Facility Level Pollution Prevention Case Study

Abstract

Issues in establishing some measures of preventing pollution at the process and facility levels are reviewed basing on the existing literature. The prevention of pollution can be measured due to alterations in the waste or vicissitudes in materials’ utilizations. The measurement can further be attuned to account some changes in production or might be left as a total measure. However, choosing a precise index might be difficult. A variety of data sources might be the most appropriate to reinforce the measurement of pollution deterrence, including a bursting facility to form balance and reported facility materials pursuing systems. After the process-level pollution, deterrence measures are acquired. They can be combined across the competence to offer a facility-wide measure of the pollution defense. Several systems to consider the changing hazards being potential of varying chemicals are designated. However, an adequate research in this category should be conducted. With a driving force of making the working environment at the factory better and while getting ready for the standards’ act on wood products. They are yet to be implemented; the hussy company resulted in making the modifications meant to reduce air pollution that occurs as a result of their activities. By so doing, the company has toned down the release of degradable volatile compounds and dangerous fumes from their factories. This study has brought up a clear picture of prevention projects undertaken by the hussy company. The gains have come from the projects and short comings of the same projects.

Background

The geographical position of this company is in southern Maine neighboring New Hampshire. The factory is a source of employment to about four hundred people. This company is outstanding worldwide in the production of bleacher seating, which is used in gymnasiums of most higher learning institutions. Bleacher seats from the hussy company that contains the finished wood from north Berwick. Social places such as stadiums have the seating constitute of either wood or plastic or both. Plastic materials are made at the facility in Massachusetts. High qualitative seats are designed using wood frames. This wood is always fabricated and, hence, is not finished. These wood constituents are taken to north Berwick for finishing. All the materials that constitute this seating are joined together at north Berwick. Pollution prevention is widely known to be a preferable plan for the environmental fortification. The moment the company establishes a pollution anticipation measure, it will dearth to distinguish what brand of waste deterrence and costs saving have been appreciated from that exertion. Others have occupied on the commission of trying to appraise the pollution prevention to analyze progress regarding state aims of the waste decrease. In other cases, they associate industrial subdivisions and analyze the pollution prevention measurements. Our emphasis in this paper is to appeal to the literature review to describe many issues. This should be reflected in establishing pollution prevention events for a company or an individual process. For example, a painting streak or a circuit panel etching the procedure in which some pollution prevention measures have been accepted and amassing measures to the whole facility-level. The article reflects the decision crafting stages of establishing some pollution prevention measurements for any process and facility. These steps comprise some considerations of aims of the population prevention measures. Data requirements and data foundations, the calculation of measurements based on alterations in wastes or a change in materials’ utilization, adjusting the measures to credit for changes in fabrication, the accumulation of actions for an individual procedure across the intact facility and the probable adjustment of procedures to credit for varying hazards’ potential. The main issues that will require being determined within these levels of establishing pollution prevention measurements for the facility are comprehensive (Pojasek & Cali, 1991).

Air pollutants in this company have come from the finishing processes. This research focuses on the efforts by hussy to tone down air pollution in their completing processes. From 1993 to1995, this company had drastically reduced the amount of volatile and harmful emissions associated with wood finishing from 10 tons to less than 1 ton annually. This company is expanding both in size and production; yet it can tone down air pollution. For this massive reduction to occur, the company had to change from using more pollutant coating to few pollutant systems. It has further put to practice other prevention projects which are not associated with wood finishing. This includes embracing binding methods, which use water as a solvent for making luxurious chairs, allowing the employee participation program and changing to the use of solid coating. This prevention projects are argued bellow.

The constituents of bleacher seating have the horizontal surfaces, stretch in length and have thin boards. In the years before the finishing was done by two polyurethane varnish coating, this was applied all over the wood. Because of the involvement of employees in 1993, one of the workers gave his opinion on the use of the UV coatings as it has been described. After the research has been conducted, the company started using that coating system in 1994, when the machines had been bought from New Jersey. The company received its UV supply from Valspar of Dover. The new machines simplified the coating work being previously done by hand. This process takes place in a protected area. The short comings of these systems are discussed below (NEWMOA, n.d.).

