Thomas J. Morton, Jr.
Fiberfil
Inducted 2005
In 1935, Thomas Morton, Jr. (1900 – 1993) brought one of the newly invented injection molding machines from Germany to Evansville, Indiana, to study this novel plastics process. In 1937, he founded the Cardinal Corporation, where he used that first Isoma injection molding machine (and two subsequent molding machines) to mold the first high-volume injection molding application in the United States, a shelf stud made for Sears Roebuck’s Coldspot® refrigerators.
With Jack Bauer, he developed the See-Deep process, a method of decorating the back surface of clear molded parts, first used commercially in the 1938 Nash automobile horn button.
Hoosier Cardinal Corporation then brought the plastic sheet thermoforming process into mass production for one-inch-thick sighting domes for World War II heavy bombers.
After the war, Morton further developed the market for decorative plastics technology. Also, he founded Benersons Corporation, which developed assembly machines for automated plastics manufacturing.
In the 1950s, Morton bought a new business called Fiberfil, an early developer of glass fiber-reinforced thermoplastic compounds. He supplied the first commercial injection molded product, a land mine housing, from these materials. Hoosier Cardinal and Fiberfil (later sold to Dart Industries) have spun off many significant startup companies inspired by Morton’s dedication and technological innovations.
Areas of Expertise:
Plastics processing, Plastics business management