Kalas Manufacturing, a wire and cable manufacturer, eliminates 100,000 pounds of lead by switching to environmentally responsible vinyl-based compounds and color concentrates from PolyOne

Situations

When the European Union’s Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive went into effect in 2006, producers of certain types of electrical and electronic equipment were constrained from marketing new products containing lead, cadmium, mercury and other heavy metals. To be able to continue selling its products in Europe, Kalas Manufacturing, a Denver, Pennsylvania, producer of wire and cable, sought leadfree vinyl compounds for jacketing and heavy-metal-free (HMF) color concentrates. Kalas needed substitutes that would deliver the same performance properties as its existing materials, and would meet UL standards. Further, the company wanted to find lead-free vinyl that would process as well as lead-stabilized material to avoid any impact on manufacturing efficiency and cycle time.

Beyond this goal, Kalas wanted to support environmental protection by reducing its overall lead exposure in two facilities. The company partnered with the US Environmental Protection Agency and entered the National Partnership for Environmental Priorities (NPEP) program. NPEP encourages organizations to form voluntary partnerships with the EPA to reduce the use and release of any of 31 priority chemicals, including lead. The overall goal is a reduction of 4 million pounds of these chemicals by 2011.

Kalas set ambitious goals, aiming to reduce the amount of lead processed at Plant #2 by 20 percent, or 20,000 pounds, through substituting reduced lead or lead-free compounds and color concentrates. A reduction goal of 25 percent or 10,500 pounds was set for Plant #3 through solderless product offerings to customers. Kalas had been using lead-stabilized Geon™ vinyl compounds from PolyOne for wire and cable jacketing for a number of years. As part of their conversion, Kalas switched from heavy metal containing color concentrates to RoHS compliant PolyOne OnColor™ color concentrates.

The PolyOne Difference

PolyOne’s sales and technical professionals worked closely with Kalas to understand the customer’s needs, which included not only obtaining vinyl compounds without lead based stabilizers, but also securing UL approvals and transitioning all aspects of manufacturing.

PolyOne developed new Geon™ EMB405L vinyl compounds using stabilizers without lead while ensuring equivalent processing and performance parameters. A series of samples were submitted to UL for approval. Once approved, the compounds were sent to Kalas, which made cables from them and submitted these cables for UL approval. The UL approval process was facilitated by PolyOne’s work with UL on the material approvals.

Delivering a Value-Added Solution

PolyOne’s innovation and commitment to environmentally responsible materials enabled Kalas Manufacturing find a winning solution.

•Reduction of lead= enhanced “green” reputation: Kalas ultimately removed 100,000 pounds of lead from its operations, due in large part to reformulated vinyl compounds and color concentrates supplied by PolyOne. The manufacturer received recognition from NPEP for voluntarily lowering the amount of lead in its operations.

• Reduction of lead = enhanced “green” reputation: ties: The lead-free materials from PolyOne enabled Kalas to continue marketing its wire and cable products in Europe without interruption, thanks to compliance with the RoHS directive.

• Conversion to lead-free materials = competitive advantage in existing and new markets: By collaborating with PolyOne, Kalas was able to complete its conversion to leadfree wire and cable materials ahead of its competitors. As a result of this head start, the company has expanded its European sales and opened new market opportunities in North America, making an important contribution to growth and revenue targets.

• Avoiding toxic lead = improved safety and easier handling:

Kalas was able to reduce health and safety risks to its workers from lead exposure, while also eliminating the costs of handling, monitoring and reporting these regulated materials.

“Our work with PolyOne has been vital to our strategic business plan. We have achieved key objectives including growing revenues, expanding into new markets and gaining a competitive advantage. Most important, we have made a contribution to a cleaner, safer planet through the reduction of huge amounts of lead and other hazardous substances, an achievement that all of us at Kalas can feel good about,” stated Lyn Hassler, Senior Buyer at Kalas.