Suppression System Successfully Extinguishes Fire

Here is a success story in regards to a recent fire at a textile mill in Pennsylvania. A news account in the Republican-Herald reported that the automatic fire alarm alerted the local Pine Grove, Pennsylvania fire department and upon their arrival the fire was extinguished by the factory’s fire-suppression system.

"Pine Grove Fire Chief Dave Sattizahn said a heat buildup of more than 300 degrees started the fire.“Lint or something got caught up in there,” he said. “I’m not exactly sure what yet. I don’t know if it was blocked. These things happen. It’s a common thing in the fabric industry."

The fire occurred in the duct work connected to a process machine. Guilford Performance Textiles is a global leader in textile and fabric finishing for over six decades. Additionally, the company is leading by example with the proactive mitigative fire protection measures that management has instituted in the plant with fire detection and suppression systems that reduced the severity of the recent incident.

Ignition and fuel sources are an inherent aspect at manufacturing facilities and fires unfortunately will continue to occur. It's through a comprehensive process hazard analysis that the likelihood and severity of incidents can be minimized. Plant managers and owners throughout the manufacturing sector can learn from this incident in minimizing the risk at their plant.

Guliford is listed as NAICS: 313312-Textile and Fabric Finishing Mills and not found in the OSHA Combustible Dust NEP where only 16% manufacturing sector NAICS are targeted for OSHA inspections with an emphasis on dust. Additionally, more than 50% of the 90+ combustible related fires and explosions in the last seven months are not listed in the NEP either. Relying solely on the OSHA Dust NEP as a solution does not address the complex combustible dust issue.

Even if your facility does have a NAICS that is listed in the NEP the chance of an OSHA inspection with a dust emphasis is very slim. For example of the over 2,000 NAICS 313311 Broadwoven Fabric Finishing Mills, 4%(29) had a facility inspection within the last twelve months by a CHSO and only 0ne of these was with an emphais for combustible dust. There are many more recent examples like this, which the Combustible Dust Policy Institute has discovered through research of incidents provided through news accounts.

Across the nation, informative training seminars are conducted for stakeholders on preventative and mitigative measures in reducing the likelihood of combustible dust related explosions and fires. During these very educational workshops, the most referenced document in addtion to the CSB Dust Hazard Study and NFPA combustible dust standards, is the OSHA Dust NEP.

This is fine if your facility has NAICS that is listed in the NEP. But what about the other 84% NAICS in the manufacturing sector. Of course not all of these handle combustible particulate solids that generate combustible dust. Yet over 50% of the manufacturing facilities that experienced combustible dust incidents in the last seven months had NAICS not listed in the NEP.

So are you going to gamble on a 50:50 chance that your plant won't have a troubling combustible dust related fire and explosion in the near future? Worrying about an OSHA inspection should be a secondary thought. As outlined in the NFPA combustible dust standards, the life safety, mission continuity, and structural integrity of the premises is of utmost importance.

The recent statistical data of incidents and OSHA inspection reveals the true story. If you are the majority and not the minority then don't fall under the false presumption that the OSHA Dust NEP will provide the answer. Take steps now as Guilford and many other facilities not listed in the NEP have already done.

Statistical NAICS reports of prior OSHA inspections and combustible dust related incidents are now available at the Combustible Dust Policy Institute, which are utilized in the process hazard analysis in determining the likelihood and severity of combustible dust incidents. Unfortunately, while thinking outside the box, the research in acquiring this data does not rely solely on the Combustible Dust NEP.

Private Equity Manufacturing Sector Meltdown

With all the plant shutdowns in the manufacturing sector one begins to wonder when the economy will hit bottom especially without a reserve chute to arrest the devastating free fall and adverse economic damage to local communities.

Big Picture Emerges
Recently, while tracking combustible dust fires and explosions at manufacturing facilities, the Combustible Dust Policy Institute noticed plant shutdowns and the enormity of the situation is on scale more damaging than any combustible dust fire or explosion. A plant shutdown is a total loss. At least in the majority of combustible dust incidents, the workforce survives.

Most Americans have never heard of the towns such as Fairfax or Stevenson, Alabama. There's dozens of other towns like these throughout the America's heartland experiencing plant shutdowns and leaving a void less visible than a lunar landscape. At least with the moon there is talk of maybe going back.

Manufacturing Sector Gamble
Private equity leveraged buyouts of the manufacturing sector reaps phenomenal financial returns for institutional and private investors. Any financial investment is a gamble with it's highs and lows in the financial market. Like getting dealt a couple bad hands at the poker table it's only sensible to gather one's chips and cash out.

Now with the economy in the doldrums, a similar situation is taking place with private equity cashing out or reorganizing their manufacturing sector portfolios. Investors can move on to a more suitable investments yet the nation's workforce in the manufacturing sector has no such option with a plant shutdown.

Disturbing Metaphor
Instead our manufacturing sector's destiny is literally going down the drain. Metaphorically, a prime example would be Eljer toilet manufacturing plant in Ford City, Pennsylvania (population 3,451) where it was reported last Thursday that the plant, which is in the portfolio of Sun Capital Partners a leading private equity firm, may shutdown after nearly a century of operations, resulting in nearly 150 employees without a job.

Plant shutdowns such as these don't reach the major news networks and besides who has ever heard or cares about what is going on the east bank of the Allegheny River, in Ford City, PA? Yet when these small towns with plant shutdown appear on the map a trend begins to emerge like connecting the dots, which is a big picture affecting all Americans and not just the local economy of Ford City.

Private Equity Portfolio
Private equity interest in Eljer began in 2005 after Jacuzzi Inc reported an operating loss of $30.7 million on sales of $150.5 million for the fiscal year ended Oct. 2, 2004. Shortly thereafter, Jacuzzi sold it's Eljer operations to an affiliate of Sun Capital Partners, a private investment firm. For the last three years Sun Capital have maintained Eljer in it's financial portfolio.



Three months ago American Standard, Crane Plumbing Holding Corp. ("Crane") and Eljer Holding Corp. ("Eljer") merged as affiliated portfolio companies of Sun Capital Partners, Inc. ("Sun Capital"), with Bain Capital Partners, Inc. ("Bain Capital") as a minority partner in the consolidation.

Bright Future
The future for the merger was looking bright especially with the annual market research report related to the home improvement industry provided by ReportLink.com highlighted that American demand for plumbing fixtures and was expected to increase nearly 3 percent annually for the next five years to $11.4 billion . On the downside, imports gained a higher share than local production with imports disturbingly increasing 17 percent annually between 1996-2006. Where are the import tariffs in protecting America's manufacturing sector?

Eljer's workforce surely must of felt their jobs were secure following the merged affiliation. Especially in the press release when the CEO of American Standard Brands stated, "that the merger would offer a stronger , more compelling value proposition to it's customers." If many customers no longer have a job then what sort of value proposition will exist in the future?

Americans need to take a hard look of whats occurring in the nation with the meltdown of the manufacturing sector and ensuing loss of jobs to foreign countries. Alternative solutions in lieu of plant shutdowns must enter into a dialogue amongst our leaders on Capital Hill. With the current presidential race at the top of the agenda it may be another year before any damage control occurs. Can we afford to wait that long?

Photo Credit: Dominic's Pics

Plant Shutdowns Google Map
Private Equity Council