Oliver Mirror September 1950

Description:	An employee newsletter. theOLIVER MIRRORVOLUME 2, No. 8 SEPTEMBER, 1950H. F. DONAGHER D. A. HIMESD. A. Himes Retirement Announced;Un . rr . 11-u·n·-u-9Ln:..r- ~n1·u-r-m-:uJ r A·-f o1-f n•• u-n-u-!J-C...I..CHICAGO, ILL.-The retirement ofD . A. Himes, manager of theexport division of The OLIVER Corporationfor more than 35 years,and a veteran of 47 years of servicewith the company, was announcedSeptember 26 by MerleS. Tucker, OLIVER vice presidentin charge of distribution. At thesame time, Mr. Tucker named H.F . Donagher, a member of the organizationsince 1925, and assistantmanager of the export divisionfor the past five years, tosucceed Mr. Himes.Mr. Himes first entered the employmentof the OLIVER ChilledPlow Works, predecessor of thepresent OLIVER Corporation, in 1903at South Bend, Indiana. Within 12years, he had progressed to theposition of export manager, and hesucceeded to this position for theentire corporation in 1929 at thetime of the merger with HartParr, Amer ican Seeding Machine,and Nichols & Shepard.Under his direction at SouthBend, the name OLIVER came tomean plow throughout the world,and OLIVER iron cut and turnedmillions of acres which had neverbefore yielded food for man. Later,in Chicago, directing the internationaldistribution of the largercompanys more varied products,he was responsible for the expandedapplication of farm andindustrial machinery in manyparts of the world. A number ofexecutives in other departmentsof the company were trained andguided by Mr. Himes.During his extensive career, Mr.Himes has served on numerousindustry advisory boards, and hasacted as consultant and advisor tohis own, and other governments,in matters relating to export andto the farm machinery field.Mr. Donagher, 49, joined OLIVERat South Bend in 1925. He becameactive in the export division of thecompany shortly thereafter, andbegan a career in South Americawhere he represented OLIVER inmany countries for a period of 20years. He was called back fromSouth America in 1945 to assumea position in the central office exportdivision. Since that time, asassistant export manager, he hastraveled widely in Europe, Africa,and the Americas. In his new capacity,as head of the division, hewill be responsible for the continueddevelopment of OLIVERSbusiness with the people of thefree world in which more than100 distributors handle the OLIVERline in 75 different countries.All PLANTS JOININ SAFETY RECORDCHICAGO, ILL.-The seven plantsof the OLIVER Corpor ation joinedtogether during the months ofJune, July and August, to establisha new record for company widesafety. During this threemonth period only 8 lost time accidentswere suffered, while OLIVERmen and women were war king atotal of 3,256,924 man-hours.A comparison of the OLIVER recordfor this working period withthe lost- time accident frequencyrate for the farm equiprnE>nt industry,as established by the Bureauof Labor Statistics, indicatesan OLIVER frequency of 2.45 againstbureau figures of 21.9. If themembers of OLIVER had worked insuch a manner as to suffer injuriesat a 21.9 rate per million manhours,it would have meant 71lost time accidents incurredthroughout the company. Byworking safely, in well - keptareas, 63 OLIVER employes wereable to maintain their ability toearn a living, prevent personaland family suffering and hardship,and physical pain. Safety pays inmany ways.Of the 8 lost-time accidents, 5took place during June, 2 in July,and 1 in August . However, theone accident in August was themost serious of the 8, and perhapsone of the most freakish accidentsin company history. WilliamBlom, a B & 0 Lathe Operator,South Bend Plant 1, received apermanent partial disability ,fourth finger, left hand, when apiece of twine he was carrying(Cont. page 8, Col. 3)McCORD COMPLETESBRANCH MEETINGSCHICAGO, ILL. - Mission accomplished,A. King McCord, OLIVERpresident, and his staff assistantsWilliam Black, J . 