Research-Key to the Future
It has for a long time been reallsed in the BAT Group
that Progress in working methods and In quality could
only be maintained by increased attention to Research.
The Group in now a, leader of the tobacco industry in
Research and the following pages attempt to give some
account of the complicated problcma which have been,
or are being, considered together Wi L11 some O( the
striking results achieved.
Group Research
'"he Group manufactures and sells in more than 50
untried and the great diversity of people whom it
serves, whose tastes and wishes have to be met today
and foreseen in the future. creates research problems
of much importance. An attempt to solve these in one
large central establishment would be almost certLin to
lead to a lack of contact with reality. But yet, almost
equally impossible is the alternative of a number of
small regional I laboratories, none of which could under-
take a problem of magnitude and long-term signifl-
ca.nce. The solution which has been adopted by the
Group is to establish centres of Research and. Technical
Service at Southampton. Liverpool. Louisville, I USA,
and Hamburg and to adopt the principle of Group
Research. Thus. among L number of research labor&-
tories there to a voluntary exchange of information and
adjustment of programmes which amount to a strong
iteration of mutual interest.
Leaf Research
It Is a long road from the sowing of the seed to the final
enjoyment of the smoke of matured tobacco, and each
stage of this is under continual investigation. Leaf re-
search is handled by the Brown & Williamson Tobacco
Corporation at Louisville, but It extends its interest
over real tobacco growing areas. Its scope la from the
Sowing of the seed to the tobsocco warehouse where the
lea Is stored after It has undergone the curing and re-
drying Processes. Experiments cover the genetics of
different stmins oftobacco with particular stady ofthe
quality of the leaf and how this Is affected by the soil
and climatic conditions. It would not be possible to do
this In one IELbomtor-y Lt One place were It not for
spects.1 techniques evolved which enable many stages
of the work to be carried out In the laboratory where
climatic conditions can easily be al Subse-
quently It is essential to stage fall-wale field trials
before any seeds can be released for production, and
experimental farms under the control of members of
the Group have been set up for this purpose in many
areas. An Important part of the leaf programme is the
year-by-year study of the crop as It is growing and
Special techniques for crop survey have been developed
by the Leaf Research Division. These are directed at
speeding up the stages in the sequence of collecting the
SaMPles in the field. sending them to the oentml I labom-
tory. carrying out intricate chemical analysis to
evaluate the quality constituents in the leaf. and then
finally getting the information back to the representa.-
tive in the field so that It can be of use to the buyers. A
considerable effort has been expended in the last two
years in speeding up and rendering automatic the
traditional methods of analysis for nicotine. sugars
and other constituents. By the use of modern recording
instruments and advanced mechanisation the through-
put of the analytical laboratory has been greatly
Increased. This type of work has been pioneered in the
American growing area but so much evidence is accu.
mulating of Its great va,lue that it is planned to extend
it to other territories.
Manufacturing ; Development
Cured and matured Isaf has only completed half Its
Journey to the smoker. and the complicated processes
Of Manufacture. . originally developed empirically and
as an art. are now being gra.dually sorted out Into their
basic elements and systematically Investigated. The
difficult point here. as has been found so often In the
other great craft industries, Is to progress towards the
use of modem methods without losing the touch and
feel of the art which has grown up over many years.
Factory modernization is Progressing rapidly, but It is
hoped never so fast as to lose anything of the heritage
of the Past. The primaxy aims of Research am two;
improved working conditions for the staff and improve.
ment in quality of the product The improved working
conditions of the staff rank high in the technical alms
of the industry because It is realised that It is only
by the skill and willing co-operation of the workers In
this delicate process of producing really fine quLUty
that one can hope to achieve tho best.
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QuaLtkv Control
Research applied to manufacture has brought about
very significant improvements in quality some of which
will be described. Leaf tobacco cornea from store in a
compressed brittle condition because it is dry, and it
must be moistened before It can be safely sent through
the manufacturing process. In the past this was
Impossible without some handling, but now the tobacco
is moistened while still In Its packed state by now
machines which draw rnoist warm air through the com-
pressed package. Breakage of leaf is greatly reduced,
and since it is the finest and most delicate portions
which are the most fragile quality is Improved. Mois-
ture of the tobacco has to be controlled accurately, not
only in this fIrst stage but throughout the many
successive stages of manufacture, and the development
of Instantaneous and continuous moisture recording
makes possible immediate correction of slight devia-
dons from the optimum for each process.
Much is written about the experience and skill of the
tobacco blender. His work la Indeed of paramount
Importance but it Is also true that unless the score or
so of expertly selected grades of leaf which go to make
up the recipe for a brand are properly mixed it Is un-
likely that a Small measure such as a single cigarette
will be truly representative of the recipe. We can now
claim with considerable satisfaction that a high degree
of uniformity has been achieved by the use of new
metering devices and mixing machines.
Cigarette making machines operate at extremely
high speeds and the most modern types, withassoclated
filter tip attachments. are increasingly being Installed.
Many of these embody electronic control which auto-
matically adjusts the feed of cut tobacco to provide
cigarettes of a constant weight and density. In the
BAT Company's Southampton factory, for example,
these controls are connected with a central monitoring
device which records the performance and production
characteristics of each machine. In the last few years
the output of cigarette making machines. has been
nearly doubled and, in addition to matching the record-
Ing of the performance to this higher rate. all subse-
quent mechanical and visual Inspection and quality
checking of the made cigarettes have to be corres-
24
pondingly speeded up. An important aspect of this is
the use of the principles of Statistical Quality Control.
