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August
19, 2004
GAGE
SOLVENT RECYCLING HITS MAJOR MILESTONE
FERNDALE, Mich., Aug. 19, 2004 -- Gage Products Co.,
a pioneer in the recycling of industrial solvents used
in the automotive industry, celebrates its 68th year
in business this week with a "thank you" to
friends and neighbors at its global headquarters in
Ferndale.
Best
known for an industry-first paint-solvent recovery program
developed 20 years ago, Gage has produced 85 million
gallons of remanufactured solvent for its automotive
customers. Gage officials presented the 85 millionth
gallon of solvent to Ferndale Mayor Robert Porter and
City Manager Thomas Barwin in ceremonies to mark the
anniversary celebration.
More
than 30 North American automotive assembly plants now
rely on Gage for the management of their paint-system
waste materials.
A Gage spokesperson points out that last year alone, Gage recycled more
than four-million gallons of paint-system waste material
from assembly plants in North America. "We've saved
the auto industry millions of dollars, while improving
the environment at the same time," a Gage spokesperson said.
In
20 years, Gage has reclaimed more than 60 million gallons
of waste material from automotive paint systems in North
America. "Gage is dedicated to responsible resource
management that results in long-term benefits for our
environment as well as our customers,"a Gage spokesperson said.
Since
its inception, Gage has invested more than $5 million
at its Ferndale facilities to continually improve and
expand its closed-loop manufacturing processes.
The company's biggest customer for remanufactured solvent
is Ford Motor Co. Gage officials recently delivered
the 50-millionth gallon of remanufactured solvent during
ceremonies to commemorate the program's 20th anniversary
and the start-up of F-Series production at Ford's Rouge
manufacturing complex in Dearborn.
The innovative closed-loop recycling process pioneered
by Gage and Ford in 1984 is now in use at all of Ford's
19 assembly plants in the U.S. and Canada. It has helped
automakers recover millions of gallons of paint solvent
and recoverable solids with other commercial values.
But it also has significantly reduced the cost of these
automakers' assembly-plant paint operations.
Andy
Acho, Ford's worldwide director of Environmental Outreach
and Strategy, notes that closed-loop recycling programs
and other responsible environmental practices has reduced
the percentage of solid waste in its paint systems by
50 percent.
In
the last 15 years at Ford alone, the program has eliminated
nearly 225-million pounds of hazardous landfill material
and 450-million pounds of CO2 emissions that would have
resulted if Ford's paint-system waste had been incinerated.
"Up
until the late 1980s, the industry had simply purged
paint solvents into paint-system spraybooths where it
ended up evaporating or being sent to industrial waste-treatment
facilities," notes James (Jay) L. Richardson II,
Heritage Manager, responsible for redevelopment of Ford's
Rouge complex and considered to be the program's founder.
"Gage was willing to talk with us about a closed-loop
process that could benefit both Ford and Gage long before
'green manufacturing' processes became popular."
Today,
Gage collects used purge solvents and paint in tank
trucks and transports them to its processing facilities
in Ferndale. The company then conducts a detailed analysis
of the waste to help monitor and improve the efficiency
of automaker paint operations.
Solid
waste contained in the liquid material then is removed
for use in cement kilns as a clean-burning fuel that
substitutes for pulverized coal. Gage distills and refines
the remaining liquid into pure solvent. Finally the
company mixes in specific amounts of "virgin"
raw material to match each automaker's original blend
requirements and delivers the recycled solvent back
to the originating assembly plant for reuse.
In
addition to its solvent-recovery products, Gage has
supplied custom-blended solvents, test fuels, calibration
fluids and refined products to the automotive industry
during its 68 years. Its products are used in OEM assembly,
engine, and component plants and throughout the industry's
supply chain. It is the auto industry's only Michigan-based
supplier of custom-blended gasoline fuels and calibration
fluids.
Gage's
automotive customers include DaimlerChrysler, Fiat,
Ford, General Motors, Honda, Jaguar, Nissan, Peugeot,
Volkswagen and Volvo. The firm also has supplier alliances
with a number of major paint suppliers and pharmaceutical
companies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe
and South America.
Headquartered
in Ferndale, Mich., since 1936, the company also has
facilities in Germany, Brazil and Mexico. Gage's fully
licensed Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
facilities refine waste and "off-spec" solvent
streams to original product specifications. The company
has earned both ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certification
as well.
The
private company currently employs nearly 100 at its
9.5-acre global headquarters facilities in Ferndale
and another 60 employees at engineering support and
sales offices in the rest of the Americas and Europe.
Gage
is dedicated to effective and responsible resource management,
which provides long-term environmental benefits. The
firm is a charter member of the Southeastern Michigan
Sustainable Business Forum and a participant in Ford
Motor Company's Project Heritage program.
Additional
information about Gage is available on the Internet
at www.gageproducts.com.
Source:
Gage Products Company
CONTACT:
Company Contact:
Tom Murray of Gage Products Company,
Phone: 248-691-6737
Email: tmurray@gageproducts.com
Media Contact:
Larry Weis
of AutoCom Associates, +1-248-647-8621,
E-Mail: lweis@usautocom.com
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