Category Archives: Manufacturing Plant

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Bristol, IN – Sprinkler system keeps fire at bay at RV manufacturing plant

A fire along the toll road in Bristol on Saturday destroyed a motor coach parked inside the Renegade RV plant.

“The sprinkling system did its job by keeping it at bay until we could get in and take care of the problem,” said Nik Kantz, chief of the Bristol Fire Department.

But firefighters could not save the luxury RV that was swallowed by flames around 3:30 p.m. Saturday.

Kantz said it took crews a couple of hours to put out because of poor visibility.

“When you’re in a factory like that and you don’t really know the layout and where they put motor coaches and trailers and things, it’s kind of hard if you can’t see your hand in front of your face,” he said. “And it’s smoky and hot, and you’re not sure what’s on the other side of the wall there; it just takes a little bit of time.”

Five departments, 15 trucks, and about 30 firefighters responded to the scene.

More than 9,000 gallons of water was needed to extinguish the fire.

Luckily, nobody was hurt.

“The last worker left early around lunchtime [Saturday], I believe,” Kantz said.

He said the cause of the fire is being investigated.

The sprinkler system managed to keep the flames contained to the one RV, so the building it was in is ok.

Workers can return on Sunday.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Springfield, TN – Paint booth fire at manufacturer of material handling equipment doused by sprinkler system

This is an update following our live broadcast from Unarco earlier today. Employees at Unarco Material Handling Inc in Springfield were evacuated this morning after a fire erupted in the part of the plant where paint is applied, officials said.

When the Springfield Fire Department arrived heavy smoke and some fire was showing from the back of the plant, according to Springfield Fire Chief Jimmy Hamill.  Unarco is located on 16th Ave East in Springfield behind the Royal Inn. The call to 911 came in at 10:22 am Friday Morning.

According to Hamill, the fire was in the Paint-Line. Firefighters were able to knock down most the fire quickly but to fully access the fire a hole had to be cut in the roof. “Fortunately the sprinkler system had the fire in check. There was still quite a bit of fire but the Sprinkler system kept it contained to one area,” Hamil said.

According to Hamill, Unarco has an excellent safety record. “They have been in business for a long time and have excellent maintenance and safety people including good evacuation procedures. The cause of this fire is still under investigation but the last fire at Unarco was back in the late 90’s. When we arrived they had everyone evacuated and a representative was able to get with me, quickly, and tell me what exactly they had going on.” Hamill said.

Today’s fire damaged about 5% of the plant, Hamill said. Hamill said the rest of the plant was undamaged and employees should be able to go back to work.

The Emergency Management Agency assisted Springfield Fire and Robertson County EMS was on standby but no injuries were reported.

Hamill said he’s proud of the work the firefighters and officers did today.

Below is a recording of our live broadcast.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Henrico, VA – Fire at cosmetics plant controlled with help from sprinkler system

The Henrico Fire Department responded to a two-alarm fire at a cosmetic plant in the 2300 block of Darbytown Road early Monday.  Dozens of firefighters were called to the scene at the Fareva plant at 4:21 a.m. Fire officials said the blaze appeared to have started from a piece of machinery in the rear of the warehouse.  Fire officials said the sprinkler system helped contain the fire, but did not put it out. Crews cut holes in the roof to allow for ventilation.

At 6 a.m., fire officials said the fire was out and that crews will remain on the scene for at least a couple of more hours.  Fareva specializes in make-up products. The blaze was not expected to cause any major disruptions to production at the facility.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Winston-Salem, NC – Sprinklers contain fire in 850,000 sq. ft. furniture plant; No injuries reported

A fire at the United Furniture Industries plant on Hanes Mill Road on Wednesday morning forced the evacuation of the 850,000-square-foot building, with no injuries reported after Winston-Salem firefighting crews extinguished the fire. The fire department stayed on the scene most of the afternoon, checking over the area where the fire occurred in the rear of the building on its southwest side. The fire was called in about 11:44 a.m.

