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THE TORRINGTON COMPANY (LINTON BEARINfiS PLANT (UNTON, S. (. SALUTING • • • • THE CITY OF CLINTON AND THE STATE OF SOUTH CARQUNA It is indeed a pleasure to be located in one of the finest sections of these United States and we are sincerely grateful to the fine people of the area who have responded so excellently in the manufacture of high quality precision products for the Torrington Company. "Progress Through Precision Since 1866 rr The Torrington Company, organized in 1866 Torrington, Connecticut as the Excelsior Nee- e Company of Torrington, was the first com- iny to mass produce dependable uniform nee- es for the sewing machine. The sewing ma- dne had been invented some 20 years earlier by lias Howe. From our beginning as a sewing machine iedle manufacturer, we have expanded our prod- * lines to include knitting machine needles, siting, tufting and surgical needles, in industrial itching machines, precision metal parts, roller utches, swaging machines and the tube end- >rming machines. Our largest product line is anti-friction bear- tgs. The Torrington Company produces every wic type of anti-friction bearing, including nee- le, roller, thrust and ball bearings. Bearings jme in sizes ranging in outside diameter from a faction of an inch to over 13 feet in diameter. The Torrington Company serves such indus- ries as textiles, automotive, farm equipment vo-cycle engines, construction, bridges, heavy lachine tools, electronics, home appliances, pow- r tools, business machines, steel and other met^ Is, rubber, petroleum and the aircraft and mis- ile industries. The application of bearings is al- jost endless. This produces job security for the thousands f Torrington employees both in North and outh America and abroad. The Clinton Bearing Tant is a primary producer of anti-friction bear- QffS. The needle Division of The Torrington Com pany manufactures over 30,000 different types and sizes of precision knitting, sewing, felting, tufting and surgeons’ needles. Needles serve such industries as knitted out erwear, underwear and hosiery, sewn outerwear and underwear, shoe and leather goods, rugs and rug pads, insulation, filter fabrics, industrial felt, carpeting, chenille products, and miscellaneous knitting and stitched products. The Piedmont-Ooonee Needle Plant in Wal- halla, South Carolina is a prime neeaie manu facturing plant. The Specialties Division of The Torrington Company manufactures millions of individual metal parts on high volume precision equipment to customer specifications. Specialties makes such items as shafts, rolls, studs, punches, pins and similar hardware. Specialty parts are used in industries such as automotive, aircraft, air conditioning, clocks and watches, electronics, business machines, met al working, radio and television, and miscellan eous instrumentation. The Belton-Honea Path Specialties Plant, located between Belton and Honea Path, South Carolina, is a new plant com pleted in 1969 for the versatile Specialties Di vision. The Puritan Division of The Torrington Company manufactures Puritan stitching ma chines, which are used in the sewing of leather and plastic goods such as: footballs, basketballs, golf bags, volley balls, gloves, cases and luggage, and other leather specialties. The Machinery Division of The Torrington Company produces swaging machines for precis ion forming of metal rod, wire and tubing, and Vaill tube end-forming machines. Swaging machines are used in the manufac ture of a variety of products ranging from light bulb filaments to heavy duty heating elements: from flat silverware to fire arms; from automo tive transmissions to aircraft control cables; from nuclear reactor elements to transistor com ponents. Vaill machines are used in a variety of industries to shape the ends of tubing. The Torrington Company has had 103 years of solid success beginning back in 1866 with the sewing machine needle. The stockholders of The Torrington Company have enjoyed regular divi dends on an annual basis since Torrington stock was first issued back in 1876. This means divi dend returns were awarded even during the de pression years. On January 2, 1969 The Torrington Com pany merged with another great corporation—In- gersoll-Rand. Ingersoll-Rand has enjoyed simi lar success since its inception in 1871. The In gersoll-Rand slogan is “Practically everything used by people is produced with the help of some Ingersoll-Rand products.” This is a broad statement, but it is a state ment of fact. Ingersoll-Rand manufactures ma chines and tools that other companies use in making and doing things for the public. The au tomobile industry relies on Ingersoll-Rand as does the steel and fuel industries. Highway builders depend on . onstruction equipment manufactured by Ingersoll-Rand. The telephone, electric power, plastic, medical, min ing, food and building industries rely on Inger soll-Rand in one way or another. The public rarely comes in contact with pur chased items that bear the name Ingersoll-Rand, or The Torrington Company. Neither company makes products that go to the ultimate consum er. Most of them are detoured through anoth er manufacturer who uses them as components in his product or sold to industries that employ machinery and equipment in their processes. The Clinton Bearings Plant was completed and began manufacturing in 1961. The success of the Clinton Bearings Plant can be measured by its regular growth rate and the increased num ber of employees working there. Our plant has grown in size from 140,000 square feet initially to 400,000 square feet today. Employment has increased from a handful in 1961 to one of the largest industrial facilities in Laurens County’. Employees at the Clinton Bearings Plant en joy the finest possible working conditions witl a company which constantly strives to improve Job security is solid and consistent because th« Torrington Company supplies so many differen 1 kinds of industry. Wages are highly oompeti tive and increase regularly in relation to job per formance. Benefits are excellent, with the com pany paying all the costs. The best measure for the kind of people whi work for The Torrington Company is determine by the degree Torrington employees become in volved in local community activities, such as: Bo; Scouts, Girl Scouts, Junior Achievement, churcl civic clubs, Y.M.C.A,, P.T.A. and other worth while but time consuming programs.