By M.R. Kropko
The Associated Press

CLEVELAND - A home security suggestion has been especially challenging for Trust E. Duck's people.

The Duck is the logo for Ohio duct tape maker Henkel Consumer Adhesives Inc., which has increased production 40 percent since the government suggested the versatile and strong tape as an anti-terrorism staple.

"Don't use it!" Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said Wednesday in Cincinnati, alluding to the run some uneasy Americans made on those items. "Stash it away."

John Kahl, chief executive of Henkel Consumer Adhesives, said Thursday that Ridge's comments on duct tape had produced a sudden demand unseen in his 18 years at the company.

"It's like when there is a natural disaster, like a hurricane or tornado. But those situations are regionalized. I've never seen anything countrywide like this," he said. "And this is usually our low point of the year."

The 230 manufacturing and distribution workers in Avon, about 30 miles west of Cleveland, now are making the company's "Duck Tape" continuously. Normal operations are five days a week, with three eight-hour shifts.

"We can add people on a temporary basis, but we're not into any hiring program at this point," Kahl said. "We are running a lot of overtime and we have a lot better utilization of equipment."