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Old 11-15-2018, 01:58 PM   #1
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Blue Seas MFG factory fire

I noticed I was having a hard time reaching technical support yesterday and when I finally got through, a guy from another division was fielding the calls because he said the factory burned. Well that sux...I rely on their products quite a bit! Hopefully it won't be long before they're up & running again.

https://www.bellinghamherald.com/new...221529470.html
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Old 11-15-2018, 02:06 PM   #2
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Was this their manufacturing base?
I would have expected the Blue Seas factories to be Asian based with just distribution centres in the USA.
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Old 11-15-2018, 02:45 PM   #3
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On their website they say:


Blue Sea Systems is experiencing operational difficulties in our Bellingham location. We thank you for your patience while our team restores the facility to full capacity.
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Old 11-15-2018, 02:57 PM   #4
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Many of us have discovered that if you let the smoke out you 'experience operational difficulties'!
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Old 11-15-2018, 03:04 PM   #5
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Glad I got most of my electrical work done last winter.
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Old 11-15-2018, 03:31 PM   #6
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I hope their office had off site backup for critical files. That roof looks to be totally collapsed.
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Old 11-15-2018, 03:48 PM   #7
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Was this their manufacturing base?
I would have expected the Blue Seas factories to be Asian based with just distribution centres in the USA.
Could be. I just installed a M Series Battery switch. The label says designed in Bellingham and assembled in Mexico, doesn’t say where the parts came from.

I wouldn't be surprised if most manufacturing is done all over the world based on price and quality with their engineering, limited production and warehousing in Bellingham.
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Old 11-15-2018, 05:18 PM   #8
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They moved most of the manufacturing to Mexico a while back.
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Old 11-15-2018, 05:26 PM   #9
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Was on the local news, looked pretty major of a fire.
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Old 11-15-2018, 05:34 PM   #10
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Was on the local news, looked pretty major of a fire.
No fire....just operational difficulties.
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Old 11-15-2018, 09:22 PM   #11
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BandB there was a fire. Lost most of their building. Firefighters and firewall saved part of the offices. Everything else in the Bellingham facility was lost.
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Old 11-15-2018, 11:38 PM   #12
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BandB there was a fire. Lost most of their building. Firefighters and firewall saved part of the offices. Everything else in the Bellingham facility was lost.
I know there was a fire. I was using their terminology for it. They used the term "operational difficulties" on their website. I was making fun of that which I still think is crazy that they didn't call it what it was.
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Old 11-16-2018, 12:12 AM   #13
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I know there was a fire. I was using their terminology for it. They used the term "operational difficulties" on their website. I was making fun of that which I still think is crazy that they didn't call it what it was.
OK I get it now. Had not checked the web site so I missed the sarcasm. My bad.
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Old 11-17-2018, 11:09 AM   #14
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I know there was a fire. I was using their terminology for it. They used the term "operational difficulties" on their website. I was making fun of that which I still think is crazy that they didn't call it what it was.
LOL...fessing up to a fire at a company that manufacturers/distributes electrical components would be a bold move....:-)
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Old 11-17-2018, 01:27 PM   #15
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LOL...fessing up to a fire at a company that manufacturers/distributes electrical components would be a bold move....:-)
Know you’re just having fun with this, but I had just the opposite reaction. Not fessing up to easily proven reality affects an organization’s credibility and trustworthiness to a sizable portion of the public. It’s so much better to get in front of a negative story by acknowledging the problems and how you’re going to prevent the next one. Circling the wagons by minimizing or misdirection is often a prelude to a business failure or management change.
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Old 11-17-2018, 03:37 PM   #16
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Know you’re just having fun with this, but I had just the opposite reaction. Not fessing up to easily proven reality affects an organization’s credibility and trustworthiness to a sizable portion of the public. It’s so much better to get in front of a negative story by acknowledging the problems and how you’re going to prevent the next one. Circling the wagons by minimizing or misdirection is often a prelude to a business failure or management change.
Transparency always wins in my view. The world knows and then they're wondering what you're hiding. How can they trust what you say about inventory and shipping? I've encountered a warehouse fire early in my manufacturing career. We notified every customer, told them what we were doing, when we'd be shipping again, and when they could expect their orders (6 weeks of no shipping, remake of many goods). We also said we'd understand if any cancelled orders. We got zero cancellations and many commendations for the way we handled it. It works. You're not going to lose customers over having a fire. You will lose them if they feel you're being untruthful with them.
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Old 11-17-2018, 05:58 PM   #17
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I hadn’t seen the statement, so my first reaction was “WTF, I watched it with my own eyes”. Had I read the statement on their website, that’s exactly the reaction I would have directed at them. Seriously bad decision.
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Old 11-17-2018, 07:43 PM   #18
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If a wood roof and no sprinklers, the building didn’t have a chance. The cause could have been a 100 different things including a plugged in appliance gone awry.
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Old 11-17-2018, 09:43 PM   #19
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If a wood roof and no sprinklers, the building didn’t have a chance. .
Wood roof and no sprinklers? Are you serious?
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Old 11-18-2018, 06:45 AM   #20
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They moved most of the manufacturing to Mexico a while back.
I was hoping you were correct on that, but perusing BlueSea products at a West Marine yesterday, and reading the labels on them, revealed that only about a quarter of their products stated “assembled in Mexico” on them. Most said, “made in the USA and Canada”.

How big is the factory in Canada?
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