

• Professional Liability Insurance

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