A Naperville company has been honored for its efforts to reduce industry's impact on the environment.
Each year, The Conservation Foundation looks for businesses, corporations and organizations that are doing their part to improve the environment. This year, the 25-year-old not-for-profit organization deals with environmental issues in the DuPage, Kane, Kendall and Will counties area. The awards are called the Brooks McCormick Environmental Awards in honor of the foundation's founder.
"Mercury is a very serious threat. It is the most toxic
substance released into our environment. Anything that is done to reduce its
use is very good."
Brook McDonald,
executive
director,
The Conservation Foundation
PAT VAN DOREN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
John Walsh, Eurotherm's director of product sales, talks about the product changes that won recognition for the company. In his left hand is the former style of industrial contactors. In his right is the new solid state system which operates without the use of mercury.
Among the five groups cited for recognition this year was the Naperville firm of Eurotherm Controls. The company was honored for its efforts to reduce the use of mercury in industry.
"Mercury is a very serious threat," noted Brook McDonald, executive director of The Conservation Foundation. "It is the most toxic substance released into our environment. Anything that is done to reduce or eliminate its use is very good."
Industrial sources are blamed for releasing tons of toxic mercury into the environment each year. Many waterways become contaminated as a result. Warnings to avoid eating large amounts of freshwater fish are one of the signs of mercury contamination. Cleaning up the DuPage River, which currently has low levels of mercury present, is one of the many goals of The Conservation Foundation.
"Reducing the use of mercury is good for rivers, streams and human health," said McDonald.
As the leading worldwide manufacturer of industrial temperature controllers, Eurotherm Controls is aware of mercury use. The 2,000 employee company manufactures the controllers in plants in Washington, D.C. [Reston and Chantilly, VA], England and France for international use. These controllers are typically used on plastic extruders for the manufacture of plastic bags, pipes and other products. A single machine might contain between six and 50 controllers to maintain precise temperatures during the manufacturing process.
"Typically these controllers communicate with a mercury contactor," explained John Walsh, director of sales for the 30-year-old company. "A machine with 50 contactors has a significant amount of mercury."
Last year, the state of Minnesota outlawed popular kid's athletic shoes with battery powered lights in the heels, Walsh said, because they had a half-gram of mercury in them. "We might have 200 times that amount in one contactor," he said. "So mercury has been used heavily by industry."
He noted that almost every plastic product is produced by a machine needing these types of contactors.
Eurotherm Controls' annual sales are more than $350 million per year. In response to environmental concerns about the industrial use of mercury, Eurotherm Controls has created a product that uses no mercury.
"In place of the mercury, we have a Solid State Relay that is smart enough to turn on and off the machines as needed," explained Walsh.
Although the product was developed two years ago, acceptance by industry has been gradual. "We have been working to educate our sales force and our customers about the new relays. Now we are selling quite a few. We figure that a ton of mercury has not been utilized due to our switches," said Walsh.
"If we can find a way to avoid the use of mercury, then we should. We can all benefit," said Walsh. Eurotherm Controls is located on Centre Point Drive in Naperville. For information call (630) 505-1540.
TE10S Solid State
Contactor