By 1934, Roberts believed he found the solution in a gear-driven centrifugal, and worked with the Chief Engineer of the Philadelphia Gear Works, Joseph Hertrich, to turn his concept into a working design. The new approach allowed a single motor to drive a battery of centrifugals without many of the adjustment problems associated with belt drives. The entirely new centrifugal, which also incorporated a new ring-type basket, was designed to operate at 1500 rpm. CHAPTER 5 At the same time, another sugar industry innovator reached out to Roberts. George Stevens was the Chief Chemist at Scottsbluff, Nebraska’s Great Western Sugar Company plant. Through experimentation, Stevens discovered that quickly heating massecuite before discharging it into the basket would reduce the viscosity of the mother liquor without dissolving significant quantities of sugar crystals. That allowed the centrifugal to work more efficiently. When combined with the higher speeds Roberts was achieving, the Stevens Massecuite Heat Treating System dramatically improved production. above: Joseph Hertrich right: Detailed schematic explaining the Stevens Massecuite Heat Treating System 68