Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-04-09

l'who were taken on a tour of the
plants by the War Production
Board. In every production center
there was the hustle and hustle OF
accomplishment.
ALL HARD AT WORK
Men and women were at work
by the thousands and at the end
of the assembly lines the finished
product was rolling off in num-
bcrS satisfactory even TO the army
and navy ordnance officers,
charged with watching it and
speeding it up
Conversion" is no longer heard
in the plants.
THAT Is an Old-fashiOned
word" said one works manager.
Conversion Is Over-we're I'm
production and ahead of sched-
ule."
The first stop on the tour was a
company that once made auto
bodies. In July, 1910, one Of the
top executives and his family
watched a circus performance on
the same spot where in July 1941,
bomber parts were in construction
in a building which had been
started the previous November.
There are now 1000 employees
working on four different types of
aircraft production. They are being
added 10 daily and the peak will
be reached later in the year.
WORK SIDE BY =
Men and women arc rking
side by side. Nearly so per cent
of the women worked for the same
company previously, mainly in the
sewing room.
ION many operations we find
women more satisfactory than
men," the personnel chief stated.
There Is definitely a place for
them In aircraft production. We
expect that soon there will be as
many women as men employed
in our shops. Later-well, they
will Outnumber the men,"
The problem of personnel is a
big one in that plant. They are
training 1850 at time in their
schools and looking for more.
VISIT NEW GUN PLANT
The next stop was the plant
where the Bofors gun is being
assembled. Nine other plants are
feeding in parts and two assembly
lines are working like beavers to
make them into the most danger
Gus of anti-aircraft guns.
One line is for the navy, the
other the army. The only differ
ence is that the navy's is air.
cooled. The men are highly trained,
skilled and work deftly and the
results of their labors are evident.
''We're ahead of the parts
manufacture" said the works
manager here. "We're putting
the guns together as fast as we
get the parts. We have the
capacity for more IL necessary.
These guns will see real action"
FINE EXAMPLE OFFERED
In this plant is a good example
OF how the automobile industry
effectively transferred its man.
ufacturing methods.
1.-THE Bofors was q handmade
Job i'm Europe" said the works
manager of the plant. But we
took IL and made line produce
ton methods possible. BY ac-
curate machining, we eliminated
the hand-fitting and now IL goes
down the assembly line like our
automobiles did"
The Detroit navy arsenal is an
other bright spot in the picture.
Capt. A. S. Wotherspoon, inspec-
tor Of ordnance in charge of the
Centerline plant. which covers 135
acres and cost $2S, 100000, beams
as he walks between the rows of
machines, producing parts for the
famed Oerlikon anti-aircraft gun.
''We're not only producing the
antl-aircraft weapons ahead of
schedule and constantly stepping
up" sta e d Captain Wother-
spoon, "but we're acting as
backstop for the Washington
navy shop, making parts they
want. Our machines are busy all
the time and we're turning out
the stuff"