0 . Cunningh am,Donald Koegle, and Sam White,are back at their desks in theChicago office after covering morethan 100,000 miles that found themvisiting all OLIVER branches, subbranches,and more than 300 OLIVERdealers in the United States andCanada.A. W. Thompson, western divisionmanager, and C. R. Hunt,eastern division manager, representedMerle S . Tucker, v icepresident in charge of distr ibution ,in their respective areas.Speaking to OLIVERS more than700 sales personnel assembled atdinner meetings in each of the 13branch cities, Mr. McCord pointedout that the objective of the tripwas th r ee-fold . Point one, asOLIVERS newly elected president itwas his desire to become betteracquainted with the problems ofsales, service, and credits, and tolearn to know more intimately thepeople whose job it is to handlethese OLIVER sales functions.Point two of the mission was tointroduce his four staff assistantsto the members of the sales organization.The job of the staff, heexplained, is to correlate and assemblefacts concerning the companysbusiness, and consult withofficers and managers of OLIVER.In concluding his talks, Mr. McCordemphasized the sales problemsconfronting OLIVER today, andpointed out what must be done ifOLIVER is to continue successfullyin the farm machinery and industrialequipment business. Hetold the sales organizations thateverything possible must be doneto enable OLIVER to secure a greatershare of the available businessthan has been OLIVERS in the past.Interesting sidelights on thebranch meetings are the miles(Cont. page 2, Col. 2)tlie2. OLIVER MIRROR • September, 1950Published at Chicago, Ill., by and for themembers of the OLIVER Organization.The OLIVER Corporation400 W. Madison Street, Chicago 6, Ill.SEPT E~BER , 1950EditorHoward D. ThomasPlant Ed ito rsBottle Creek ............................ Dove RichCharles City .................... Dick OverholserCleveland .............................. James Lowe. Shelbyville ........................ G. BlankenshipSouth Bend No. 1 ........................ Dick FrySouth Bend No. 2 ............. .John TuoheySpringfield ............................ Tom RobertsStaff Photogra phersCharles Dillman Carl RobeTheron Tallman Alfred DeverellThebert DetrickEl GentryJack FortTeachers HearOliver. StoryBATTLE CREEK, MICH. - Fifteenmembers of the Battle Creek andLakeview Public Schools, takingpart in the third annual BusinessIndus try - Educ a ti on Day, wereguests of OLIVERS Battle CreekPlant on September 1.The plan of the day includeda complete plant tour, luncheonserved in the plant conferenceroom, the viewing of Acres ofPower, brief talks by L. W.Parrott, traffic manager, and C.W. Lent, office manager, and ahalf hour period devoted to aquestion and answer period.In presenting the OLIVER story,Mr. Parrott, a long-time memberof Battle Creek Plant management,described the local plantoperations, personnel practices,methods of scheduling, and manufacturing, and a general pictureof plant progress and the placeOLIVER maintains in the community.Mr. Lent, through the useof visual aids, took the educatorson a trip to all seven plants, describingcity and state locations,products manufactured, the companysales organization, and ageneralized picture of OLIVERS financialstructure.At the conclusion of the questionand answer period, the guestswere presented with OLIVER toytractors, combines, and corn pickelS .JAMES W. RHOADSSPRINGFIELD $1190.25JOSEPH MAGRUMBATTLE CREEK $705.58MAURICE McCANNBATTLE CREEK $671.04JOHN BURT$615.80N. S. BOYERTED FRANK$583.58JACK H. WOKATYCLEVELAND $535.27CLARENCE J. KRUMMCHARLES CITY $486.07KYLE JONESCHARLES CITY $449 .61MYLES THO MAS$428.71BRANCH MEETINGS(Cont. from page 1, Col. 4)covered, more than 100,000; travelby the us2 of rail, private andcommercial planes, bus, and car,and the ext ensive trip took membersof the group into half of the48 United States, and 4 CanadianP r ovinc:::s. Some idea of the scopeof OLIVER may be seen when theitinerary of the trip is stu died. Incovering the companys sales outlets,members of the group rangedsouth to Houston, Texas; north toEdmonton, Alberta; northwest toVancouver, B. C.; west to Oakland,California, and east to NewYork state.What Can IDo About It?How often do you say, Butwhat can I do about it? If the it you are talking aboutis democracy, and if you honestlycare about spelling out democracyin Battle Creek, CharlesCity, Cleveland, Shelbyville, SouthBend, or Springfield, then the RedFeather Community Fund campaignin your city is for you .The Red Feather drive is thetime when you can cast your votefor care for your citys sick andaged, your support of beneficialyouth clubs, the Boy Scouts, theGirl Scouts, family counsellingservices for families in your communitywho are