Benefits

1. Saves on time as it maximizes the production, hence, increases in profits. With the introduction of automated machines, the boards were left dry; and this wasted space and time for delivery. With an old way of production, increasing the performance required the creation of more space for drying.
2. With the use of these machines, time wasted on drying is saved since it takes only seconds for the coating to cure. In addition, this form of production is environmentally friendly. The emission of volatile compounds and harmful fumes has been reduced from 50 tons to 219 pounds annually.
3. The cost of labor has also reduced. This is because fewer employees are needed as opposed to the previous form that had more employees. However, there was less production at that time. The products have near 100% perfection. If any product does not meet the requirements, it is removed and reused.
4. The cost of production has been reduced. Even though, the UV is more expensive as compared to polyurethane. It is purely solid, and, hence, the volume required for coating is reduced.
5. The equipment used in the production requires little cleaning if there is no stray light getting to reservoirs. This is because the UV cured solidifies when it comes to contact with the light. This UV cured can remain in the system for several hours without solidifying. This is a forward proceeding on a cleaning requirement as compared to other forms of production. Air pollution took place in the old form of production as chemical substances were used in the cleaning of the equipment. The UV cured has a longer life than polyurethane coatings. Because of this, such an advantage is preferred by customers.

Challenges

• There exist various potentially negative for the human health impacts linked with the utilization of UV-cured coverings. The contact with the UV light may cause some damage as the contact with the sun; for instance, skin darkening, burning, and/or dryness and potentially dangerous eye damage. To defend workers, the procedure is fully surrounded and cannot be unintentionally opened whilst the lights are triggered. UV coatings comprise the hazardous complexes. Unreacted UV coverings are linked with the potentially dangerous skin exasperation. Once cured, the coverings are nontoxic; and there are no skin irritations. The health impact studies on the carcinogenicity of the uncured UV covering have not been definite. Baer UV coating rags and the containers containing coatings are sent via the systems. As a result, they are unprotected before the UV light, and the coatings residue treatments. The resulting resources are considered to be solid wastes. There has currently been no upsurge in the solid waste cohort linked with the current UV systems. Nitrocellulose solvent-founded coatings have some probable adverse human health impacts. On balance, the comparative employee health dangers from utilizing nitrocellulose solvent-founded coatings are likened with the dangers from utilizing UV coating systems; thus, they have not been resolute.
• A Worker drill is essential to hinder the direct contact to the uncured UV light and UV coatings. Thus, Hussey seating had to pledge a new worker protection drill program. In addition, the contemporary automated systems are different from precedent manual application systems, requiring the extensive reskilling of concluding room workers.

Payback Period 4 Months

If fabrication levels were raised, labor investments of four workers are only ($140,000) with yearly coating materials saving $36,786. They have no evaded $200,000 construction cost, and the UV coatings system could still be frugally viable with the payback time of twenty two months.

• Labor: there is the abolition of requirements for eight exhausting room workers. Taking into consideration the increased developments results in the assessed annual savings of about $280,000.
• Material: at contemporary production degree, 14,000 units per week, the saving in coating materials is about $55,000 per year. Hussey has not determined the effects on electricity costs because of operations of a UV coatings system. However, because of the lowered heating and ventilation requirements, Hussey believes that the increase might not be substantial.
• Capital costs: the first capital price of the programmed UV cured coatings application systems was approximately $190,000. Hussey approximates the labor price to examine and connect the contemporary system; and reskill workers were about $100,000. Other center costs were nearly $30,000 for the air handling systems. Hussey appreciates the storage space of construction that needed approximately $200, 000 of investment. Payback lead time: four and half months.
• The secondary P2 Efforts: Aqueous-founded coatings for the Chair Arms and the Backs, Hussey has substituted nitrocellulose solvent-founded coatings utilized on the wood chair backs and arms with aqueous-founded polyester coverings. Hussey has utilized a three coat concluding procedure on the wood constituents: sealer, topcoat and stain. All three were restructured as aqueous-founded. Hussey has utilized HVLP weapons for the nitrocellulose coating applications. They did not necessitate any current equipment to change the aqueous-founded coatings. There was no alteration in the number of operators needed to apply the current coatings. Hussey has brought their aqueous-founded coatings from Massachusetts Westfield Coatings. The main interest linked with adjusting to aqueous-found coatings is that the VOC production is now lower than double pounds in one gallon, in the distinction to 6 pounds in one gallon with nitrocellulose coating. This signifies an emission decrease of over sixty five percent. Another interest is that aqueous-based coating does not need any diluters for a cleanup. Thus, Hussey has lowered the hazardous waste production from the wood components finishing operations from one hundred and sixty five gallons annually to zero. To add to this, the work ecology for a bouquet gun operator has substantially upgraded and had some predicaments’ adjusting to the current coatings. The aqueous-founded coatings cost about ten percent higher than the nitrocellulose coating on a gallon base. However, Hussey trusts the health worker and environmental and safety benefits as being substance to these additional costs. The amount of coatings utilized is similar to the aqueous-founded coating just as it is similar to the nitrocellulose coating. The lone other additional start-ups costs were to carry out the performance analysis to assess and select the aqueous-found coating. As well this was determined to reeducate the machinists to regulate the features of the current coatings (Warren & Craig, 1995).

