Aluminum on the March (1956)

Description:

Live location photography, stop-motion and special effects chronicle an industry that contributes to everyday living and national defense. The documentary opens in the mile-high bauxite mines of Jamaica, from which the bauxite ore is conveyed over an aerial tramway to waiting ships, then carried to a factory. At the factory, the ore is digested, settled, washed and "unlocked" from the earth. Emerging as a snow-white powder, the "alumina" is used for soil conditioning, as an abrasive and for conversion to solid sluminum at reduction plants through the electrolytic process. To vivify the versatility and flexibility of the metal, the film employs "marching" ingots, blooms, billets and extruded shapes.
Rapidly, the film pictures aluminum applications in car styling, home appliances, packaging, "Reynolds Wrap" for cooking and preserving, as a "do-it-yourself" material, and as the key metal in jet airplanes, Diesel engines, buses and heavy industries. The ease with which aluminum can be handled is demonstrated in a sequence showing a farmer using it for siding and insulation and to irrigate a field. The piping in this scene is shown to be highly portable, being moved in sections by one person.
In a "pageant of packaging" the film presents row on row of familiar brands parading in step to stirring martial music, against a background of brilliant colors. ALUMINUM ON THE MARCH concludes that more products will join the parade, that this definitely is not "The End." [Business Screen 17:8, 1956]

We digitized and uploaded this film on behalf of the Prelinger Archives. Email us at footage@avgeeks.com if you have questions about the footage and are interested in using it in your project.

Complete Record: Live location photography, stop-motion and special effects chronicle an industry that contributes to everyday living and national defense. The documentary opens in the mile-high bauxite mines of Jamaica, from which the bauxite ore is conveyed over an aerial tramway to waiting ships, then carried to a factory. At the factory, the ore is digested, settled, washed and "unlocked" from the earth. Emerging as a snow-white powder, the "alumina" is used for soil conditioning, as an abrasive and for conversion to solid sluminum at reduction plants through the electrolytic process. To vivify the versatility and flexibility of the metal, the film employs "marching" ingots, blooms, billets and extruded shapes. Rapidly, the film pictures aluminum applications in car styling, home appliances, packaging, "Reynolds Wrap" for cooking and preserving, as a "do-it-yourself" material, and as the key metal in jet airplanes, Diesel engines, buses and heavy industries. The ease with which aluminum can be handled is demonstrated in a sequence showing a farmer using it for siding and insulation and to irrigate a field. The piping in this scene is shown to be highly portable, being moved in sections by one person. In a "pageant of packaging" the film presents row on row of familiar brands parading in step to stirring martial music, against a background of brilliant colors. ALUMINUM ON THE MARCH concludes that more products will join the parade, that this definitely is not "The End." [Business Screen 17:8, 1956] We digitized and uploaded this film on behalf of the Prelinger Archives. Email us at footage@avgeeks.com if you have questions about the footage and are interested in using it in your project.

