Sharp stuff! The way of the razor blade to your bathroom

Razor – if you look at the word in a historical context, it can be traced back to the Latin term rasura, which means 'the scraping, scratching, smoothing'. This sounds crude compared to today's idea of a shave, as we all know only the particularly sharp and thin blades used in modern (or not so modern) wet razors – at first glance a simple product, but behind it lies a complex manufacturing process. In this process, material, heat, coating, and also plant technology from ONEJOON play an important role.

The cut

What do crown caps and razor blades have in common? The people behind both inventions share a common history. William Painter, a native of Ireland, applied for a patent for the crown cork in Baltimore (USA). One of his collaborators was none other than King Camp Gillette. Gillette traveled the country as a salesman for Painter and dreamed of a groundbreaking invention himself. His boss, Painter, advised him to focus on a commodity – and one morning in 1895, he had an idea.

That morning, Gillette cut himself while shaving – a drastic experience that set him thinking about developing a practical shaving device. Without further ado, he tinkered the prototype of the first wet razor out of watch spring steel and sheet brass. He filed a patent for it in 1901 as the "Safety Razor". The figures speak for themselves: by 1905, he had already sold 90,000 razors and 125,000 blades.

Two New Yorkers in south Thuringia

Gillette's legacy has endured. Together with its competitor Schick/Wilkinson Sword, the razor blade giant dominates the market – and whoever dominates the market also determines the prices. The two New Yorkers Andy Katz-Mayfield and Jeff Raider wanted to break up this dominant position and bought a razor blade factory that was over 100 years old, Feintechnik in Eisfeld, Thuringia, for their project in 2014. Big Apple meets Thuringian dumplings, so to speak. As the start-up Harry's, the entrepreneurs are pursuing the goal of offering razors and blades at affordable prices through direct sales.

Around 600 employees now produce razor blades and shaving systems for Harry's at the Eisfeld plant. Furnace systems from ONEJOON are also located there, which brings us directly to the manufacturing process of the sharp blades. Before the blades can run gently over the skin of the face in the usual quality, there is a complex manufacturing process that consists of several steps.

How razor blades are made

In the beginning there is steel. The starting material for razor blades is stainless steel (or carbon steel), which is delivered to the factory as strip coiled on so-called coils. The strip steel is then punched into its shape and wound onto a new coil.

Now furnace systems from ONEJOON come into play, or more precisely, quenching and tempering systems. These steps are necessary to be able to grind the blades and to achieve the necessary durability. If they were left untreated, these properties would not be present. The strip enters the furnace and is first heated to approx. 1100 °C. This is done to change the crystal lattice structure of the blade strip. Ferrite becomes austenite, and carbides are partially dissolved. This increases the carbon and chromium content.

Finally, the blade strip is tempered. This involves reheating to approx. 200 °C. This is necessary to reduce the brittleness of the stainless steel. At the same time, it increases toughness and achieves additional hardness. In a further cooling unit, the strip is finally cooled down to room temperature.

The final touch

After the logo has been imprinted, it's almost done. The blade strip is now being sharpened. Rotating grinding stones process it from different angles. Now the strip can be broken to create the individual blades. But that's not all: the individual blades are additionally refined with a Teflon® coating. This increases the gliding effect and reduces the frictional resistance – essential for the delicate shaving experience on the skin.

Conclusion

Small blade, complex production: at Harry's in southern Thuringia – and all around the globe – ONEJOON furnaces are used to produce razor blades for everyday use. One aspect of the manufacturing process is quecnhing and tempering. These steps, in fact, give the steel its desired structure – it becomes martensite. In this form, it is so hard that it can be ground. Razor blades are a good example that there is often a lot of technology, know-how and experience behind simple objects. In this way, ONEJOON furnaces contribute their part to a perfect shave.

Sources

https://www.zeit.de

https://www1.wdr.de

https://www.capital.de