WE FIRST QUARTER 1982 Installation Today

W People

ABOVE-Shawn Sievert con s u l t s h i s b r a i l l e t e l e phone directory, left- Shawn puts through a call on the Dimension® 2000 PBX System at the Read ing Works.

He prepared for the job before the job existed

A beeping tone rather than a blink choices, so he acted on a hunch traveling by train — and came and ing light alerts Shawn Sievert, and took classes to learn to oper went by himself. He also attended switchboard operator at the Read ate the Dimension PBX system — some special classes at the Greater ing Works, to incoming calls. without knowing for sure if it Pittsburgh Guild for the Blind in Shawn, who is blind, operates the w o u l d i n d e e d b e i n s t a l l e d o r i f h e 1977. "Besides learning how to console of the Dimension® 2000 could get such a job. When he ap cook and clean, we were given mo PBX System on which an impaired- plied for the job at the Reading bility training. I learned there that v i s i o n f e a t u r e i s a s t a n d a r d o f f e r Works, Shawn had an edge because you have to speak up and ask ing. The Dimension PBX is manu he already had the skills for the questions," says Shawn. "No mat f a c t u r e d a t W e s t e r n ' s D e n v e r job. He started working there in ter where you go, there's always Works. February 1979. someone who will help." Reading's PBX console emits A day's work for Shawn may in T h e t r a n s i t i o n f r o m s c h o o l t o v a r i o u s t o n e s t o a n n o u n c e a c a l l . clude putting together four-, five-, work is only one of many that Shawn explains, "I can tell by the or six-way conference calls, placing Shawn has undertaken in the past type of beep whether a call is com long distance calls, transferring few years. He was recently married i n g f r o m s o m e o n e i n t h e p l a n t , calls, clearing call-forwarded num to a woman he met at school. They from the outside, or through COR bers, and verifying numbers if they m o v e d t o a n a r e a t h a t i s w i t h i n t h e NET — and answer accordingly." are busy to see if there is a prob range of public transportation so In 1978, just a year out of high lem on the line or if the phone is t h a t S h a w n c o u l d r i d e t h e b u s t o school, Shawn began looking for just off the hook. work. He is fiercely independent — a job. His father, Dave, a 23-year S h a w n a t t e n d e d a s c h o o l f o r t h e and optimistic about his future. veteran toolmaker at the Reading blind through high school. When "This job, my new home, and of Works brought home news that the he was younger his parents would course, my wife, are aspects of my Works might be installing a new d r i v e 1 2 0 m i l e s e a c h w e e k e n d t o ability to get along on my own. I Dimension PBX. Switchboard op bring Shawn home. But, as he got feel confident and capable — and erator was on Shawn's list of job older, Shawn acquired a taste for more sure of myself than ever." First Quarter 0 34th Year

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What's Happening In Government Sales? Why our defense business h a s d o u b l e d i n t w o y e a r s

Branching off the Corridor Work in progress on the light- guide project in New Jersey 8 O n Y o u r M a r k She literally runs home from work every day Page 18 10 Saving Energy What you can save when you're willing to go all out 12 Defensive Driving A refresher course in staying alive on the highway 14 A P e r s o n a l V i s i o n A sampling of the work of spare-time WE painters 18 Installation Page 28 T h e c r i t i c a l fi n a l l i n k i n t h e service chain to the customer 24 Play Ball O u r D a l l a s t e a m m a k e s i t t o the Beep Ball World Series 28 Microwave Booster The growing impact of gallium arsenide transistors 30 Reunion at the Cape Some space-age pioneers remi nisce about the old days

George Gray P e t e r L e w i s ON THE COVER: A painting created by- Editor Design Ed Acuna, a free-lance artist in Connecti Western Electric cut. It focuses on the new look in @ Saul Fingerman Leonard Stern installation, and the greater emphasis on M a n a g i n g E d i t o r P h o t o g r a p h y testing and electronic components. Our Elizabeth Perlman Thomas J. O'Donoghue story on the new look begins on page 18. is published for employees of A s s o c i a t e E d i t o r P r o d u c t i o n Western Electric. President: D.E.Procknow; Secretary: R.F.Ehinger; Copyright © 1982 by Western Electric Co., Inc. Treasurer: R.E. Ekeblad. All Rights Reserved. Editorial office: 222 Broadway, NY, NY 10038 P r i n t e d i n t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s o f A m e r i c a . Telephone: (212) 669-2621 Title "WE" is a registered U.S. trademark. WHATS HAPPENING IN GOVERNMENT

Defense business has doubled in two years

Photos by Buddy Spoon For the past two years, Government making use of new Bell technology, Sales has been the fastest growing "Our objective is to build a busi such as bubble memories, very large part of Western Electric's business. ness base that doesn't rely on one scale integrated circuits, and light- Although the totals are still relative big project—the SAFEGUARD sort guide. ly small compared to our Bell busi of thing—but rather one that pro 3) "By aggressively selling WE ness, we are again moving up into the vides sales to government agencies communication systems to the mili big leagues of government contrac on a continuing basis—a business tary and civil agencies. We have tors. We now rank about number 25. that can grow and have longevity." always provided WE products on re In the DEW Line days and Nike The strategy is obviously working. quest, but that's different from ac Hercules era we were in the top five. Government sales in 1981 were up tively selling systems." To get some insight into why and about 30 percent over 1980. In 1980 The government communications- how, we talked with Warren Corgan, they were up 50 percent over 1979. related market is huge and with Vice President, Government and This means that in two years' time. the Reagan administration propos Commercial Sales, as well as many Western sales to the U.S. govern als for further defense spending other Government Sales people who ment just about doubled. it may get bigger. Currently the fig are headquartered at the Guilford "We're trying to increase business ure is about |23 billion. However, C e n t e r i n N o r t h C a r o l i n a . on three fronts," Corgan explained: every piece of that huge market is " O u r d i v i s i o n w a s f o r m e d i n 1) "By taking advantage of proj already spoken for, and you have to 1979," Corgan said, "for the purpose ects we worked on previously, such compete vigorously every inch of of revitalizing our government busi as SOSUS (Sound Surveillance Sys the way. Bell System policy enun ness. We're trying to do that by mak tem) for the Navy and Nike Hercules ciated by John deButts a few years ing use of technology developed on for the Army—to enhance those sys ago is that we "will positively and the Bell side and appliqueing it to tems using current technology. actively seek communications busi military projects. 2) "By getting into new areas. ness and other projects from the government—with the exception of we bid on. In 1981 that percentage be established as a leading competi offensive weapons." was up to around 80. We go head to tor in the field. WE asked Ed Dillberger, General head with some of the biggest names Currently, our largest effort with Manager, Government Operations, on the Fortune 500 list—in fact, with t h e a r m e d f o r c e s i n v o l v e s s o n a r where do you get leads so that you a good many of them." (acoustic listening) systems for the can compete vigorously. "We have An example of one such project U.S. Navy. We've been working on our name on bidders' lists at major is a new Enhanced Modular Signal it for 29 years; in fact, a number of government purchasing offices so Processor for the Navy. It goes by people have spent entire careers that we automatically get a request the short title of EMSP, and, in fact, working on just one project. These for a quotation in any of the areas many WE people don't recognize it s y s t e m s u s e c o n c e p t s s t e m m i n g in which we have indicated an inter- by the full name. When developed. f r o m f u n d a m e n t a l w o r k t h a t B e l l L a b s d i d o n a c o u s t i c s f o r t h e t e l e phone system a long time ago. While the basic principles of sonar have remained about the same. Bell Labs and Western have assisted the Navy in a continuous program to improve these systems. Four generations of sonar systems have been provided over the years.

est. However, if we just sat back and ABovE-Warren Corgan, VP Government waited for such formal requests we & Commercial Sales. RiOHT-Work for the Navy on undersea sound detection. might as well close up shop and for get it. You've got to be running and it is going to be the Navy's standard We asked Lew Bain, Director of pretty well up to speed before that signal processor and as such will be Government Systems, in whose bai formal request arrives. used in a wide variety of Navy and liwick these continuing programs "What we do is analyze the de other military programs. Western fall, why the project has continued fense budget, looking for opportuni has been awarded a Phase 1 contract so long. "Since World War 11," he ties. We have Government Systems to provide and demonstrate our sys explained, "the U.S. Navy has used Account Management people at the tems design for it. Our team also fi x e d a n d m o b i l e s o n a r s t o d e t e c t Washington Service Center who includes Bell Labs and Sperry Uni- ships and submarines. As sea war visit the Pentagon and the Navy vac. However, four other corporate fare has become more sophisticated offices in Arlington daily looking for t e a m s h a v e b e e n a w a r d e d i d e n t i c a l the surveillance job has become leads. We read the trade press and contracts. The final award to one of more important and more compli the Commerce Business Daily. It's the five teams, calling for full-scale cated. Consequently, the Navy has n o t u n u s u a l t o t r a c k s o m e o f t h e s e engineering development and the sought to increase its knowledge of things for a year and a half before initial production of up to 75 proc the ocean environment and informa something develops. essors, is due to be announced some tion concerning oceanographic and "On the other side, it takes a lot time this spring and will be a major a c o u s t i c c o n d i t i o n s o f f t h e c o n t i of time and thought to develop a a c h i e v e m e n t f o r t h e w i n n e r. W e s t n e n t a l c o a s t s a n d h a s c o n t r a c t e d good, solid quotation, and we're get ern Electric's proposal is a good one w i t h W e s t e r n E l e c t r i c a n d B e l l ting better at it all the time. It's a w h i c h h a s r e c e i v e d f a v o r a b l e c o m L a b o r a t o r i e s t o c o n d u c t a c o n t i n u highly competitive business. In 1980 ment from representatives of our ing program of oceanographic sur we won about 40 percent of the jobs Navy customer. If we win, we will veys and research designed to pro-

