|
Loving the Learning
Friday, October 21, 2005
The Money Factory
We just returned from a homeschool group field trip to the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing, part of the Dept. of the Treasury, in Fort Worth. It's one of only two places in the U.S. where dollar bills are produced, the other being in Washington, DC. It was really interesting - and we got to see the "next generation" $10 bills being printed, which won't be released until Spring '06. They have orange and red on them and an image of the Statue of Liberty's torch! Of course, we didn't get to see them close up; we were on the elevated walkway looking down onto the production floor.
Since there were 28 in our group, we had to make reservations for a guided tour. It was scheduled for 9:30 a.m. and we had to be there 30 minutes early for security clearance. We caravaned from our church late (after 8:00 a.m.), driving along busy highways and interstates during the morning rush hour traffic. Luckily we made sure we all had directions and everyone else's cell phone numbers before we left. (We ended up calling each other several times on the 1 hour + drive there and back.) It's really hard to keep 5 vehicles together that far in that much traffic. I started out in the middle of the pack, but ended up in the lead somehow with only one car I recognized behind me. The third vehicle pulled into the parking lot shortly after we did, and the other two showed up about a minute later. It was 9:20.
We unloaded our kids and stowed our cell phones and other items prohibited there, then headed toward the security building. All purses, diaper bags, etc., had to go through the x-ray machine thing (like at airports), and each person had to stand in a glass "booth" for clearance. Then we boarded the "Money Bus" and rode the short distance to the actual facility. Once inside, we were given colored stickers to distinguish which tour we were on and herded up the escalator to the theater to watch a short video about "The Money Factory". I spent most of the time struggling to keep J from running around and being too loud, but I did catch that it takes about 400 hours to create the presidential (or otherwise) portraits that are engraved and printed on the bills.
After the video, we waited about 5 minutes for our tour to begin - at 10:00. Then we walked through a set of double doors and there below us was the production floor. Our winding trip along the top of the factory was really interesting. Our guide told us all the different stages the "notes" go through before they become actual dollar bills.
The paper the money is printed on comes from a plant in Massachussetts, and it already has the watermark on it. It's illegal for anyone or anyplace other than the two engraving and printing facilities to receive that paper. Also, it's not really paper. It's a combination of cotton and linen; that's why it doesn't tear up when you accidentally wash it.
After the paper runs through a color printing, it has to set for 72 hours for the dye to dry and cure. The stacks and stacks of notes are separated by denomination and date printed and locked in a big cage. Then they go through another printing process, and another, and another.
Throughout all the stages of printing, the bills are examined for perfection by human eyes and by computers. A computer can identify an imperfect note in 3/10 of a second! Imperfect notes are put aside to be destroyed and are replaced with "star" notes. These are printed beforehand and have a star printed at the end of the serial number. Some people collect them. I checked all my bills when I got home to see which ones were printed in Fort Worth. I have a $100 star note in my birthday money stash. I never noticed it before, but I'll be sure to check all my bills from now on just for the novelty of it.
We also saw the bills being cut. There are 32 bills per sheet of paper. A guillotine-like device cuts the paper horizontally, then vertically. Then the bills are stacked and sent through a machine that prints serial numbers on them. Oh, and for all the bills printed at the Fort Worth facility (which opened in 1991) a tiny FW is printed on the right hand side. No distinguishing mark is printed on bills made at the DC plant.
After all the printing, cutting, and numbering, the bills are stacked and wrapped in blocks. Four blocks at a time are shrink-wrapped during a conveyor belt ride through a 400-degree oven. They are also coded and marked for delivery to certain banks during this process. Fort Worth-produced bills are shipped to the western US; DC-produced bills are shipped mostly to the eastern US.
The Fort Worth plant is the only plant that prints $2 bills. I didn't know they still printed them since I never see them. The guide told us that since they are such collector's items and people save them rather than spend them, the plant only prints them every three years. It is the only dollar bill with a scene on the back (the signing of the Declaration of Independence, revised in 1976 for the bicentennial) instead of a monument. Also, the Fort Worth facility doesn't print bills over $50; nothing over $20 is being printed there currently.
Our tour ended in the gift shop. They had all sorts of things to purchase there - uncut sheets of money, containers of shredded money - and your regular souvenirs: T-shirts, pens, pencils, golf balls, post cards, caps, key rings, etc. I got C a 15-inch-long pencil and a clear acrylic ruler with pictures of all the Presidents down the middle. I bought a deck of cards that says "Bureau of Engraving & Printing" and "The Buck Starts Here" and has pictures of different dollar bills on the backs. (I'm becoming a card deck collector like my mom and my sisters in anticipation of great Nerts games.) Each of the boys got a coloring/activity book.
We had all packed picnic lunches for afterward, hoping to find a park close by. There was nothing. (The facility, while in Fort Worth, is in the middle of nowhere.) We were too far from home to go all the way back without eating, and it's too expensive - not to mention too busy - for 28 people to settle in somewhere for lunch. One option was to eat in our cars on the way home, but we all had packed PB&J and didn't want children with sticky fingers touching everything on the way home. We ended up driving to the far end of the parking lot and spreading our blankets on the concrete. It wasn't the most comfortable place, but it was open (meaning no traffic) and outside (on a gorgeous cool day!). After we ate, the kids sat in a circle and played a few rounds of "Duck, Duck, Goose" before we loaded up and headed back, once again in caravan style.
The boys and I got home around 1:15 p.m. - time enough to play before naptime. Of course J napped on the way home, so he's not napping right now. At least he's staying quiet - and in his bed - until time to get up. I need the break.
|
| • Post A Comment! • Send to a Friend!
|
Comments
|
|
|
|
Posted by 
Posted by 
Posted by 
Posted by 
Friday, October 21, 2005 - Thanks for sharing!
Ann