Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, July 31, 1990 TAG: 9007310100
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: GEORGE KEGLEY BUSINESS EDITOR
DATELINE: LENGTH: Short
Ingvar S. Melin, director of the Finnish Employers Confederation and adviser to the process's inventor, said the new company is in Roanoke because of the international expertise of two divers.
Terry Slusher, president of Seablitz, and Alan Krasberg, engineering vice president, both have 25 years of diving experience. They are developing the underwater process invented by Juhani Niinivaara in Finland.
Slusher met Melin in Finland when he worked as a diver and later as a consultant for oil companies.
Melin, a member of the Finnish Parliament, said conditions "are ideal here" for making the welding and cutting equipment. The major market is companies operating in the Gulf of Mexico, Europe and Asia, he said.
Slusher said he foresees production of a damage-control package to be used by supertankers in case of an accident. The specialized process can be used by the offshore oil and marine industries and in underwater salvage, he said.
Slusher said the company has developed a substance, similar to modeling clay, to act as thermal insulation for welding under water.
The company also is developing a metal cutter, using a rotary electric saw, for underwater work.
Testing is being done at Smith Mountain Lake and in tanks at Slusher's PSI Industries Inc. on Shenandoah Avenue Northwest. The company is several months from production, Slusher said.
In a separate venture, PSI makes Odor Kill, a liquid chemical designed to remove odors and stains. That product uses a blend of bacterial enzymes.
by CNB