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Show the Utah ENTERPRISE The cellulose business: time, the inquires arc good since they prove the investigation has alerted the public about shady cellulose Wood products Homeowner doesn't know Least of his worries The state investigation, brought on by several fires attributed to cellulose in the past few months, is actually the least of Metcalf s worries. a lot of calls from homeowners who want to know what the investigation i about since they have had cellulose installed in their received attics." Metcalf explained. But other than taking a little fly-by-nig- ht "The competitor in one Cellulose is manufactured from wood products, usually The recycled newspaper. paper is shredded and treated with a borate solution which fireproofs the material. The problem, Metcalf said, is distinguishing treated cellulose from mere shredded paper. The state fire marshal and district attorney arc investigating fires in Utah which case bid 1200 against my S365 for a retrofitting account," I tried to Olson explained. explain that this did not even represent the cost of the materials to the prospective buyer, but he went ahead with the cheaper bid anyway. The other dealer was obviously selling makeshift material, and the homeowner didn't TH U1AH 1 Enterprise The National Enterprise is published weekly by the National Enterprise Publishing Company, Inc., 500 Continental Bank Bldg., P.O. Box 11778, Pioneer Station, Salt Lake City, Utah 84147. (801( 1977 by National Enterprise Publishing Co. All rights reserved. Copyright 533-055- 6. Second class postage paid in Salt Lake City. Utah, No. 891300 e Gregersen Publisher Geo-g- Alena E. Bentley Editor Dean Alsup Sheri Poe Ken Bello Production Manager Milt Pollczer Staff Writers Kristopher R. Passey Creative Director 3 down deposit to hold House until Spring 150 tons of the fire retardant each day. It was in response to the insulation shortage." said A1 Morales, partner in Insul prices, a good, certified cellulose will cost between 18 and 20 cents per pound. Planet finds space in Utah Jim Hall, sales manager for Active Energy Insulation, srvs homeowners should he suspicious of insulation sold in a v? nut able plain hag. product will have ruti' js and manufacturing site on the outside of the product package' . He added. know the difference." Other competition comes from Active Energy Insulat-tioa subsidiary of Adele Corporation, a minority firm established with a federal grant. Active Energy obtains its cellulose from Therma-Cousticanother federally subsidized corporation operating out of California. When the government comes in and gives a group the money to lay the ground-floo- r of a large cellulose operation n, Planet Jr., a division of Piper Industries, Couricrvillc. Tcnn.. plans to relocate its operations from Los Angeles. Calif, to the Freeport Center in Clearfield. Operations at the farm and garden implement manufacturing plant should begin by the first of the year, said Farrell Benson, general manager. Planet will employ 55 people, only five of whom will come from the Los Angeles area, Benson said. The company will occupy 80.000-90,00- 0 square feet of space at the Freeport Center. Planet will begin manufacturing tillage tools, with plans to expand into plastic and non-ferro- us extrusion work in the near future. It will buy at least half of its plate steel from U.S. Steel's Geneva Works in Provo, Benson said. s, like Therma-Coustic- s, its bound to hurt the private business owner," Metcalf said. Active Energy also has the advantage of insulating minority and low income homes at no cost to the owner Uncle Sam picks up the tab. Metcalf said another current problem at Cellulose Manufacturing is obtaining paper. His hopes had been to contract purchases of paper from Newspaper Agency, Corp. but NAC opted to sell its waste to a California firm. Metcalf says freight costs boost the price of paper from California by 10 percent. business Nonetheless, is as good as ever, if not better." several installers told New borate the Enterprise. James M. Schutz Research Director See this unique home at 1900 SOUTH STATE PARKING LOT AT THE World Motor Hotel) (IN THE "If a man has good oom, or or wood, boards, or pigs to soil, or can make better chairs or knives, crucibles, or church organs, than anybody else, you will find n a broad, rood to his house, though It be hard-beate- In the woods. PIONEER pre-cu- t about Debbie Ostler Circulation Manager Opinions expressed by columnists herein are not necessarily the opinion or policy of the National Enterprise. Send all submissions to P.O. Box 1 1 778, Salt Lake City, Utah 84147 Not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts. ESASE Subscriptions $24 per year 50 cents per copy 1 material. This summer, a local firm began manufacturing boric acid in Sandy, producing But the people in Chcm Inc. Utah already have adequate suppliers of borate, so we w'ere forced to sell our product out of state," he added. Borate comprises about 25 percent of the weight of cellulose, and is by far the highest cost in producing the insulation product. At retail Quite sure lose dealers. R. and manufacturers arc boosting production of the paper-base- d sidering the criminal implications of misrepresenting a product as Fireproofed" to a customer," Mike Martinez of the state attorneys office explained. Installers must be licensed in Utah, and that's another hitch we have against installers of untreated insulation," he added. Bill Lukens, deputy state fire marshal, said he was quite sure at least six of the fires in Utah were caused by faulty cellulose. The major problem is if the product is not fire retardThe ant," Likens said. second problem comes when inexperienced or careless installers blow cellulose across high density lighting or into electrical junction boxes." Carl Olson, owner of Intermountain Solar Inc. told the Enterprise he has been grossly underbid on several insulation contracts in the past two months, the result, he says, of insulation Ive plants have lessened the shortage of the fire retardant Since there is no law governing what is installed as insulation, our office is con- Cellulose manufacturers and dealers in Utah are seesawing between prosperity and discredit, competition and added expenses this fall. Sales continue to soar, Jack Metcalf, vice president of Cellulose Manufacturing Co. told the Enterprise, despite a boycott of cellulose usage in the Mountain Fuel Insulation Now program (which offers benefits for customers who install added fiberglas or rock wool in their attics) and the more recent announcement of a state investigation of cellu- O its hot and cold may be connected to installation of untreated cellulose in home attics. by Sheri Poe Enterprise Staff Writer r R.W. Emerson: Journal, Feb., 1865 cedar log homes. Model Open from 12 Noon to 6 p.m. Prices from $6,500 to $22,500 Phone: Boyd Clawson, 487,7801 Cedar Log Homes Pioneer Pre-C1900 So. State St., Salt Lake City, Utah 84115 ut (in the parking lot at the World Mote Ho '"I) MILL a CABINET |