5 The Lehi plant processed sugar with belt- driven centrifugal separators, and young Eugene found these devices absolutely fascinating. He carefully studied each part to better understand how it interacted with the others and fit into the overall scheme. The longer he worked on the centrifugals, the more he began to think of possible improvements—seeking ways to reduce the amount of physical labor and enhance safety while increasing production capacity. One problem that particularly intrigued Eugene was the removal of sugar that became caked on the centrifugal’s walls. The time-honored solution involved scraping the sugar out of the centrifugal with wooden paddles, a grueling task that wasn’t entirely sanitary. Others dabbled with (and patented) attempts at automatic dischargers and more efficient plows. The two mechanics, Eugene Roberts and Angus Gibson, collaborated on a new discharger design and convinced their former boss, Henry Vallez, to put it to the test for his new employer, the German-American Sugar Company of Bay City, Michigan. The young inventors would have been happy with a single installation, but Vallez opted to install them on all the plant’s centrifugals. Eugene and co-worker Angus Gibson continued to think up improvements and began to work with The American Tool and Machine Company of Boston, Massachusetts to turn their ideas into products. left: Unprocessed Sugar Beets left: The Lehi factory of the Utah Sugar Company was a pioneer in the industry experiencing many firsts: the first beet sugar factory in the Mountain West; the first to use beets grown by irrigation; the first to have a systematic program for producing its own beet seed; the first to use American-made machinery; the first to use the "osmose process" of reprocessing molasses; and the first to build auxiliary cutting stations. At the time, this factory also served as a training base for many of the technical leaders of the sugar beet industry of the United States. (Used by permission, Utah State Historical Society. Utah History to Go - historytogo.utah.gov. Leonard J. Arrington - Beehive History 10)