The Fokest Products Laboratory 



basis of its previous exijerience in })ox testing, a specification was pre- 

 pared which allowed the use of many different kinds of wood, thq 

 thickness of the boards or shooks varying according to the species. 

 This solved the immediate difficulty and showed the way for much 

 additional work. This was at first largely confined to the Ordnance 

 Department and consisted, for the most part, in the re-design of con- 

 tainers for various specific articles, such as rifles, shells, hand grenades, 

 machine guns, saddles and harness and other equipment covering a 

 wide range. It was possible, in practically all cases, to make a mate- 

 rial reduction in the size of the container and also in its first cost 

 without reducing its efficiency. Thus, in the case of the Browning 

 automatic machine rifles, the re-design of the package carrying two 

 of the rifles netted a saving of 33 per cent ])oth in cargo space and in 

 material. The significance of the saving in cargo space becomes evi- 

 dent when it is realized that it was valued at $6.00 per cubic foot, and 

 was not to be had in sufficient quantity at any price. 



Assistance in boxing and crating was rendered to a number of the 

 army branches from time to time, and when the general staff took over 

 many of the functions formerly exercised by these various branches, 

 definite cooperation was arranged with the Office of Industrial Re- 

 search of the Division of Purchase, Storage and Traffic, Avhich acted 

 as a clearing house and systematized the work to a great extent. AVhen 

 the shortage of cargo space became acute, and baling of many goods 

 was adopted to cut the space required to the minimum, many tests 

 were made upon various types of water-resistant papers to determine 

 their suitability for this purpose. ^Miscellaneous investigations were 

 made, also, upon various patent boxes and upon different types of 

 straps and seals. Courses of instruction in boxing and crating were 

 given to officers and enlisted men, as well as to civilian employes of 

 various branches of the A^^ar Department, and these branches have re- 

 ported that the courses Avere of exceptional value in building up 

 efficient inspection forces. 



Laboratory Participation in Wooden Sliiphnilding 

 The huge wooden ship program planned by the Emergency Fleet 

 Corporation encountered many technical difficulties, a number of 

 which were new or unusual, and the laboratory \s assistance was re- 

 quested in the solution of a number of tliem. 



