DuPont Corfam® photographs
Creation: 1964Abstract
Corfam® was a synthetic substitute for leather. Collection consists of photographs related to the development and manufacture of DuPont's Corfam® synthetic leather at the Newburgh, New York Corfam® pilot plant and research facility.
Dates
- Creation: 1964
Creator
Extent
36 item(s)
General Physical Description note
36 photographic prints : b&w ; 8.5 x 11 in. or smaller
Historical Note
Corfam® was a synthetic substitute for leather. Around 1950, DuPont's Newburgh, New York Fabrikoid laboratory began working on a non-woven fabric that would be a true leather substitute. Subsequently, the Fabrics and Finishes, Film, and Central Research Department worked competitively on the problem, until the company selected the Fabrics and Finishes approach for commercial development. This was a heat-shrunk, needle-punched, non-woven web of Dacron polyester fiber, impregnated with an elastic polyurethane binder and top-coated with microporous polyurethane that was marketed under the trademark Corfam® beginning in 1965. Corfam® was produced in a variety of colors and textures for shoe-upper leathers and artificial suede. However, the productions processes were complex and costs high, and the product did not find favor with consumers, who found Corfam® shoes less comfortable and porous. DuPont terminated production in 1972, but licensed the technology to Poland.
Scope and Content
Collection consists of photographs related to the development and manufacture of DuPont's Corfam® synthetic leather at the Newburgh, New York Corfam® pilot plant and research facility. Captioned public relations photographs show raw Corfam® poromeric material; shoes, luggage, and other products made from Corfam® and laboratory demonstrations of Corfam's breathability and water-resistance. There are also photographs from of DuPont's Old Hickory, Tennessee plant, where the company constructed a full-scale facility for the manufacture of Corfam®. These photos include an aerial view of the Old Hickory plant and an organizational chart of the Corfam® division of Old Hickory.
A number of individuals involved in the production of Corfam® are pictured in this collection; these include Charles A. Lynch, John Nikolich, William D. Lawson, Clement W. Theobald, Ellsworth K. Holden, Robert E, Fay, John A. Klacsman, Hal Heibowitz, James S. Allen, Karl E. Ackley, and H. Franklin Redmile.
Location
GL Box 1
Access Restrictions
This collection is open for research.
Language of Materials
English
Finding Aid & Administrative Information
- Title:
- DuPont Corfam® photographs
- Date:
- 2014
- Description rules:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description:
- English
- Script of description:
- Latin
Repository Details
Repository Details
Part of the Audiovisual Collections Repository