in serious trouble.These are just a few of themany essential community organizationsfor which you may castyour ballot.Your ballot is your CommunityFund pledge card.An important thing to rememberthis year is the presence ofthe Associated Services to theArmed Forces as a new memberof the Red Feather family. Thisorganization is the successor tothe U. S. 0 . This means that themoney you give will help notonly the many local services, butwill also help the boys and girlsfrom your town who are in theservice, wherever they may bestationed. This is an added reasonwhy we should all attempt togive more this year.When the Community Fundcampaign gets underway in yourcommunity and a volunteer solicitorin your plant hands youa pledge card, its a safe guessthat a little thought will proveto you that what you put on thatcard will give you the answer toWhat can I do about it?EditorTHE OLIVER MIRRORDEATH CLAIMSGEORGE BROCKMEYER,GRACE WACKERMANCHICAGO, ILL. - Two veteranOLIVER employes passed away duringthe latter part of August.George Brockmeyer, 70, an employeof the OLIVER Charles Cityplant since 1909, passed away suddenlyon August 22. Death wascaused by a heart attack. Georgewas a Domestic and Canadianpacker.Miss Grace Wackerman, an employeof the OLIVER Clevelandplant, and its predecessor theRecent PromotionsCongratulations are extendedby members of The OLIVER Corporationto the following men whohave been promoted recently.Charles CityM. Finch, promoted to GeneralSuperintendent, replacing TedHuebenthal, who goes to Clevelandplant as General Superintendent.W. A. Kniepkamp, Superintendentof Methods Department;Art Munson, Chief Tool Designer.ShelbyvilleB. W. Dalton, Material Handlingand Storage Foreman; FrankDavis, Assistant Machine Orderand Traffic Supervisor; LeonardHelton , Orville Shiels, G. W.Barriclow, and J esse Hudson ,Field Service Engineers; Mont G.Howe, Repairs Manager.South Bend 1D. G. Hazelton Special Assignment,Plant Managers Office; FredN. Davis, Foundry Superintendent;Wilbur V. Johnson, AssistantFoundry Superintendent (GreyIron); John Farabaugh, AssistantFoundry Sup2rintendent (Malleable);Clarence Annis, AssemblyForeman; George Kovatch, PlantPackaging Engineer; Charles J .Gerhold Production Supervisor;John Gordon, Assistant P roductionSupervisor; Tom F. Hans,Foundry Process Engineer; DaleKlinedinst , General Foreman(Malleable); Neil Summers, De signingEngineer B; Henry Dunfee,Shipping Foreman; KennethHowell, Foundry Foreman; DevonJohnson, Forge Shop Foreman ;Charles Meeker, Quality ControlEngineer; David Stanfield Receiv ingForeman; George McKenna,Forge #2 Foreman; Kenneth Ponder,Ray Janowiak, John Jozwiak,and Mavis Abel, Dispatch Supervisors.South Bend 2John Micinski, Repair and ServiceStores Foreman.ClevelandRoger Leslie P ersonnel Manager,South Bend Plant 1; JamesW. Lowe, Assistant Paymaster;James F. Murphy, Assistant CostAccountant; John Kwolek andBernard Barendt, Methods Engi neers.Cleveland Tractor Company , diedat her home, on August 31, followinga lingering illness. MissWackerman was connected withthe billing department.the3. OLIVER MIRROR • September, 1950s~. , ,PERSONALITIES IN THE NEWSCHICAGO, lll.-(right) A. King McCord, center, OLIVER president, and staff a ssistants,left to right, William Block, Donald Koegle, J. 0 . Cunningham, ond Som White,rece ntly completed a series of branch meetings covering visitations to all branches,oil sub-branches, ond more thon 300 OLIVER dealers in the United States andConado. (See story on page 1)CHARLES CITY, IOWA-(right) EwoldTegtmeier, a sond blaster in the found rycleaning room started work for OLIVERin 1946. While performing o chippingoperation on costings, o small, but sol id,piece Aew off and struck the left le nsof his safety g losses. Th is occid ent tookploce in August, 1950. A four yea remploye, o good operator, Ewald knewthe value of safety glosses. He s glade did . Do yo u?SPRINGFIELD, OHIO-(below) One ofthe younge r competitors in the Nationa lPlowing Meet he ld Se pt. 12, 13, a nd 14,in Urbana, Ohio, was lorry long, representingthe stote of Missouri. Althoughyoung in yea rs, lorry is long on theknowledge of farm mach inery, a s evidencedin the picture be low. lo rry competedwith OLIVER plows, power providedby on OLIVER 117711•Es ti mated cos t to replaceone safety glassprescription lens: $4.00.How much for your lefteye?BATTLE CREEK, MICH.