When I was a little boy marveling at the fun and wondrous things to watch on our new Stewart-Warner black & white TV, circa 1950, one of my favorite programs was “Industry On Parade.” Every week it showed how common, ordinary things we used every day, like “lead” pencils, car tires, shirts and milk, were mass-produced. Today’s equivalents would be “How It’s Made” and “Modern Marvels,” shown on some cable channels.
There’s also YouTube, that amazing website where people post videos ranging from kittens being adopted by dogs to solo singing to -- yes – industries parading their wares. Last month, the folks at US Liner Co. uploaded a video about their Integral Wall Liners, used in semitrailers, rail cars, cargo containers, and camper trailers and motorhomes.
“The new video provides a better understanding of our manufacturing process, and showcases why US Liner has set the standard for performance, leading the industry in strength, durability and protection,” declared Michael LaRocco, the company’s president and CEO, in a press release announcing the production.
The video has scenes of massive weaving and thermal fusion of the fiberglass and thermoplastic ingredients to form long panels that are later cut to order, and how the material is tested to ensure strength and performance – important every time a forklift driver slams his machine aboard your trailer, side-swiping and stabbing its walls, either in a big hurry to finish this loading job and go punch out, or angry at his foreman for yelling at him for beating on the walls of another trailer – why else do forklift drivers do that? (I know, not all of ‘em do.)
The video is actually a sales piece, and its rousing music and dramatic narration lend some unnecessary hype, because the manufacturing process is amazing enough, at least to the little boy in me. It's only about two and a half minutes, and is worth watching.
If you follow the link to YouTube, nearby are other US Liner videos, including one showing how to repair one of its Versitex panels.