3 vide more detailed information on volves many of Bain's people as well guage of the system, just as English t h e o c e a n i c e n v i r o n m e n t a n d t h e as the Burlington Shops is Nike Her is the airways language. Then too transmission of sound in sea water. cules. "We're modernizing a 20-year- people abroad have always seemed In addition, we have been given the old system," Bain said, "to make it much more interested in learning job of design, manufacture and in more maintainable and easier to op English than we are in learning their stallation of fixed and shipborne erate. We're taking out vacuum languages." sonar systems. tubes and substituting solid-state Another long-term missile guid "Much of the underwater equip technology and a digital computer. ance program involves still another ment and shore-based equipment "The work is being done for six branch of the armed forces. Our fa that we use is manufactured at our NATO countries in Europe, plus cility at Vandenberg AFB is ap Burlington Shops. The coordination Korea and Taiwan, under a foreign proaching its 23rd anniversary, and of our worldwide efforts is provided military sales contract with the the Air Force has signed the contract by a project management group at U.S. Army. We are supplying a com extending the operation for at least the Guilford Center. plete package including not only the another two years. It began as a Bell "One of the outgrowths of our h a r d w a r e a n d i n s t a l l a t i o n f o r t h e L a b s b r a n c h t h a t t r a n s f e r r e d t o work with the Navy all these years," system modifications, but also field W e s t e r n a s a n e n t i r e u n i t i n 1 9 6 4 . I t s Bain continued, "is that we have de engineers, spare parts and troop RiGHT-Ihe Bell Labs' veloped probably the best ocean training on how to maintain and bubble memory is being operations group anywhere. Alto operate the updated system. I have used by the U.S. Air gether there are over a hundred peo a number of people working in F o r c e i n t h i s t e s t s e t w h i c h c h e c k s o u t e l e c t r o n i c ple, and at various times as many Europe and the Far East—about 50 countermeasures pod for as eight ships involved. Our people in all, but in small groups. Usually combat aircraft. are experts at doing all kinds of the work involves two or three engi oceanographic work under all kinds neers, an installation supervisor.

of conditions. As a result of this ex and some key installation personnel ABOVE-Ihe heavily shrouded equip m e n t o n t r a i l e r s o u t s i d e t h e t e s t perience we've been involved in the some of whom are on loan from our building at Burlington were Nike design of new ships, particularly Navy programs. The bulk of the in Hercules radars on the way to a test with respect to the mission equip stallation work is done by local in Sardinia last summer, right- Care and feeding of the new solid- ment that goes on the ship—the spe troops. cial navigation, test and towing "We have had very few language state Nike Hercules system is taught to officers of U.S. Allies equipment." problems," Bain said, anticipating in Europe and the Far East. These Another major project that in- our question. "English is the lan- absorbed young men are German. function is to guide satellites into capabilities. This is in contrast to 1981, in fact, was a TD3D microwave orbit using the Bell System's com Lew Bain's people who are con system for Kuwait, the oil-rich mand guidance system. It has been cerned with the development of s h e i k d o m o n t h e A r a b i a n G u l f . incredibly successful. more specialized systems which are We have reported in the past The third prong of the new thrust still generally based on Bell System in WE® Magazine about the installa in Government Sales that Corgan technology, but are even more tail tion of Dimension® PBXs aboard mentioned is the aggressive selling ored to meet unique military re U.S. Navy ships. The first was in of systems and services using Bell quirements. Both the Bain and stalled aboard the aircraft carrier System technology modified to meet Geiger groups increasingly sell their John F. Kennedy (WE, Jan-Feb specific government needs. This ef systems and services to the U.S. 1981). There have been 26 more Di fort is headed by Chuck Geiger, Di government for use in foreign coun m e n s i o n P B X s i n s t a l l e d o n o t h e r tries. The local telephone company rector of Marketing. large ships since then and the expec Geiger's people work with both or Long Lines generally handles the t a t i o n i s t h a t t h e r e w i l l b e a n o t h e r the Department of Defense and ci government's domestic communica 20 this year. tions needs, although we may bid on vilian agency officials in an attempt A somewhat similar program has such work in some competitive situ to sell these specific Bell System been underway with the Department ations. of State. We have been installing The equipment for overseas proj Dimension PBXs in major embas ects is shipped from Western Elec sies around the world—Paris, Lon tric factories to a staging area—for don, Bangkok and Mexico City, for c o n s o l i d a t i o n w i t h o t h e r i t e m s a n d example. A total of 13 were com containerization if necessary. In pleted last year and 28 more are creasingly, Burlington is perform scheduled for this year. There's ing this job for the Division. "Our more to it than installing a PBX as experience to date in having support we might do in any factory or motel operations performed at Burlington in the United States. has been excellent," Chuck Geiger Another major GCS project, re said. "We anticipate continued fine cently completed in Central Ameri support to our marketing efforts ca, was the installation of eight f r o m t h a t l o c a t i o n . " D i m e n s i o n P B X s i n a t a n d e m n e t S i n c e w e m a r k e t a l l a c r o s s o u r work serving our American forces product lines, almost anything can in the Panama Canal Zone. Five of turn up in the staging area from in the bases were on the Pacific coast dividual telephone sets to room- and three on the Atlantic side. It is sized switching systems to micro the first time outside the continental wave transmission gear for a whole U n i t e d S t a t e s t h a t D i m e n s i o n P B X s route. One of the big projects of have been linked together in this fashion, and the possibility of set ting up similar arrangements in other parts of the world is very , ' good. "While we are now well organized to sell our standard products to the government and are proud of our success," Corgan said, "our record shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. After all, we have the best line of telecommunications products in the world and first-class manufacturing and service groups to support us. "When it comes to special designs, we're supported by the best R&D organization in the world and have a very highly motivated group at BTL-Whippany who gives us direct support. "With that kind of backing, we expect to be successful." IMl Even lightguide must be "cabled," Bill Brown and Phil Werner do the honors.

Branching off the Corridor Photos by Len Stern The Northeast Corridor is the biggest lightwave project in the world. Part of this enormous undertaking occurred in a small central office in Metuchen, NJ

6 densely populated areas in the emphatically, "but the job sure is country. The cable will also pass changing. Everything is becoming through the populous cities of Balti smaller and faster. Technology is more, Wilmington, Trenton and exploding all around us, and you Newark. have to learn to think differently. Initially, the system's main route "For example," he adds, "the days and branch extensions will carry up of the big one-to-one-and-a-half year to 80,000 simultaneous calls over jobs with massive installation crews dozens of hair-thin glass fibers or are gone forever. Jobs are much light guides. The digital light pulses shorter now. We get intervals now carrying these calls will be trans adays like 58 hours to put in a mitted at a rate of 90 million bits frame. That's because, as the equip per second. Later improvements are ment gets more and more modular expected to double and then triple ized, installation gets more and even these enormous speeds and more efficient." capacities. Interestingly enough, Metuchen is T h e N o r t h e a s t C o r r i d o r ' s fi r s t Werner's first lightwave job. Emu step — the announcement — was lating Johnny Carson's straight man, largely ceremonial, but the many we asked, "How different is it?" rapid-pace steps taken since have "Plenty," said Werner. "For one been more concrete. For one thing. thing, the frames are only seven feet Western Electric became supplier high compared to the 11 feet, 6 of Phase I—the New York-to-Wash- inches for most of the other equip ington portion. Part of that phase is ment in here." And, sure enough, illustrated here. This particular step looking around the neat New Jersey was the installation of repeaters in Bell office, we could see that the two a Metuchen, N.J. central office for a frames Werner was working on were New Jersey Bell branch that will tie dwarfed by the No. 5 crossbar and into the Corridor. carrier equipment frames towering Actually, as "in-charge" installer, over them on all sides. In-charge installer Phil Werner points Phil Werner pointed out, the proper Another big difference is in the lightguide cable at the camera. A flash light was beamed into the other end. name for the units his group is put cable forming of the bright orange ting in is not repeaters, but regen lightguides. "You can't handle light- erators. This is because the light An ancient Chinese proverb says guide fiber and cable the way you do that even a journey of a thousand pulses reaching one of these units copper wire," says Werner. "The after being weakened by four miles miles begins with a single step. As radii of bends and turns have to be of travel through lightguides are exact. If you make too extreme a far as the world is concerned, the first step of the Bell System's latest recreated or regenerated by tiny turn, you can cause optical loss. lasers. This capacity for regenera What's more, the requirements for journey into lightwave communi tion, incidentally, is one of the ad cations, the epic 611-mile Northeast single fibers and for cables are com Corridor, was taken on January 23, vantages of digital circuits. It means pletely different." that voice, data or picture signals 1980, when AT&T and eight Bell T h e r e w e r e o t h e r d i f f e r e n c e s a s start fresh at every repeater point companies announced plans to con Werner pointed out, but, still, so that, even after journeys of hun struct the world's largest lightwave watching him and his two-person dreds of miles, the signals are as telecommunications network. crew of Bill Brown and Jackie Vi- S c h e d u l e d f o r c o m p l e t i o n i n strong and "clean" as new. viano at work, it was clear the job 1984, the $100-million system will Werner, who joined Western was in good hands and going well. link the Washington, Philadelphia, Electric in 1970 right after coming Nor was it any surprise a couple of New York and Boston metropolitan back from Viet Nam, has been an weeks later to hear it had been fin areas, providing ultramodern com i n s t a l l e r f o r m o s t o f t h a t t i m e . " I ished in top-notch fashion and right m u n i c a t i o n s f o r s o m e o f t h e m o s t like the title of 'installer'," he says on schedule. [Ml

Lightguide cables are made up of ribbons like the ones Bill Brown is installing here.

7 ' A.r' ^ ^ ^

On Your Mark

By Elizabeth M. Perlman Reading, Pennsylvania provides the back Kris Bankes gets to see a lot of the world- ground for Kris Bankes, who trains for races by running after work each evening most of it when she's running in marathons i n a n d a r o u n d h e r h o m e t o w n .

