General view of an insulated test chamber used in the Plastics Laboratory at the Hercules Powder Company plant in Parlin, New Jersey to determine the impact resistance of plastics at sub-normal temperatures. Per notations accompanying the photograph, the chamber contained an Izod impact machine that permitted testing of the impact resistance of plastics at temperatures up to 70 degree Fahrenheit. The Parlin plant commonly produced ethyl cellulose, nitrocellulose, and cellulose acetate, which were purchased by a variety of public and private industries as a raw material for use in plastics, films, lacquers, and other materials.

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.