Carrier Corp. v. Detrex Corp.

Appellant Carrier Corporation (Carrier) appeals from a judgment entered following the grant of summary judgment in favor of respondent Detrex Corporation (Detrex).

The central issue on appeal is whether the statute of limitations under California Uniform Commercial Code section 2725 requires that an action for indemnification based on express or implied warranty be brought within four years from the date of delivery of the product.

Facts

Carrier produces air conditioning units at its leased facilities in the City of Industry. In 1979, it contracted with Detrex to provide it with a system to remove the grease which accumulates on air conditioning coils during the manufacturing process. The contract provided that Detrex would design and manufacture the system, and then install and test it.

Detrex did in fact produce the degreasing system, and then subcontracted the installation to South-Lyn Mechanical, Inc., a local pipefitting and welding company. The system was completed and on-line as of September 1979.

In April of 1985, Carrier noticed a higher than normal usage of PCE. Detrex was consulted, but neither company could identify the source of the problem. On April 25,…