Last workers leave Derby's Celanese Acetate today as plant closes after almost 100 years

“A good day for Sponny. Our only regret ? - it did not happen thirty years ago - when living there !
The future should be cleaner, greener, smarter - with a bit of luck !”

“by Antony_Rol

Wednesday, November 14 2012, 11:22PM

"not too clever, walking down the middle of the road!"
Nice to see somebody understands the full impact this factory closing will have on peoples lives!”

“"Celanese, which is closing the plant due to soaring energy prices, "

Closing due to ineptitude of governments of various colours inability to control the energy crisis then?

As for the pic, I bet the staff at the Moon Hotel dreaded the end of shift at the plant!”

“"DB, I know that you like to try to do down Labour at any and every opportunity and to twist facts to suit your agenda" !!!!! this from somebody who likes to do down the Tories - UKIP and the Libdems and tell lies about them at every opportunity he gets!!! how very rich - what a hypocrite!”

“My late mother worked for 'Cel' in the 1930's/40's as a seamstress in 'making up', she travelled all over the UK with the mannequins and staff who laid on the fashion shows to promote their fabrics, she was one of the staff who repaired and made alterations to the dresses etc., her elder brother was a member of the Celanese Fire Brigade at the same time.

How times have changed, and all in the name of progress!!”

“mark_sinfin, part of it has already been sold for commercial development as a business park, still empty after several years! No doubt this is what will be planned for the rest as the two year contaminant clean up will not need to be as extensive as it would for houses. Add this to road and rail links retail park, hotels and leisure could be another suggested use better still give us a community hospital this side of Derby save us travelling to Mickleover which takes longer to do at peak times then getting to Nottingham, thanks to Mr Bookbinder and Toyota..”

“Another nail in the coffin of manufacturing in the UK, is Bombardier next? First it was agriculture now industry as manufacturing shipped abroad to cut costs, also cuts quality. To much of what makes up the UK owned by companies based abroad where pencil pushing accountants see £signs not people and the effect they have on lives. One simple change of title sent us down this road from Personnel Departments to HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENTS. This said it all people no longer count just shareholders and profits, more for less. I wish everyone from Celanese who is now out of work success in finding employment and a happy festive season. I just hope IDS and ATOS do not try to punish them further.”

“News from May 1999: http://tinyurl.com/cenentq

"Acordis (spondon, u.k.), the stand-alone fibers subsidiary of Akzo Nobel, has announced a cost reduction plan that should save [50 million ($53.9 million) over the next three years.

Acordis CEO Folkert Blaisse says savings will come from job cuts, improving plant efficiency, and possibly transferring more rayon fiber treatment activities to its Gorzow, Poland site".

Pollution issues:
How its made, Acetate fibre: "It was made by combining cellulose, such as that found in wood pulp, with acetic acid, with sulphuric acid added to keep the acetic acid pure as water was produced as a by-product. This process turned the wood fibres into acetate flakes. The flakes could be either mixed in an acetone solution and used as a coating, which found several applications in the planes and equipment of World War I, or turned into other substances that could be used to make cloth, paper, filter media, and even dressings for wounds".
Read more: How Is Acetate Made? | eHow.com http://tinyurl.com/cfwt948

The Spondon plant used large quantities of lime and caustic soda, alkaline, to neutralise the acetic acid, this is achieved by using settlement tanks to collect the chemicals which are mixed to form a neutral Ph waste product. The neutralised solids were taken away from the site and buried at a landfill site.



In 1990, Courtaulds (Formerly British Celanese) were fined for polluting the Derwent with Acetic Acid http://tinyurl.com/ctnjghp

"The National Rivers Authority has successfully prosecuted Courtaulds for a leak of acetic acid into the river Derwent last June from the firm's acetate plant at Spondon, Derbyshire. On 17 May, Derby Crown Court fined Courtaulds £15,000, with £1,525 costs, for the incident, which depleted oxygen levels and killed thousands of fish along four miles of the river".

Acordis was supplied with the steam they required for the manufacturing process by Derwent Co-Generation (Spondon Power Station which was sold off by Celanese). Power Station H was retained by the company and generated the factory's electricity requirements with the steam provided.

In 1997, a High Court case was taken out against Derwent Co-generation by ENS Ltd.
http://tinyurl.com/c5nbsak

This is the statement concerning the steam generation: "The relevant plant being known as heat recovery steam generators or HRSG. The steam so generated was exported to an adjacent chemical plant owned by Courtaulds Ltd, whom I shall call Courtaulds, principally for the purposes of Courtaulds' chemical process plant and the generation by Courtaulds of electricity for use in their own plant."”

“@Derby_born
Thank for asking, but I plan to sell up over 2013 & move to Llandudno to be nearer my last surviving Brother, it is the younger ones who haven't yet paid off their mortgagees that I feel sorry for.
Now that I have had my pay off I can a bit say more, but the thing is for those of us who perhaps where Not lucky enough to obtain employment in one of the Cleaner industries like Bombardier Royce's or Toyota, Celanese offered them a chance of well paid employment and an opportunity to one day own their own home; that they otherwise may never of had.
We where all better off on Celanese money, than working for the City council; with people calling us lazy and trying to dine us a Living Wage.”

“amjustagirl - The vinegar smell is acetic acid, used in equal concentrations with benzene, to make the acetate - (Benzene is released at several 'fugitive' points at the factory) Fromthe DT newspaper it looks as though the process will still be kept. Ring the 24 hour emergency hotline for the EA and report the pollution - 0800 80 70 60.

The effects of acetic acid pollution, at very low concentrations include the following
From the Environment Agency Acordis Acetic Acid Overview fact Sheet, the following: -

"Thresholds and Standards
*The operator has undertaken modelling which predicts a concentration of around 200ugm3 at the receptor location………
Yet the odour threshold is at 0.21 to 1.0ppm (WISER)
Extremely irritating at concentrations in excess of 25ppm (Hathaway et al, 1991)
Conjunctivitis has been reported following exposure to vapour concentrations less than 10ppm"

Other effects seen at low concentrations include blistering of skin, and breathing difficulties as it is severely irritant to the respiratory tract. Other effects are coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath, headache, nausea, ulceration of mucous membranes, muscle weakness, bronchitis, and oedema.

Derby and South Derbyshire Friends of the Earth”