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FILE NAME Kent KNT DATE 0000 DOC KNT019 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION Report - The H & V Kent Story re) aa THE & - KENT STORY Research is the real economic life blood of industry today This is even more true of a State like Massachusetts , which is quietly undergoing a complete change in the character of its industry from heavy dependence on textile products to a more evenly divided economy . This change while of term character has been helpfully pushed along by the many accomplish- ments of its research laboratories Scores of new companies have been born in such industries as electronics atomic energy foods chemicals plastics metal working and its many facets gaper and others The refreshing story of progress and accomplishment in many of these firma has been for the most part untold but is slowly being brought to light One of the very gratifying results of research is that oftentimes the initial objectives lead one into completely unanticipated fields of develop- \ ment This has been more than true with one of the research projects of the Hollingsworth & Vose Company nationally known paper makers of East Walpole whose wartime research lead to the Standard Military Gas Mask Fil- ter later adapted to United Energy Commission requirements and straight from there to the filter tip of one of America's fastest growing : cigarettes Kents The real story of this amazing development began during World War II It isa dramatic tale of a wartime search for a new and more efficient gas mask filter for the military forces It was known that the existing gas masks would not be effective against extremely small particles of toxic dis- persions mich the enemy had available for use against our troops High priority was given to this research by the Army Navy and the National Defense _ Resources Committee As a result of the cooperative efforts of the ^ .D. Little Company Army Chemical Corps Naval Research Laboratory The Hollingsworth & IERADI JANUARYPROTECIVCONFIDETAL 7. 191ORDERPURSANT TO DATEO THE or THE & V - KENT STORY - 2 ey and " Vose Comparty others researchers came up in 1944 with a unique mineral fibre which when combined with other fibres in a paper produced an outstanding filter problem Later when the dust of purifying the air of minute radioactive - Commission in Atomic Energy plants and laboratories came up scien: particles material found the solution in this same amazing fibrous filter Ittists greatest again the was considered air cleansing advancement ever made and at the time The it was classified by the Military for security reasons current story concerning the commercial application of this unique Washington filter material to a cigarette filter really began in about 1950 about which time the material was nical papers covering the wartime declassified on development On reading one these types of of the techfilters President's which was presented at the Conference on Air Pollution Dr. Harris B. Parmele Director of Research of P. Lorillard Company contacted Hollingsworth & Vose officials to ascertain the feasibility of a joint development program for a tobacco smoke filter incorporating incorporating similar filter material Prior to this Dr. with the Navy's research work Harold on the W. Knudson new filter who had been associated during the early days of the war had come with Director Dr. Parmele the Hollingsworth & Vose Company found that Dr. Knudson and other as its Technical Hollingsworth & Vose been officials officials had already been waiting for the process to thinking along those same lines but be declassified by the Government had With this mutual interest established a joint program of further development was initiated in the Fall of 1950. The first results of the early testing of the original filter material were startling Based on the performance of a water sheet material such as made on a paper machine IERADI PROTECTIVCEONFIDETAL PROTECTIVE ORDER PURSANT TO DATED THE 00420759 00420759 00420759 00420759 00420759 00420759 5 00420759 KENT THE & ~~ -~ STORY - 3 a too , the filter was good It not only took out the tars and irritants common smoke smoke to tobacco but it took out the too In other words the filter to then effecient material as d the air smoke manufactured was too leaving only hot taking out 100 per cent hardly acceptable to a cigarette additaionn d smoker In to satis- addition the process did not lend itself mechanically commercial 7 factory mass production of a cigarette filter It was at this point that a research approach was made to an laid filter as contrasted to the original water filter Facilities at Lowell Technical Institute through its Research Founda- tion were engaged for initial were transferred to the McCard development Later pilot scale Textile Company at Bedford The operations results of this work indicated quickly that the researchers were on the development material right track and in July of 1951 the new was accepted by P. Loril- lard Company and plans were made ready by Hollingsworth & Vose Company officials for scale commercial production About this time it was decided that the new product being entirely different from Hollingsworth and using different raw materials equip- & Vose Company's regular products ment and personnel would not integrate well with Thus & V Specialties Co. Inc. a wholly standard paper subsidiary was production formed for this the purpose of manufacturing type of filter material Officers and Nicholson directors are Aubrey K. President Bruce G. Lennox Treasurer Walker Mark Hollingsworth Amor Hollingsworth Jr. and Guy W. Jr. Gen- Immediate