-(below) Ko riGosser, repair sh ip ping foreman, wifeand daughter, reg ister their attendanceat the Battle Creek pla nt open houseon Sept. 13. Seated, left to rig ht, HelenDevine and Florence Jones reg isteredmore than 1,000 employes, fa milies, andfr iends. (See story on page 8)4. OLIVER as a c1•t 1•z ~By Dick OverholserCHARLES CITY, IOWA-Turn back the calendar 100 yearsand you would find forests and burr oak openings in thelocality where Charles City, Iowa is now located. In the fallof the year 1850, a miller named Joseph Kelley settled onthe banks of the Cedar River. Taking advantage of thepower furnished by the river current, this early settlererected a grist mill and a saw mill. History states that hewas the first person to live at the present Charles Citysite. However, it is known that just prior to his arrival, atribe of Sioux and Winnebago Indians had camped directlyacross the river. First growth of the city took place in 1852with the arrival of 25 families.Folk lore tells how people used to travel as far as 130miles in order that they might purchase the grists producedby Kelley. Due mainly to the presence of his mill, moreand more families continued to arrive on the scene, and in1854 a county seat was proclaimed as the city of Charlestown,named in honor of mill-owner Kelleys son. A fewyears later the name was changed to St. Charles, but it waslearned that the newly chosen name was duplicated in otherparts of the state, so the year 1860 saw the growing communitynamed Charles City. The present courthouse islocated on the exact spot where Kelley presented the cityfathers with land for the original courthouse.Situated in the beautiful and fertile Cedar River Valley,Charles City today is a progressive farming and industrialcommunity with a population of more than 10,000 people.The Cedar River winds through the center of the town,affording recreational facilities as well as adding to thebeauty of the locale. Two dams located on the foliage-linedriver provide the city with a lake. The river, the lake,foliage, beautiful shade trees-all of these add to the beautyof a location already made beautiful by the hand of nature.In Heart of ·CornbeltLocated in northeast Iowa, this OLIVER city is traditionallya farming center in the heart of the cornbelt; nevertheless,with the OLIVER plant presently employing more than 1,900people, Charles City definitely has an industrial aspect.In addition to OLIVERS tractor plant, this city is also thehome of Salsburys Laboratories, producers of veterinaryremedies. This firm employs 250 Charles Citians, and ishoused in modern buildings located throughout the city. Inaddition to the production lines, Salsburys also carry on extensivechemical and farm research programs. Other importantcogs in the Charles City economical picture are theCharles City Manufacturing Company, makers of radio andtelevision cabinets; the Frudden and Smith lumber andwood working interests, Charles City Western Railway Co.,and substantial banks serving the commercial and personalneeds of the community.Many Recreational FacilitiesSports and diversified activities for young and old alikeare abundant in Charles City. In the summer months, facilitiesare available for golfing, tennis, fishing, and swimming.The golf course, located in a picturesque wooded area, providesa true links challenge to all lovers of the ancient game.Refreshing pleasure during the hot summer months is affordedby the recently completed swimming pool. Swimmingproves a haven for the youngsters and a welcomerelief from the heat for the not-so-young.CHARLES CITY, IOWA-(Left below) Approaching Charles City from the south onHighway 14 presents a scenic and friendly picture of a typical farming and industrial Iowa city. With attractive stores and office buildings, Main Street is thehub of the business district. (Top) Yesterday and today, in contrast, depicts theoriginal Hart-Parr plant in 1900 compared with the present home of OLIVER116611,117711, and 118811 tractors. (Right below) 1902 vintage, one of the first HartParrtractors produced, is evidence of the vast change in tractor design whencompared to a modern Oliver 118811•~n of CHARLES CITY s.Softball Proves PopularFor the local sports fans, who prefer their participationfrom the location of the grandstand, or the bleachers, ahotly