Close-up view of an extruder in use in the Plastics Laboratory at the Hercules Powder Company plant in Parlin, New Jersey. Extruders were commonly used to process and shape a variety of raw materials produced at the plant, including ethyl cellulose, nitrocellulose, and cellulose acetate.

Formed in 1912 as part of an anti-trust settlement with DuPont, the Hercules Powder Company (later Hercules Inc.) initially specialized in the manufacture of explosives and smokeless powders and subsequently diversified its business to encompass a variety of industrial products, including pine and paper chemicals, synthetics, pigments, polymers, and cellulose.