BANNING 〓 Lacquer disc maker plant burned down in fire, direct hit on vinyl record production

2020/02/13

A lacquer disc maker “Apollo Masters” plant burned down in fire in Banning, California, USA. According to US media, the cause of the fire is unknown. No one was injured. The lacquer disc is an aluminum disc for pressing vinyl record. There are only two lacquer manufacturers in the world, “Apollo Masters” and Japanese “MDC”. There is a growing view that this will have a significant impact on world vinyl record production.

Since the birth of the CD, vinyl record, which were expected to disappear for a while, have regained popularity in recent years, especially among young people. In the United States, vinyl record sales are approaching the level of CD sales. The industry has also predicted that sales will reverse since 1986.

According to RIAA（Recording Industry Association of America）, Vinyl record earned $224.1 million (on 8.6 million units) in the first half of 2019, closing in on the $247.9 million (on 18.6 million units) generated by CD sales. Vinyl revenue grew by 12.8% in the second half of 2018 and 12.9% in the first six months of 2019, while the revenue from CDs barely budged.

Photo：Apollo Masters