The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1906-06-27
NEW INDUSTRY IS
RUNNING FULL BLAST
CAN FACTORY is TURNING OUT
ABOUT 10000 CANS A DAY FOR
THE PINEAPPLE CROP.

Hawaii can now feel Independent to-
wards the rest of the world in the mat
ter of the can industry for the Ameri-
can Can Company in it's local plant is
turning out something over 10000 cans
a day into which the pineapple crop of
the islands is speedily disappearing.
While the factory is not running at
full blast and is not beginning to turn
out anywhere near its full capacity, it
presents a very busy scene with the
various machines running and the so
people employed all intent on some diff
ferent duty as part Of a huge can
making plant, amid the din and con-
fusion of the factory.
1t is an interesting sight to watch
strip of tin start in at one end of
long route and go through the various
machines and come out at the other
end a completely finished can ready to
receive the fruit which it is to contain.
First the large sheets of tin are cut
up into the right sized strips in order to
be made into the body o. the can. Then
these strips are fed into a machine
I
the strip is rounded and creased to-
gether in a cylinder. 1t then passes on
through a carrier and is soldered along
the side. Then to the machine where
the bottom is applied and clamped on
by a machine with almost human intel
ligence. Then the can rolls along a
trough in the bottom of which is a
stream of melted solder where the bot
tom is sodered on.
The can now comes to machine
which is only used by the American
Can Company. 1t is called a wiping
machine for as the cans roll through it
they are wiped dry of all the unneces-
sary solder and are turned out clean
| By the use of this wiping machine
about one-third of the solder is saved
and can be used again, a large item
where 20, 900 cans are soldered each day
! After the can has been made they are
! tested by a machine to see whether
/ they are air-tight or not. They are
! clamped onto a machine and submerg-
! ed into a tub of water and then COM
| pressed air is put into the can. If
| bubbles show then the can is sent back
to be resoldered. So fine Il point has
this machine been reduced to that only
one person is required to do the test
ing, and all that he has to do is to
watch for bubbles and turn a lever
which causes the can to be thrown out
or if good to be carried to the packers
where the finished cans are paked and
Grated ready for shipment to the pine
apple factory.
The factory here is in the charge Of
! Superintendent d. d. Rainny who has
been with the American Can Company
for a number of years.
I'VE are not running full blast as
| yet" said Mr. Rainny this morning,
for we had to hurry very fast to get
started at all. We are only turning
| out 10000 cans when we should be
/ turning out nearer 10000 a day. The
people we employ are all new at the
! business, although they do remarkably
well, for having had no experience.
Next season we shall be doing much
! better.
After the company decided to come
| here and start operations it was one
! continuous rush from that time until
now. We have not our machines all in
! the right place and we have not had
time to get things cleared out of our
way in the factory. But next year we
will make cans on large scale and in
the way they do on the coast