Additional P2 Efforts

Aqueous-founded adhesives: Hussey has utilized glues to aid in ascribing stuff to chair backs and seats during the peddling operations. Hussey also has created all of the wooden backs and seats at North Berwick’s capability in the procedure that comprises gluing numerous thin smithereens of wood composed. Traditionally, all the cements utilized at the capability were solvent-grounded. These ones have added to HAP emissions and Hussey’s VOC as well as the potential air value predicaments within the firm. There are no air release or health safety issues associated with the contemporary glues. In total, a glue producer takes the whole waste adhesive and cleanup solutions water to utilize in their manufacturer process. Thus, Hussey has no any rinse wastewater or glue disposal costs or issues. A high powder and solids coating for metallic finishing has been the following one as described further. Hussey was capable to lower the HAP and VOC discharge from their metallic coating processes by fifty percent by applying two alterations. To coat metallic constituents that will continue in the interior ecology, Hussey connected the electrostatic liquid dye distribution systems and swapped to higher solids tints. For the metal constituents that will be connected outdoors, Hussey substituted a two-coat nitrocellulose coatings’ system that contained a single coat powder coatings’ system. To add to this, in order to ensure the acquiescence with air production regulations, the current systems have lowered some color change moments and upgraded a product value. Employee involvements programs: Hussey’s seating is reformist in its endeavors to include the workers in environmental creativities. In November of 1994, Hussey workers began some efforts to lower, recycle and reuse the facility’s numerous waste water directions. Voluntary worker committees for safety and waste were established. These committees have provided a forum for all employees to state their current notions for developments. The company’s tabloid newsletter usually highlights some waste groups initiatives. To add, Hussey has planned their employee inducements pay programs to reward the involvements in waste productivity and reduction of improvement labors; for instance, as for giving some ideas to lower waste and air discharges and collaborating with the waste decrease initiatives. Ultimately, a waste group initiative and the scrap metalling sales have folded. This raised the income by approximately $50,000 in the year 1995. Reprocessing of office papers has also folded as a reply to waste group efforts. Historically, a crenelated cardboard was rejected as trash. Currently, over sixty tons of ridged cardboard are reprocessed each year. Though the price and market for ribbed cardboard scraps are volatile, Hussey has realized the saving by evading solid wastes’ disposal fees. Hussey has generated the important amount of waste drapery being currently recycled. This was formerly a waste which Hussey had paid to dispose. Lastly, Hussey has made its scuffle obtainable to an indigenous hobbyist and its workers for their individual use. He has removed the necessity for A scrap wood organization.

Summary

Through capitalizing in the pollution deterrence, Hussey Seating has lowered the HAP and VOC emissions by over ninety percent, upgrading the work ecology for its workers. He has upgraded the efficiency of its establishment procedure, while redeeming money. Hussey Seating’s certain circumstances, as an extremely capital intensive UV coating system, were economically useful paying before five operations’ months. Hussey has not raised the production requirements, but the UV coating systems could have the salaries for it within a period of two years.