10x07 - Stainless Steel/Football Helmets/Resin Figurines/Laboratory Glassware

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: today on "how it's

Made," stainless steel...

Football helmets...

Resin figurines...

And laboratory glassware.

Stainless steel was invented in

The early part of
the 20th century.

The key ingredient is chrome,

Which forms a protective oxide

Film on the surface.

Originally called nonrusting

Steel, it amazed consumers

Because it didn't need to be

Polished and today, the concept

Hasn't lost its luster.

Stainless steel is made to look

Shiny and new even though it

Starts from scrap.

Old stainless steel is recycled

To make new, giving trashed

Sinks, pots, and other refuse

A new lease on life.

Tons of scrap steel are fed into

A roaring furnace along with

Chrome and nickel alloys for

Added strength and
rust-proofing.

Enormous electrodes heat the mix

To the melting point, creating a

Dramatic fireworks display in

The process.

After several hours, the molten

Mix goes into a refining

Furnace.

Pipes blast in argon gas and

Oxygen, converting some

Impurities to gas and causing

Others to float to the surface

For easy removal.

A technician regularly checks

The temperature and takes

Samples to make sure the

Chemistry is right.

A bit more scrap is added to

Bulk up the mixture as it melts.

The scrap also causes a chemical

Reaction that helps to fuel the
refiner.

The bubbling steel soup now

Flows out of the refining

Furnace.

Rollers guide it as it's cast

Into a long mold.

The result is a 75-yard-long

Ribbon of steel.

Torches cut it into shorter

Chunks called slabs.

Narrator: a worker writes

Identification information on

Each one using chalk designed

For hot surfaces.

Then, the slabs are hoisted over

To another station to await

Further processing.

After this break in production,

The slabs are reheated to soften

Them up for more processing.

By now, a rusty scale has

Accumulated on the steel

Surface.

Workers pressure wash it away

Without cooling the hot metal.

The slab shoots back and forth

Through a machine with rollers.

A constant spray cools the

Rollers as they stretch the

Steel longer and thinner.

It's now over 650 yards long,

The length of a couple of city

Blocks.

A spray of water cools the

Stretched steel a little, but

Not too much because it needs to

Be soft and flexible enough for

Coiling.

This spool coils the strip

Tightly like a roll of toilet

Paper.

Then, the roll is transferred to

Another station.

Here, the steel goes into a hot

Acid wash that removes the scale

That's built up since the last

Cleaning.

Burners in this machine also

Heat the steel,
then slowly cool it.

This relieves stress in the

Metal, softening it for further

Processing.

The steel is now unwound into a

Machine that rolls it to the

Customer's specified thickness.

Rolling the metal when it's cold

Also hardens it and closes its

Surface pores, making it shine.

After one last cleaning, the

Stainless steel strips are

Gleaming and the chrome in the

Steel combines with oxygen in

The atmosphere to form that

Rust-preventing oxide film.

Finally, rotating knives trim

The edges and slit the steel to

Various widths, again, to meet

Customer's specifications.

This job is now done, and it's a

Brilliant finish indeed.

Up next, meet the starting

Lineup at a football helmet

Factory.

Narrator: football helmets

Cushion the cranium, helping

Players score touchdowns without

Sustaining head injuries.

Helmets have been part of the

Sport for over a century.

First made of leather, then

Padded plastic, they keep the

End zone from becoming a danger

Zone.

In a game of tackles and

Tumbles, a helmet is essential

Equipment.

To make one, plastic pellets are

Suctioned into a machine that

Melts and molds them into a dome

Shape.

This fist-like device shapes the

Inside of the shell, which

Hardens in just a matter of

Seconds.

A robot then collects it and

Transfers it to a conveyor.

It's quite a lineup.

The shells move into position

For a trimming, and the extra

Plastic from the molding is

Clipped off.

Next, a robot drills up to nine

Holes in the shell.

The holes will be used to attach

A liner, face guard, and various

Pieces of hardware.

This robot works far more

Quickly than a human can,

Performing all the drilling in

Just 30 seconds.

This is the ultimate in

Computerized precision.

A worker collects the drilled

Shell and moves a new one into

Position for the robot.

