A NEW INDUSTRY.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20233, 17 February 1934, Page 15

A NEW INDUSTRY.

Dry Cells Manufactured in Christchurch. The dry battery is the Aladdin’s lamp of modern civilisation. Switch on an electric torch . . . ring up a friend pn the telephone . . . summon an office boy with a bell . . . and the hidden cells in their cardboard case do the wor,k faithfully and well. But the performance of these modern miracles requires more than the pressing of a button or the clicking of a switch. In factories all over the world, men and machines have had to work in order that telephones might ring, and bells might buzz. Irf the past, New Zealand has had to depend upon Great Britain, America and other foreign countries for supplies of dry batteries. But spon New Zealanders may expect to see none but New Zealand-made batteries doing the work which was once done by the imported article. Already, from the first battery factory in the Dominion, supplies of dry batteries are going forth to every part of the country. Recently, the New Zealand Dry Cell and Battery Co., Ltd., opened its factory in Tuam Street for the manufacture of every type of primary battery. Fitted with the latest and best type of machinery for the purpose, the factory can supply a greater part of the needs of New Zealand. To-day, the demand for its products is exceeding the supply, and the company has decided to extend its premises. Since commencing business recently, the staff has grown to over seventy persons exclusively engaged in the manufacture of dry cells. More workers will be engaged, thus diminishing the ranks of the unemployed. The products of the factory are quite equal to any imported batteries, for the factory manager, Mr E. Hibou, has had twenty-seven years’ practical experience in the organising and manufacturing of dry cells. His British and Continental experience has proved invaluable in laying out the factory. He had to train all the operatives, since this class of work has never been done in the Dominion before. The results he has achieved are a credit to his knowledge, and the enterprise of the firm which employs him. A Fascinating Industry. An inspection of the factory, which was undertaken by a “ Star ” reporter, under the guidance of Mr Hibou, is a wonderful experience, for the manufacture of dry batteries is one of the most fascinating of all modern industries. Everywhere there is machinery of ingenious design, which performs the most incredible feats, while the various processes through which the dry cell passes are absorbingly interesting. The “ inside ” of a dry cell—the active material moulded to cylindrical form around the central carbon electrode—first takes shape in the mixing department. Dry cell manufacturers have christened this portion of the cell a “ dolly.” and although the term is not scientific, it serves its purpose. “ Dollies ” begin as carbon rods and manganese dioxide and graphite. A pressing machine, ever hungry, digests ingredients and carbon rod at an almost incredible rate—and the completed ” dollies ” pour out rapidly on to a moving belt. From the pressing machine the “ dollies ” pass to the wrapping department, where they are seized by nimble-finger-ed girls, who wrap them in muslin, wind them in string, and send them on for the next process. Each girl can r dT> approximately 1400 “ dollies ” ‘a day, JLut i n the factory there is a m

marvellous machine, which needs only to be fed with string and muslin to wrap six or seven thousand a day with unfailing regularity, and complete efficiency. While the “ dollies ” are being w rapped, other operatives prepare the zinc cans so familiar to anyone who has- stripped the covering from a torch battery. Every precaution is taken to maintain the utmost efficiency, and each of these thousands of cans is tested for any possible faulty workmanship. Packed in a wire frame, they are placed over powerful electric lights, which detect unerringly the tiniest hole in the bottom, where the soldering iron may have missed. Working in the dark room, the forewoman turns each defective can over to be repaired later. While the cans are being made, the “ dollies ” are “ cooked ” in a liquid, the composition of which is a factory secret. Before soaking in the liquid, each “ dolly ” is capped with the small brass cap, which is dipped into boiling wax to prevent corrosion. After each “ dolly ” has been placed in its container, an electrolyte consisting of a white liquid is poured in. The cans are stood in hot water for two minutes, until the electrolyte hardens. An Amazing Machine. For high tension batteries, the cells must be connected together, and this work is done by another machine, -which is perhaps the most amazing one amongst all the machinery installed in the factory. A coil of thin wire runs through a bath of flux, and then through molten solder, connecting at the right moment with the edge of each cell as it travels past on an endless belt. Automatically, the wire is snipped into short lengths, and a metal finger turns it over. Cell after cell, at the rate of 50,000 a day, roll out from this miracle of modern machinery. Every battery is rigidly tested before it leaves the factory. In the laboratory, the cells are tested separately to ensure that their standard of efficiency is as high as possible. All the raw materials are also chemically tested before use, so that the factory will turn out a perfect and standardised product. After examination the batteries go to the packing department, where they are wrapped and packed ready for carriage to any part of New Zealand. Working conditions for the men and women who carry out the varied operations involved in the manufacture of a modern dry battery ark very good. All the machinery is safeguarded, and there is absolutely no risk of accident, while the work is not injurious to health, since no harmful materials are used. A continuous supply of hot water and all necessary accommodation are provided for the workers, who appeared to be a contented family. The batteries are now being sold under the name of Vulcan dry cells. The whole of the capital cf the company was subscribed locally. 6