This new J-47 jet engine production line at the General Electric Company's plant near here is called a "grape arbor," because the engines hang from an overhead conveyor. It is part of a completely mechanized assembly line recently installed to speed up production of J-47 engines for Air Force and Navy planes. According to C.W. LaPierre, Vice President and General Manager of the Company's Aircraft Gas Turbine Division, this probably is the first completely mechanized jet engine conveyor system in the country. The new system has abolished the waste motion of moving engines from operation to operation manually. The "industrial grape arbor" innovation permits automatic engines movement from station to station, allowing the worker to concentrate fully on assembling the engine parts.

General Electric Company1953-07-27