Radio age research, manufacturing, communications, broadcasting, television (1941)

WORLD'S LARGEST Hi-Fi PLANT The Cambridge plant can produce 6,000 hi-fi sets a day, such as the new Mark VI Orthophonic instrument, above. LEFT: James M. Toney at dedication ceremonies. _l_ HE world's largest and most modern high fidelity manufacturing center was dedicated last month by the Radio Corporation of America in Cambridge, Ohio. The plant is capable of turning out more than a dozen hi-fi "Victrola" phonographs a minute (6,000 a day), and is, in addition one of the largest producers of record changers, tape recorders and stereotape players. At the dedication ceremonies, James M. Toney, Vice President and General Manager, RCA Victor Radio and "Victrola" Division, predicted that Americans will spend more than a billion dollars next year to enjoy recorded music in the home. Governor C. William O'Neill of Ohio headed the list of state and local dignitaries attending the dedication, which took place September 11. "By 1958," said Mr. Toney, "the fantastic growth of high fidelity will have helped boost the home-music industry's sales by 200 percent over a period of five years, while spending for all recreation was rising only about 17 percent." Mr. Toney said that a further spur to the industry was the rising interest in stereophonic sound, bringing about sharp increases in the sale of record-players. He gave this industry breakdown of estimated business for 1958: Packaged hi-fi, $407 million; records and pre-recorded tapes, $400 million; standard phonographs, $140 million; tape-recorder-players, $120 million. The ultra-modern plant features the very latest in functional design and has almost tripled in size during the past year. It now contains 355,000 sq. ft. of work- ing space with fifteen assembly lines. These assembly lines can be quickly converted to the production of different types of phonograph assembly. Among other features, the plant includes a complete parts manufacturing shop which fabricates more than 80 percenr of the parts used in RCA Victor record changers. It has a quality control room where the quality level of all high-fidelity units is checked continuously. The plant also has huge semi-automatic punch presses that stamp out metal parts for record changers and tape recorders. This year, in addition to turning out five high- fidelity "Victrola" models and all RCA Victor stereo- phonic sound systems, the new plant will produce all of the company's standard "Victrola" lines and high- fidelity tape recorders. "The demand for high-fidelity instruments," con- tinued Mr. Toney, "has grown almost overnight to enormous proportions not even remotely anticipated when this plant was originally occupied by RCA four years ago." Mr. Toney said that this booming market was ex- pected to continue its growth pattern through the development of new high-fidelity products. The new plant was designed with an eye toward the manufacture of products yet to come in the world of high fidelity. In speaking of expectations that the boom will con- tinue, Mr. Toney said that, "Public reaction to the first new development — stereophonic sound — attests to this. Everywhere we have demonstrated our new RCA Victor Recorder — Victrola' Stereotape Players — we have seen far greater enthusiasm than when the first high-fidelity instruments were demonstrated." October, 1957 29