The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-12-09
GLASS NOW MADE AT RIVER ROUGE
Ford Plant Is Marvel To Ex- perts-0ne Furnace In
 Operation

Glass is now being made at the Ford Motor company's plant at River Rouge and brings the company one step further in its program to con- trnl the manufacturers of practically everything entering into its prod ucts. With the new factory in op- eration the third and largest glass producing unit of the company comes into being and the Ford method of making glass, which Is 8 marvel to experts and which establishes an epoch in the industry, attains to higher and more efficient standards.
 One furnace is now operating in the Rogue factory, fires have been lighted under the second and the re- maining two, 1t is expected, will be going shortly after the first of the year. When the factory gets in full operation it will have an annual ca- pacity of more than 1o.000.000 square feet of glass.
 The company's glass plant at Glassmore, Pa, has an annual output of 100000 square feet while the smaller plant at Highland Park, started about four years ago as an experiment and where the Ford method of glass making was de- veloped, daily produces $500 square feet of glass.
 
 necessary to meet the manufacturing requirements of the company which at present call for more than 20,500,- GOO square feet of glass a year, due to the increased production of Ford cars and the constantly growing de- mand for enclosed types. Glass manufacture has been placed on a day and night continuous produc ton basis through the Ford process and as carried out in the new factory a River Rouge, 1t presents an indus trial accomplishment of vast im- Interesting to layman and expert alike.
 Every fifteen minutes $50 pounds of the mixture is fed into the furnace opening and these constant additions to. the fiery mass within permit never ending flow of motion glass from the mouth of the furnace at the opposite side.
 As It comes from the furnace, flowing like molasses from a tank, the molten glass Is caught up under a roller, spread out and sent on in a solid ribbon 400 feet long at rate of five feet, four inches ever minute.
 The molten glass leaves the furnace mouth at 2,150 degrees Fah- renheit. has cooled to 1000 degrees by tho time 1t passed under the roller and proceeds through long oven or lehr under lessenfng degrees of heat until it moves out at the end at TO degrees. There 1t is cut in lengths.
 The roller system. as devised by the Ford Motor company. gives 8 uniform thickness to tho glass. eliminates the so-called waves" and saves about 25 per cent in materials at the very sart as compared with other manufacture where great pots of motion glass ars lifted from the HurNaNA and poi1rAd on ont
 Polishing also Is on the Ford sys- tenn of continuous production and proceeds along g. direct route until the glass emerges highly polished.
 These grinding and polishing ma chimes were devised by Ford en- gineers and Ford products utilized in their construction. For instance, Ford car steering wheel connected with a Ford driving rod, which ex- tends to a Ford rear axle gear, reg ulates the polishing discs, which Is operated by Fordson tractor worm drive.
 Every step of Ford glass manu- facture is accompanied by the most exacting standards. All through the entire process from the careful se- letstion and preparation of ingredients until the glass emerges ready for in- stall ation in cars there is constant inspection to. see that every piece Is of the highest quality.