Transcription

[Music] you [Music] this is aluminum aluminum for for our Industries and aluminum for our homes aluminum for building for transportation for communication for agriculture and for National Defense what is it that has made aluminum one of the youngest members in the family of metals such an outstanding material the answer lies in its amazing versatility and unusual combination of properties it's smart modern appearance in a variety of natural or colored finishes it's great strength combined with extreme lightweight an outstanding advantage in almost every metal application it's high electrical conductivity with aluminum leading all other metals in a pound-for-pound comparison it's immunity to all kinds of weather without rust or corrosion its Superior light and heat reflectivity for aluminum brilliantly outshines all other uncoated metals aluminum excels most other metals in its ability to conduct heat quickly and [Music] evenly [Music] one of the most amazing things about this most remarkable metal is its tremendous abundance as a raw [Music] material in America the richest of these commercial grade aluminum deposits are located in the central region of Arkansas although traces of aluminum may be found in almost any any soil only those Clays containing 50 or 60% aluminum ore and known as boite are mined for commercial production and here one of the foremost producers of aluminum derives much of its ore for the reduction plants in order to ensure a constant and uninterrupted supply of this raw material Reynolds some years ago pioneered the development of extensive aluminum ore deposits in Haiti and Jamaica these deposits along with mining operations in British Guana constitute the world's largest known aluminum ore reserves representing a vital backlog of strategic material for consumer goods and defense production on the island of Jamaica alone more than 50,000 acres are owned by Reynolds for the mining of aluminum ore as the boite deposits are mined out Reynolds resoil and restores the pits to crop grazing or Forest land for the Jamaicans use mining of aluminum ore in Jamaica is primarily a huge Earth moving operation and for the Islanders the mines have meant new jobs and a Sounder economy after leaving the mines the aluminum or travels on a breathtaking Journey over 6 miles of aerial Tramway to the [Applause] [Music] Sea [Music] [Music] we at oos Rios Bay The boite Ore is loaded aboard a modern ore carrier for its trip to the mainland where the next phase of its transformation to metal begins among this Maze of giant digestors settlers and washers all the skill and Ingenuity of modern chemical engineering combined to provide the first step in unlocking aluminum from the earth the chemical process reaches its climax in these huge tanks where alumina is precipitated out of the ore in CTIC solution later the water content is driven off by baking in giant rotary kills resulting in this pure snow white powder known as alumina an ever increasing amount of this alumina is being used in chemical processing in soil conditioners in abrasives and many other applications in order to reduce the alumina to solid aluminum it is transferred to one of a number of reduction plants and converted to metallic form in giant electrolytic cells these plants consume electrical power in tremendous quantities enough to supply the daily needs of 1 million people about 1/3 of the required electricity is generated at Reynolds plants and the rest is purchased from outside sour es over 20,000 kwatt hours of electricity will pass through the cell to produce one ton of [Music] aluminum in the most modern operation some of the molten aluminum is transferred directly to a customer's adjacent Foundry where it is poured hot into the customer's holding furnace before [Music] casting back at the Reynolds plant as the molten metal is cast aluminum begins to take recognizable shape and [Music] form after casting the pigs are alloyed with small amounts of other metals to give them the right combination of properties from the alloying furnace aluminum now marches forth in the shape of ingots blooms and billets each death CED for a specific fabricating [Music] sequence reducing 6,000 lb ingots into aluminum sheet requires giant Machinery Plus Great technical skill and [Music] experience [Music] n [Music] After Rolling the coil sheet is ready for shipment to thousands of Fabricators who will reshape it into 100,000 useful things from washing machines to airplane wings the fabricating Service as its name implies is a service to manufacturers providing them with a great variety of blanked formed and precision finished Parts ready for [Music] assembly [Music] [Music] a [Music] here Under One Roof is found the most modern equipment many costly but necessary facilities often beyond the reach of the average fabricator are made available through this service including press equipment capable of handling the largest aluminum draws ever made plus a Workforce of skilled Specialists with long experience in high-speed Precision fabrication with imagination and daring the fabricating service tackles the most difficult production assignments such as this patented tubed sheet a solid aluminum sheet with self-contained passages for liquid or gas the tubed sheet is now in common use as in this refrigeration unit and has unlimited possibilities in all types of heat transfer applications still another contribution of the fabricating service are the all aluminum truck and body parts assembled for the leading truck and trailer [Music] companies because aluminum will not rust these parts will not need painting and neither will these aluminum gutters and down spouts aluminum buildings are easily constructed requiring a minimum amount of Maintenance and upkeep self-insulated against both heat and cold aluminum sheet provides greater protection for every type of outdoor use from industrial buildings large and small to the most modern residence lightweight strength and the versatility of aluminum make possible higher payloads in all commercial vehicles from Highway trailers to Modern smart-looking delivery trucks aluminum adds Beauty and flexibility of design to lightweight Highway homes and Ultra Modern buses in National Defense as in many other fields aluminum is everywhere in the air on the ground and on the sea versatile aluminum serves our fighting men in today's architecture aluminum has become synonymous with modern design not only in new buildings but to facelift dingy old exteriors and transform them into colorful new fronts in tune with the times the use of aluminum is equally effective inside as well as out from table lamp to acoustical ceiling aluminum contributes that decorative modern touch to office and home because aluminum reflects up to 95% of all radiant heat and effectively stops moisture it finds extensive use in all types of insulation these same reflective qualities add extra efficiency to aluminum heating and air conditioning ducts in the field of home appliances for decorative as well as functional uses aluminum has no equal rust proof and corrosion resistant it helps keep cleaning and maintenance at a minimum add the advantages of low cost lightweight workability and multicolored Beauty and it's easy to