Clip Job
Simple, overlooked, the paper clip does nothing less than keep the complex world of business stuck together
Intended for the April 2003 issue of National Post Business Magazine

Twisted History
The search for a reusable, affordable method of attaching sheets of paper can be traced back to the 13th century. That's when European bureaucrats and merchants, who required a method of binding their paperwork, had the bright idea of poking slits in paper and then securing several sheets together with ribbon. Metal fasteners didn't appear until the 1800s. First came mass-produced small steel pins, the same type that seamstresses use, but they tended to rust, cut fingers and mutilate page corners. Next came spring-driven units, similar to the mechanisms seen on clipboards today. Some even had small metal teeth to better grip paper but they left holes and were bulky and awkward. Although there are references to the modern paper clip dating back to 1883, most consider Norwegian inventor Johan Vaaler the father of the modern paper clip. Vaaler, the son of a farmer from Akershus, had a degree in electronics, science and mathematics, was employed at an invention office when he made his breakthrough in 1899. Many people in Europe and America had experimented with methods of attaching paper around the same time, and Vaaler was by no means the first person to invent a paper clip, but he did happen to successfully take credit for it. He patented his innovative device in Germany in 1899 and described it as: "A piece of wire that is bent to a rectangular, triangular, or otherwise-shaped hoop, the end parts of which ... form members or tongues lying side by side in contrary directions." Vaaler's timing was good -- according to Henry Petroski, author of The Evolution of Useful Things, "The widespread manufacture and use of the paper clip had to await not only the availability of the right wire but also the existence of machinery capable of tirelessly and reliably bending it in a flash into things that could be bought for pennies a box." (Freudians take note: the world's biggest paper clip can be found in Oslo, Norway, where a 22.5-foot statue was erected in 1989 in memory/honour of inventor Johan Vaaler).

Best Seller
The American Clip Company (ACCO for short) incorporated in 1922 and ACCO Canada began life on January 7, 1927, in Toronto. ACCO is the number one paper clip brand in North America, and realized a slight but gradual increase in paper clip sales during the 1990s. According to the Canadian Office Products Association, Canadians spent $8.3 million in 2002 on paper clips (a category that includes standard metal clips, along with vinyl varieties, binder, suction cup and magnetic clips). That translates to a high volume of sales -- an ACCO box of 100 type #1 trombone-style clips cost 42 cents -- the same quantity in a non-skid design is a whopping 52 cents per. The paper clip industry remains hush on exact numbers. It is estimated that ACCO produces half of the estimated 20 billion paper clips sold each year. "Well Made in U.S.A." is the slogan printed upon every box of ACCO product, a response to a Taiwanese invasion that began in 1981 and flooded the North American market with cheap(er) paper clips. Today, a box of 1,000 Acme brand #1 style, 1 and 1/4 inch paper clips (made in China) costs $1.69, while the equivalent quantity from ACCO costs about $4.20. Paper clip manufacturing lacks the drama of the photocopier industry, but it did have to endure a 1974 steel shortage, which generated headlines such as "The Great Paperclip Crisis Pinches World." The industry is notorious for its secrecy, because, according to Henry Petroski, "If you do know the real numbers, and you start calculating the profit that can be made -- when you're talking about tens of billions of paper clips, you can make a lot of money if you just make a small improvement." The Gem-style paper clip (the classic oval within an oval) has never been formally patented.

Variety Show
In the mid-80s, James Stewart, the founder of the International Dull Folks Unlimited Club, declared Bert, of Sesame Street fame, an "epitome of dullness" due in no small part to Bert's collection of bottle caps and paper clips. Not that Bert isn't a romantic at heart -- in the straight-to-video CinderElmo, he tries to woo the princess (Keri Russell, of Felicity fame) by saying, "I can't offer you gold, but if you like paper clips, I got 'em." (The answer was no). Perhaps the fickle maiden would have melted at the 200 different specimens in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History Paper Clip collection. Harvested from old archival documents and generous individuals, the metal clips were classified phylogentically in 1965 by C.V. Morton, a natural scientist at the Smithsonian. His chart describes the evolution of Papyroclippoposida, including stick pins (Pinna vulgaris, "no longer in use except in extremis") and Clippus communis (a.k.a. the Gem) described as a subspecies of governmentalis.

