Document 2qM8VQkM2eaY13jGEorQMZ53g

THE HISTORY OF THE ASBESTOS TEXTILE INDUSTRY IN THE UNITED STATES Chapter X: United States Asbestos Company (now a division of Raybestos-Manhattan, Inc.) By: John A. Bettci, Jr. As edited by the Staff of ASBESTOS Tlie United States Asbestos Company was incoqiorated August 24. 1906. witli an authorized capital stuck of $60,000. Tlie company was founded in Manlieim. l'ennsylvania. by eight local businessmen who constituted the Hoard of Direc tors. It is interesting to note that no direct descendant of any of these families continued for long in the management of the company. George H. Danner was the first President and Chester Hill came from Keasbey & Mattison Company to supply manufacturing know-how. Products made by the original mill included asbestos yam. cloth, brake lining tape and listing tapes. Several styles of high-pressure packing (cloth roll-up) were produced by hand. Rubber coating the asbestos cloth was accomplished in a simple dip tank containing a solution of latex and gasoline and after passing through squeeze rolls the rubberized fabric was laid out on long tables to air dry. The ever-present danger of fire was an accepted'hazard. The business grew rapidly from the start, constantly re quiring additional capital funds. In 1910 the company was reorganized with a paid-in capital of $175.000. S. K. Zimmer man assumed the Presidency at that time and Chester Hill was appointed Vice President and General Manager. In 1911 fire severely damaged the original wooden factory building. It was replaced with a 120-foot x 174-foot brick building and the following year a two-story. IClO-foot x 200njt brick building was added. These were the original units of a plant which now comprises over 600.000 square feet of lloor space. l?y 1914 a milestone was passed when employ ment exceeded 200 people. Present employment averages above 1600 people. In 1919 Pi. Weber Luttcnberger returned from service in World War I to take charge of the card room at Manlieim. He rose through the ranks to Textile Superintendent. Fac tory Manager and finally Works Manager of the entire U.S. Asbestos Division. Web Luttcnberger served several terms as Chairman of the Air Hygiene & Manufacturing Committee of the Asbestos Textile institute. In March 1920 Osborn Hewcs Cillcy was engaged as Plant Superintendent. He came from C. G. Sargent & Sons Company, a manufacturer of textile machinery. In 1928 "(). H." Cillcy was made Assistant General Manager and in 1941 lie became a Director of Kayhestos-Manhattan. Inc. In 1947 lie was elected a Vice President of the corporation. His manufacturing and executive ability was in large measure re.'|Kjnsible for the continuous growth and very successful operation of the U.S. Asbestos Division over a jieriod of more than 30 years. In November 1921 the company was again recapitalized and reorganized. Chester Hill left the firm and Samuel R. Slaymaker came in as General Manager. Mr. Slavmaker was also President of the family-owned Slaymaker Lock Com pany. I^mcaster. Pennsylvania. At the same time. George R. Weber joined the organization as Treasurer. On December 1, 1921. he was also elected General Manager and retained that position until his death in 1953. George Weber represented K/M at the organizational meeting of the Asbestos Textile Institute. November 16. 1944. He also represented his com pany during the preliminary discussions which resulted in the formation of the asbestos textile industry's trade association and. therefore, was one of the founders of ATI. In 1923 Rudolph Wilde joined U.S. Asbestos as Textile Superintendent. He had had considerable experience in pro cessing Crocidolitc and Amosite asbestos fibers. Under Rudy Wilde's direction a small and separate manufacturing opera tion was set up to produce turbine blankets, principally for tlie L'.S. Navy. The unit was commonly referred to around town as "the blue." When Rudy Wilde joined US. Asbestos lie brought with him his Card Room Foreman. Herbert F. Palm. Herb Palm progressed in the organization to Textile Superinten dent. then to Factory Manager and at the time of bis death was Works Manager. Herb Palm served two terms as Chairman of ATI's Air Hygiene & Manufacturing Com mittee. One of U.S. Asbestos Company's earliest major accounts was the Manhattan Rubber Company of Passaic. New Jersey. U.S. Asbestos sold Manhattan large tonnages of open-weave 1 asbestos-metallic cloth for conversion into folded and com pressed brake lining. HYCO brake lining consisted of frictioned asbestos cloth, folded to the desired width and thick ness, then stitched, and finally cured. This was a popular style of brake lining, prior to 1926, when automobiles had external contracting brakes on the rear wheels only. U.S. Asbestos Co. also sold tremendous