2000 Pollution Prevention Award

NCCA'S POLLUTION PREVENTION AWARD GOES TO
PRECOAT METALS ST. LOUIS PLANT

Chicago, IL - Precoat Metals St. Louis Plant in Missouri was the recipient of the 2000 NCCA Pollution Prevention Award for their project of eliminating the application of a wax/solvent mixture in their coating process. Announced at the NCCA Fall Meeting October 11-13, 2000 at the Westin O'Hare in Rosemont, IL, the award was created of by members of the Government Relations Committee to promote awareness for environmentally responsible initiatives.

"The beauty of the pollution prevention award is that it provides a motive to look beyond the paradigm that the coil coating industry has already unraveled all of the available waste minimization and pollution prevention topics," said John Koenig, the Environmental Manager of the Metal Coaters of California. The result is more methods and programs that show a fresh insight on how to do things better.

"We are very pleased to be recognized by our peers in the National Coil Coating Association for the positive environmental impact of this project," said Gerard M. Dombek president of Precoat Metals. "It clearly shows that a concern for the environment is consistent with meeting financial objectives. This award not only emphasizes Precoat Metals' activities in this regard but also further espouses the commitment of our industry in the management of environmental affairs. In the future, we firmly believe that this program will provide even more evidence of the advantages of using coil coated materials."

As a continuous coil coater, the Precoat Metals St. Louis plant's process entails applying and drying decorative organic coatings to aluminum and steel metal coils in a prime and finish coating section. In efforts to minimize the generation of hazardous and non-hazardous waste, Precoat Metals initiated the application of a solventless waxer in the finish coating section in place of a wax/solvent mixture material. This process change reduced operating costs while decreasing the variability of the final wax application on the aluminum material.

Prior to the P2 project, the wax application consisted of heating a wax material and diluting it with solvent and then to roll applying it and drying the material in a curing oven. Now the process is a direct roll coat application using the solventless waxer.

Key environmental benefits that the P2 produced include reduced organic emissions, reduced gas consumption to dry the applied material, reduced gas consumption to oxidize the organics from the drying process and reduced combustion by products from the drying and oxidation process.

NCCA would like to congratulate Precoat Metals St. Louis Plant and all the participants for their excellent contributions to the Pollution Prevention Program. The award recognizes success in minimizing the generation of hazardous and non-hazardous waste. NCCA hopes to encourage information sharing and further raise the level of commitment to implementing environmentally sound and superior programs.

For more information please contact Teresa Durheim at NCCA Headquarters on 312.644.6610 ext. 3614

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