8 When Kris Bankes says she's going long—especially for someone who to run right home from work, she's is not quite five foot five—she's off not talking figuratively. Kris, a the ground a good deal of the time. mechanical engineer in the laser- She places her arms close to her package assembly department of body and clenches her fists to the Reading Works, runs home lengthen and improve her stride, every evening. It's eight or nine not fight it. She moves from the miles, depending on her route, and torso, head up, all four limbs work some of it is uphill. ing together. Her whole frame is When she's not running home or one forward-moving force. working at Western, Kris is often Like many competitors, Kris racing—and placing. She's a world- speaks of racing in terms of per class runner. Unlike people who jog sonal achievement. "I'm usually to sweat off a few pounds, Kris is concentrating on my own time and invited, on the basis of her speed, to on the clock, and it's more fun to compete in international races. She be with people. I'm not always try has competed in Reading, New ing to be the 'best'—I don't have to York, Boston, San Francisco, Los win every race. But, if I feel good Angeles, England, and Germany. and relaxed and am running a good She uses her vacation days for rac race, I'll go after people who are ing and is sponsored by a sporting- ahead. That's the fun of racing— goods company so that she can run, running a good run while running so to speak, around the world. f o r a r e a s o n . " Her specialty is 10-mile races, but Kris started running when she she's run several marathons and fin was in high school and joined the ished in competitive positions. In track and cross country team in 1980, Kris ran a 10-mile race in just college. "There wasn't a cross coun over 56 minutes. In the 1981 Boston try team for women until 1974 when Marathon, she ran the course in I started at Penn State," Kris ex 2:51:37 and placed 33rd among the plains, "so I joined the team and we women. That's roughly 6.5 minutes competed against clubs in the area." a mile for 26 miles, 385 yards. Kris thought of majoring in math The subdued manner Kris has, at Penn State, but her father sug the way she hardly flexes her mus gested majoring in engineering. "He cles when she talks or smiles, the convinced me that there would be compact motions she makes with greater opportunity in engineering her hands as she adjusts a laser and that I'd be able to do more with package, all bespeak an economy of that degree. I worked at Western m o v e m e n t t h a t b e c o m e s s t r i k i n g during the summer before my senior when you see her run. Her stride is year and liked it, so here I am three As Pat Gift looks on, Kris examines years later, a mechanical engineer." a laser package to ensure ttiat it will be a high-quality product. K r i s i s a m e m b e r o f a " W e s t e r n Electric family." Her father. Bob, has worked at the Reading plant for 25 years, and her sister works there t o o . B o b B a n k e s d r i v e s K r i s t o work each morning so that she d o e s n ' t h a v e t o b o t h e r w i t h h e r c a r in the evening when she runs. With characteristic modesty, Kris says, "I guess I'm lucky to have found something I like to be good at." She adds, "I'm also lucky to work with people who encourage me —on the job and before a race. I've found a good balance between my job and running. I get to see a lot of the country and I like my job at Western. I guess I'm just lucky." [M] nergy is a popular topic these gan Service Center for the past 28 days, but to paraphrase Mark years, lives with his wife Mary Ann, Twain, everybody is talking and son. Bob, on a heavily wooded 20- about it, but not enough people acre parcel of land. They all cut wood are doing anything. — oak, maple, beech —• and strive to We described in the May-June 1981 keep a two-year supply. "It's a lot of issue of WE our company's successful work," he says, "and it isn't easy." programs. This issue we focus on some Having a large supply of wood is not i n d i v i d u a l e m p l o y e e s w h o a r e d o i n g enough for the Pepins. They keep try things on their own to come up with ing to make their heating system even unique ways to ease the drain on this more efficient. They sealed windows, c o u n t r y ' s fi n a n c i a l a n d n a t u r a l r e installed a storm door over the patio sources. door, and added another six inches of insulation in the attic — and they're Burning Wood Instead of Oil still looking for more energy-saving In Howell, Michigan, for example, ideas. the oil truck doesn't stop at Hal Pepin's No More Garbage home anymore. The driver knows he's no longer needed — since Hal and his One chore that Doug Woodward has family realized their search for fuel eliminated is taking out the garbage. independence. It was a search sparked There just isn't any. He recycles it all. by necessity. "Recycling is a matter of awareness "We used to average 2,000 gallons per and establishing practical habits that year," Hal recalls. "When 1 realized can be maintained beyond the first that oil had jumped to 60 cents from surge of enthusiasm," he says. 14 cents, that was the turning point." Not only are Doug's recycling habits W i n t e r s c a n b e s e v e r e i n H o w e l l , many, but they have been sustained near Plymouth. Hal remembers a bit over the years. terly cold month a few years ago when Organic garbage goes into the garden the temperature went to minus 15°F as compost.

By Patrick Barr aving Energy a few times, and he had to burn 600 Talking about saving energy gallons of oil in just that one month. T h a t ' s w h e n h e s h u t o f f t h e t w o - is one thing. Doing something sided fireplace they had been using to i s a n o t h e r. T h e s e t h r e e W E supplement the oil heater, and in stalled a Franklin stove in the living employees did something r o o m . I n n o t i m e h i s f u e l b i l l w a s c u t in half. Paper is sold. "The fireplace was only heating one Glass is crushed, stored in galvanized end of the house," he says. "Once we garbage cans and sold to Owens-Corn put in the stove and realized how warm ing at 1 Vi cents per pound. we could be and not burn so much oil, A l u m i n u m c a n s a r e fl a t t e n e d a n d wc said 'Gee, why didn't we do that sold to Reynolds at 33 cents per pound. several years ago?' " "Saving up for a practical load may But still they weren't satisfied. There take me a couple of years," he says. was the nagging thought that if he "This is largely a result of my buying ill iiii could only get something to help the h a b i t s w h i c h a r e d i r e c t e d t o w a r d r e furnace heat the water, he could heat usable, rather than one-way contain the entire house without oil. ers." He found something to fit the bill if Doug lives in Lilburn, and is a devel in a town 20 miles away. It was a regu opment engineer at our Atlanta Works, lar wood-burning stove. Inside, a cylin with 20 years of company service. der of circulating water was hooked "For me," he says, "personal energy- m. u p t o t h e b o i l e r . W a t e r c i r c u l a t e s saving measures tie into my lifestyle through the cylinder where it is heated and philosophy. What makes good a n d t h e n s t o r e d i n t h e b o i l e r . I t i s a sense in assuring that my children and more efficient method of heating their t society have a reasonable future, is also 3,500-square-foot home. What's more, a benefit to my pocketbook in day-to- they wouldn't need the Franklin stove day living." anymore. Too Much Glass " N o w, w e b u r n n o o i l a t a l l , " H a l says proudly. Seven years ago, when Don Pote had Hal, who has worked at our Michi- his ranch-style house built in Watch-

10 ung, New Jersey, energy conservation Using his engineering background, was not a major consideration in the Don conducted a methodical study of design. The esthetic appeal of large energy conservation devices and pro windows and high ceilings was more cedures currently available, weeding important — and therein lies the prob out those he didn't consider practical lem. o r c o s t e f f e c t i v e . "It is not the most energy-efficient H e i n s t a l l e d a d d i t i o n a l a t t i c i n s u type of construction," Don admits, lation; gradually adjusted the ther "because of high heat losses through mostat down; installed a night/day the large window and roof areas." thermostat timer; installed furnace When the price of fuel escalated Don flue dampers and insulated hot air knew it was time to do something. "For ducts. He also had the benefit of a me it became a challenge to see what "Heat-O-Lator" fireplace which, unlike could be done to reduce energy con regular fireplaces, captures a portion sumption on a personal level," he said. of the heat that would normally escape "Not only could this help reduce an up the chimney. jmincreasing expense, but I would like to i'4 '/-y believe that in some small way it would In addition he had all the doors also help to limit U.S. dependence on sealed, insulated water lines and the hot water tank, kept drapes open dur imported oil and its attendant impact on inflation." ing sunny winter days and closed them It wasn't difficult for Don to get into during the evenings and on hot sum mer days. the energy-saving frame of mind. " S i n c e I w a s b o r n a n d r a i s e d a t t h e t a i l Don admits that not every device in end of the Great Depression," he said, stalled nor every procedure followed "it was natural for me to expect that was a resounding success. "Neverthe one should conserve and not be waste l e s s , o v e r a l l r e s u l t s a r e w h a t c o u n t and, judging from these, I would say , v , , , ful. For the most part, this philosophy has carried over into my own family that it was definitely worth the cost life." and effort." Hal Pepin gathers an arm D o n , w h o h a s b e e n w i t h W e s t e r n And Don isn't finished yet. "I'm con ful of logs from his two- Electric for 22 years, is a Product Plan sidering a host of other possibilities, year supply. It required ning and Engineering Manager in the including solar heating, all of which a l o t m o r e w o r k t h a n a Product Line Planning and Engineer will come at the proper time when squirrel hiding away nuts, ing organization for purchased prod economically feasible," he said. but for Hal and his family ucts in Springfield, New Jersey, about "With the cost of natural gas des it spells energy s e v e n m i l e s f r o m h o m e . H e l i v e s w i t h tined to rise in the near future, that independence. his wife, Joan, and their three children, time may be sooner than we think," Jeffrey, Stephen and Deborah. he said. [we]

RIGHT—Don Rote designed the fireplace and installed the stone facing himself. S o m e h e a t f r o m t h e fi r e place dries the logs which he stores in the space to his right. Heat enters the room through the vents just above the storage. fmt. ■ i:.