quantities of untreated brake lining tape .to the Raybestos Company at Bridgeport. Connecticut. Raybestos was simultaneously pur chasing large footages of untreated brake lining tape and large tonnages of asbestos yarn from General Asltesios and Rubber Company. North Charleston. South Carolina. These three well-established buyer-seller relationships were largely instrumental in the formation of Raybestos-Manhattan. Inc., in 1929. The four mills--U.S. Asbestos. Manhattan Rubber, Raybestos and General Asbestos--comprised the foundation of Raybestos-Manhattan. Inc. Prior to 1926 U.S. Asbestos sold "private brand" brake lining to almost any wholesaler who could purchase in ade quate quantity. Numerous branding wheels were carried in stock for product identification. In 1926 the company decided ii would be more advantageous to offer a full line of brake linings and clutch facings under its own brand name .and the "Grev-Rock" brand name was selected. A small sales organi zation was established under Sales Manager Paul Jones to sell Grey-Rock brake lining to stocking jobbers in almost all major marketing areas. Carl Sachs was Marketing Manager. The year 1929 saw the introduction of "Grey-Rock Eagle" brake lining, woven from pretreated yarns i an important improvement at that time). In 19.12 Franklin Miller look over as Sales Manager. Together, he and Carl Sachs built Grey-Rock into a major factor in the automotive after market. In June 19.12 S. R. Zimmerman. Jr., graduated from the Sheffield School at Yale University. In September he joined U.S. Asbestos Division as an engineer working in the mill and in the Development Laboratories. In 1937 he was ap pointed Assistant Sales Manager of the Original Equipment Department. In 194S he was appointed Director of Research for Friction Materials for the entire corporation. Mr. Zim merman was appointed Assistant General Manager of the U S. Asbestos Division in 195.1. Vice President of R/M in P'55 .and General Manager of the Division in 196S. He had been Executive Vice President of the corporation since 1961 and was elected Cliairman of the Board in April 1970. He retired as Cliairman effective January 1, 1971. Mr. Zimmer man is presently a Director of Kaybestos-Manhattan, Inc.. Raybestos-Manhattan (Canada) Ltd. and Cassiar Asbestos Corporation Ltd. During the early 1950`s General Electric Comjtany oper ated an insulated-wire plant in the neighboring town of York, Pennsylvania. Logically the U.S. Asbestos Co. furnished the major portion of the asbestos .requirements of this wire mill. The Plant Manager at the time was K. H. Lewis, i In later years Ed Lewis was President of Western Insulated Wire Company. Los Angeles. California.) He conceived the idea of insulating wire by carding asbestos directly on to the wire. This, of course, eliminated the two costly steps of producing asbestos roving and then serving the roving on to wire. E.d Lewis presented his idea to Web Luttenberger who devised the means to accomplish the desired results using a standard 50-inch asbestos card. It was immediately recognized this was a case of driving tacks with a sledge hammer. The next step was to take the little Davis & Eurber 10-inch wool sample card and convert it to a machine for carding asbestos directly on to wire. The refinement of these procedures resulted in the Lewis-Luitcnbergcr U.S. Patent #1.990.557, issued Febru ary 5. 1955. A corollary development was the manufacture of an asbestos lap to feed the small D&F card. Web Luttcnherger took 250-grain slivers from a standard 50-inch as bestos card and fed the slivers'through a Derby doubler. A broad ribbon of asbestos fiber was thus assembled hav ing any desired weight ranging from 750 to 5000 grains per yard. Over the years this became the standard method of appLing asbestos to wire. Practically every wire mill in the United States and Canada uses the Lewis-Luttenberger method of applying asbestos to wire. The importance of this fact goes far bevond the volume of busines- produced tor the asbestos textile manufacturers. This low-cost process helped defend asbestos as a wire insulation from the attempted in roads of competitive insulating materials. The lap process provides a low-cost means of utilizing the basic insulating i|iialities of asbestos fiber. Competing materials have not been .able to match these i|u;dities at comparable cost. The year 1956 saw the development of one of the com pany's most successful products and a major usage for as bestos cloth. The Yccl.ock clutch facing is mail? from frictioned asb-stos metallic cloth. The cloth is slit into narrow ribbons which in turn arc wound into pads having roughly the same inner and outer diameters as the finished clutch fac ing. A patented feature of the process (U.S. l'atent #2,096, 692. October 19. 