Company spokesman Robert Cottam said the fire is believed to have been caused by a short circuit in some medium-voltage wiring. Insurance and fire investigators will be coming to the plant today to continue the fire investigation, he said. “We lost some furniture and have some smelly smoke damage, but we can fix that,” Cottam said. “We had no injuries and the evacuation went as planned.”

The fire started in a part of the plant where finished furniture items are kept prior to shipping them out. “There were flames visible,” Cottam said. “There were sofas on fire. It was not an excessively large fire, contained to about a 10-by-12- foot area. The Winston-Salem Fire Department did a great job. Our sprinkler system worked as it was supposed to.” Cottam said there would be a “significant product loss” of 7,000 to 10,000 pieces of upholstered furniture.

“That is in one section of the plant, but the others are going to be fine,” he said. “The inventory is not a total loss.” The fire was under control by 12:30 p.m.

Roger Brown, who works in a different part of the plant from where the fire occurred, said that he got right out when the alarm sounded. “We didn’t see smoke when we were in the place,” Brown said. “Once we got outside we could see black smoke billowing.”

Brown said he and other workers were told to take the rest of the day off and that the plant would be closed today.

Cottam said production will also probably not take place on Friday and that production at the plant would probably be up and running again on Monday. Distribution could be back in gear by Friday afternoon or sooner, he said.

United’s facility on Hanes Mill Road, formerly known as Hanesbrands’ Weeks plant, specializes in making promotional upholstery — lower-cost items used to draw customers into a store — and vinyl furniture in the $299 to $699 range.

United has about 350 employees at the 850,000-square-foot plant at 401 W. Hanes Mill Road.

When Hanes Hosiery Mills Co. opened the Weeks plant in 1960, it was the largest manufacturing plant in North Carolina. Hanes Hosiery spent about $30 million on the plant, which would be about $245 million in today’s dollars, according to calculations from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

West Bend, WI – Sprinkler system keeps fire in check at industrial building

West Bend and Jackson firefighters battled a blaze at an industrial building on East Progress Drive near Stonebridge Circle in West Bend for about two-and-a-half hours this morning.  According to the West Bend Fire Department, the call came in around 4 AM Saturday.

Fire officials say the fire began on the outside of the building and then penetrated the steel structure. The fire did damage a natural gas line which hampered firefighting efforts.  

The building’s sprinkler system kept the fire inside the building in check,  according to officials.  At this time there is no estimate on the amount of damage to the manufacturing facility and the cause of the fire is under investigation.  

No one was injured while fighting the fire.  

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Salinas, CA – Sprinkler system contains fire at cardboard box manufacturing facility

A fire in a processing machine at the WestRock facility on Merrill Street has been extinguished with no injuries, fire officials said.

The plant makes cardboard boxes for the agriculture industry, said Salinas Deputy Fire Chief Brett Loomis.

Flames were contained to the interior of the building, but smoke was visible from the outside. The building’s sprinkler system held the fire in check until firefighters arrived, and they were able to fully bring the fire under control in about 45 minutes.

Fire officials said the blaze began sometime after 1 p.m.

Twenty six firefighters and three chiefs were on the scene.

Investigators have not determined a cause, but Salinas Battalion Chief Scott Myhre, at the scene, said it was likely caused by heat from a machine and scrap paper.

Myhre said there has been at least one other fire at the plant within the past year.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Dover, OH – Fire at pallet manufacturing company extinguished with help from sprinkler system

A melted water tank is believed to have helped to extinguish a fire at Inca Pallets on Sunday evening.  Firefighters arrived to find no fire, although a sprinkler had activated and there was heat damage to a building, according to Dover Fire Capt. Michael Mossor. Water was also found flowing from the top of a wall.

An incident report said firefighters drained the sprinkler system and a section of fiberglass insulation ignited.  Firefighters found damage to a large plastic water tank near the suspected origin of the fire. The report said fire affected the tank, releasing water which contributed to extinguishing the fire.  Damage was estimated at $50,000 to the contents and $5,000 to the property.