The outside of the helmet shell

Is roughed up with an orbital

Sander.

This preps it for priming and

Painting.

This factory uses a high-grade

Brand of automotive paint, and

It takes three coats to make

Sure this paint job is rugged

Enough to survive a go on the

Gridiron.

The helmets cure in the open air

For up to 18 hours.

During this time, a chemical

Reaction hardens the paint to a

Glossy finish.

Not every helmet is painted.

Some teams prefer tinted

Plastic.

It all depends on the look the

Team is going for.

Labels are attached, including

Safety information, trademark

Logos and the date of

Production.

This padding is made of vinyl

And foam.

Workers snap it in place in the

Crown of the helmet.

The padding for the side and

Back is made of the same

Material.

The back is reinforced with a

Plastic bumper.

A helmet from each production

Run undergoes an impact test.

It's fitted on a head-shaped

Form equipped with sensors which

Are carefully calibrated.

The technician presses a button

And the helmeted head falls.

This mimics the effect of a

Player's head hitting the ground

During a tackle.

The computer then measures the

Force of the impact on the head.

Once the production run gets the

Okay, the face guard is

Attached.

It's made of plastic-coated

Steel and has been custom

Produced at a different factory.

There are dozens of face guard

Styles for the
player to choose from.

This helmet is now
looking pretty fierce.

But it's not ready
for action yet.

It needs a chin strap and cup.

This machine uses heat to

Transfer a foil logo onto the

Polyester chin straps.

It also cuts them to the correct

Length.

Once a chin cup has been sewn to

The strap, the assembly is

Loosely fastened to the helmet.

Later, it will be precisely

Fitted to the player's head.

This helmet is now
almost ready for kickoff.

There's a final inspection and

Then they wrap it up, complete

With the manual and fitting

Instructions.

It's taken less than a day to

Manufacture a football helmet

That can withstand thousands of

Blows.

Because in the game of football,

Protection against head injury

Is a victory in itself.

When we return, bringing resin

Figurines to life.

Narrator: figurines are made

Of many materials, from

Porcelain to plaster to resin --

Not the kind that comes from

Trees, but a synthetic resin, a

Kind of plastic.

It's affordable, lightweight,

And easy to use, making it the

Material of choice for many

Artists and craftsmen.

Each figurine in this collection

Is cast from a mold of the

Original sculpture, then hand

Painted.

This character is a 19th-century

Federal marshal.

Working from period photographs

Of her subject, the artist makes

A sketch she'll use as a model.

She needs plastic-based clay so

It's easier to sculpt.

She works on the facial

Features, constantly referring

To the photographs.

She usually starts with the

Figure's head and then adds it

To the body.

She works from more photographs

To create his r*fle.

It's a delicate piece, so she

Sculpts it separately before

Setting it onto the figure.

Bearing the artist's signature,

It's now ready for casting.

First, the sculpture bakes for



Harden.

Then, workers cover it with a

Thin layer of releasing agent so

It won't stick to the production

Mold they're about to make.

They place a wall around the

Piece, tightly seal the base to

Prevent leaks, then pour in the

Silicone rubber mix.

In two days, the rubber hardens

Enough to hold the shape of the

Sculpture, but is still flexible

Enough that workers can remove

The original artwork without

Damage.

After removing the retaining

Wall, suction is used to gently

Pull the piece from the mold

Which retains the sculpture's

Shape down to every last detail.

Now, figurine production can

Begin.

Workers fill the mold with a

Mixture of resin and flour made

From ground pecan shells.

This colors the resin and makes

It stronger.

The mixture sets in less than an

Hour and out comes the first of

Many figurines, an exact replica

Of the original artwork.

The base is sanded to level it.

Then, it's stamped with the

Figurine's name, i.d. Number,

And copyright information.

Resin is an ideal material for

Casting because it captures all

The details of the
original artwork.

It creates lightweight, durable

Reproductions that can be

Finished in a variety of ways.

Here the first artist coats the

Figurine's broad areas with

Acrylic paint.

Working color by color, she uses

Various brushes depending on the

Area she's painting.

She finishes up with the smaller

Details.