1937) calls for creasing the ribljon as it is wound so as to provide a "Chevron" cross-section. The wound pad is then hot-pressed and finally surface-ground to its final dimensions. The interlocking Chevron construc tion provides a facing having exceptionally long wear and the greatest spin strength (burst strength) of any clutch facing construction. The U.S. Asbestos Division has furnished liter ally millions of VecUock dutch facings to automobile manu facturers and to the replacement trade during the past 30 tears. It is still one of K/M's major products. Xow to return to the story of U.S. Asbestos. The Kavhestos Company purchased General Asbestos & Rubber in 1921 in order to have an assured source of asbestos-metallic yarns. General also sold a full line of asbestos packing through jobbers under the Garco brand name. Similar lines of products were manufactured by the U.S. Asbestos Co. When Raybestos-Manhattan was formed in 1929 the two competing mills became a part of the same corporate family. Nevertheless, the competitive relationship was permitted to continue until 193S. In this year the Hoard of Directors de cided it would be more efficient to have one Sales Division to .veil asbestos textiles and asbestos packings for both mills. George \\`. Marshall. Jr., was ap]x>intcd General Manager of the Industrial Sales Division- In later years George Mar shall became a Vice 1'resident of the corporation. He served as the second President of the Asbestos Textile Institute in 1947 and 194S. The Industrial Sales Division proved highly successful right from the start. George Marshall soon recognized the need for additional help .and in January 1939 he hired Arthur W. Hyxbee as New S'urk District Manager. In September I'M] Art Hyxbee went to Washington. DC., to head the Asbestos Section of the Cork and ribmus Glass Division of the War Production Hoard. He served in this capacity until April 1942 when he was given a commission in the U.S. Air Force. After the war Captain Hyxbee returned to Manhcim a> Assistant Sales Manager of the Asbestos Textile Division. He served two terms as Chairman of the Sides Promotion Committee of ATI. Hy July 1939 George Marshall decided he needed a tex tile engineer to promote and develop the company's lull line of asbestos textile products. John A. Bettes. Jr., a graduate of the Philadelphia Textile Institute, was hired as Textile Sales Manager. Together he and Art Byxbce organized a team of specialty salesmen which led the industry in textile sales volume. Jack Bettes served as the seventh President of the Asbestos Textile Institute in 1957 and 195S. Ill health dictated his early retirement in 19(5(5. At that time he was Manager of the Asbestos Textile Division. In 1940 the Asbestos Textile Division issued the most comprehensive catalog of asbestos textile products ever pub lished by any member oi the industry. Jesse M. Weaver was the principal author of this volume, rellecting more than 50 years of experience in the industry. Jesse Weaver served sev eral terms as Chairman of the Technical Committee of ATI and was for many years a mainstay of the industry's trade association. In 1940 the U.S. Asbestos Division began marketing the line of "Pyrotcx" asbestos felts. These felts arc of a type commonly referred to in the textile industry as "non-woven." Pyrotcx felts are furnished in all of the ASTM Grades from Underwriters' up to anti including Grade AAAA. They have been used tor years as standard base materials by practically all manufacturers of high-pressure plastic laminates. Starting in 1954 a substantial new market was developed for Grade AAAA Pyrotcx felt. It was found to be an ideal material, in combination with heat resistant phenolic resin, for the mold ing of rocket and missile comjTohents. In 1941 John A. Brown. Jr., was loaned by Keasbey & Mattison to the Cork Asbestos and Fibrous Glass Division of the War Production Board. During this service lie was in dose association with Art Byxbce and with George Marshall. (George Marshall spent 2-3 days a week at his Washington office during the latter part of World War II.) In 1942 Jack Brown was given a commission in the U.S. Air Force and was assigned to personnel work in Washington. D.C. At the conclusion of the war. Major Brown was appointed Philadel phia District Manager of the Asbestos Textile & Packing Division of K/M. In 1952 lie was promoted to Assistant Sales Manager of the Asbestos Textile Division. When Jack Bettes retired in 1966 Jack Brown headed the Department as Sales Manager, lie is currently Product Manager for As bestos Textiles. U.S. Asbestos Division. Jack Brown served ATI as Chairman of the Sales Promotion Committee in 1965 and 1964 and a> President of the Institute in 1965 and 1966. February 4, 1944. was a proud day at Manhcim. On this day the