contested city softball league is the answer. The OLIVERteam, composed of plant employes, and sponsored by theCharles City plant, has made an outstanding record inleague competition during the past few years. Capturingthe league title in the 1949 race, the tractormen are currentlyin second spot in league standings, with high hopeof repeating as champions.An added attraction during the summer months is theweekly appearance of the municipal band. An excellentmusical organization, this group is heard each Thursdayevening, throughout the summer, by large crowds who attendthe concerts held in the city square.In the winter, recreational activities are as varied andnumerous as during the summer. For the lover of the outof-doors, ice skating may be enjoyed. Seven years ago, theOLIVER Athletic Association established a public skatingrink. The river offered opportunity for ice skating, butCHARLES CITY, IOWA- (Right below) Beautifully located in a wooded area, theCharles City Country Club presents a true test for the golfing enthusiasts and isthe site of much of the citys social life. (Top) One of the newer buildings inCharles City, the Floyd County Court House, located on the orig inal court houseplot, presents an impressive picture to visitors and adds g reatly to the beauty ofthe community. (Left below) Come on in, the water is fine. Completed in 1949,the community swimming pool tops the popularity poll among both the oldstersand youngsters during the hot summer months.open water skating created safety hazards. Today, thepeople of Charles City may skate in relative safety on theflooded pond, disregarding, of course, the normal spills andjars inherent to the sport of skating.Other popular releases from the average day are providedin the form of bowling, movies, roller skating, basketball,square dancing, etc. The sheet metal team of the CharlesCity OLIVER plant not only earned a tie for 1950 plant leaguebowling honors, but gained additional distinction by walkingoff with the city bowling crown. For the youth of the community,healthful recreation is provided through Boy andGirl Scout activities. Teen Tavern, a teen age gatheringspot, and a summer recreational program, both supervisedby trained personnel, receive a rousing vote of thanks fromthe young citizens of Charles City.Home of the TractorWhen two young mechanically inclined men met at theUniversity of Wisconsin in 1892, little did anyone realizethat some 50 years later this friendship would result in theformation of one of the finest farm and industrial tractorfactories in the world. These two men, C. W. Hart andC.H. Charley Parr, devoted many long hours during theirundergraduate days to research in the gas engine field.Prior to their graduation, they constructed three differentpower units. With the financial backing of a few Madison,Wisconsin business men, Hart and Parr began the largescale manufacturing of gas engines in 1896. Four yearslater, this new industry moved to its permanent home inCharles City. Shortly following the move to the new location,and with the aid of additional capital, furnished byother business men, Hart-Parr developed and produced thefirst internal combustion traction engine, forerunner of whatwe know today as the tractor.Powered by two cylinders, large and clumsy, the fact remainsthat the engine worked. Further research by Hartand Parr resulted in the development of the first knownmethod of burning kerosene as a fuel. This took place in1907. It was also at this time that W. H. Williams, salesmanager for Hart-Parr, realized, while making up an ad,that the term internal combustion traction engine wasmuch too involved; consequently, he converted this phraseinto the shortened version, tractor, and a new word 1 ookThe6. OLIVER MIRROR • Se ptember, 1950its place in Mr. Websters dictionary.Hart sold his controlling interest to the original backersin 1917, while Parr remained with the company, devotinghis time and skill to the development of better tractors.The OLIVER Charles City plant has a heritage of whichit is rightfully proud. The personnel of the plant are equallyproud of the modern fleet of 66, 77, and 88 tractorsthey produce, and of the 1,900 members of the organization.who all play an important part in the production of thistractor fleet. It was through this pride in product that anew