Today Quality Control Departments. staffed by trained
personnel and equipped with the Most modern lastra-
ments, are a feature of almost every, amoclated factory.
The personnel act as Impartial guardians, reporters
and recorders of Quality. By taking samples at frequent
Intervals of each process and at every point of manu-
facture. and plotting the various categories of results
against fIxed standards, any tendencies to deviate can
be quickly reported back and corrected.
A very high standard of packaging Is essential If
cigarettes are to lose nothing of their quality by the
time they arrive in the smokers' hands. Wrapping
materials are consLatiLly checked for their strength
and resistance to water vapour penetration In the Com-
pany's Scientific Control LabomLorymt Liverpool. This
service is used by many of our overseas associates who
draw their supplies from the United Kingdom, whilet
others have set up their own facilities for this purpose.
Flavour and Aroma
Cigarette smoking is an enjoyment in which the flavotir
and aroma of the cigarette is apprectated. coupled with
the visual and tactile sensations or a well-formed, firm
cigarette. The latter two characteristics of a cigarette
can be, and are. controlled by precise measurement,
but the taste and aroma are matters which are still In
a different field of sensory appreciation which defies
quantitative measurement. Since this is the most
linporLanL part, of the Company'R buminoms great efforts
are being mine continuously to study it, and while as
yet only little progress Is being made in reducing It
to a science, great progress Is being made in under-
standing more about those factors which do constitute
desirable flavour and pleasant aroma. Tito main weapon
Is the trained panel of observers, coupled with skilled
design of the experiment by which different cigarettes,
differing slightly In their make-up, are compared for
their desirability. Tobaccos grown in different coun-
tries differ greatly in their characteristics and so of
course do the people who smoke them. but this is just
where the wide experience of the BAT staff proves of
the ULMOSt VFLIlle. The staff who know the tastes of
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BATCo document for Province of British Columbia 21 April 1999

people from all over the world bring facts to the re-
search side which. if not yet property understood.
represent a solid body of knowledge to which any
theories must be fitted.
Smoke Analysis
The main work on how smoke is formed and what It
consists of Is carried out at the new Research Establish-
ment which has been built in the last few years at
Southampton. This consists of a Laboratory Block
-A&VIng square feet of Laboratory space. La well as
its own Library. Lecture and Conference Room.
Canteen and office accommodation to make It a self-
contained unit. and two Development Halls equipped
with every facility for operatingand testing all kinds of
tobacco processes and machinery, together with a. large
Engineering Workshop, Stores and Drawing Office. The
total staff numbers about 140, of whom some are
graduate Scientists. Here the most modern methods
of chemical and physical technique are applied to study
the smoke aerosol, how the Individual particles of it
compare one with another, what they consist of. and
what is their relation to the vapour phase in the smoke.
The processes that occur in something so superficially
simple as. a cigarette are in fact extremely complicated,
and the various phenomena at the burning tip of a
Igarette are inter-related In a manner that is not easy
to understand. However, great progress has been made
in the last few years. and the rational design of a
cigarette is already approaching the position of a pro-
blem in skilled engineering. This is certainly true of
filtration where the Company has a mastery of the
technical side. Although the filters currently fitted to
the Group's products are highly efficient and meet the
most stringent tests the search for better material
goes on an the time. New filter materials are con-
tinuouslY being examined, and this is coupled with
investigatJone on the exact way the smoke particles
are trapped. Advanced electron-microscopy is used
employing rns.KnificatJon of 20.000 times. In the Develop-
ment Halle at the Southampton Establishment fun
scale trials are also carried out on new types of manu-
facturing equipment. It is for such large trials. on a
factory wale carried oat by research chemical angi-
neers, that the Development Halls prove so valuable.
Collaboration
The relation between smoking and health has a pro-
minent place in the research programme and Involves
a considerable effort. BAT Company supports the view
that any advances ma,de in this field should be shared
equally by the whole of the Industry. and that. it would
be wrong for any one member to take competitive
advanLago of such advances. IL is with profouild con-
viction and sincerity thaL IL works in this field as a
member of the Tobacco Manufacturers' Standing
Committee In this country and of the Tobacco Indus-
try's Research Committee in the United States. The
Tobacco Manufacturers'Standing Committee has built
a special biological research laboratory at Harrogate
In which investigation has already started on a wide
range of physiological effects of smoke. Massive expert-
ments are planned and BAT Company will continue to
offer full collaboration.
Key to the Future
The real strength of the BAT Research Group is that It
is a genuine Group which can by reason of its size and
diversity draw upon wide experience and skill. This
was exemplified by a recent conference held at South-
ampton at which seven torritorios were represented
and at which a wide range of problems was discussed. It
is a matter of pride to the Group that the resources of
science and of engineering are being successfully
harnessed without sacrificing the human artistry
inherent In the traditions of the Industry. It is only by
this combination that products of the highest quality
can continue to be produced to give satisfaction to AL
wide range of smokers.
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BATCo document for Province of British Columbia 21 April 1999