Gerber Products Company v. Fisher Tank Company, Earl Goodwin, Jr., D/B/A Commercial Coatings Company, and Commercial Coatings Company of Apex

HAYNSWORTH, Senior Circuit Judge:

A painting and lining contractor, apparently of relatively small size, applied the wrong liner on the interior of a large hot water storage tank used in the processing of baby foods. The consequences may approach the disastrous, but a court may not shift blame away from the one party whose error or mistake was the sole cause of the economic injury.

In 1983 Gerber entered into a contract with Fisher Tank Company for the construction and installation of a large hot water storage tank for use in the processing of baby foods in a Gerber plant near Asheville, North…