Pioneer unveils new bleach unit

     By Chris Jones
     View staff writer
      Henderson industrial giant Pioneer Chlor Alkali Company Inc. recently expanded its manufacturing capabilities with the installation of a continuous bleach reaction unit.
      The new system -- called the Powell Unit -- was introduced May 3 and will eventually allow Pioneer to safely produce up to 20 times more bleach.
      For the past several years, Pioneer has manufactured the product using a batch reactor system capable of producing approximately 4 million gallons per year. The Powell Unit was designed to make up to 36 million gallons annually and can go as high as 82 million gallons per year with the addition of a second cooling tower that the company plans to add when sales increase.
      Norm Thogersen, Pioneer's executive vice president and chief operating officer, said the Powell Unit's presence in Henderson will only strengthen the company's ties to the community.
      "We're a fairly important player in the community and we're making a significant investment to the city," Thogersen said. "We're going to be serving a very broad market out of (Henderson), including Mexico, Utah and Arizona, in addition to the clients we already have in Nevada and Southern California."
      Mayor Jim Gibson said the growth of chemical companies located inside Basic Management Inc.'s property has paralleled the growth of the city as a whole. He praised Pioneer's continued effort to play a role in the city's development and said "this facility is a vital part of the economy of Southern Nevada."
      Pioneer employs 141 people at its Henderson plant, generating an annual payroll of about $10 million. The company also contributes an estimated $500,000 in taxes to the local economy each year. It currently owns five plants throughout North America and began operating in Henderson in 1988.
      Because Pioneer can avert raw supply shortages by producing the main components of bleach on-site, its Henderson facility is now the region's largest and most economical bleach-making supplier.
      Pioneer plant manager Gary Sulik avoided using any terminology that could only be understood by those with a chemistry degree in explaining his facility's latest improvement. Instead, he simply said Pioneer's new bleach-making process is more efficient because it operates in a continuous pattern.
      "Some processes do things in batches, so you can get behind if one part of the process slows down," Sulik said. "This system is continually making bleach and streamlines the whole process."
      Work on the Powell Unit began late last year. Although Sulik declined to provide a specific cost for its equipment and construction, he called its purchase "a significant investment."
      Sodium hypochlorite, which is the active ingredient in household bleach, is used throughout the world to disinfect municipal drinking water and swimming pools. Most of the bleach produced at Pioneer will be used for water treatment, although some will be shopped off and bottled for commercial and home usage.
      Sulik said Pioneer has agreements to supply bleach to the cities of Henderson and Las Vegas, as well as private businesses and other small-scale operations throughout Southern Nevada. Not surprisingly, Las Vegas resorts with man-made lakes are some of the company's best customers.
      "There's an awful lot of bleach that goes into those water displays on the Strip," said Ron Ciora, Pioneer's vice-president of bleach and packaged chlorine.
      Said Sulik: "We'll now be able to supply the whole valley with bleach. This system means we have it here, and we'll have enough to keep up with increased demands as the valley continues to grow."