LEFT—if it will burn, Doug Woodward will feed it into GV-" I the stove he installed in his living room. He designed a n d b u i l t t h e b r i c k w o r k o n which the stove stands. Everything gets recycled. 1^^ JI

11 Defensive Driving A lot of people-including some Pioneers- teach defensive driving courses. Taking one could save your life

I decided on a frontal approach: "Why • A preventable accident is one in should I take a defensive driving which you failed to do everything you course? I've been driving for more than reasonably could have done to prevent 40 years without an accident. I've driv it. en in all kinds of weather, in every state • Defensive driving is driving to pre in the union and some foreign coun vent accidents in spite of the incorrect tries, on every kind of road surface im a c t i o n s o f o t h e r s a n d a d v e r s e c o n d i aginable, even in some places where tions. t h e r e w e r e n o r o a d s a t a l l . W h a t ' s i t going to do for me?" Over the years, some 12 million peo "Obviously, you're a defensive driver ple have taken the Defensive Driving already. Nobody can survive very long Course—in this country and abroad. on today's highways without driving There are more than 30,000 authorized defensively. But that doesn't mean you instructors. You can put those figures have nothing to learn." up against what they are combatting: I was talking with Paul Sonntag, 52,000 deaths involving motor vehicles senior engineer in the Environmental in a typical recent year and more than Health and Safety organization at At 2 million injuries. lanta Works. For the last two years, A n u m b e r o f P i o n e e r s a t A t l a n t a P a u l h a s b e e n c h a i r m a n o f a P i o n e e r Works have been certified by the Na Educational Committee and in that tional Safety Council to teach the De capacity has been the mainspring of fensive Driving Course (a few Future the Chapter's Defensive Driving Pro Pioneers, too). There are similar pro gram. grams in many other Pioneer chapters "I've been teaching the course in var around the country. In fact, the Atlanta ious places for about 10 years," Paul Works picked up the idea from the continued, "and every time I give it, I Southern Region whose program goes learn something or my memory is re back many years. freshed on something that was begin Initially, a group of WE people were ning to fade. That's the main thing. It's trained as safe-driving instructors and not so much that people don't know they in turn conducted classes for sev or haven't been taught. It's more that eral hundred people at the plant. "We'd they've become sloppy in their driving. like to have everyone authorized to use When they first start out or when they a company vehicle—not only take the take a course like this, they're very course, but go through it again every alert and gung ho for six or eight two years as a refresher," says Paul. months afterwards. Then, if they "In view of the personal cost and heart haven't had an accident, they begin to break involved in a serious accident, get sloppy. Every time I pull out on the the time and money invested in the De highway, I'm amazed at how sloppy fensive Driving Program is well worth m o s t d r i v e r s a r e . " it." When people talk about accidents, Besides Paul, others from the Works they usually talk in terms of who's to who frequently serve as instructors in blame. But after the accident has hap clude Aubrey Duke (the future Pio pened, it's really too late. A much more neer), Dick Eier, Dan "Jake" Jakubow- practical approach is to look at acci ski. Bill Leonard (current Chapter dents in terms of "How can I prevent President), Bob Light, Jim Luerssen the next one?" The best way to learn and Dave Mitchell (BTL). about safe driving is by studying acci A course consists of eight sessions of f - '' dents. one hour each. It is entirely a class 13us driver supervisors listen The Defensive Driving Course is part r o o m s i t u a t i o n . T h e r e i s n o a c t u a l " b e - attentively as Paul Sonntag of a national program designed to pre hind-the-wheel" driving involved. lectures on defensive driving. v e n t a c c i d e n t s . I t i s b u i l t a r o u n d t w o The Atlanta Pioneer course uses ma key ideas: terials developed by the National Safe-

12 ty Council and purchased through the figure out quickly and correctly where ing course to a number of students Georgia State Council. you should be. What I do is look for a at Parkview H.S. in Snellville and These materials provide the bare d e fi n i t e m a r k e r f o r t h e c a r a h e a d t o Jim Steele, Superintendent of Trans bones. Local incidents and driving con cross, like the shadow from an over portation, asked that they put on a ditions and the experiences of the par pass. As soon as he crosses that line, I program for the maintenance and bus- ticipants all help fill in the flesh of the start counting one thousand and one, driver supervisors. The county has 376 program. one thousand and two. If I haven't fin vehicles and hundreds of drivers, for In addition to the defensive driving ished counting by the time I cross the whom it conducts very extensive train classes conducted at the plant, the Pio same shadow line or pass the same ing programs. But according to Steele, neers have also been giving the course m a r k e r , I ' m t o o c l o s e a n d I s l o w a d r i v e r i s n e v e r t o o w e l l t r a i n e d . H e at local schools. down." was looking at the films, visual aids and various handouts with an eye to adapt "The first two sessions are always " W h a t a r e s o m e o t h e r h a z a r d s ? " I the roughest," Paul says. "We get a lot asked. ing them for the county's own pro of referrals. These are people who have grams. The response from such a pro "We do get into the danger of drugs been caught breaking the driving laws fessional group was considerably dif —the predominant one is alcohol, of and as part of their sentence the judge ferent from the response in a high course. But a lot of people tend to for has ordered that they must take a de school class. fensive driving course. get about medications that can cause Snow is not normally a major driv drowsiness or slowed reactions. They ing problem in Atlanta, as it might be "They're often very resentful and it's think of them as innocuous, but they not easy to bring them into the main in Minneapolis, but it came up in one aren't always when you're driving. stream of the group. of the defensive driving discussions. "Another problem is the show off. Cough syrup, antihistamines and pain One of the transportation supervisors relievers are examples. We usually have one of those in every recalled, "We'd gone up to Indiana a The photos with this story were few years back to pick up some new high school group, and his main pur taken during a rather unusual class in buses. On the way home, we ran into a pose is to impress the girl friend he's brought along with him. Lawrenceville, Ga., about 15 miles blinding snowstorm in Kentucky that "Most of the kids in a high school northeast of the Works. Lawrenceville put the fear of the hereafter in all of is in the center of Gwinnett County, us. I could have converted the whole program do not yet have their driver's home to many hundreds of WE fami bunch, if we had stopped to hold a licenses," Paul said, "so the motivation lies. The Pioneers had given the driv to learn is strong. Also, completing the p r a y e r m e e t i n g . " G . G . [ M l program can mean reduced insurance premiums, which is another major in centive." Let's call them the Rhodes family. to drive all night. Besides he had two " W h a t ' s t h e b r e a k d o w n b e t w e e n m e n That's not their real name, although the buddies with him In the front seat. Jack a n d w o m e n ? " I a s k e d . story Is based on fact. Let's call the place (19) and Don (21) who'd keep him com "I'd say it's close to 50-50," Paul said. P l e a s a n t o n . T h a t ' s n o t t h e r e a l n a m e pany. His parents and the four kids could " I t h i n k w o m e n a r e s t i l l a l i t t l e m o r e either; It could be anywhere in the con all tune out. prone to listen to ideas, but since every tinental United States. None of the peo They'd been traveling for five hours body drives nowadays, the old image of ple Involved was employed by Western and had less than an hour to go to their the macho driver is no longer exclu Electric. But several could have been. destination when the accident happened. sively male. We get some aggressive fe That's the point of this whole piece. T h e o f fi c e r s e s t i m a t e d t h a t t h e c a r h a d male drivers, too. It was five A.M. on a Saturday morning been traveling between 80 and 85 when It in the late fall when the accident oc ran off the road. They concluded that the "Very often the mild retiring person curred. Nine persons were killed. The d r i v e r h a d d o z e d o f f b e c a u s e t h e c a r in the classroom becomes a tiger out car in which they were traveling crossed traveled 330 feet on the grass median on the road." the median strip, tore through an over before the brakes were applied. The skid "What can you do to prevent that?" pass guardrail and hurtled 60 feet marks ran right through the guardrail. I a s k e d . through the air. It landed upside down Could that tragic accident on the inter "You prevent it from causing you on the ground below. state have been prevented? Possibly. difficulty by being aware of it—and by None of the car's occupants survived Probably. What did they do wrong? Just driving defensively. to explain what happened, but highway about everything. "Take tailgating, for example. That's police and local newspaper reporters re If you've taken a Defensive Driving clearly an aggressive act. What we say constructed the final hours of the family. Course, you may recognize this case is: 'slow down.' This opens up the in They had set out on their vacation trip history, it's a discussion starter from terval between you and the car ahead at midnight In a rented car. Barney, the Lesson 3. It's designed to elicit com in case you have to stop in a hurry. It father, had hoped to get a much earlier ments on do's and don't's, such as: also gives that character behind you an start, but his oldest daughter (13) was Don't start on a long trip late at night, playing in a championship basketball after putting in a full day's work—espe opportunity to pass, which is probably game and It would have broken her heart cially in an unfamiliar vehicle. Start early what he wants to do anyway. to miss her moment In the limelight. So, w h e n t h e d r i v e r o r d r i v e r s a r e f r e s h . "We used to talk about maintaining they had to wait until the game and cere Don't cram people in. Hold the speed so many car lengths between you and monies were over. Also, Barney was tired down. Almost half of all highway acci the vehicle ahead," Paul said, warming from having worked all day. dents involve automobiles traveling at up to his subject. "Now we talk about Barney, Jr. (21) said, "No sweat." He speeds in excess of posted limits. Almost the two-second rule. You try to keep at claimed he was In tip-top condition, able h a l f o f a l l f a t a l i t i e s o c c u r a f t e r s u n s e t . l e a s t t w o s e c o n d s b e h i n d t h e c a r a h e a d . Once you get the hang of it, you can l!

Untitled

Interesting composition. Compet ing mood. Not your typical stiff landscape. Muted tones show sen sitivity. An intimate approach to a bend in the road, which gives it a certain charm."

Mary Cornelius Kansas City Works A P E R S O N A L mm Almost anything can be brushed up on canvas

When we sent out a call to all loca tions last fall for pictures painted bj' WE employees, we thought we might get a dozen, maybe 20 at the outside. We actually received sev eral hundred, most of which were of exhibition quality. We had to se lect seven, and it was obvious we needed professional help. The old c l i c h e : " I l i k e w h a t I l i k e " w a s i n appropriate. WallyKain We gathered together the Pola Guilford Center roid® prints and color slides we had Drydocked "Realistic, but not the received from around the circuit and ciiche caiendar picture of a sailboat. It is took them to Robert Raphael, him the personally observed self an artist and professor of art at perspective that i find Pace University, who let us know attractive." that photographs were not the best way to judge original paintings. Which we knew. But there was also no way we could get to all the loca t i o n s e i t h e r. W h i c h h e c o n c e d e d . Prof. Raphael makes a determined effort to avoid the trite. He also speaks very rapidly, in bursts of thoughts as our captions indicate. The criteria he used in narrowing down the collection to the few shown here were evidence of a "per Kay Behlert sonal vision and personal style." New Jersey Service Center

After spending a day with Prof. Andy Warhol and His Girls Raphael we understood what Amy "Provides a strong emo Lowell meant many years ago when tional statement about she said: "Art is the desire of a man American society today to express himself, to record the —rather frightening. reaction of his personality to the Shows how certain peopie w o r l d h e l i v e s i n . " feel about themselves. They seem stylish and yet bewiidered at the same time."

