Global health and hygiene company Kimberly-Clark successfully avoided the loss of millions of pounds worth of assets at its Barrow factory thanks to swift action subduing a fire at the site.
It took a fire crew of twenty five firefighters over six hours to subdue the blaze at Kimberly-Clark’s factory in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria yesterday after the alarm was raised at 04:06am.
One of the paper making machines is thought to have been the source of the fire which then spread to the factory roof.
No workers were injured in the blaze and the cost of the damage is thought to be minimal.
A company spokesperson assured TM that the incident did not incur any major disruptions to production and that there was no stock damage. Full production was resumed late morning after what was described as “a small mopping up operation.”
The plant at Barrow-in-Furness has been operational for over 40 years and has recently received millions of pounds of investment.
The factory turns out major hygiene brands such as Kleenex and Hyggies and the company is said to have a burgeoning order book to fulfil.
The three paper mills at the plant are capable of producing 120,000 tonnes of tissue per year. Yesterday’s fire took place in paper mill three.
See the July issue of TM for a Manufacturing in Action case study on Kimberly-Clark’s UK operations.
All companies profiled in our Manufacturing in Action area have been automatically nominated for the Manufacturing in Action Award at TM’s Manufacturer of the Year Awards which take place on November 21 this year.
