Plum Creek's MDF plant now at 100 percent

Plum Creek Timber Company’s medium-density fiberboard production plant is now running at 100 percent, Tom Ray, Plum Creek’s vice president of northwest resources and management, said.

A fire on June 10 shut down the plant, but the company said it would be back up and running within a month. The company’s thinboard line was back up and running on June 30, but line one, which produces a thicker MDF panel, was experiencing electrical issues. Crews were able to address those issues, and the plant was operating at 100 percent late last week.

Plum Creek personnel had been slowly testing the electrical systems and motors on line one, but when a 250 horsepower motor came up to full load on July 8, it shorted out. Another motor was brought in by truck overnight to replace it.

Two explosions rocked part of the MDF plant June 10 after a bearing in a conveyor belt failed, overheated and ignited wood fibers. No one was injured in the blast and fire, but more than 70 firefighters battled the blaze.

The plant had multiple fires, but neither of the two MDF lines were damaged by the flames. Much of the damage was caused by water — fire suppression systems soaked portions of the plant with about 1.5 million gallons of water. Crews had to pump about eight feet of water alone from beneath the thinboard line.

Employees worked 24 hours a day, seven days a week in 12-hour shifts to get equipment dried out and back up and running, Ray said. That included replacing more than 200 sprinkler heads on each line.

The plant employs more than 180 workers and has an estimated value of at least $200 million. The fire did not destroy most of the inventory stored under the roof of the 7-acre plant.

Ray said exterior sheet metal damaged by the explosions and other items remain to be repaired.