15 Celeste Bryant Merrimack Valley Works " T h i s i s n i c e a n d h o n e s t . S u m m e r G l o w It is a realistic head —not pretentious. The a r t i s t t r i e s t o f a i t h fully reproduce a per s o n ' s f a c e . "

Robert L. Bennett Cincinnati Service Center

Glendale

"This is expressionistic, a s c o n t r a s t e d w i t h r e a l istic. The windswept rail way station has a psycho logical coldness. The artist is not a slave to the way a thing looks, but shows how it feels. Con fident brushwork. Judi c i o u s u s e o f c o l o r . "

16 C h a r l e s L . C e c i l Nashville Service Center

Grand Teton Range

i "He's made an attempt to do mountains -• -i' .-1. in a very personai styie, for which i give him credit. A strong effort to reconciie objective reaiity. H e ' s c o n f r o n t e d a n a c t u a i m o u n t a i n and tried to be faithful, but he uses color subjectively. Not a slave to what he saw, but he has also not violated the finite reality of the mountain."

B a s s W i l s o n Nashville Service Center

Telephone Repair Technician

" T h i s i s a s e r i o u s s t a t e m e n t . S h o w s a l o t o f thought. Color is thought out, composition is thought out. A combination of skiii and personai vision. The contrast between the man's serious expression and r^ickey Mouse is star tling and original. Some thing to think about."

© Wa l t D i s n e y P r o d u c t i o n s

17 LEFT—At O'Hare WE Installer Joann Musial is buzzing out cables and Luis Rivera, wiring connectors, right—Rich Kennedy is checking cable color codes for a frame being worked on. below—Ted Gittings is fanning wires.

ABOVE—Charlie Weinschenk contacting the Installation Test Center while Dan Gaffney has them on the phone. Installer Paul Villringer is at master control in the rear, left—In-charge Joe Zelinski is sewing power leads for a 24-volt converter. At the counter is IBT's Jim Sikora.

18 By George Gray Installation Photos by Joseph Gazdak

Installers are the final link in the long chain Today's installers are increasing of supply that brings new equipment ly concerned with things like soft ware, lightguide and digital data. on line for Bell Operating Companies There's a lot more electronics, which means somewhat less heavy physical effort. Although there are still a On a typical day last fall, Western which can require 40,000 hours or Electric's nearly 19,000 installers more to complete. Here, the frames great many connections to be made at the site, much of the wiring is are in. Wiring and cable is well were at work at 3,500 different job done at the factory, and increasing locations, almost all of which were along. Testing, which can account amounts of testing, even the all-in at Bell operating company sites. for 50 percent of an ESS job, has clusive systems tests, are now being Some were working in downtown already begun. conducted by installers from cen skyscraper telephone buildings, There have been WE installers as tralized locations. others were in one or two-story com long as there has been a Western mercial buildings in the suburbs or Electric Company (see page 22). Although we would have guessed that the figure was even higher from small towns, and a few were working Their jobs are a very clear reflection in remote mountaintop microwave of the times and the changing prod our recent travels, we're told that repeater stations. Nationwide, WE uct needs of the Bell System. Al o n e t h i r d o f a l l i n s t a l l a t i o n w o r k i s n o w e l e c t r o n i c . T h a t s t i l l l e a v e s a installers work out of 329 base loca though installers still skin wires, t i o n s — w h i c h m a k e s f o r s o m e c o m sew cables and buzz out connections great deal of work on common sys plicated logistics planning. as they have been doing for 100 tems, crossbar, toll, carrier, radio a n d o t h e r i n s t a l l a t i o n s e r v i c e s . Some installation jobs are simple years, the emphasis on activities has circuit modifications requiring only shifted dramatically, particularly A l m o s t a l l i n s t a l l a t i o n w o r k i s a few hours' work. Others, like the since 1965, when the Bell System's performed in "live" facilities, and one shown in these photos, are ma first electronic switching system activity is vulnerable to the poten jor central office replacements was cut over at Succasunna, N.J. tial of interrupting service to tele-

19 C u s t o m e r s d o n ' t w a n t to hear about problems. They look to the installers to get these straightened out

phone subscribers. Even trivial er rors can lead to service outages. In stallers have to be trained and vigi lantly alert to possible dangers. No two installation jobs are ever exactly alike, so there's no such thing as a typical job. The one shown here, however, does reflect some of the trends. It's a major job recently completed at the Illinois Bell Office at O'Hare Airport, about 18 miles from the downtown Chicago loop. On a clear day you can pick out the Sears tower and other skyscrapers on the horizon. The new #1A ESS office replaced a #5 Crossbar switching machine that was installed when the airport was under construction 20 years ago. There were 139 equipment frames in the package. The job started on November 10, 1980 and was completed on August 9, 1981. The crew under the supervision of Dan Gaffney, who celebrated 28 ABOVE—In the central office at O'Hare Airport, WE Installation Supervisor Dan Gaffney years of installation service just (left) discusses progress with Rich Raven (center), a foreman in charge of the IBT cutover crew, and Wade Henrichsen IBT Assistant Manager Crossbar, right—In the Installation about the time that the job was fin Test Center at Rolling Meadows, Installer Dave Bryant talks on the phone about a job while ished, included 16 men and one Tech Supervisor Bill Hrody checks the CRT Don Lundy in the rear is working with an woman. Three were away on the day entirely different installation. The center can service up to eight jobs at the same time. we stopped by early last summer; one at a training program, and two classroom training. the attitude of an experienced in working at another location. In At O'Hare, the 14 people actually staller, derives in large measure stallers do a lot of moving around on site at the time of our visit rep from being the final link in the long on short-term assignments. Many resented 202 years of installation ex chain of supply, starting with Bell have specialized skills and they are perience; 60 percent of that experi Labs research, development and de moved where they can do the most ence was provided by five old timers sign, followed by WE purchasing good. As for training, it is a vital —all completely committed to turn and manufacture, that brings a new ingredient. To become a tester at ing over a quality job to the phone piece of equipment on line for Bell the top indices 4 and 5, can require company on time. operating companies. 10 years or more experience plus The determination, so obvious in The WE installer is the person on

20 Centralized testing is a case of necessity being the mother of invention

our factories are two steps in the tion of a switching machine at its process. The installer's personal busiest time. The latest innovation concern is a third vital ingredient in is centralized testing; that is, locat- making the Bell System's switched ing the systems' testers in one cen- network one of the true wonders of tralized spot miles removed from the modern world. the office being tested. Installation testing has been un- The centralized test idea is a case dergoing profound changes in re- of necessity being the mother of in- cent years. There was, of course, a vention. First of all, there is a na- major change with the advent of tional shortage of qualified systems' stored program control, when we testers. It takes a great deal of time went from simple buzzing out of to train a systems' tester. Next, the connections to load testing offices— equipment needed for conducting a in effect simulating the total opera- systems' test is expensive and, while

the spot answerable to the "telco guys and gals" who often work in the next aisle. They couldn't care less that a supplier sent a gross of the wrong sized widgets or that a t r u c k e r d r o p p e d a c r a t e a n d knocked everything out of whack. The customers at the working level — t h e t e l c o t e c h n i c i a n s — l o o k t o t h e WE installer to get it all straight ened out and working according to the book before turn over—and they have a memory like an elephant for anything less than perfect. The quality of Bell Labs' design and the manufacturing expertise of

21 "portable," requires considerable r care in moving. Third, reference ma terials are constantly changing and very difficult to keep current in the field, and fourth, it helps avoid Installation History transferring some testers away from t h e i r h o m e l o c a t i o n s . More than 100 years ago, in 1880, a young man named The trial of the centralized test Charles G. Brady began work as Western Electric's first concept began in the summer of telephone switchboard installer. In fact, for his first five 1979. A new lA ESS office was being or so years with the company, Brady was the switchboard installed in Los Angeles. It was sys department. tem tested by two installers work Literally a one-man operation, the installation job in ing 2,000 miles away at Rolling those early days had Charlie based in a small room in the Meadows, 111. Access was provided Clinton Street plant in Chicago where he built and wired by the regular telephone network the first switchboards. Then he would pack up himself with two lines: one for data and the and his materials and head for the job site to install the other for voice. The data line hooked equipment. In the century since, installation at Western, like the into the ESS office, which was to rest of the Bell System and all of industry, has undergone conduct the tests, and into a Data- rather drastic changes and growth. Today, there are thou speed® 40 terminal which provided sands of Charles Bradys installing hundreds of new com printed copy as well as a means for munication systems across the country every day; Western inputting data. The voice line was Electric installers who put our products to work for the used for consulting with the install operating companies with the same dedication, if different e r s o n s i t e . job descriptions, as Brady and his eventual handful of The test procedures proved high colleagues did during the 80s and 90s. ly successful. It made possible a But despite the incredible technological sophistication centralization of expertise as well that distinguishes Western Electric's products and services a s a r e d u c t i o n i n t r a v e l t i m e a n d in 1982, installers today face many of the same basic prob lems that Brady did a century ago. The volume of work has expenses. indeed increased phenomenally, and the equipment is in As many as eight jobs could be stalled quite differently from the first standard switchboard. tested simultaneously in a central But has the job really changed all that much? ized location. Testers could readily Maintaining quality, meeting operating company dead consult with each other on the basis lines without sacrificing that quality, keeping costs low, of up-to-the-minute documentation. dealing with material shortages and late shipments are The ITC (Installation Test Cen some of the major problems and concerns facing today's ter) at Rolling Meadows became the installation supervisors. These concerns are not terribly different from those expressed by Enos Barton (then WE prototype for centers in all regions. At present, there are 102 positions Vice President and chief operating officer of the company) in a letter to Brady dated 1886. (See opposite page). fully operational in the test centers. Other aspects of that job, however, have changed con In the same ITCs, another pro found change is shaping up under siderably. Much of the actual installation in the early days was done by "locals" hired by WE's road foremen when the acronym SCANS (Software they arrived at a given installation site. When George Hopf, Change Administration). In effect it one of the three men who joined Brady on the WE installa is now possible for installation to tion force in 1886, supervised the installation of the first update the generic computer pro big switchboard in the West, the bulk of his crew was from gram of an electronic switching sys St. Paul, Minnesota, where the board was installed. A local tem office remotely. Generic pro man was hired to hoist sections of the switchboard to its grams for ESS machines provide third floor destination and a town cabinet maker was com basic intelligence for setting up missioned to fasten and fit the switchboard panels to the switching paths through the tele floor. Another 20 "local boys" were hired and trained to phone central office. The necessary cut and butt cable, and skin and solder wire to jacks. information is fed into a data line Road foremen like Hopf were very much on their own. and monitored on a Dataspeed 40. In addition to hiring local teams of workers, they usually At the telephone central office the devised—and improvised—their own methods and poli- change information goes into the ESS memory banks and updates it as required. It is truly a case of one computer telling another computer how to "get with it." V cies. After installing, testing and inspecting the job, they by the early 1920s, WE's installation force totalled 12,000 were required to get a letter of acceptance from the tele people. Some 7,045 of those employees were located in phone company approving the work. The competence and the East and nearly 83 percent of that eastern contingent integrity of most of these pioneer installation supervisors had less than one year's service. was such that this was usually just a formality. To provide the training, supervision, planning and engi During the next 10 years, installation began to take on a neering necessary to accommodate this expansion, instal size and character probably never anticipated by Charles lation was officially separated from manufacturing in De Brady and his colleagues just two decades before. By 1903 cember 1922 to become a separate department. there were 580 men in the installation organization, split Today, highly trained WE installers across the country

