PR Planning Assignment: Please read the scenario below and answer the questions that follow:

                                        Ramsey Steel Faces Pollution Charges

The Situation:

As area public relations manager for Ramsey Steel, you are concerned about the increasing volume of local publicity about air pollution (mostly slanted and inaccurate) in the daily press and over the broadcast media. Prior to now Ramsey has not been specifically mentioned in the publicity. Today's papers, however, reveal that your company has been selected "Polluter of the Month" by the county's Pollution Control Officer, Dr. Mary Smith. No Ramsey personnel received any communication whatsoever from Dr. Smith prior to the public announcement. IN the news statement that appeared, Dr. smith declared that her office had received more complaints about the Ramsey plant than any other company during the preceding month.

Ramsey has a massive steel mill on the bayou with fourteen open-hearth and four electric furnaces. Each costs millions of dollars. Ramsey has long been aware of the potential pollution problem. The company's first Pollution Control Director was named 36 years ago. The open-hearth furnaces present major technical difficulties in collecting and controlling air emissions. Even though the effectiveness of pollution control efforts on open-hearth furnaces will never match the levels of the electric furnace systems, the company is actively testing new technologies and is committed to investigating in systems that are effective on the open-hearth models. In the areas where these furnaces are located, Ramsey installed new overhead systems, including a $500,000 High Velocity Centrifugal Separator; however, the separator was found to be insufficient. Subsequently, additional equipment including a Baghouse and spray chamber costing $1 million were used.

Locally, the company has adopted a policy of building only electric furnaces to replace the open-hearth furnaces. Recently, two additional electric furnaces were built at the local works following two years of expensive research and another two years of construction time. At a cost of $2.5 million, new smoke control devices know as High Energy Scrubbers were installed and are doing an excellent job. Scrubbers also will be installed in the two older electric furnaces at an additional expenditure of $2 million.

The economics of the steel industry establish certain parameters relative to the cost of furnace installation. With an investment of $50 million in open-hearth furnaces, requiring $40 million - $50 million of immediate cost, to install new electric furnaces would be prohibitive. Costs of production would raise product prices so that the company could not be competitive and could not make a profit.

Ramsey has, despite the economics of the situation, made a policy decision to replace all the open-hearth furnaces with electric furnaces of equal or greater capacity. Two open- hearth furnaces were permanently removed from production with the installation of the two new electric furnaces. The company has set a timetable for replacing the remaining 12 open-hearth furnaces within 20 years and has committed to reducing emissions from its furnaces if a news technology becomes available during that period.

Meanwhile, the company continues to test new technologies and is committed to investing in systems to control the pollution created by open-hearth furnaces. Because of this, testing, new overhead systems, including a $500,000 high-velocity centrifugal separator, were installed recently. However, the separator was found to be insufficient. Subsequently, additional equipment, including a bag house and spray chamber costing $1 million, was tried and found to help but not solve the pollution problem. Local publicity about air pollution in daily print and electronic media has been increasing. Most is slanted and inaccurate. Until recently, reports had not specifically mentioned Ramsey. Last month, the County Pollution Control Office named Ramsey Steel "Polluter of the Month." Much negative publicity followed. The situation was handled according to Ramsey's crisis communication plan. 

Ramsey's mill manager is concerned about the adverse effects of publicity on the company's future. In light of the overall situation and recent events, the mill manager has requested that you develop a comprehensive corporate communication plan for Ramsey Steel.

Ramsey's customers are sympathetic to the company. 

Most complaints come from a few people who moved into the area near the mill after it was built and operational.   

 In the greater metropolitan area, the public-at-large is not aware of the exceptional effort and millions of dollars spent by the company to counter air pollution. 

 A small majority (55 percent of those queried) believes the "Polluter of the Month" award is deserved and thinks that the company is concerned only with profits and not with the public welfare. 

Others realize that public incineration and automobile exhaust are responsible for much pollution. 

The mill is located adjacent to two smaller municipalities. 

County commissioners seem sympathetic to the company's difficult problem but are also afraid of voter sentiment.

For writing a recommendation, think about the following:

 How do the cultural values at Ramsey Steel relate to communication, technology, information flow and openness?

As the company goes forward, should it stay with the espoused or practiced culture?  How would you recommend that they change?

How would you suggest that they resolve this disparity?  In other words, what should they do? 

Provide specific suggestions that will help the organization as they go forward.

Use these as main points:

1.    Identify the most important facts surrounding the case.

2.    Identify the key issue or issues.

3.    Specify alternative courses of action.

4.    Evaluate each course of action.

5.    Recommend the best course of action.