Six departments were dispatched to the business at 3005 Progress St., where the fire alarm was triggered at 6:29 p.m. Firefighters arrived six minutes later and left the scene by 8:10 p.m.  In addition to Dover, fire departments came from New Philadelphia, Strasburg, Sugarcreek, Uhrichsville and Bolivar.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Clinton Township, MI – Sprinkler system helps put out fire at manufacturing plant

An Aug. 9 oil spill in Clinton Township was caused by a recent fire at a nearby business, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality determined after a weeklong investigation.

Clinton Township homeowners noticed a funny smell and an unusual sheen on the Teske Drain on Aug. 9 and reported it to emergency responders. Environmental Protection Agency employees spent much of Thursday at the site near Maybury Street, directing the cleanup.

The documentation provided to the DEQ from the environmental cleanup company indicated that the spill consisted of hydraulic oil, said Melinda Steffler, Michigan DEQ senior environmental quality analyst.

The source of the oil is believed to be from Complete Prototype Services, a Fraser company working with fixtures, metals and plastics that reported a fire on Aug. 4.

During the fire, the water from the indoor sprinkler system filled a machine pit inside the building, which overflowed and made its way outdoors, where it entered a storm sewer catch basin, Steffler said.

“The water carried with it oil from the machine pit, which then made its way through the storm sewer system and out into the Teske Drain,” Steffler said.

A representative from Complete Prototype Services told The Detroit News the company was unable to comment on what caused the fire.

Macomb County Public Works Commissioner Candice Miller said none of the 6,000 gallons of oil flowed into the Clinton River or the lake, but was contained in the drain. “We have a zero tolerance for contaminants in our drains … and we are very appreciative of the citizens alerting us,” Miller said. “The company is a great corporate citizen and cares deeply about our waterways. The fire was not their fault.”

Miller said a local company vacuumed the area to remove the oil for nearly a week. As of Wednesday, Miller said, “I think we’ve got it all. We’re in good shape.”

Ryan Schwarb, senior environmental quality analyst at the southeast Michigan DEQ, said the oil traveled in the Teske Drain about 1,000 feet north of 15 Mile.

“Macomb County has been overseeing the cleanup activities but it was reported to me (Wednesday) that the bulk of the cleanup appears to be complete,” Steffler said.

The monitoring booms will continue to capture any remaining oil in the enclosed portion of the drain.

Tom Tailford and Ingrid Horodko, who live on the Clinton River, notified emergency officials Wednesday night after they smelled oil.

Tailford collected a sample and found it was nearly clear.

“The crew I talked to said it was a significant amount of oil they pumped,” Tailford said on Friday. “I also found out that the Coast Guard also had shown up here to evaluate the risk of the oil entering Lake St. Clair.”

Residents along the Teske Drain were advised to refrain from pumping surface water for lawn irrigation or other uses while cleanup had been ongoing.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Evansville, IN – Mid-day fire at paint manufacturer contained by sprinkler system

Evansville firefighters responded to a fire at Red Spot Paint in the 1100 block of E. Louisiana St.  This happened around noon Monday.   

A small fire broke out which caused heavy smoke to come from one of the buildings. Fire officials say the sprinkler system was able to contain the fire before firefighters arrived and put the flames out.

The building was evacuated and two employees were taken to Deaconess Hospital with minor injuries.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

New Philadelphia, OH – Dust collector fire at manufacturing facility limited by sprinkler system

A dust collector fire Monday evening at a Ohio manufacturing plant caused $100,000 in damages, the New Philadelphia Times-Reporter said in an article published Tuesday. Responding to the Gradall Industries Inc. facility in New Philadelphia, OH at about 10:15 p.m., firefighter discovered smoke coming from the building’s powder coating area and determined the fire’s source was the dust collector, New Philadelphia Fire Department Capt. Jim Sholtz told the newspaper. A sprinkler system in the powder coating area helped contain the flames to the immediate area. Fire crews remained on scene for about an hour and 45 minutes, the Times-Reporter said.