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between its New York and Chicago main offices. A short are putting in telecommunications systems that can do three years later, the Chicago side of the organization alone thousands of times the amount of work, in literally a frac had more than 1,000 men working simultaneously on ap tion of the time as the switchboards of Charles Brady's day. proximately 150 Installation projects. The pace at which this technologically advanced equip After a severe business decline that accompanied World ment can be installed is drastically changed as well. And War I, demand mushroomed. A personnel and training di its capabilities seem limitless. But no matter the changing vision was organized and schools were established in sev times, our installers are still performing the same funda eral major cities throughout the country to meet the needs mentally valuable service that they always have—getting of a rapidly expanding installation workforce. In fact, the the products we make to Bell operating companies as telephone industry had expanded to such an extent that. efficiently and inexpensively as possible. ball World Series. It was Theycalled sponsoredit the byBeep the LighthouseBase of Houston under a grant from the Shell Companies Foundation. Eight outstanding regional teams came together for the playoffs last Sep tember. O u r t e a m — t h e D a l l a s B a n d i t s sponsored by the Mesquite Club of the Pioneers at Dallas Works—came in second by a whisker. They lost in the final inning on the third day 33 to 32 to a team from Albuquerque, Photos by Chuck Lewis Abner Doubleday never dreamed of also sponsored by Telephone Pio neers. One of our guys, Sal Guzman, was voted Most Valuable Player for Blindness comes in degrees. While like it. One of the main differences the Series, and with two others, Joe the players, except the pitcher and between Beep Baseball and the Ab Moraga and Johnny Guzman, made catcher, are all legally blind and in ner Doubleday variety, is that your All Tournament, which is akin to All daily life use canes and dogs to find pitcher throws to your team—for American in football. their way around, some can dis obvious reasons. A batter is allowed Beep Baseball, if you've never tinguish shapes—except on the ball five strikes and two passed balls. seen it, or if you haven't seen it field. There, everyone wears a mask There were very few strikeouts in played in the past few years since so that no one player has a sight the World Series, which is largely "new" rules have been in effect, is advantage over any other. evidence of good pitching and a lot a highly competitive sport. All of the Try putting a sleeping mask over of batting practice. elements of a thrilling contest are your eyes and then go outdoors and The Bandits' pitcher is Ken Lucas, there—"the thrill of victory and the play ball. We've been involved with a programmer/analyst at Dallas agony of defeat" as they say on sandlot ball since we were barely Works. Ken was recruited by the "Wide World of Sports." But if any able to walk and we were always team coach Ray Wiora, department thing, the concentration and deter blessed with good eyesight. Still we chief in Information Systems. m i n a t i o n o f t h e b l i n d a t h l e t e s i s can't always hit the ball. Golf and "When Ray mentioned it," Ken re more apparent than with sighted tennis are the same thing. Keep your calls, "I figured it would be some ones. The umpire keeps yelling at eye on the ball, they say. How do you exercise maybe once a week. I went the fans to keep it quiet. Background do it when you're wearing a mask? out for just one practice and I was noise can really louse up a play that You do it by sound, but even more hooked. It's fun and the guys get wouldn't be easy to pull off even by timing and confidence that the such a charge out of it. We normally with 20-20 vision. pitcher will put the ball where you practice three times a week—two or

24 LEFT—Dallas Bandits' pitcher Ken Lucas t o s s e s u n d e r h a n d t o m a s k e d b a t t e r S a l Guzman. As he throws, Ken says briskly, "Ready Ball," and if the ball is placed correctly and the swing is timed correctly, you have a hit. Catcher is Dave Herron.

Player Player 4 2 Buzzing Base Player t Player ^ 1 i I t 40 ft. L/n^

Pitcher's Mound 20 Ft.

Beep Baseball, but he would have loved it

three hours each time—at Spence took up sponsorship in the spring of Guzman caught Ken with a blast. If Junior High in East Dallas." 1980. While they are not quite as fast you hit the pitcher, it's a dead ball According to our guide at the runners as some of the players in and the pitch is replayed. "I don't World Series Bill Kelley, president their twenties, they are both slug mind getting hit," Ken said. "What's of the Mesquite Club, Pioneers pro gers. We've seen them hit the over tough is trying to pitch at the same vided the team's snappy blue uni size Softball 100 feet in the air and speed and at the right height. After forms. And Pioneers provide trans have it roll all the way to the out a couple of hours your arm feels portation. The team this year played field fence 250 feet away. Not too ready to drop off." in four tournaments plus a number many sighted people in top shape Normally a game lasts about two of games with arch-rival Fort Worth, can do as well. hours. But the World Series, which which meant quite a bit of driving. Hitting the ball is mostly timing brings together top teams from all Beep Baseball is not a kid's game and practice. The pitcher stands 20 over the country, lasts longer—four as played by the Dallas Bandits. It's feet in front of home plate and tosses to five hours. And the scores sound big league sports. The players range the ball underhand. He says "Ready. more like basketball than baseball in age from Johnny Guzman (16) to Ball," briskly as he throws and, if —68 to 57,49 to 40. Coach Ray Wiora Gilbert Cruz (58), who incidentally he's put the ball in the right place, told us confidentially at the start of hit the winning run in the second and, if you started your swing at pre the first game, "If we can't get 15 game of the World Series. cisely the right instant, you connect. runs ahead in the first inning, we're Gilbert and Eddie Sanderson (37) And the pitcher better duck because in trouble." They were 18 ahead at are the only surviving members of the ball is apt to come straight at the end of the first, so we didn't see the original Dallas team that became him like a plastic-covered beeping trouble. For their first round, Dallas the Bandits when the Mesquite Club cannonball. In the first game, Johnny had drawn the Braille Sports Foun- Beep Baseball and How It Grew

At Merrimack Valley, Life M e m b e r F r e d J o n e s d i s cusses a design improve m e n t f o r t fi e a u d i o b a i l w i t fi WE Tooimaker Jerry Garand. Otfier members of tfie crew sfiown fiere are Ceiia Russell, Julie Levesque, Winnie Bearce and Mary Reaney.

Tfie original title was audio ball and games with the audio ball had not abundance. Watching the expressions it was invented in 1951 by Ctiarlie exactly been show stoppers. In a mat a n d l i s t e n i n g t o t h e c h e e r s f r o m Fairbanks, a telephone engineer with ter of months the first Beep Baseball the team when the umpire calls a Mountain Bell in Colorado. Charlie game was played in Golden Gate Park r u n n e r s a f e h a v e t o b e s e e n t o b e had a blind daughter and the ball and a new era began. One of those fully appreciated. BSF, anyway, made which emitted a steady "beep, beep, early games in San Francisco led to Beep Baseball a competitive sport. beep" sound was designed for her — national recognition. Hank Ketchum, The Telephone Pioneers who have so that she'd have a game to play c r e a t o r o f " D e n n i s t h e M e n a c e , " been involved since the beginning with others. watched it and was so impressed serve as sponsors of many of the 100 It was a unique plaything but did that he drew a cartoon strip in which not get widespread use until 1964 Dennis played the game. or so adult teams now playing. And when the principal of the Colorado there are more than 55 chapters in The following year the game made volved in the supply and distribution Springs School for the Blind came to the Telephone Pioneers with a request it to the Baseball Hall of Fame in of the balls. Cooperstown, N.Y. If you visit the for an audio softball for preschoolers. T h e b a l l s t h e m s e l v e s a r e a s s e m Fairbanks' ball was brought out of museum, you can see a beep ball, bled by life members of the Merrimack a model of the playing field and listen storage and more work was done on to a recorded spiel. Valley Chapter of the Pioneers, and it. Vernon Grimes of Colorado Springs they can't turn them out fast enough. inserted rubber potting compound In 1976, the National Beep Baseball Last year they made some 1,700, into the ball with a hypodermic needle Association (NBBA) was formed and which sounds like a lot until you con to provide durability. from this group have come the new sider the pounding that the transmit In 1971, the Telephone Pioneers in official rules. Until the new rules came t e r h a s t o w i t h s t a n d a n d t h e n u m b e r San Francisco picked up the ball, so out, no running was allowed in the of teams clamoring for them. Even an to speak, and invented a game it game, for fear a player might get hurt. e s t a b l i s h e d t e a m l i k e t h e D a l l a s B a n could be used in. Ralph Rock is gen This made the game, in basic English, dits practices hitting with a regular erally credited as the game's creator. a pantywaist activity and not too pop Softball. While some balls have lasted ular with either players or spectators. He devised a scale model of a base through an entire season, others need ball diamond where blind people A team in Saint Paul, Minn., spon repairs after only one game. The same c o u l d f e e l o r " s e e " w i t h t h e i r h a n d s sored by the Braille Sports Foundation i s t r u e o f t h e b a s e s . S o m e t h a t h a d t h e l o c a t i o n o f t h e b a s e s a n d w h e r e (BSF) brought about the change. worked perfectly all season needed the players were to stand. While there may be a shortage of repairs during the first inning of the In 1972 a committee was formed in sight on blind teams, there is no World Series. The blind play to win — San Francisco to teach the new base shortage of will to win — In fact, that which is, after all, the only way to ball game to the blind. Previous Is the one thing you have in super play any game.

