Page 2 CHEM-TEXTS Vol. 14, 1980
Goals For 1980
1979 was a very good year for the Uniroyal Chemical Company and the Naugatuck Plant. The company had record sales and profit and the Plant’s operating profit increased 59% over 1978. In order to continue this improvement, severl major 1980 Objectives for the following products and areas must be accomplished:
NAUGACEL SD-1
Successfully start up Naugacel SD-1, an accelerator that will be new business for the plant. It will be manufactured in the FOC Plant Bldg. 124. Most of the equipment has been installed and startup is expected in the 2nd Quarter of 1980. Naugacel is used in the manufacture of tires and mechanical goods.
OMITE
Our goal is to increase Omite production 20% through productivity improvements over 1979, which was a record year. This is necessary if we want to meet the needs of fruit and cotton growers in the U.S. and to avoid the additional expense of importing Omite from our Latina Plant in Italy. Omite is the highest profit chemical made in the plant.
This year, we also will finalize our plant to increase the Omite capacity to meet future sales.
TPR
Increase the production of TPR by 30%, again, through productivity improvements, so that outside manufacturing can be eliminated. This will reduce TPR manufacturing cost and therefore improve TPR’s profitability.
DEVELOP A STRATEGY FOR THE PLANT
We will review the existing resources of the plant, analyze our strengths and weaknesses, and develop a plan that will increase the profit of our facilities. We have many resources that are not fully utilized and increasing their utilization will have a dramatic improvement on the company’s profitability.
For example, the Boiler Plant, Land and Wastewater treatment facilities are only 50-60% utilized. Some of our manufacturing equipment is operating at less than half of capacity. We certainly have the capacity and ability to manfacture more chemical products at Naugatuck and must develop a plan to take advantage of this opportunity.
ENERGY STRATEGY
This year, we will develop an energy strategy that reduces the cost of energy per pound of product so that we can be more competitive with chemical companies closer to lower cost energy sources.
OPERATING PROFIT
The profit goal for 1980 is to improve the operating profit of the Naugatuck Plant by 20%. The operating profit in 1979 was $18.9 million dollars and we plan to raise it to $22.7 million dollars in 1980. Achieving the objectives of the 1980 PIP Program, “Mainstream”, and meeting our 1980 Operating Budget, are important factors in meeting the 1980 Plant Operating Profit Goal.
HEALTH & SAFETY
2000 air monitoring tests will be taken in the Plant to insure that conditions in which employees are working are safe and corrective action initiated to improve the working environment. Also our safety goal this year is an Incidence Rate of 2.6, which is the number of injuries per 1,000,000 manhours worked. The Chemical Industry’s average is “6”, so we hope to operate significantly safer than the average plant.
RIDESHARING
We plan to finalize our ridesharing program in support of Gov. Grasso’s objective to reduce dependence on foreign oil by decreasing gasoline consumption. This program will also provide a system for our employees that will enable them to travel to work during gas shortages that will most likely occur in the future.
Eric Johnson, Factory Manager
Equality Policy Affirmed
The providing of equal employment opportunity for all employees or applicants for employment regardless of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin, handicap or disabled and Vietnam Era Veteran status is one of the basic policies of UNIROYAL, Inc. The Naugatuck Chemical plant endorses this policy and expects all decisions regarding personnel to conform to these equal employment rules and regulations.
The Naugatuck Chemical Plant has a specific plan of action designed to aid in providing equal opportunity for all. It is committed to recruit, hire, and promote in all job classifications and to ensure that items such as compensation, benefits, transfers, layoffs, return from layoff, training, educational and tuition assistance, and social and recreational activities are administered without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, handicap or disabled and Vietnam Era Veteran status except where sex, and/or age is a bonafied occupational qualification. It is also committed to make employment or promotional decisions based solely upon the individual’s qualifications as they relate to the valid qualification requirements of the position for which the individual is being considered.
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Man-Lift Purchased
[IMAGE: Black and white photograph showing members of the Chemical Maintenance department operating a self-propelled Man Lift]
Members of the Chemical Maintenance department operate the new self-propelled Man Lift that will provide safer work conditions.
By Vic Alves
The Maintenance Department recently purchased a personnel-lift for its use in the performance of various jobs throughout the plant. This versatile piece of equipment will allow work to be done more safely, reduce equipment down-
time, and afford productivity improvements within the department. Its purchase was criticial to the Maintenance Department’s 1980 Profit Improvement Program.
The personnel lift will minimize the erection of staging or scaffolding on jobs undertaken at heights up to 38 feet while allowing for a safer operation. Without the time consuming errection costs, productive equipment can be returned to service sooner and the productivity of the plant improved.
The purchased unit is self-propelled and has a total lifting capacity of 1,750 lbs.
Because of its mobility, it is planned to be used in most areas of our plant where reasonable and feasible.
Audit Plan Started on Waste
By Tim Cunningham
The Environmental Engineering Department will conduct a pollution generating audit of each process building during 1980. The audit will consist of a review of all pollution streams leaving the process buildings: air, water, and solid waste pollution streams. The purpose of these audits will be to investigate reductions in currently generated pollution streams, and where reductions are possible, to develop Profit Improvement Programs.
Examples of possible cost-saving projects include the recycling of material which is presently sent to the liquid waste Pretreatment Plant or to the drummed waste storage area in order to save raw material costs and waste disposal costs, the reduction of solvents and other liquid material disposed of in the water treatment system, and the reduction of solid product and raw materials disposed of in the water treatment system.
If there are any suggestions for possible cost savings projects in any of these areas, please contact the Environmental Engineering Department.
Plant’s Profits Improve
A successful 1979 performance for the Naugatuck Plant was highlighted by Project Enterprise. Enterprise, the name of the plant’s 1979 Profit Improvement Program, generated $5.4 million of savings. The efforts of many of our people was necessary to achieve this performance. Congratulations on a job well done to all who participated.
The impetus generated by Project Enterprise helped to increase the plant’s 1979 Operating Profit to $18.9 million from $12.0 million in 1978. Operating Profit is the net selling price of the products manufactured less their manufacturing cost. It includes the costs for Selling, Research-Development, Advertising, Administrative and Taxes.
This performance provides a sound base to approach the challenges of 1980.
Chemical Bloodmobile Dates Set
The Bloodmobile sponsored by Uniroyal Chemical employees will be held on Monday, May 19 and Tuesday, May 20 at the TSSC Bldg. 112 from 9:45 A.M. to 2:45 P.M. All donors will receive a very useful tire gauge to check the wear of tire tread. To avoid delay, an appointment may be made with Ann McAllister R.N. or Patricia Grzywacz R.N., Ext. 3231.
In 1979 Chemical employees contributed 282 pints of blood to the Red Cross Bloodmobile.