𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐅𝐔𝐋 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐭 : 𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐏𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐒 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐊𝐅𝐔𝐋 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐈𝐍𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐎𝐅 𝐂𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐔𝐋𝐎𝐈𝐃

𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐅𝐔𝐋 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐭

𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐏𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐒 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐊𝐅𝐔𝐋 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐈𝐍𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐎𝐅 𝐂𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐔𝐋𝐎𝐈𝐃

The English chemist Alexander Parkes invented and patented celluloid in the 1850s. He dissolved nitrocellulose in solvents and plasticized it with vegetable oil to reduce brittleness. In doing so, he created the first thermoplastic polymer and gave birth to the plastics industry. The first applications were waterproof coatings for cloth, but the earliest processes were inefficient and expensive, ultimately leading to bankruptcy.

John Wesley Hyatt learned from Parkes’ failures. His experiments determined the optimal amount of camphor to efficiently plasticize and mold celluloid into stable finished products. Hyatt developed efficient production technology to produce billiard balls and piano keys, previously made from elephant ivory. Buoyed by these profits, he further improved the process to penetrate the garment market. Applications like collar stiffeners and the false shirt fronts contributed significantly to volume growth.

Hyatt’s success prompted other entrepreneurs to jump into the rapidly growing plastics industry. A range of products such as dolls, hair combs, pens, and knife handles were produced. Not until the 20th century did new materials such as Bakelite start to displace celluloid.

The more revolutionary the material, the more difficult it is to estimate the product’s potential profitability. Entrepreneurial organizations forge ahead on faith, in hopes the costs will be reasonable or that cutting edge properties will command a high sales price. This fundamental uncertainty can kill a radical new product late in the development cycle. Sales and Marketing executives might imagine lucrative opportunities for materials. However, they cannot discern the market’s price sensitivity until they have a consistent product for customers to evaluate. Researchers can envision a process to make the desired product. But process scale-up issues can doom promising options because of unexpectedly high costs, variable quality or poor end-use performance.

For more: https://lnkd.in/er_eqJUs

credits : Tim Oberle