COVID-19 Update: Fayetteville Works

FAYETTEVILLE WORKS

 

March 23, 2020

The world is facing an issue of enormous scale and human impact related to COVID-19. At Kuraray, safety is the cornerstone of everything we do. As the situation rapidly evolves, we’re working to protect the health of our employees, while continuing to meet our customer commitments. To ensure everyone’s safety and the continuity of operations, Kuraray has taken the following countermeasures in response to minimizing the spread of COVID-19:

  • For any “stay at home” orders, Kuraray’s position is that we are exempt as a “critical infrastructure sector” as defined by the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (which identifies 16 such sectors, including chemical).
  • Kuraray’s Fayetteville Works Plant currently produces polyvinyl butyral (PVB) as an extruded film and as a resin. PVB is a key component of safety glass for automobiles, as well as emergency and military vehicles. The development of tempered and shatter-proof glass is what led to the boom of SentryGlas® use in industrial applications. Initially developed for the hurricane glazing market, it is used in applications where high-performance glass is required, such as security and structural glazing, hospitals, government facilities, ballistics, and marine vessels.
  • On March 16, we instituted a work-from-home policy for all employees able to perform their job functions remotely. Only employees essential to production or lab facilities are on site. Those employees who must use our facilities are working in shifts to avoid the potential for cross-contamination.
  • We’re issuing new guidelines and procedures for any employees, visitors, and contractors entering the Fayetteville Plant’s facilities. Kuraray implemented temperature screening measures at production sites on Friday, March 20, 2020.
  • We’re grateful to report that there are no confirmed cases of infection among Kuraray employees. If we receive notification of a positive COVID-19 test, we will conduct a full investigation and disinfect all areas the employee came into contact with per the CDC’s cleaning protocol. Committed to full transparency, we will provide numbers and locations of any positive tests to the appropriate health department authorities. We will notify any customers, vendors, or suppliers who may have come into contact with an infected Kuraray employee.
  • We’ve enacted our robust Business Interruption Plan, which outlines policies and procedures to support stable operations through a vast array of crisis situations. Decisions are made by a corporate multi-disciplinary team, which allows us to act consistently and quickly.
  • Our team is working daily with supply chain partners to minimize delivery impacts to customers. We source raw materials from various vendors, have several distribution carriers, and keep stock of available products at numerous warehouses. The Fayetteville Plant is well-positioned to maintain supply continuity.

We will continue to provide updates and adjust our countermeasures as we learn more. Throughout this situation, we remain committed to providing the superior service and support that our customers have come to expect of Kuraray and the PVB Business. Together, we will weather this global pandemic. Thank you for your continued partnership.

Best regards,

Stephen Cox
General Manager, PVB Division
Kuraray America, Inc.

About Kuraray
Founded in 1926, Kuraray Co., Ltd. is a world leader in performance-based polymer and specialty materials technologies, including resins, chemicals, fibers and textiles. The company operates many subsidiaries around the world, including Kuraray America, Inc., headquartered in Houston, Texas. For more information, visit www.kuraray.us.com.

To contact Kuraray regarding COVID-19 status of facilities and operations,
please call (512) 931-1015 or email PIO@Kuraray.com