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Welcome To Texas: Inside The Money Factory

January 14, 2016 / 4:50 PM CST / CBS Texas

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FORT WORTH (CBS 11 NEWS) - Fort Worth may be "Where the West Begins," but the nation's capital can't do business without Cowtown. Have you ever noticed the letters "FW" on your dollar bills? Have you ever wondered what it means?

The explanation can be found inside the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) -- the money factory -- in Fort Worth.

From a distance, the sights, sounds, and smells on the production floor of the BEP aren't much different than what you might see in any other production facility. But get a little bit closer, and it becomes clear what sets this place apart. There are seemingly endless sheets of money being printed, cut, sorted, and stacked before your eyes.

"There are only two places in the United States that produce United States paper currency. One of them is in Washington D.C. but the other one is here in Fort Worth, Texas," says Charlene Williams, the Associate Director of Manufacturing for the Bureau of Engraving and Printing.

In her role as associate director of manufacturing, Williams is responsible for the engraving and production operations of all U.S. paper currency.

Three decades ago, the U.S. Department of the Treasury determined that it needed a second location, outside of Washington D.C. The city of Fort Worth was ultimately chosen from more than 80 candidate cities, Williams says, in large part, because of civic pride. "People really wanted this plant in Fort Worth, Texas. And they did everything they could to get this facility here."

The push included donating 100 acres of land. Now, almost 25 years after its official opening, the BEP has nearly tripled in size to 750,000 sq. ft. -- and it produces more than half of the nation's paper currency.

On any given day, the Fort Worth facility produces more than $29 million per hour! On the day we visited, it was printing $1, $2, $10, $20, $50 and $100 notes -- all at the same time. "You hit a special day here, Karen," Williams said smiling. "We're doing all of them. We knew you were coming!"

It's hard to take in: millions of dollars rolling off the machines, inspected by highly-trained craftspeople, stacked by the billions, and readied for shipment to the Federal Reserve. But for the hundreds of workers at the BEP, it's literally all in a day's work.

"The product that we produce. We think of it as that...It's paper and it's ink. But for what we do here, it has to have quality. It has to have security and accountability with the product that we produce, because it's circulated worldwide," says Williams.

And that's something in which the workers at the BEP take a lot of pride.

"They stay here for 30, 40 [years]. We even have some people who've been here at BEP for over 50 years," says Williams. "And it's because they love what they do. They're so proud of the fact that they produce United States paper currency, and it's something that's recognized worldwide."

And perhaps one of the most amazing things about the BEP is they want everyone to come out and see what they do.

"It's very important to us for people to understand the security features that are incorporated into the currency, because it helps us to stay ahead of counterfeiting," says Williams. "We're committed to producing a quality product that ends up protecting Americans' hard-earned money."

The Visitor's Center and self-guided tour are free and open to the public Tuesday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m - 5:30 p.m.

You can call 866-865-1194 to schedule a tour or log on to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing website.