26 dation (BSF) team, national cham "When I first started," a player ball. The idea is to trap it against pions for three years running. It was told us, "I went out and bought their bodies. The ball is 16 inches in like drawing Notre Dame in the first gloves and knee pads and elbow circumference and not all that easy round of a playoff. But our guys pads. Everybody wears them. You to grasp with one hand. It scoots won. learn to get by without the gloves away easily, like trying to grab the You score a run in Beep Ball if but the other pads are vital." ball in water polo. Usually the player you make it to a base located 90 feet While offense and scoring runs traps the ball against his stomach from home plate. The base beeps are interesting from a spectator while scrambling on the grass and also and you have to run to either point of view, the seeret of a cham then rolls over on his back to hold first or third depending on which the pionship team is defense. The out the ball upright with both hands. umpire has activated. The base is a field is divided into five seetions with It's an "out" if you hold the ball up 4V2-foot high beacon stuffed with one fielder assigned to each section. b e f o r e t h e r u n n e r h i t s t h e b a s e . foam rubber. You race toward it full There are also one or two sighted You definitely need a grassy field steam ahead with arms spread out spotters who can yell to position the for Beep Ball—and dry weather. We like a kid playing airplane. If you players to go after the ball. The ball were told about one game played on heard right and the crowd didn't must travel more than 40 feet from a dirt field after a shower. It was as make too mueh noise you knock it home. A blooper that doesn't make elose to mayhem as any of the play over with your arm. More than likely it out of the infield is a foul. e r s e v e r w a n t t o c o m e . you'll run smack into it and go In fielding the ball, the players The spotter tries to keep the sprawling head over tea kettles. run and dive toward the beeping fielders from crashing into each other, but in the heat of the contest they don't always succeed. Gary Odom, an engineering associate at the Works, is normally a spotter for the Bandits, but he was away on two weeks duty with the Marine Re serves. His place was taken by Leah Tubbs and Valesta Jones. Leah, for merly with the Lighthouse, was the person largely responsible for ini tially recruiting players for a Dallas team. It's the little things that make the game interesting, however. We watched one player from an oppos ing team hit a magnificent line drive that rolled almost to the fence. But in his run he missed the base—per haps it was the roar of the crowd— b u t o u r t e a m h a d r e t r i e v e d t h e b a l l before he eould stop and make his A grassy field is vital when you're scrambling to locate the beeping bail. way back. He was on the verge of tears, punching his leg in frustra tion, as he walked back, for having let his team down. The coach wanted to pull Johnny Guzman out of the second game in Houston when he got the wind knocked out of him in the third in ning. Johnny reacted as if the coach had suddenly abolished Christmas. The other players created a little diversion that gave Johnny a chance to get his breath back, and he stayed in. For Johnny, the game is more than fun—it's what golf is to the weekend golf nut, what tennis is to a LEFT—Coach Ray Wiora outlines a strategy move with Johnny Guzman. hacker, bridge to a fiend and ehess RIGHT—Charles Lott demonstrates the tricky art of blind base-running. to a master. It's the game. I I I ! ! I I MMttMdUA I I t I I I I TS'

AT LEFT-Tiny chip on Engineer Dave Deysher's fingertip is the key ingredient in new soiid-state microwave radio amplifiers.

Microwave Booster Photos by Len Stern Millions of telephone The tiny black speck that looks like ing at Reading. "We started intro a splinter in the finger of Reading calls are carried ducing them in 1978 and by 1979 we Engineer Dave Deysher, above, is at built about 10,000 a year, but they a s m i c r o w a v e the heart of a major re-do of the na whetted the phone companies' ap signals. Tiny chips tion's long distance network. petite for more. As a result, in 1980, can now generate The speck is a gallium arsenide we doubled our output, and in 1981, these signals chip which is used in devices called we expect to triple 1980's output. GaAs FETs (gallium arsenide field "They are cost effective. We're effect transistor). These devices re talking in terms of years of continu place expensive power amplification ous operation, where tubes operat devices such as traveling wave tubes ing at five watts have to be replaced and planar triodes in microwave every six or nine months. Also, transmission systems. The big GaAs FETs consume less power. metal package (at left in the photo "We have been working three above) is a solid-state microwave s h i f t s o n t h e m i c r o w a v e G a A s F E T amplifier which uses up to five GaAs line. Demand has just about tripled FETs. It's designed to readily dissi in the past year, and we're getting a pate heat. Heat is a natural enemy lot of inquiries from outside firms of all electronic devices; so the cool w h o w a n t t o u s e o u r G a A s F E Ts i n er the operating environment the satellites and other critical applica longer a device will last. tions. There is no question that we " W e ' v e b e e n u n d e r c o n s i d e r a b l e m a k e t h e m o s t r e l i a b l e G a A s F E Ts customer pressure to produce GaAs in the world." FETs in ever-increasing quantities," "Actually we're making two dif says Dick Feicht, Manager Develop ferent kinds of GaAs FETs," says ment and Manufacturing Engineer engineer Dave Deysher. "The 131

28 above-AI Reading, John Sepko (fore ground) checks a loose wire In a heat chamber where sample chips of gallium arsenide undergo extensive tests before the rest of a wafer Is processed. In the rear, Linda Feick Is taking readings. gallium arsenide layers having spe cial properties form on the surface. At Reading this process, known as epitaxial layer growth, is per formed in a separate clean room type building. It contains four epi taxial reactors or processing lines on the second floor, which use an inert atmosphere to minimize con tamination from stray atoms. Since the devices are so tiny, impurity levels of a few parts in a million can mean rejection. Also since the parts are so tiny, looking at them with the unaided Surrounded by reactors in a newly com close together—in one case the sep eye is futile. When a wafer is cut up pleted clean-air building at Reading aration between features is eight into chips and dumped in a plastic Works, Don Hartman shows a tray of t e n t h s o f a m i c r o n . O n e m i c r o n i s container, the result looks as if substrates used for making GaAs Fets 3 9 m i l l i o n t h s o f a n i n c h . A h u m a n someone spilled pepper while over- (gallium arsenide field effect transistors). hair at roughly 100 microns is seasoning his lunch. One wafer can enormous by comparison." yield thousands of chips. types are power devices and the A GaAs PET chip is a miniscule In order to minimize spending a 103s are low noise types. They're three-dimensional, structure pro lot of time working on chips where very difficult to make—especially in duced by a combination of epitaxial the epitaxial growth or subsequent the chip stage. layer growth, etching, and the for processing may be slightly off, a "Chips come in several sizes, but mation of metallization patterns. sample is taken from each wafer the average is about 10 mils square, Operators start with a wafer of gal and sent through the entire process. and the features on them are meas l i u m a r s e n i d e a b o u t t w o i n c h e s i n It must pass extensive reliability ured in microns. While the micron- diameter and a few mils thick. In a tests before the rest of the wafer is sized dimensions are incredibly series of passes through a reactor, committed for use in the production small, this geometry is critical. For t h e h e a t e d w a f e r i s p l a c e d i n area. This means that very exact re the device to work at high frequen streams of gases containing galli liability histories have to be kept on cies, the features have to be very um and arsenic compounds, and each wafer. IMl

29 with the Bell System. He was at CKL names, addresses for 233, and promises It was a simple handwritten sign in 1957, the year it opened its doors, to come from 63. On the big day, 50 hanging on the door, and all it said was, and, from 1961 until it closed down showed up—some from as far away as "CKL Reunion." i4s they passed the sign after guiding 125 military and scien Seattle, Washington. on their way upstairs to register, they tific missiles, he was resident manager H e r e m e m b e r s t h e Te l s t a r l a u n c h remembered that CKL stood for Cape of the facility; yet, ironically, he never ing, too. "I got to shake KappeTs hand, Kennedy Laboratories. They remem got to see a single missile leave the and he told me, 'You fellows have just bered, because, for many, it had been ground. Like most of the CKL crew, taken me off the hot seat, because I the best and most important period of he had to stay inside the small, win- just came down from telling a bunch t h e i r l i v e s . dowless building during the guidance of Washington politicians that indus Memories. They've all got them, and operation. try could and should be doing this.'" good ones, too. John D'Albora's favor D ' A l b o r a n o w l i v e s i n A l t a m o n t e But his favorite memory is of an ite goes back to those tense moments Springs, Florida with his wife, Rosalie. earlier and more primitive satellite— on July 10, 1962, when he and his men Not one to slow down in retirement, the giant Echo. "I liked it best because at Cape Kennedy literally held the fate he stays active in church affairs, spends you could see it from the ground. It of Bell System satellite communica a lot of time visiting hospitals and lasted 10 years, and I kept records all tions in their fingers. Those well- shut-ins, and goes to see his daughter that time. I used to ask guests if they trained fingers were on the controls and grandchildren in Palermo, Italy wanted to see my satellite and then of the BTL-designed and WE-built every year. He's also very active in Pio take them out at night for a look. It equipment that had already guided neer activities. It was, in fact, at a Pio appeared as a medium-bright, slowly many scientific and weather satellites neer function almost two years ago moving star. It was fascinating to

