Posted on 06/30/2004 7:23:30 PM PDT by BenLurkin
PALMDALE - The Dickinson family is dedicated to their business, Delta Scientific Corp., and to their new facility at Fairway Park on Avenue O. But their dedication to the security of the United States and U.S. military personnel was front and center at the grand opening of their 125,000-square-foot factory Tuesday afternoon.
David Dickinson, senior vice president and son of founder Harry Dickinson, made it clear the family business stands ready to do what it takes to provide barricades strong enough to stop a loaded 18-wheeler moving at 50 miles per hour.
"We take our business quite seriously," David Dickinson told a crowd of more than 50 sitting in the shipping bay. "We needed to expand our facility to protect our country's infrastructure and protect our soldiers. When we get a call from Baghdad and overseas, we get excited and ready to go."
"We are emotional about what we do, and that is why we're good at what we do," Harry Dickinson said.
The company is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. The founder told of a poignant moment in his business' history when 241 U.S. Marines were killed by a truck bomb in Beirut in 1983.
"We had barricades there," Harry Dickinson said, but couldn't install them because regulations held up deliveries of hydraulic fluid needed to operate the barriers.
"We couldn't get in," he recalled.
Rep. Howard P. "Buck" McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, commended Delta Scientific for its contributions to national security as it continues to build barricades that protect military installations, embassies and nuclear facilities around the world.
McKeon visited the company's Valencia facility before 9-11 and was impressed with the operation, which has grown to satisfy demand.
McKeon recalled a visit he made to the former palace/compound of a son of Saddam Hussein in Iraq. He said he was struck by the positive things the United States has accomplished during its time there.
"You don't hear good things on the news" about the sacrifices our military has made, McKeon said.
The compound he visited via helicopter had been car-bombed three days before he arrived, and he met with officials in buildings where all the windows were blown out.
"Our Reserve and Guard troops are leaving their lives here and serving over there," McKeon said. One example: A power plant that had been neglected until it was almost unproductive, but which American engineers brought back up to full capacity.
Americans are serving on the front lines and at home, he said.
"What (Delta Scientific) is doing to help our troops and people around the world is a tremendous thing, and I really appreciate it," McKeon said.
In the dock area next to the audience was a transportable barricade that can be installed on a road in 10 to 12 minutes to control access, David Dickinson said.
The solar-powered barricades were developed by Delta Scientific to be light enough to be towed by a pickup truck, then positioned between two armored vehicles to protect personnel operating them.
"They were getting sniped at so often," the added precautions were necessary, he said.
The plant has 16 units ready for the Department of State to ship to four cities in Iraq. The company has supplied barricade systems for more than 160 U.S. embassies and consulates and has secured more than 110 federal buildings in the United States and more than 85% of all nuclear power plants in this country.
"Every building on Capitol Hill has our equipment," Harry Dickinson said.
Besides barriers, the company supplies bulletproof guard shacks.
"Our guard booths can withstand an AK47 attack," he said.
After the various presentations of certificates, including one signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarznegger, the visitors were invited onto the production floor, where the newest item, a shallow-foundation barricade, was demonstrated. The items are designed to be very reliable, David Dickinson said.
"The barrier's got to work every single day," he said, operating in spite of sand, snow and temperature variations. Delta Scientific has 30 types of barricades; each time a new situation develops, "that creates the next project," he said.
Demand keeps the company's stock very low and the federal government has the right, in the name of national security, to buy anything Delta Scientific produces - sometimes out from under another paying customer, he said.
"'We had barricades there,' Harry Dickinson said, but couldn't install them because regulations held up deliveries of hydraulic fluid needed to operate the barriers.
"'We couldn't get in,' he recalled."
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