The Wilmington morning star., 1941-01-16
y Washington Daybook
by LACK STINNETT

WASHINGTON, Jan. 15.-The foreman of a
huge airplane factory walks through the shop,
tapping this man and that on the shoulder.
"As part of the defense program he says,
we're having a camouflage drill. Get up
on the roof and play a round of golf"
Sounds silly, doesn't it? But take the word
of a group of Pittsburgh steel firm officials
here to discuss plant construction possibilities
with the National Defense Commission, some
thing like that can happen in a few months in
Texas. Here's how:
Work already has started at Hensley field,
near Dallas, according to J. Gordon Trumbun,
steel company engineer, on a 20-acre, all
blackout, camouflag ed plant for h North
American Aviation Co. Construction plans call
for a dummy golf course on the 20-acre roof.
And what could make the camouflage SO eff
fective as having a couple of foursomes ap-
parent]y clubbing around in case enemy scout
ing planes were out searching for possible OBJ
~jectives.
WITHOUT WINDOWS
Walls of the plant are to be pre-fabricated,
corrugated, splinter-proof steel. There will
not be a window in the building. Exits and
entrances will have double doors, like storm
doors, so that under no circumstances can
light escape from the building. Inside the
corrugations of the walls will run the tubing
for air-conditioning and wires for fluorescent
lights which will illuminate the interior night
and day.
The plant is the second structure built along
these lines by the Pittsburgh firm, the other
being the Allison airplane engine plant at In
dianapolis. The company also has a number of
plants in Liverpool, England, where the struc-
lures have been tested under actual war con-
ditions.
According to cabled reports from London,
one of the chief benefits to the building under
bomb-fire is that when direct or close hits
blow out the walls, damaged sections can be
replaced almost instantly.
SEE CONSTRUCTION record
The Texas plant, officials say, will be COM
pleted in 1O5 days from the time work started,
believed to be a record for construction of a
factory of such size.
The Dallas plant is just another step in the
use of pre-fabricated steel in the defense pro-
gram. At Quantico, Va, the Marine Corps
base, 100 enlisted men and their families soon
will be occupying the first defense housing pro-
gram homes built> of pre-fabricated, welded
steel panels.
The same construction is being used in 100
twelve-family apartment Units for shipyard
employees at Newport News, Va.
These houses are demountable under roofs
Of sheet steel panels and, except for outer
sidewalks of asbestos shingles over insulation
board sheathing, are completely of steel. In
the case of the Quantico two-family units, ten
men working eight hours can get one ready
for occupancy in a single day. Each side OF
the 48-by-28-foot buildings contains a living
room, combination kitchen and dinette, two
bedrooms and a bath.
ALL CAN BE MOVED
All of these buildings are demountable and
could be knocked Town and transferred to
other communities with little loss of time.
The Defense Commission has under consld-
Grafton still a third pre-fabricated steel hous-
ing program, the designer of which claims ne
can house 700, 900 persons in six months. l