Aerial view of our building at the Cape circa 1962. Gantries at the launch pads are just barely visible on the horizon. into precision orbits and was now t h a t h e b r i e f e d E a r l L a u b e r o n t h e 1 0 t h know you were looking at the reflected a b o u t t o d o t h e s a m e f o r t h e w o r l d ' s anniversary reunion idea which he and light of the sun coming from a 100-foot first communications satellite—Telstar. Neal Glerum had dreamed up. Lauber diameter aluminized mylar balloon." With AT&T Chairman of the Board liked the idea and assumed the respon For Neal Glerum, the third member Fred Kappel looking over his shoulder sibility for putting it all together. of the reunion team. Echo and Telstar and "more Bell System brass than I'd Lauber retired in July of 1981 after w e r e a l s o h i s f a v o r i t e s . " I t w a s a r e a l ever seen in my life," D'Albora says he 33 years of AT&T, BTL and WE serv thrill," he says, "to see the first TV h e l d h i s b r e a t h f o r t h e w h o l e fi v e m i n ice. A department chief in guidance broadcast from Europe via Telstar—to utes it took to get Telstar into orbit. operations at CKL, he participated in see what was happening in Paris and "When it was over, Kappel shook all of its missions. Since retirement, London as it happened and know we hands with all the guys and told us he's been "... playing golf and setting helped make it possible." we had just done him the greatest u p t h i s r e u n i o n . I n f a c t , I ' v e b e e n Like D'Albora and Lauber, Glerum favor that anybody could." working on it since the spring of 1980." t r a n s f e r r e d f r o m B T L t o W E i n 1 9 6 4 . D'Albora was doing his remembering He started by corresponding with The dates are the same, because all at the Quality Inn in Cocoa Beach, D'Albora and Glerum and making a list three go back to the program's begin Florida, where he and 50 other vet of all the CKL people they could re nings in the early fifties, and all three erans of the Cape Kennedy Laboratory member, including those who worked were part of the group that was trans along with 52 spouses and guests had at the Cape and those in direct support f e r r e d e n m a s s e f r o m B e l l L a b s t o reunited to celebrate the tenth anni at Headquarters, the Burlington Shops W e s t e r n w h e n t h e L a b s w a s a s k e d t o versary of the facility's closing down and with outside suppliers. Lauber concentrate on SAFEGUARD and WE i n O c t o b e r 1 9 7 1 . started calling people who were still took over existing guidance programs. Like many of the guests at the re working, and they, in turn, provided The early fifties were those exciting union, D'Albora is retired now, having h i m w i t h o t h e r n a m e s a n d a d d r e s s e s . years in which, at the government's left the company in 1973 after 32 years Before he was through, he had 352 request, a Bell Labs-WE team designed ABOVE LEFT-Dot and Gus Peyman look over some memorabilia gathered for the Cape Kennedy Laboratory reunion. RiGHT-Ruth Bright, Rosalie D'Albora and Bob Bright share a postprandial laugh. Over 100 CKL vets and spouses Reulim attended the reunion. at the Cape By Saul Fingerman They had been great days, and, now, ten years later, they were here to remember

iNSET-Checking the radar antenna twenty years ago are John D'Albora (atop step), Bill Johnson (standing) and Ken Weaver (squatting).

ABOVE-Reminiscing over a model of the Bell System's Telstar satellite are three men who guided the original into orbit: Ed Felch (left), Earl Lauber (center) and John D'Albora.

31 and built systems that could track and and can be used over and over again— guide missiles from the ground. Sys which is why, in spite of the inroads of tems were installed at Cape Kennedy inertial guidance systems, the Vanden and at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Ca., berg system is still hard at work. where one is still guiding advanced Appropriately enough, Vandenberg Titan missiles for the Air Force. was represented at the CKL reunion in For all its complexity, the system is the person of its former resident man fairly simple in principle. Basically, it ager, Dave Briggs. Also retired and liv consists of a combined radar and com ing in Florida with his wife Terry, puter installation on the ground and a Briggs is as enthusiastic as ever about small, relatively inexpensive electron his years with the guidance program. ics package on the missile. The ground "Above all," he says, "I enjoyed being radar continuously tracks the airborne associated with some of the most re package and supplies the computer markable minds you could come into with all the data it needs to determine contact with. It was a new frontier, where the missile is, how it is oriented and mueh of their thinking was orig and how fast it is going at any instant. inal." The computer compares this data with As an example, he cites the problem information about the missile's desired they were having in the early days path and, if there is any difference, with satellites somehow or other being generates correction signals which are pushed slightly out of their proper or transmitted by the radar. The guidance bits. Most people thought it was being package on the missile decodes these caused by the spent rocket bumping signals and transfers them to the mis the satellite after separation. But with sile's autopilot, providing precision nobody to see it happen, how eould control by swiveling the engine to they be sure? pitch the missile's nose up or down, With obvious pleasure, Briggs tells or to yaw it left or right. how: "What they did was hook up a In addition to high-precision control, roll-up tape measure between the rock the system offered substantial eco et and a satellite with telemetry con nomic advantages, because 99 percent n e c t e d . J u s t a s t h e s a t e l l i t e w e n t i n t o of its equipment stays on the ground orbit, the telemetry showed that the

L;-;

LEFT-ln the Labs/WE control room during a launch way back when are (back to front) John D'Albora, Don Sueverkruepp, Roy Gant, Neal Glerum and John Shirley. tape measure stretched out and then Titan missile lifting off. "It no sooner program's manager. As Manager, Mili rolled back up—proving that the rocket got off the ground," he remembers, tary Systems Engineering at the Guil had in fact bumped the satellite. Once "when it pitched over and began flying ford Center, he is engaged in Navy we knew for sure what the problem parallel to the ground. For one ghastly underwater work. He says the toughest was, we were able to compensate for m o m e n t a s w e s a w i t e n d o n , w e part of his former job was explaining it, and it never happened again." thought it was coming straight for us. to NASA the why's and wherefore's of N o t a l l t h e m e m o r i e s w e r e s e r i o u s . Now, there's a cardinal rule of missile those few launches that weren't 100 Ken Schenck, another retiree who was guidance that says the missile should percent successful. "It happened only in charge of one of the CKL guidance be going away from you. I won't say six times in the entire history of the systems (naturally, there was a back we were scared, but my friend seri program, so it was kind of traumatic up), remembers the time a wide-eyed ously considered taking refuge in a when it did." BTL man came running into the guid cable pit that was known to be a haven His fondest memories are of the peo ance building in wild panic. "He'd gone for rattlesnakes. In fact, once a fellow ple in the program. With evident nos outside to check out some telescopic working down there handed another talgia, he tells of the anniversary bore sighting equipment, and he'd been guy a hunk of cable, and it wriggled parties they used to hold every year at looking through his scope at a distant right out of his hand. Burlington. "The parties were on April target, when he discovered a snake "Incidentally," he adds, "the missile, first—the day of the transfer from Bell staring back at him through the instru which turned out to be going the other Labs," he says. "They were dinner ment. It could have been a Martian for way, considerably reduced the snake dances, and everybody, wives included, all he knew, but he sure didn't wait to population when it was blown up felt a great comaraderie for the pro find out. He just took himself off in a about a quarter of a mile away from gram. And, here at the Cape, being a large hurry." Schenck's face develops the missile pad." s m a l l e r g r o u p , w e w e r e e v e n m o r e that half smile and faraway look that Not all of the people at the reunion tightly knit—as you can see by this re comes with remembering. "You know, were retirees. At least two—Ed Bald union." there are a lot of rattlers down here," win and Roy Harris—are still active As if compelled to make his point, he adds. with the company, though in areas far to make sure the outsider understands, A n o t h e r k i n d o f s n a k e s t o r y c a m e removed from missile guidance. Coin- he gestures toward the display room, from Jim Lantz, a veteran of Sperry cidentally, both were managers of the in which four tables are crammed full Univac, which provided the guid missile guidance program. In fact, of photos and other memorabilia ance computer. He tells of the day he Baldwin, who is currently Director of placed there by many of the guests. a n d a c o - w o r k e r w e n t o u t t o w a t c h a Patent Licensing in Guilford Center, "You know," he concludes, "all that stuff shows you how important the CKL episode was in these people's left-A Titan I missile heads into the wild blue yonder in the early 1960s. lives." BELOW-At the reunion dinner recently held at the Cape, Earl Lauber (in dark After dinner, Dr. Robert H. Gray of jacket) laughs as he receives one of many gag gifts. The other men are Neai NASA brought everyone up to date on Gierum (seated) and Jack Harrison at the mike. America's newest venture into space, and there was none of the condescen was appointed the first manager when sion so often heard when hi-tech offi the group came over from Bell Labs cials speak to the lay public. He was in 1964. "We had to put the whole thing talking to his peers, one-on-one, and together for WE, including CKL, Van- there were a lot of knowing nods as he denberg and Burlington—and we had described the agonies and the ecstasies to do it in a month," he says. "And we of his project. He was followed to the did, too." podium by Colonel Charles A. Kuhl- He remembers Telstar from a slight man (son of CKL engineer A. H. Kuhl- ly different point of view from every man) who's in charge of all Air Force one else. 'We were under a lot of pres satellite launch activity at the Cape s u r e t o m a k e Te l s t a r o u r b e s t l a u n c h and whose speech graciously closed ever," he says, "but we didn't know with the words, "It all began with you how, because every launch was our guys." best." He says the most memorable Then, there were lots of laughs for part of the program was watching the the obligatory gag gifts presented to "birds" taking off. "Being boss, I was Earl Lauber for having worked so hard able to go outside and actually see to put the reunion together, but the t h e m b l a s t o f f — u n l i k e J o h n D ' A l b o r a . " applause was serious and so were the A 25-year veteran, Roy Harris' pres people who kept shouting, "Let's do it ent efforts are aimed in the opposite again in five years." d i r e c t i o n f r o m t h o s e h e d i r e c t e d a f t e r And, somehow, you know they will. replacing Ed Baldwin as the guidance -m\ New radio relay booster 28

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