plans Nichols Director eral Manager is Lorrel 3. , Technical is Dr. H.W. Knudson were made to construct a new building of approximately 6,000 square feet on the property of the Hollingsworth & Vose Company's West Groton Mill IERARDI JANURYPIREORTAECRDIIVCONFIDETAL 7 191ORDERPURSANT TO DATED THE 00420760 00420760 00420760 00420760 00420760 00420760 00420760 00420760 a THE H & V - KENT STORY- 4 Commercial Commercial shipments from the pilot plant operation in Bedford to Loril- lard's Jersey City plant began in February 1957. The following month the new cigarette the Kent named for Herbert K. Kent then President and now Chairman of the Board of P. Lorillard Company embodying a filter made with H & V's new material was announced in three major major American citi~ s New York Chicago Los Angeles , The introduction of the new cigarette was publicized with a big press luncheon at the Waldorf Astoria in New York Because micronic particles 0.2 of a micron or two ten thousandths of officials a millimeter are removed by the new filter material Lorillard coined the word Micronite for the filter Thus the Micronite Filter incor- porated in the Kent cigarette quickly distinguished the new filter cigarette _ from other competitive brands tional that within nine months public's H & V whose acceptance production of Kent was so sensahad since shifted from Bedford to the new plant at West Groton had increased its producing units from one to four and was now operating twenty hours per day six days a week In the meantime it became evident that the original building needed to be doubled in size in order to accomodate increased production and a new research laboratory In the meantime a major advertising campaign in both newspapers and magazines , topped by Lorillard's TV program The Web had pushed sales unbelievably from Lorillard received the day ground was New production requirements indicated broken for the new plant addition at West Groton that even this new the insufficient within a very capacity would be sole producer of the new filter material it short time was decided As H that it is would be unrise unrise to concentrate was at this point that a total major production in one building or location It decision had to be made Since Lorillard's IERADI JANURYPROTECIVCONFIDETAL 7 19 1 ORDER PURSANT TO DATED THE 00420761 00420761 00420761 00420761 00420761 00420761 00420761 00420761 . oe awe 20a k n tats 2 cate ed oe en PERSn Geet eelo on _ . fo orn . Fa . apne . Pro sere Cae . Bis . #2 Care x cPoewZOfee.rn te THE H & V- KENT STORY - S ve two major producing plants were in Jersey City and Louisville it might have been logical to locate the second manufacturing unit nearby one of these cities . However H & V officials wanted to stay in New England and prefer- ably Massachusetts Immediate steps were then taken to try to locate a suitable building that might be quicly adapted to this type of manufacture . Fortunately a textile property in the village of Cominsville in the town of Oxford formerly occupied by Comins & Company as a woolen mill was avail- able This plant contained 45,000 square feet of manufacturing space Pro- equipment duction - was set up in May 1953 and by January 1954 three pro- ducing units were operating twenty hours a day While all this was going on the cigarette industry was facing a major problem with the adverse publicity concerning the effects on health of ciga- rette smoking This of course effect the sales has given further impetus to the demand for filter regular^...ofgerettest regular^...ofgerettestregular^...ofgeretest type cigarettecsigarettes All to the advantage of & V whose filter material pro- duction has continued to increase as Kent sales have increased Current production from both plants is being shipped at the rate five full freight cars and thirty trailer truckloads per month going to Lorillard's Jersey City and Louisville plants The production of this new product has meant additional sales to many New England equipment manufacturers Basic production units included modi- modi- fied Lowell and Whiting Machine taxtile equipment In addition humi- ank 66.204 66.204 humi- dity control equipment by Cramer Co. of Fitchburg dush collacting | control equipment by Turner & Haws Engineering Co. of West Roxbury vacuum stripping equipment by Abington Textile Machine Works of Boston and Abington duct work by Fitchburg Sheet Metal and special card clothing by Howard Bros. Mfg Co. of Worcester has been installed IERADI JANUARYPROTECIVCONFIDETAL 7 191ORDERPURSANT TO DATED THE 04276  or . THE &V - KENT STORY 6 popular Kent What makes the cigarette so keep composition Both H & V and Lorillard officials the exact i that material a closely guarded secret But it is known filter. selected fibres carefully of a blended mixture of specially textile of the it consists , together a with highly refined mineral fibre When bondeder supported by crepe paper the officials , new do not Thus According makes the cigarette filter combination to company the current competitive brands of filter cigarettes , old or of Kents on tar and nicotine removal equal the performance research has spawned another new industry adding further to the industrial economy of Massachusetts Other new products may come from this since Hollingsworth & Vose Company and H & V Specialties Co. development and several foreign Inc. has filed patent applications in the United States countries covering the basic filter material 7 IERARDI IERARDI PROTECIVIERARDI JANURY CONFIDETAL 7 1991 ORDER PURSANT TO DATED THE 0420763 oe amet mm eg ce emetaa tre verano s ots tal sacar nee Ores Save aNawtlne So apelew overt taney 9 a oe Sink lie Te