Multigrade emulsions

[Ian Grant]

Did Dupont sell off their Photographic division, Dupont specialised in cellulose and then polymers. So was Renwick working on film base materials.

A German part of Dupont became Adox, which was later sold to EFKE.

Ian

 

[Photo Engineer]

Ian;

The Dupont plant here operated under that name until it closed. It was near our apartment years ago, and later I drove by on my way to the camera store which was about 2 blocks from the Dupont plant. When it closed, all buildings were torn down.

EFKE occupies an old Kodak plant and uses old Kodak equipment I was told. This comes from someone who was there and who talked to employees about their history. If this is wrong, I would like correction on this.

PE

 

[Ian Grant]

Forte occupied the old Kodak plant in Hungary. The Adox formulae & machinery were sold to EFKE and shipped to Croatia from Germany in the 50's.

Ron are you implying some cross reference between Dupont & 3M/Ferrania ? Did Dupont sell their photographic division to 3M ? or perhaps just the coating plants ?

Ian

 

[Photo Engineer]

Ian;

Thanks for the information.

No, there was no connection between Dupont and 3M AFAIK except their being located less than 1 KM apart here in Rochester. They may have had employess from one join the other etc.. but IDK.

PE

 

[Ray Rogers]

Which rings me back to the post I deleted thinking it was off topic... Why were several/so many similar companies comming to sit on the doorstep of Kodak?

If not for Technology, if not for People, and if not to be absorbed, What then was calling them to Rochester? The weather?

 

[Ian Grant]

It has to be a pool of technicians, specialising in setting up coating machines, optical manufacture etc. Perhaps a machinery manufacturer.

All my books, or rather 98%+, are European, I can't see any reference to Dupont manufactured films or paper other than the Adox brand of films in Germany, which by 1954 were made under license from Dupont by Schleussuer. Certainly no mention of film or paper in the US after WWII

As I said earlier Dupont were specialists in Cellulose & Polymers, did they make film base ? Did they make the base materials for 3M.

3M were not involved in the graphics/photography market until they made acquisitions in the 40's. They made their millions inventing Sellotape & masking tape as well as "wet & dry" sand paper.

There is something going on in Rochester and major changes after WWII.

Ian

 

[Kirk Keyes]

Why are all the tech companies in San Jose? You get confluences of technologies in certain geographic areas for multiple reasons, like there's a trained workforce - or even the weather!

Remember that Cincinnatti was once the meat packing capitol of the world for a number of reasons, like transporation, supply, and actually, weather.

 

[Ian Grant]

And Detroit once made cars

Ian

 

[Photo Engineer]

Well, there were the engravers that made equipment for embossing photo and film products, there were chemical industries here, there was the pool of technicians who might not want to move home and family if they changed company and there was also Haloid/Xerox and Bausch and Lomb here. There were a lot of printing companies here that produced packaging for both Kodak and Xerox. Rochester is also the headquarters of Gannett Publishing who use a lot of Graphic Arts materials.

Dupont did make Varigam and Varilour papers up until they left the photo field. Haloid made RC papers here and VC papers as well. We used a lot of the Haloid and Dupont products in the military.

Dupont made a complete line of oscillographic recording processors and papers that were gradually replaced by Kodak products at the cape when Kodak begain producing the Ektaline products.

PE

 

[Ian Grant]

Ron, did 3M's rise (in the photo field) coincide with the loss of the Dupont brand names. Can you put a rough date on Dupont leaving the photo field. 3M's website indicates they became involved with photography in the early 60's.

Some thing else is coming back to me about Ilford & Dupont, I need to find something I read a year or two ago.

Ian

 

[Photo Engineer]

Ian;

AFAIK, there was no connection between the two. In fact, my impression is that Dupont did better than 3M in the graphic arts arena due to the quality of its Cronar base, and the fact that 3M had nothing of their own to compare. Kodak ended up in the lead due to the quality of the products and gradually 3M and Dupont dropped out closing plants here. 3M stayed active in color for a while, and several of its employees at the main office in Minn. became prominent in the SPSE. Then 3M sold off the Ferrania color division and left film completely.

Market share seemed to be Kodak < Dupont < 3M in graphic arts. I know that we had a big presence of the Dupont photo division at the Cape.

IDK the exact dates, but my memory says it was in the late 80s or early 90s that they both made the exit. Both plants stood idle for a while, then the Dupont factory was razed while the 3M plant was taken over by another company. I think the action came on the Dupont factory after someone set fire to the abandoned Dynachrome plant which was barely a block or two away. It was a very large fire and gutted the entire factory.

Dynachrome and Dupont were separated by a railroad overpass and spur which serviced both plants and then ran north to the Kodak plant (I think). There are several spurs running N/S there and IDK which serviced which. I was thinking that the Dynachrome fire was so bad, the only thing that saved the Dupont buildings was the fact that they were separated by the RR ROW footage.

PE

 

[Neanderman]

Why were several/so many similar companies comming to sit on the doorstep of Kodak?

If not for Technology, if not for People, and if not to be absorbed, What then was calling them to Rochester? The weather?

It was a common phenomenon in late 19th Century industrial America. Wherever the leader in an industry was, so were many competitors or associated companies. Think Akron and rubber; Pittsburgh and steel. Here in Cincinnati it was soap and machine tools. Some of the smaller companies were spinoffs, formed by people who trained at the leading company and then left to form their own. Now we've shipped it all over to Asia, in the quest for higher profits.

Ed

 

[Neanderman]

Remember that Cincinnatti was once the meat packing capitol of the world for a number of reasons, like transporation, supply, and actually, weather.

Oh, and did I mention meat packing?

Ed

 

[Photo Engineer]

Soap and meat packing seem to go together. I wonder why?

PE

 

[David Grenet]

NaOH + Fat = Soap

 

[MattKing]

I had a friend in law school who was (and is) quite brilliant, but at that time both younger than the rest of us, and a bit naive.

He became very committed to both natural products, and vegetarianism.

I will always remember his expression when someone told him what those natural soap products he was arguing for were actually made of .

Matt

 

[Photo Engineer]

Well, being an organic chemist originally, I learned early on the process of soap making or "saponification" so my original post was somewhat tongue in cheek. Sorry.

PE

 

[David Grenet]

I guessed.

That's something I first learnt in high school chemistry so, you know, I had a feeling someone who had made chemistry their career might have an idea of the process themselves (<- that's what you needed!)

I just couldn't help myself in case anyone didn't know...

 

[Kirk Keyes]

Soap and meat packing seem to go together. I wonder why?

I thought it was so you could clean up after that big plate of ribs...

(Sorry, I'm going to Kansas City in a couple months and I have BBQ on the mind.)

 

[AgX]

... the Adox brand of films in Germany, which by 1954 were made under license from Dupont by Schleussner.

It was the other way round: Dupont bought Schleussner (by then named Adox Fotowerke).
And it was 1964.

 

[Neanderman]

Remember that Cincinnati was once the meat packing capitol of the world

And machine tools! And soap!

Ed

 

[Neanderman]

Sorry, I seem to be repeating myself! Didn't remember reading this thread before. :-D

I will add, though, that I think DuPont stayed in the graphics art market long after it had abandoned the consumer/pro imaging market. I worked as a printer for 4 years after high school (mid to late 70s) and we used a lot of DuPont lith film, 3M pre- and press stuff and, yes, quite a bit of Kodalith and Kodalith A+B.

 

[Kirk Keyes]

That's OK - the older I get, the more I find out that I'm repeating myself.

 

[wildbillbugman]

That OK-the older I get, the more I find out that I am repeating someone else.
________________________________________________________
Bill