Imperial Valley press., 1926-07-28
yJffice Boy Who Came Through the aps..
'E{a,vse Pipe" to Vice-Presidency
II, F Albright Recognized
as q Pios:Aer in Scientific
Factory Planning

When the Western Electric Corr
pany's kearry Works in New jersey
bcCir. the l.1aGtact1re ot tclcpnCre
apparatus rcN. week i ell. at the
s;,;Ic time pay tribute to the rnei""Jy
OF the .lIn who planned ITS construc-
ton and VINO hal tie Vision to lore
SO, some years III advance, the posi-
biyties for the vast development which
is just beginning to take place
He va, the ,ate Henry Fleetwood
Albright, who died recently in New
York. a pioneer III sCieiltihc factory
planning and also one OF the most col
O-iu personalities in the last two or
t.,rce decades OF American industrial
,s.r 1t was he, also, who was chiefly
responsible Tor construction OF the
,reatest telephone manufacturing plant
:. the world, the Western Elcctric's :
Hawthorne Works in Chicago.
Began as Ofhce Boy
Mr.. Albright's story is typical Of
american business. He began as an
c.flce boy with the Union Pacific Rail-
;3ad When he died he was Vice
President OF the Western Electric
Company in charge OF all nanuiac-
turing He was a pioneer in many
Things but his fame is chiefly that OF
a builder the vast Hawthorne plant
is his monument Twenty years in
advance he planned it with such un-
canny foresight that his plans have
been followed almost without change
at any importance throughout the
years Of construction. Today many
OF his theories on ptant building are
being practiced throughout the coun-
try.
He was the first to install hot
water heating system in an industrial
building. an innovation which saved
thousands OF dollars and was imme-
,:ately adopted tor other iSctories.
A Simple Solution
MIR. Albright was one of the first to
believe in the scientific development
OF manufacturing processes. and the
story of one OF his earliest revolu-
tons in this respect is characteristic
OF the haphazard methods OF the times.
Years ago. when part OF the telephone
Instrument was nickel-plated and when
toreIncn carried formulas in their
heads. there was trouble for several
days with the quality of the nickel
..latlng. Suddenly the trouble disap-
7earcd for no known reason Al
bright questioned the foreman
oh, just threw plug of tobacco
- the solution and that fixed it" said
l!ir foreman.
Maybe it did" said Albright. skcp-
t;-.lly, but l think we'd better find
o.t the real reason" and he put An
elg.cer TO work studying chemical
reactions involved in the process. This
Was the beginning OF what has since
become, perhaps. the greatest group
OF engineers o: manufacture. special
.ljng on improved processes, machines
AID methods of work.
Mr.. Albright was builder of men
AS we'll as plants. lie had worked his
own way with nothing more than d
h;gh school education, and he admired
Ten who were sclf-made and self
educated. Through bis interest :r
shipping he picked up many nautical
terms which he was fond OF using
One of his favortes was: "He came
through a hawse pipe" referring to a
man who had worked his way up from
she bottom. 1t was his boast that
every man on his staff had come
through hawse pipe"
Believed in Piece Work
Ne was a great believer in piece
&.,rk on the ground that a man who