KENNEDY: WE HAVE TO GO.
OLIVIA RONDEAU. MAKE YOUR DAYse A CANDIDATE.
That’s why I called it a rumor.
It’s not true.
Truth is American output has increased
over the last three decades, not decreased.
Sure, globalization has had a huge impact on jobs.
And those disruptive technologies
that we’re always hearing about, they’re real,
and they’re here to stay.
3D printing, advanced robotics, the internet of things,
whatever that means, big data,
it’s all having a huge impact on the way we make things
and on the things that we choose to make.
But make no mistake,
America still makes things, lots of things.
Just ask the hardworking folks over at American Woolen
in Stafford Springs, Connecticut.
They’re working today with a unique mix
of modern technology and traditional methods
that’s allowing them to churn out
the best textiles money can buy in the same building
that’s been standing right there on Furnace Avenue
for the last 168 years.
American Woolen is still standing
because they understand that working smart
is not a substitute for working hard.
Tonight, you’ll see that work ethic on full display
along with their obsession to make absolutely certain
that every single thread is as good as it can possibly be.
Those things still matter.
And they are still a huge part of "How America Works."
(loom whirring)
For the past 100,000 years, give or take,
textiles have been an indelible part
of the human experience.
I mean, even your modern-day nudist still needs fabric
for one thing or another.
Like the upholstery on our furniture,
the carpets under our feet
or the countless other applications
that blanket life, as we know it.
But despite an ever rising demand for it,
the textile industry here in the US is on the decline.
Where once there were 30,000 mills across the country,
they’re now only about 13,000.
It’s a startling example
of what overseas production can do to any of our industries.
But for those who still insist on product
that’s made in the USA,
there are still places like American Woolen
in Stafford Springs, Connecticut.
One of only four wool mills left in the country here.
Textile workers have been spinning and weaving
some of the finest fabrics money can buy
for almost 200 years.
But despite their prestigious track record,
thanks to the stiff competition overseas
and a shrinking workforce,
they too are hanging on by a thread,
just ask their Head of Operations Giuseppe Monteleone.
(dramatic music)
- [Giuseppe] Right now we are short on staff
and in some area lost almost 100% of the crew.
The management, we try to help to get things going
for not stopping, you know, our operation.
- [Mike] For just Giuseppe and his colleagues,
that operation has a rare chance
to do some serious business.
Last night, a client placed a rush order
for 1,000 yards of fabric worth $20,000,
but there’s always a catch.
And in this case, it’s getting all that done
along with their usual workload by the end of the day.
- [Giuseppe] Normally this takes a week,
but we have to try to get this done in one day
and I have to help here because I am the only one
who knows how to make this plan.
- [Mike] And here’s roughly how that should go.
First, your fibrous material, in this case wool,
has to be broken up.
Then it’s gotta be broken up some more.
After that it’s rolled out into individual strands,
which are then twisted to add strength.
Now you’ve got thread that could be woven together
to create any number of fabrics.
And to make this one, Giuseppe will need about 1,500 pounds
of raw Merino wool, grown and shorn
in the foothills of Montana and stored in a warehouse,
just a short drive away.
(dramatic music)
- [Giuseppe] So we are gonna put
like two or 300 pounds down.
And then from there we can start the machine.
(machine whirring)
- [Mike] True to its name, this picker is designed
to pick the raw wool apart
before sucking it up into a holding room.
But just as the process is hitting its stride-
- [Giuseppe] There’s some black down there!
- [Mike] Giuseppe spots a color
that does not belong in this batch.
- Well, we have some problem.
I just saw a big chunk of black wool mixed
with the white wool.
So we need to go upstairs
and take a look at what the situation is.
- [Mike] Just one handful of black wool
can taint the entire order, but on closer inspection,
it’s worse than Giuseppe thought.
- [Giuseppe] It’s a big problem
because we are gonna see this into the cloth.
And this cloth is 100% white.
This is problems gonna take an hour for us.
So this is a setback.
We don’t need it.
- [Mike] There are a lot of false starts and sudden stops
in the textile business, which I guess is bound to happen
when you mix high standards and complicated machinery
with a notoriously unpredictable material like wool.
But if everything goes just as it should,
the raw wool downstairs will eventually wind up here
in the weaving department where it’s the job of Keith Graf
to turn 5,000 feet of thread
into spools of freshly woven fabric.
First though, each of those threads
must be laid side by side in a process called warping.
- [Keith] We’re only gonna have one shot to get a it right,
so I’m gonna get it going now.
(dramatic music)
I start the section off
coming through the reed onto the drum.
I’m gonna jog it partially around,
separating the threads.
Push the start button.
We’re ready to rock and roll.
(dramatic music)
- [Mike] But like Keith said,
he’s only got one shot at this order,
if he’s gonna stay on schedule.
So the key here is taking things nice and easy
and heading off more serious issues before they arise.
- I’m always keeping my hands on it, I feel tight thread.
So I’m gonna check it out before it snaps.
Here it is.
(dramatic music)
Uh, and broke.
- [Keith] Fortunately for Keith,
it’s a pretty common problem with a pretty quick fix.
- This there is a special type of knot
called a weaver’s knot.
Very important because the knot lie’s very flat,
so it doesn’t leave a bump in the material.
And now we should be ready to go.
Starting it up.
It’s looking real good.
It’s nice and flat, seems to be running pretty well.
- [Mike] In all Keith will warp
about 400 feet of thread at a time.
Then build a out the width of the fabric
by starting a new section.
- And now I’m gonna push a button.
So this assembly moves over and lines up.
So the last ends of our first section will match up
with the first ends of our last section.
And it’s gonna repeat that process
again and again and again,
to make it total of 2,116 threads
in a six foot wide piece of material.
- [Mike] But midway through the second run.
- Oh.
- [Mike] Keith spots the early signs of a mechanical issue.
- I saw the machine move a little bit
and I felt the vibration.
I think I’m gonna have to give Kirk a call.
Kirk’s our mechanic.
He’s real knowledgeable on this machine.
- [Mike] While Keith heads for the nearest phone,
in another of American Woolen’s buildings,
the mechanic in question, Kirk Simmons,
is already at work fixing one
of the many ancient machines
to keep American Woolen running.
- [Kirk] One day, I’m a carpenter.
One day, I’m a plumber.
The next day, I’m an electrician.
The next day, I’m a welder.
It’s all different every day.
- [Mike] And with Keith, apparently,
still looking for that phone,
Kirk’s current priority is one of the mill’s two boilers.
- [Kirk] This is the 600 boiler, 600 horsepower boiler.
And that’s very important ’cause without the steam system,
the mill is SOL, ’cause without the boiler,
they don’t operate here.
And also it’s kind of nice to have heat in the building
so your people aren’t hollering at you.
- [Mike] For the moment,
the backup boiler is running just fine,
but should something happen to that one,
American Woolen would be dead in the water.
So it’s best that Kirk get
this boiler running sooner than later,
which apparently means replacing a sticky float assembly,
the part that controls how much water enters the boiler.
- Boiler runs outta water, you can destroy the boiler.
The boiler gets too much water,
you can destroy the boiler.
Float switch assembly has to work.
There we go.
(suspenseful music) (phone ringing)
Oh, who the blazes this now?
- [Mike] To venture a guess,
I’d say Keith finally found that phone.
- Hello?
Okay, bud, I’ll be over as soon as I can.
Give me a few.
Okay, so now I have a breakdown at the reed building
and people are excited.
I’ll come back to it.