see why more and more aluminum is being designed into every type of modern Appliance and to help manufacturers achieve the highest quality aluminum products the Reynolds Metals company maintains a full-time aluminum styling and design [Music] section aluminum foil which is merely sheet aluminum rolled extremely thin is welcomed in the American Home in ever growing qualities as a convenience of a,1 practical uses for even the thinnest aluminum retains all the advantages of this amazing [Applause] [Music] [Applause] metal [Music] [Music] the [Music] [Applause] it conducts cold to speed up freezing and distributes heat evenly while cooking and whether in the refrigerator in the oven or on the barbecue grill aluminum foil keeps foods from drying out while sealing in all their natural [Music] flavor aluminum foil may be produced hard or soft finished bright or dull and cut into strips fine enough to make non-tarnishing aluminum yarn which adds Sparkle luster The Gleam of Glamour to mady's gowns the Fabrics in her home and the upolstery of the latest [Music] automobiles versatile aluminum foil when used for packaging or advertising May be laminated to paper or cardboard and printed on high-speed presses in as many as seven colors adding great eye appeal to packages and reader interest to National advertising customer after customer is drawn by the bright shiny colors and the reflective beauty of aluminum foil announcing the product and aside from beauty aluminum foil serves the public in many other ways [Music] on the store shelves All Over America Reynolds foil packaging and labels possess unequal selling and protection [Music] Magic it keeps things like tobacco or chewing gum moist and dehydrated soups dry it preserves the crispness of potato chips and the softness of prunes it seals flavor in and keeps harmful light rays out it provides extra convenience in the form of oneway containers which can be used right in the oven such as delicious Ready Mixed cakes ready to serve frozen pies and complete dinners which only need Heating and are ready to serve all made possible with lightweight heat conducting aluminum containers only foil offers so much Beauty and Merchandising [Music] value [Music] only foil offers such perfect product protection to pass on the extensive knowledge gained through its long experience in working with foil Reynolds maintains a full-time staff of packaging design [Music] experts in power form aluminum provides the kick for our fourth of July fireworks and also adds extra power to Military and Commercial explosives in this form another unusual property of aluminum appears suspended in a paint vehicle the powdered particles float to the surface and form a continuous layer of aluminum over the area being covered this aluminum Shield provides protection from weather and reflects light and heat almost as effectively as a solid sheet of aluminum another wide use of aluminum pigments is in the unusual metallic effects obtained in today's modern polychromatic [Music] finishes the parade of billets and blooms continues uninterrupted to still another conver I Mill Extrusion is accomplished by slowly squeezing the heated Billet under thousands of tons of pressure out through a die [Music] opening [Music] [Music] la [Music] the variety of designs and patterns which can be extruded are practically unlimited restricted only by the skill of the designer and the requirements of the end product extruded Bridge railings and light standards need no painting or costly repairs and aluminum is light enough to make possible an oil drilling rig which can travel on the highways and set up ready for drilling in a matter of hours high strength lightweight aluminum pipe the perfect answer to many irrigation [Music] problems many of the shapes in the do-it-yourself rack are extruded sections from which a tremendous variety of useful items can be assembled with ordinary household [Applause] [Music] [Applause] tools aluminum extrusions because of their versatility and ease of fabrication have opened countless new possibilities for light metal application to help manufacturers take full advantage of aluminum's amazing properties the Reynolds engineering service along with the styling and design section provides C customers with better and newer ways of using aluminum thus helping to solve many difficult fabrication problems aluminum now reaches the processing stage at the rod and bar [Music] Mill aluminum bars are fed through smaller and smaller roller openings until small enough to be used for forging stock and screw machine products the smaller aluminum rod is again reduced in dimension and then pulled at high speeds through a series of dyes to produce aluminum wire of all [Music] [Music] sizes some of this wire is used in the production of screens Nails rivets and machine bolts these intricate machines wind still more of it into heavyduty transmission [Music] cable aluminum's High electrical conductivity combined with its lightweight results in longer spans with lower power loss than any other metal so convincing are the advantages of aluminum cable that it's used in the majority of modern high voltage systems throughout the world these same advantages serve to reduce weight and lower costs in thousands of applications for low voltage Distributing systems and other electrical uses in the Auto industry other metals are giving way to aluminum in mechanical units and parts as new decorative styling features in Gold anodized aluminum with aluminum's lightweight resistance to corrosion and many color anodizing possibilities decorative and functional trim of today's cars is being supplied in ever increasing quantities by bright colorful aluminum aluminum window treatments and color anodized wheel covers and grills interior and exterior trim these are only a few of the many automobile parts now being designed in aluminum and in the production of mechanical parts of all kinds Pistons torque converters transmission housings and other mechanical Parts aluminum has become the standard of the industry today aluminum provides us with better and safer transportation in the air on the Seas and on the land in transportation as in every field of Industry aluminum contributes to our continued progress in the form of pig and Ingot sheet rod and Extrusion foil Building Products industrial shapes and parts for home appliances aluminum flows in an uninterrupted stream aluminum is transformed into a 100,000 useful things from the most delicate and decorative to the most formidable and functional like these gleaming Highway Giants from convenient kitchen containers to home insulation refrigerators and farm buildings automobile parts and rentals wrap building materials and Home Appliances outdoor furniture and magazine advertising High fashion dresses and engine components electrical cable and packaging material Bridge railings irrigation pipe and an endless variety of do-it-yourself material only a few of the things in the almost endless procession that makes up aluminum on the March and this NeverEnding of aluminum continues an Ever growing parade supplying the thousands of Parts which form the products of today and the better products of [Music] tomorrow


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