Marcus Hook, PA, August 24, 2006--An explosion and fire has shut down one of two sheet-flooring production lines at a Congoleum Corp., plant in Trainer, Delaware County, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The news paper reported that no cause has been determined for the explosion, which primarily damaged components of the production line, the company said in a statement. No one was injured in the incident.
Sid Nayer, Congoleum's senior vice president for finance, said the company had increased the use of the plant's other production line, from five days a week to seven, and outsourced some of the work. About 20 of the plant's 250 employees work on the damaged line, he said.
"The good news is that with the combination of overtime and outsourcing, we should be back to our capacity in the next eight to 10 days," Nayer said.
The production lines make a gelled material that is one of four steps in manufacturing Congoleum sheet-vinyl flooring, Nayer said. The gel is applied to felt, which then has a surface pattern printed on it, he said.
Congoleum, based in Mercerville, N.J., filed a voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition Dec. 31, 2003, as a means of resolving claims related to the use of asbestos in its products decades ago. Congoleum is a unit of American Biltrite Corp., which owns 55 percent of the company.
Last year, Congoleum had a net loss of $21.5 million, or 62 cents a share, on sales of $237.6 million.
