Foundry transfers to Mexico after reading L.A. air quality rules' writing on the wall.Foundry transfers to Mexico after reading L.A. air quality rules' writing on the wall Builders Brass Works Corp. shut down its foundry in East Los Angeles East Los Angeles, uninc. city (1990 pop. 126,379), Los Angeles co., S Calif., a residential suburb of Los Angeles, in an industrial area. It has a large Mexican-American population. There is a performing arts center and a cultural center. A junior college is there. this spring and shifted the work to Mexico. About 125 workers still machine, polish and paint the door hardware in East L.A., but the molten metal casting Metal casting A metal-forming process whereby molten metal is poured into a cavity or mold and, when cooled, solidifies and takes on the characteristic shape of the mold. is now done by 10 workers near Tijuana. The company is a $12-million-in-revenues division of Thomas Industries of Kentucky. Builders Brass Director of Operations Willie Arias, 40, master-minded the move south. LABJ LABJ Los Angeles Business Journal : Are you in Mexico to avoid smog regulations in the L.A. Basin? Arias: No, in fact our (Mexican) foundry would meet regulations of the AQMD AQMD Air Quality Management District AQMD Action Quake Map Depot (Air Quality Management District). Our intention was not to go down there to pollute. LABJ: You mean you're not smoggier (than when you were manufacturing in L.A.)? Arias: No. We've got $100,000 invested in electric furnaces down there (vs. dirtier-burning gas in L.A.) and newer equipment. LABJ: Then why Mexico? Arias: You won't be able to operate a foundry in L.A. in L.A. In is a compilation of studio recording by Various Artists. It was originally released in 1979 as an LP by Rhino Records. Track listing Side One The Kats 10 years. LABJ: Because of ever tightening air-quality regulations? Arias: Sure. They're driving manufacturers out of the state. Also, we moved for the labor savings. LABJ: For instance? Arias: You're looking at $1.50 an hour, vs. $7 to $9 up here. It varies company to company. LABJ: Mexican officials say that getting a permit from SEDUE (the Ministry of Urban Development & Ecology, the national environmental regulator) has been made easier. Is that true? Arias: Well, we got our capital expenditure approval in May last year; in October we got permission from SEDUE to start building, and we were pouring metal in March. LABJ: Mexico critics say the country will woo dirty industries and then look the other way when they pollute. Arias: There's a lot of (manufacturing plants) that have been closed down in the last three to four weeks because of problems with their operations. (This spring 50 foreign manufacturing plants were shut down by SEDUE for three to 30 days in the state of Baja. "The reasons were bad management of hazardous waste Hazardous waste Any solid, liquid, or gaseous waste materials that, if improperly managed or disposed of, may pose substantial hazards to human health and the environment. Every industrial country in the world has had problems with managing hazardous wastes. and sewage treatment Sewage treatment Unit processes used to separate, modify, remove, and destroy objectionable, hazardous, and pathogenic substances carried by wastewater in solution or suspension in order to render the water fit and safe for intended uses. and lack of emissions controls," said Jorge Escobar, SEDUE Subdelegate of Ecology in Mexicali.) |
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