Types
"The Gem has survived, I think in large part because of its aesthetic appeal and its familiarity," argues Henry Petroski. "Even though there are clips that do serve a better function in certain respects, they tend to be more specialized." Indeed, a flip through the Jacksonville, Florida-based Advantus office products catalogue -- the distributor of premium clip brand Noesting -- shows a passel of lessor-known paper attaching solutions. There are Perfect Gem clips (with square ends) that Advantus claims "makes putting clips on paper easier." Or try the spiral shaped Nifty Clips that are "flattened to conserve card file space." Manuscripts might require an Ideal Paper Clamp, whose larger wire diameter are perfect for bulky papers. Environmental types will relish Recyclips, made of 85 percent recycled metal, at least 25 percent of which is post-consumer clutter such as old cars, appliances and mattress springs. A box of 100 costs US 36 cents, as compared to US 31 cents for a box of classic, unrecycled Gems. Other innovations over the years include plastic-coated clips that allow for colour coding -- and brighten very staid offices -- but aren't magnetic and generally create too much paper friction. Clips made entirely of plastic have never been very successful, their moulded, arrowhead shape holds neither a little nor a lot of paper very effectively. Up until recently, status seekers were able to order gold-plated paper clips at US$4.99 a box, which promised to "add class to the most frugal office." They're now discontinued, so those wanting flash and style should consider rust-proof stainless steel (US$2.50 per 50) or brass (US60 cents per 100) instead.

Waste Not
"Winston stroked his nose gently with a paper clip," wrote George Orwell in 1984, and it seems Mr. Smith isn't alone. A 1958 office-usage study conducted by Howard Sufrin, heir to a Pittsburgh paper clip company, discovered that from a batch of 100,000 paperclips, 5,434 were used to pick teeth or scratch ears and another 14,163 were broken or twisted during telephone calls. After all were accounted for, only one in five were actually used to clip paper (with at least that many lost or swept away). Most corporations (who account for the majority of paper clip purchases) are resigned to such inventory slippage, the notable exception being uber-frugal Alan C. Greenberg -- the chairman of Wall Street investment firm Bear Stearns since 1978 -- who authored an infamous 1985 memo banning the purchase of new paper clips. "All of us receive documents every day with paper clips on them," he wrote. "If we save these paper clips, not only will we have enough for our own use, but we will also, in a short time, be awash in the little critters." Greenberg's edict lasted until February 1991, when he decided to ease new employee culture shock by giving them a paper bag with a box of paper clips and 20 rubber bands. Greenberg, who attributes the success of Bear Stearns to its ability to control costs, can safely afford such office supply extravagance -- his 1998 pay packet totaled US$18.5 million.

Clip Service
Howard Sufrin's study revealed that paper clips had myriad other uses -- as, for instance, pipe cleaners, poker chips and hooks for suspenders, belts and bras. Since the early 1980s, when Apple created the emergency poking hole, the paper clip has became the de facto tool for manually ejecting disks. They have also been used as earrings (ouch!), lock picks, projectiles and ballast for paper airplanes. In 1980, Tim V. Johnson, an Illinois state senator, was caught with a paper-clip-rigged device that held down the "yes" button on his desk in the Legislature, enabling him to vote in absentia. A photo of the device surfaced during the 2000 Congressional elections, when Democratic opponent Mike Kelleher used it to besmirch Johnson's character: "Voting is the reason you are elected, and he delegated that responsibility to a piece of office supply." In 1993, a Dr. Kevorkian suicide machine relied on a paperclip to crimp a tube of carbon monoxide until Thomas Hyde pulled the string attached to the clip, dying moments later. There are paper clip sculptors, paper clip carousels, and according to Guinness, the longest paper clip chain made by one person in the span of 24 hours is the 819.33 metre creation of Belgium Jeanine Van der Meiren, which required 22,025 paper clips. The noble Gem has even been immortalized on canvas by American pop artist James Rosenquist in his 1973 painting "Paper Clip," which hangs in the Dallas Museum of Art.

Alas Poor Clippy
The paper clip is assured an eternal pedestal in the design hall of fame, even if the paperless office ever manages to appear. But the most famous anthropomorphic twisted wire, Clippy, is now deceased. The infamous metalmouth began hectoring users in Microsoft's Office 97 and died (or more accurately, was downsized) on May 31, 2001 with the official launch of Office XP (jokingly referred to as short for "Ex-Paperclip"). The funeral wasn't cheap, however. A US$30 million promotional campaign, created by advertising company Shepardson, Stern and Kaminsky, featured a website offering the newly unemployed metal pretzel some career options including Chef (i.e. shishkabob) and Lead Singer For Metal Band.

Bonus Information