Then, she passes the figurine

On to the next artist.

This second artist fills in the

Facial features and other fine

Details.

She starts with the whites of

The eyes, then views the

Figurines from all angles to

Make sure she hasn't overlooked

Any tiny details.

Her fine brushwork on the facial

Features is what truly bring

This figurine to life.

Bass reeves, u.s. Marshal, is

Just one figurine in this series

That proudly honors
the contribution of

African-americans in shaping the

History of the united states.

Once marshal reeves passes

Inspection, workers wrap him up

In protective bubble plastic.

Each piece in the series
comes with a certificate of

Authenticity bearing the

Artist's signature as well as

The name and life story of the

Person the figurine portrays.

Collecting this set of resin

Figurines isn't just for the

Knickknack lover.

This is indeed affordable art

For the history buff,

Small-scale figures that pay a

Large-scale tribute to

African-americans pioneers.

Coming up, behind the scenes of

A real test-tube birth.

Narrator: their size, shape

And function run the gamut,

Ranging from beakers and test

Tubes to petri dishes and vials.

Mixing, measuring, storing, or

Sampling is all in a day's work

For a piece of laboratory

Glassware, built to withstand

Even the most potent of

Chemical concoctions.

Many scientific breakthroughs

Are born inside laboratory

Glassware, the containers

Scientists use to hold samples

For chemical experiments.

The glassware starts off as thin

Glass tubing stacked by size,

Weight, length, and diameter.

Workers select the correct size

For the culture tubes they're

About to make and place them in

A magazine.

As it spins, it drops a tube

Into each slot on a cutting bed.

Then comes the flame.

When the heated tubing contacts

The wet steel blade, the thermal

Shock results in a clean

Separation of the glass.

The tubes get a second thermal

Shock treatment which cuts them

To length.

Then it's on to the glazing bed.

A glazing burner shoots out



The heat melts each tube at one

End, forming a lip called the

Glass bead.

Just two seconds of heat splits

The tubes in half and forces the

Glass bottom of each tube to

Close in on itself.

The finishing fire smooths out

The closure.

Then, a small amount of air is

Shot into the open end of the

Tube to form its round bottom.

Now, the tubes head into an

Annealing oven side by side.

They bake for about 15 minutes

At 1,200 degrees.

This strengthens the glass so it

Will better resist cracking.

The heat also sterilizes the

Tubes.

Once the tubes cool, workers

Collect and pack them.

Here they're making pipettes,

Long tubes that labs use to

Transfer fluids.

A flame heats the glass to form

An indentation which determines

The flow rate
through the pipette.

A wider flame then heats the

Glass, making it soft and

Malleable.

Large rollers tug at the sides,

Drawing the soft glass to form

The pipette's tip.

Now, for the other end of the

Pipette.

Thermal shock is used to cut it

To length and again, a glazing

Burner forms a glass bead along

The rim.

A cutting wheel slices through

The tip end, creating two tubes

Of identical length.

This production line makes

Vials.

These gizmos, called top

Turrets, feed large glass tubes

Into a machine.

First, a punch-out burner heats

The end of the tube
to create an opening.

Then, a steel pin widens the

Hole on the upper part of the

Vial.

A forming dye squeezes the

Heated glass to sculpt the

Shoulder while a steel plug

Rises from the bottom to open

The vial even wider.

Then, a second forming dye

Shapes the neck.

Next, a parting burner splits

The vial into two.

A bottom turret plucks the

Newly created half and draws out

The soft glass to lengthen it.

Fingers inside the turret

Prevent the glass from breaking.

All that's left now is shaping

The bottom of the vial.

A burner forms a concave base in

Less than a second.

The vials now slide down to

What's called an after-former

Machine.

Here, suction cups lift and

Place each vial into metal

Grooves on a printer bed.

It's a basic silk-screening

Process with a squeegee pushing

Paint through the screen's holes

Onto the vial.

Grippers place the vials on a

Rack headed for the oven where

They'll bake for about 20

Minutes.

Finally, a robotic arm whisks

The finished vials to packaging.

From there, it's off to a blood

Bank, a hospital, or chemistry

Class.

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