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Owens Corning pioneers to enter Inventors Hall of Fame

Dale Kleist, Dr. Russell Games Slayter and John T. “Jack” Thomas, three of Owens Corning“s early innovators, will be inducted posthumously into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in Akron, Ohio, on …

Dale Kleist, Dr. Russell Games Slayter and John T. “Jack” Thomas, three of Owens Corning“s early innovators, will be inducted posthumously into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in Akron, Ohio, on 5 May 2006, the building materials firm announced 8 February 2006. Collectively, the trio invented the process for making glass fiber insulation in commercial quantities. Their innovations also lead to the formation of Owens Corning in 1938. Kleist, Slayter and Thomas will be three of the 21 inductees in the 34th class of Hall of Fame honorees. Glass fiber insulation is used worldwide in residential and commercial buildings and various household appliances, while fiberglass reinforcements are used globally to strengthen plastic materials in a variety of products including cars, boats and bathroom fixtures. “In the 1930s, Kleist, Slayter and Thomas saw the opportunities in an insulation material that was lighter and more refined than what was available at the time,” said Dave Brown, president and chief executive officer. “Their innovative work resulted in a new type of mass-produced, affordable fiberglass insulation that is now used by millions of people around the world every day. Their enterprising spirit lives on at our company as we continue to pursue new technologies and deliver energy-efficient solutions that will benefit global customers today and in the future.” Born in Newark, Ohio, in 1909, Dale Kleist studied at The Ohio State University before working as a student researcher at the Owens-Illinois Glass Company in 1932. It was his accidental discovery that was the crucial breakthrough needed for manufacturing insulation-quality glass fibers in mass quantity. While attempting to seal together architectural glass blocks by melting and spraying glass, the molten glass surprised him by making glass fibers instead. Games Slayter was born in Argos, Indiana, in 1896 and earned a bachelor of science from Purdue University in 1921. As a chemical engineer, he was a driving force behind Owens-Illinois technology and innovation in the 1930s. A prolific inventor, Slayter held more than 90 patents. He is perhaps best known for refining Thomas and Kleist“s steam-blown process for mass production of affordable fiberglass, and for developing new applications such as blown wool insulation for homes. Jack Thomas was born in East St. Louis, Illinois, in 1907 and earned his bachelor of science from the University of Illinois in 1931. On graduating, he was hired by Slayter to join Owens-Illinois and research new ways to use glass. While working with Kleist, he noticed that the process Kleist used in his architectural glass block research could be adapted and enlarged to make commercial quantities of fiberglass. Together, Thomas and Kleist developed and patented the steam-blown process for making glass fibers. In 1938, Owens-Illinois and Corning Glass jointly created a new company, Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corporation, to make Fiberglas(R) brand products using the processes and innovations created by Kleist, Thomas and Slayter. The company name was later changed to Owens Corning.

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