era in tractor production was recorded in the historyof our country.Transportation and CommunicationIn all cities, the type, quantity, and quality of systemsof transportation and communication take a place of utmostimportance in community life and in the economic progressof the city and the people who live there. Obviously, a citylacking in these facilities, cannot prosper. Charles City isfortunate in regard to these necessities.Both the city and the OLIVER plant are located on themain line of the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul railroad.This line provides good passenger service, and along withthe Illinois Central Railroad provides excellent freight transportationfor incoming and outgoing shipments. Rail freightis widely used in the movement of OLIVER tractors. In additionto the above mentioned lines, an electric rail line betweenCharles City and the neighboring towns of Colwelland Marble Rock serves local industries as a belt line.Charles City is well situated for highway travel, with threemain highways providing excellent transitory means.One of the newer municipal additions in this Iowa communityis the Charles City Airport. Located a few mileseast of the city, the airport affords satisfaction to both thebusiness and the pleasure fliers. A flying school, operatedin conjunction with regular airport operations, has turnedout many accomplished pilots and has been influential increating interest in air travel within the Charles City area.Serving the radio audience within Charles City and thesurrounding area is station KCHA. This station operateson a frequency of 250 watts and is audible within 250 miles.The programs are geared for the residents of Charles City,and for the neighboring rural areas. A Sunday feature onKCHA is the hour program, Music For Your Pleasure,sponsored by OLIVER. In addition to musical presentations,each program includes a four minute talk by a plant supervisor,or foreman, through which the station listeners learnmore about OLIVER operations, procedures, and policy.The local paper, The Charles City Daily Press, coversinternational, national, state, and local news for Charles Cityreaders, and the subscribers in nearby towns. In operationfor many years, the paper has a relatively large circulationand provides excellent service for the people of this OLIVERcity.Progressive Schools, Municipal GovernmentImproved educational facilities are present in Charles Citydue to the recent construction of new school buildings andimprovements made in the older schools. Four grade schools,a modern combined Junior-Senior High School, a manualtraining school, and a parochial grade and high school makeup the school room pattern for the young students. Pro-CHARLES CITY, IOWA-(Top) Modern in every respect, the newly constructedJunior-Senior High School provides the future citizens of Olivers tractor plant citywith the finest in ed ucational facilities . (Below) From the banks of the CedarRiver, with the Main Street bridge in the background, this shot illustrates thebeauty of the river, foliage, and the dams in Charles City.gressive schools, employing a well rounded educational sy -tern, insure good citizens of tomorrow for Charles City.Operating on a limited city manager plan, the municipalgovernment is well handled by a mayor and six councilmen.The utilities, gas and electricity, are furnished by a publicservice company. The water company and the sewage disposalplant are owned and administered by the city.OLIVER and Charles CityFriendly, industrious, and with a deep sense of communitypride, the residents of Charles City dont claim to live in thebiggest, busiest, or best city in the United States, but thereis present an inner feeling of pride (an attitude symbolic ofMissourians) that says, show me a better community.Large enough to be called a city, it is small enough to havethe friendliness of a village. Predominantly a farming center,nevertheless, the presence of industries generally associatedwith larger towns gives it standing as a manufacturingcommunity. The people who work at this OLIVER tractorplant feel that as it was true in the past, so shall it be true inthe future, OLIVERITES have a definite place and a responsibilityin the community development. OLIVER is an integralpart of Charles City. OLIVER and Charles City seem like apair of