Banning Commercial Fire Could Disrupt Worldwide Vinyl Industry

BANNING, CA — The fire that ripped through a commercial building in Banning on Feb. 6 caused significant damage to a company that makes lacquers used in vinyl LPs. The damage could disrupt the worldwide vinyl record industry, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday.

The 50,000-square-foot commercial building housed Apollo Masters, a company that produced 75% of the world's blank lacquers: metal plates that are used to make vinyl records. The only other company that makes the lacquer is in Japan, and already running at peak production, according to the Times.

Suddenly, the vinyl record industry, which has been making a major comeback in recent years, faces an uncertain future.

Apollo won't be allowed to rebuild until the building undergoes a hazardous waste remediation, the Times reported, and the company has been largely silent about its future plans since the fire.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation, officials said.