THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 19, 1996 TAG: 9607190501
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ANNE SAITA, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 57 lines
Spectators and athletes attending the Olympics in Atlanta can breathe a little easier, thanks to the contributions of an Elizabeth City company.
And the 48,000 American flags hanging from buildings, promoting patriotism, come courtesy of a Perquimans County plant.
The Albemarle area may have been bypassed during the Olympic Torch Relay, but communities across Northeastern North Carolina still can claim a small stake in the historic event that opens today.
``Now we have part of Perquimans County going to the Olympics,'' Cathy Terranova said Thursday.
Terranova supervises a Hertford factory specializing in children's sportswear that was selected to ship 48,000 U.S. flags to the Games. About 30 employees at her business, Apricot Inc., have toiled for the past month to cut, sew and bind the banners.
The third, and last, shipment was sent to the site Thursday, she said.
``It's been a real boost for the girls that work for us - and for the county - to have a stake in what's going on in Atlanta,'' Terranova said.
Apricot was awarded the subcontract for the shipment from Valley Forge Flags in Pennsylvania. It may be the start of a new line for the local company, officials said.
``It was a good thing for us financially. And, hopefully, we'll be able to make some more flags in the future,'' Terranova said.
The company, which has about 100 employees, has been operating just outside Hertford town limits since 1982.
Nearby, in Elizabeth City, Hoffer Flow Controls Inc. employees have been shipping out flow measurement systems that are being used to fuel official Olympic vehicles.
``At least we're doing something. And we're a part of it,'' said John Gannon, the marketing manager for Hoffer Flow Controls, which moved from New Jersey in 1990.
Cars and buses transporting athletes and officials at the Olympics will run on liquified natural gas or compressed natural gas, which are much more friendly to the environment than gasoline, Gannon said.
In Atlanta, Hoffer Flow Controls' measurement system will be installed on two portable fueling skids supplied by Jack B. Kelley Inc. of Amarillo, Texas. Hoffer Flow Controls has worked with Jack B. Kelley in the past.
The company also is familiar with cryogenics used to change the physical state of liquid nitrogen, oxygen and argon because of its work with Cryogenic Energy Corp. in Denver.
The Atlanta fueling station will allow the liquid and compressed forms of the gas to be pumped into vehicles through nozzles. The Hoffer meters will indicate the amount of fuel vehicles use throughout the day, Gannon said.
The U.S. Clean Air Act passed several years ago requires that certain cities, including Atlanta, provide alternative fuel methods for their public transportation.
The Olympics is being used as a showcase for the capabilities of liquified and compressed natural gasses.
Within the next 15 years, Gannon predicted, every service station in America will provide a liquid gas pump. That's about half the time it took for diesel fuel to become widely available, he added. by CNB