Army-Xavy "E" (for Excellence) award was pre sented to the Division. At stated intervals the war record of each recipient of an Army-Xavy "E" was reviewed. If the record was unsatisfactory, the pennant was withdrawn ; if sat isfactory, a star was added to the flag. The U.S. Asbestos Division earned three additional stars during World War II. It will be of interest to our readers to know what war products won the foregoing recognition for the Division. Tex tile products included la]), roving and cable fillers used in shipboard cable. Several styles of Xavy lagging cloths were woven in substantial yardage. The f riction Materials Depart ment wove brake lining for passenger cars, jeeps and trucks. Heavy-duty woven brake blocks controlled the tracks of the famous Sherman tanks. The Packing Division furnished 101 different items used in a wide variety of war equipment in cluding highly special packings furnished to "The Manhattan Project." the code name for the then secret development of the atomic bomb. In 1947 Milton Q. Scowcroft graduated from the Textile School of the Rhode Island School of Design. He immedi ately joined the Asbestos Textile Division of R/M as a Xew England salesman under District Manager Phinias Otis fkiker. In 1958 Milt Scowcroft succeeded Phin Raker as Xew York and Xew England District Manager. In 19(36 he joined the head>|iiarlers staff as Assistant Sales Manager and in February I969 was promoted to Sales Manager of the Asbestos Textile Division. Milt Scowcroft served as Chair man of the Sales Promotion Committee of ATI in 1968 and lf,69 and is currently Vice President of the Institute and a member of the Hoard of (Inventors. By 1955 the Kevolitc Division of Atlas Powder Company bad been for many years a major R/M textile account. Man hcim made the asbestos pads which Kcvolite iii-tallcd on the rolls of ilalwork iroiicrs in commercial laundries. Xnrth Charleston wove ihe asbestos fabrics which Atlas rcsinaied and converted to mil covers. In 1955 R/M purchased the Revolite Division from Allas. William A. Michie continued to run the Division as Sales Manager. W. I. Mac Pall moved up to Sales Manager when Rill Michie retired in 1962. Promptly upon graduation from the Philadelphia College of Textiles .and Science in June 1955. Lewis C. Williams joined the L'.S. Asbestos Division as a textile technician. In May 1956 he was promoted to Textile Superintendent and in Get oler 1969 was transferred to Marshville, North Carolina, as Plant Superintendent of the newly-acquired asbestos tex tile manufacturing facility. He served as a member of the ATI Fiber Testing Committee from 1957 to 1963 and was Chairman of the Air Hygiene & Manufacturing Committee in 1964 and 1965. In 1959 Joseph I'. Vronski joined the laboratory staff at Manheim as Head of the Physics Section. Joe Wronski bad just completed three years with the Atomic Power Divi'ioii of Westinghouse Fleet ric Corporation. This was the Department created to develop the atomic reactor that powers tlu XAl'Tl I .I'S-type submarines. Joe Vronski served a> Chairman of the Fiber Testing Committee of ATI in 1965 and 1966. Until September 1970 the U.S. Asbestos Division was under the supervision of the then General Manager. Dr. F.ugcue P. Stcll. Doc Stetl graduated from Franklin & Marshall College in 1942 with a U.S. Degree in Chemistry. He was elected a member of Phi IJeta Kappa. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Pittsburgh in 1946. Dr. Stefl entered the employ of the Division as Head of the Chemistry Section of the Manheim laboratories under Director Robert L. Moore. In 1955 lie was promoted to Assistant Director of Research, in I960 to Assistant General Manager, and to General Man ager in 1967. He was elected a Vice President of the corpora tion in 196S and Group Vice President of Operations in 1970. The Division is currently under the direction of Kenneth A. Gainer. He joined the laboratory staff .at Manheim in 1949 as a chemical engineer. For many years Ken specialized in quality control. His expertise in this field materially con tributed to the successful manufacture of rocket and missile components, based on R/M Pyrotcx. the noil-woven asbestos felt. In 1966 lie was appointed Product Manager of Friction Materials. Promotions followed in rapid succession and in September 1970 Ken Gainer was named General Manager. In common with all members of the asbestos textile in dustry. the U.S. Asbestos Division manufactures products essential to the industrial economy. Most of these products are based on asbestos. In recent years the Division has broad ened its activities and is now heavily engaged in plastics, no tably lluorocarbons. The basic importance of these products to the overall industrial economy assures a steady growth in partnership with American industry.