Siamese twins-one just cant get along without theother.the7 . OLIVER M IRROR • Se ptember, 1950The Ripleys - An OliverFamily - Charles City, IowaMax, his wife Hazel, son David, 10, and daughter MaryJo, 8, worthwhile citizens of Charles City, Iowa, portray atrue picture of a typical OLIVER family.With their day beginning at 6: 00 A.M., Max and Mrs.Ripley, like the majority of American families, eat a hurriedbreakfast. Max enjoys a last cup of coffee while Hazelperforms the finishing touches on the lunch bucket.With Max off to work at OLIVERS Charles City plant, Mrs.Ripley awakens David and Mary Jo. David, in the 6thgrade, and Mary Jo, the 3rd grade, look forward to theirday at school where both take an active part in school affairs,and also in Boy Scout and Girl Scout work.Husband at work, the children off to school, Mrs. Ripleybusies herself with the routine daily and weekly householdtasks. Carrying on the tradition of family participation incommunity activities, Mrs. Ripley is secretary of the CharlesCity Womens Bowling League, a past Block Hostess of theRed Cross and Community Chest, a past Room Mother, andan active member of the PTA. Husband Max is a past presidentof the OLIVER Athletic Association, present treasurerof the Moose lodge, entertainment chairman of the AthleticAssociation, and prior to the recent war acted as an instructorfor local Golden Gloves aspirants.Completing his work at 3: 30 P.M., Max arrives homeabout the same time as the children. After the eveningmeal, and, provided one or more of the family isnt awayparticipating in one of their many civic activities, the Ripleyssettle down to a quiet evening at home.Its the end of another day for a typical OLIVER CharlesCity family and while it isnt apparent at a glance, the dayholds a great deal of meaning. Its David and Mary Jo growingup in a wholesome home and pleasant atmosphere. Itsessential preparation for two people who someday will taketheir place as citizens of Char les City. Its a picture of theAmerican way of family life, living together and performingtheir tasks in a happy home.Dishes done, everyone present, the Ripleys spend o quiet evening in their comfortablehome. Mox catches up on the latest news, David gets an assist in mathematicsfrom his mother, and Mary Jo reads the la test exploits of Flash Gordon.A scene typical of ma ny Charles City homes on any week day finds Max finishinghis early morning cup of coffee, while Mrs. Ripley puts the finishing touch onhis lunch.Breakfast out of the way, Mox a t work, the children, David and Mary Jo, d e pa rtfor school, while Mrs. Ripley turns to the daily household tasks.Max, a complex bench coremoker, is pictured on the job where he has spent mostof his 15 years of outstanding O LIVER service .th~8. OLIVER MIRROR • September, 1950Tuckers Talk, Open HouseHighlight Safety Award CeremonyBy Dave RichBATTLE CREEK, MICH. - Recognitionfor safety and housekeepingwas bestowed on OLIVERS BattleCreek plant employes on Sept. 12,w hen top company and cityofficials took part in the presentationof the Presidents SafetyAward, won by the Battle Creekplant for the second successiveyear.BulletinThe safety record at OLIVERSBattle Creek plant was broken onSept. 14 when August Swartz, anassembly line employe, lost halfof his middle finger, left hand ina riveting machine accident. Themishap marked an end to 590consecutive days without a losttime accident.A. King McCord, president, presentedthe award to J. R. Mohlie,plant manager; William Gresley,president, Local 444, UAW-AF ofL ; and William Smith, president,Local 873, UAW-AF of L. Mr.McCord also introduced Alva W.Phelps, former president, nowchairman of the board. The ideafor the safety and good houseb~epin~ award was yours, Mr.Phelps he said, and the adminis---------------PIN POINTSSOUTH BEND PLANT 1 - With 12mens teams and 4 newly organizedwomens teams on tap for theopening nights, the 1950-51 Plant1 OLIVER bow ling league is in fullswing. League competition isbased on a point system, one pointfor each game won and a fourthpoint awarded for total pins. Allmatches will take place on theIndiana Club alleys and will operateon the handicap system.BATTLE CREEK-Under the directionof Art Phillips, president; E.F. Grames, vice president; andDon Estelle, secretary treasurer;officers for the 1950-51 bowlingseason, the Battle Creek