A Texas manufacturing company once indifferent to water disposal is now setting the example for other companies when it comes to water conservation. Texas Nameplate Co. currently recycles 90 percent of all its water as part of its overall effort to go green.
“Chemical etching requires water, and the industry hasn’t always been good stewards of that resource,” said President and CEO Dale Crownover. “I’m really embarrassed to say, but we did a lot of that. I was the one that got in all the trouble.”
In the past, Texas Nameplate was cited often — sometimes monthly — for water discharge violations. Dallas officials even threatened to cut off the company’s water.
“That’s the 2-by-4 that hit me over the head,” commented Crownover.
That’s when he started taking his environmental responsibility more seriously. The more Crownover learned, the more he was determined to change the way Texas Nameplate was doing business.
Today, the small, family-owned company sets the industry standard for water management. Water is pumped through a clarifier, cleaned again, and used in the rinsing step of the chemical etching process. The company is on track to be a “Zero Discharger” soon.
“Water is really a commodity that many people take for granted,” said Administrative Manager Dan Crownover. “We’re so dependent on water for everyday usage, personally and at work, that we all need to do our part to really watch our water usage, to see how we can recycle it, to see how we can reuse it.”
Texas Nameplate is hoping to set the industry standard for environmental responsibility with a series of projects its leaders believe will revamp the way nameplates are manufactured. In the past year, Texas Nameplate has implemented several environmentally conscious initiatives:
- Building green facilities designed to conserve resources and protect the environment.
- Creating a chemical rejuvenation process to slash chemical waste.
- Cutting paper waste to nearly zero.
- Inventing the iScrubber™, an industry leader in cutting air pollution.
“We try our best to limit and recycle or reuse anything we can,” said Chemical Specialist Ron Shouse. “Not only does this drive our cost down, it means we dispose of less waste, which is better for the environment. We’d like to see anybody that does chemical etching do this.”
Texas Nameplate has been serving customers in energy, transportation, marine, military, manufacturing and other sectors for more than 70 years.
