HARRISBURG, Pa., May 1, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Worldwide industrial services and products company Harsco Corporation (NYSE:HSC), announced today that its Structural Composites Industries (SCI) unit, the worldwide leader in lightweight composite pressure vessels, has become the gas industry's first composite cylinder manufacturer to receive formal Type Approval from Chinese regulatory agencies for three different families of composite gas containment cylinders, used in the firefighting, home oxygen and natural gas vehicle (NGV) markets.
The certification follows an extensive multi-agency review of SCI's engineering, manufacturing and quality systems, and gives SCI added standing in its pursuit of China's expanding market for lightweight gas cylinders. A recent report by the United Nations' Department of Economic and Social Affairs predicts a 7.8 percent growth rate for the Chinese economy this year, fueled in part by its admission to the World Trade Organization.
With its certification, SCI becomes the second Harsco unit to receive formal Chinese government approval for its gas containment equipment. Harsco's Taylor-Wharton operations hold similar Type Approval certification for cryogenic bulk tanks and liquid cylinders, used in larger-scale industrial gas applications. Both SCI and Taylor-Wharton are part of Harsco's Gas and Fluid Control Group, manufacturers of the world's broadest range of gas and fluid containment and control equipment.
Harsco Corporation is a $2.1 billion diversified provider of industrial services and products with market-leading positions serving the worldwide infrastructure development, steel and metals, railway transportation, and gas and energy industries. The company employs approximately 18,700 people in 40 countries of operation. Additional information about Harsco, including its Gas and Fluid Control Group, can be found at www.harsco.com.