P2 Multimedia Award goes to....

P2 Multimedia Award:  Romac Industries, Inc.

(Bothell, WA)

Frank Caddy, Josh Fowler, Kim Howard, and Michael Johnson from Romac Industries, Inc., a steel fitting manufacturing facility in Bothell, WA, successfully implemented lean and environmentally friendly manufacturing techniques to minimize waste and wastewater production in their passivation line. This led to enhancements in product quality, consistency, and worker safety. The passivation process, which involves surface finishing stainless steel parts using ammonium bi-fluoride, consists of four immersion process tanks, two immersion rinses, and a high-pressure rinse.

In the past, draining the process and rinse tanks resulted in the generation of hazardous waste (containing ammonia, fluorine, chromium, and nickel) and wastewater that was sent to the POTW. With support from Lean Environment, Inc. and Impact Washington, Romac analyzed their options and implemented changes to extend the life of the passivation tanks, eliminating the need to drain the entire baths. They adopted counter-current flow to recirculate acid solutions and maintain low acid concentrations in the rinse tanks. Additionally, they installed an ion exchange system to ensure consistent water quality throughout the process. Furthermore, Romac planned to implement acid distillation for nitric acid recovery and reuse, as well as automate rack transfers.

In 2021, Romac achieved a significant reduction in spent acid waste and toxic wastewater, decreasing from 64,000 to 30,000 pounds, resulting in annual savings of approximately $50,000. They also observed notable improvements in product quality and process control. Moving forward, the new process is expected to yield over a 90% reduction in hazardous acid waste and toxic wastewater, a 200% increase in line capacity, $100,000 in annual savings, improved safety and work procedures for operators, reduced energy consumption, and enhanced overall efficiency.