Making it safe
CRANBERRY TWP — From research and development through manufacturing and implementation, Mine Safety Appliances Co. produces thousands of products for workers in the fire service, homeland security, law enforcement, construction, oil and gas and chemical industries, as well as the military.
To those workers, MSA manufactures only one thing: safety.
"One of the strengths of this facility is how engaged we are," said Mike Taucher, manager of the company's township plant.
John Ryan Sr. and George Deike Sr. founded MSA in Pittsburgh in 1912 in an effort to improve safety and rescue efforts in the mining industry, which was dangerous for both miners and those responsible for their safety.
The company started by installing first aid and breathing equipment and instrumentation to detect harmful gases, according to "For a World of Safety at Work," a company publication.
Along with inventor Thomas Edison, MSA engineered flameless hat lamps for miners to replace open flame lamps, which often ignited coal dust and methane gas inside the mine, causing explosions.Within 25 years of implementation, the flameless lamps reduced mine explosion deaths by 75 percent.MSA moved on to produce gas masks during World War I, and developed safety programs for the steel, glass and chemical industries, all prominent businesses in Pittsburgh at the time.Now MSA does the majority of its business in the fire service industry, but homeland security is growing rapidly, according to company literature.The four main product areas are air-supplied breathing apparatus, air purifying respirators, instrumentation and head protection.As one of the older MSA facilities, established in 1985, the Cranberry plant manufactures respiratory protective equipment, thermal imaging cameras, and instruments that monitor and analyze workplace air quality environments.In November 2007, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration awarded the plant Star status in its Voluntary Protection Programs, the highest-level award given.Approval into this program is OSHA's recognition of the outstanding efforts of employers and employees who have achieved exemplary occupational safety and health, according to the OSHA Web site, www.osha.gov.Located off Cranberry Woods Drive, the 211,000-square-foot plant employs about 450 people in all areas of production, from engineering to manufacturing to marketing, Taucher said."We're fortunate to have all these teams located in the same area. Having engineering upstairs is so important. They can just walk down and say 'hey, can you try this?'" he said."To be successful, you have to improve all the time."Customers want products that are smaller, more durable and more economical than what they have now, Taucher said.To meet that demand, the plant's integrated work force is constantly looking to advance existing technology to the highest degree while improving customer service, he said.
Of the more than 5,000 products manufactured by MSA North America and MSA International, 25 to 30 new core products are made in Cranberry, he said.The facility also supports as many as 50 older products customers have been using, Taucher said.In one area of the vast plant, workers create printed circuit boards for gas-detection devices.Automated machines assemble the boards, which are a few inches in diameter and only a fraction of an inch thick.Various electronic components are soldered to the boards with a paste by another machine, sprayed with a protective coating and then installed in the pieces of equipment they were designed for.While other companies outsource that element of production, MSA does it with raw materials and some machinery designed by company engineers."Here it's all done in-house so we can make changes quicker and be more responsive to customers," Taucher said.In another area of the plant, workers assemble sensors for devices that detect gases such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide — a byproduct of the oil and gas industry — and methane gas, a danger in the mining industry, he said.The gauges also detect chemical warfare and radioactive agents, a benefit in maintaining homeland security, he said.
Workers start out with a wire seven times thinner than a human hair and coil it with a machine designed by MSA engineers for that purpose.The remaining components are molded, tooled and installed in each device by the workers, Taucher said."It is all true manufacturing by hand," he said.The circuit boards and sensors are eventually installed in devices such as Safesite permanent monitors, which are mounted in places like subway stations to continually monitor air quality.If a high level of a gas is detected, an alert is sent to a command center and authorities can respond, Taucher said.The devices were used at the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Pittsburgh two years ago and at various Superbowl sites, as well as the Kentucky Derby.A portable version of the device that looks like a small plastic suitcase does the same functions in a mobile capacity, Taucher said.Thermal imaging cameras made at the plant help firefighters determine where a fire started or whether there are people trapped in a fire, he said.They operate in temperatures exceeding 300 degrees.All these products are sold through a worldwide distribution network, Taucher said.MSA has more than 40 international locations on five continents, but North America accounted for 52 percent of its sales in 2007. Europe accounted for 24 percent, while other international areas produced 24 percent of company sales.At the plant in Cranberry, MSA does more than manufacture.An on-site repair and service area is equipped to calibrate or repair various devices, Taucher said.A custom product group on-site handles custom orders — about 75 percent of the business done in Cranberry, he said.Basic product models are manufactured and stored in a huge warehouse. When an order comes in, the custom group takes one or more products and combines or alters them to meet each customer's need, he said.The finished product is shipped within 24 to 36 hours."The vast majority of units are built in that fashion," Taucher said. "Quick response to customers but specifically what they're looking for."They separate us from our competitors."