plantleague is off to a fast start with 10teams going after league honors.Opening night winners were thePackage five, and the Processkeglers, both teams sweeping allthree games. Elgie Robnolt, Officeteam, grabbed early individualgame honors with a 199 game. AlMagrum, tool room, topped thethree game totals with a 549.tration of the program in BattleCreek is to the credit of Mr.Mohlie. Congratulations too, toBill Gresley, and Bill Smith, fortheir wholehearted cooperation inthe program. In accepting theaward, Mr. Mohlie pointed outthat the plant had operated formore than 2,800,000 man - hourswithout a lost time accident, andthat it was individual support andcooperation that made such a recordpossible.Merle S. Tucker, a former officialat the Battle Creek plant, nowvice president in charge of salesand distribution, made the principaladdress of the day. He painteda verbal picture of company salesoperations from the time the machinerolls off the assembly lineuntil sale is made. Despite reportsthat the farm machinery industryis approaching a sellers market,Mr. Tucker stated that the farmeris still in position to select themachine of his choice, and thatquality of product, price, marketacceptance, and service, are thefour main items the buyer willconsider.General chairman for the .daywas Carl L. Hecker, vice presidentin charge of production.Other speakers were C. C. Drake,director of safety, and MayorWilliam V. Bailey. Arrangementswere in charge of Clare Engle,quality control supervisor, BattleCreek plant.Two Day CeremonyAdditional recognition of theoccasion took place on Sept. 13 inthe form of an open house forfamilies and friends of plant employes.Under the direction of L. W.Parrott, traffic manager, whoserved as open house chairman,the plant was visited by morethan 1,000 guests.In addition to conducted planttours, the visitors were served refreshments,movies were shownfor the younger guests, and allthose in attendance received souvenirs,lighters for the adults, andskipping ropes for the children.The lighters were made in theplant machine shop in full viewof the people touring the plant.The skipping ropes were assembledby plant employes.Guides for the day were membersof management and theofficers and stewards of both theshop and office unions.STORY ON SAFETY(Cont. from page 1, Col. 3)became entangled in the revolving7I16 inch bar stock that wasbeing cut in lengths on the lathe.Before he could drop the twinP.his finger was injured so severelythat an amputation was necessary.In commenting on the excellentthree-month record, C. C. Drake,director of safety, said, the increasingawareness of the importanceof safety by each OLIVERemploye, and a continued appreciationon the part of managementof the importance of safety andgood -housekeeping to qualityproduction and top-flight workingconditions, are the two most im-RETURN POSTAGE GUARANTEEDTHE OUVER CORPORATIONBATTLE CREEK, MICH.-(above) Four interestedguests at the safety award openhouse were left to right : Mrs. FrankDavis and son Chucky, family ofFrank Davis, assembly line, and youngMichale Gutsue with his grandmother,Mrs. Floyd Urich. Floyd Urich is also anassembly line employe. The two youngvisitors found the Presidents SafetyAward a good restina spot for tire.!boys. -----portant elemer~ts in establishinga three-month safety r ecord withonly 8 lost-time accidents. Mr.Drake added, although we find itpossible to speak and write of agood record, lets not forget thatcomplacency is one of the greatestenemies of safety. Now is thetime to redouble our safetyeffort. A winning ball team ione that never lets up.Section 34.66 P .L. & R.U.S. POSTAGEPAIDSouth Bend, IndianaPERMIT NO. 156
Origin:	1950-09
Publisher:	The Oliver Corporation
Source:	http://michianamemory.sjcpl.org/cdm/ref/collection/p16827coll9/id/5695
Collection:	Business & Industry
Rights:	http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NKC/1.0/
Copyright:	It is the researcher’s responsibility to seek permission from the copyright owner and any other rights holders for any reuse of these images that extends beyond fair use or other statutory exemptions. For more information, contact local.history@sjcpl.org.
Subjects:	Business enterprises--Indiana--Saint Joseph County Labor--Indiana Oliver Farm Equipment Company

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