The Iron Age 1914-09-17: Vol 94 Iss 12

HEE eee ROD, v — a” bp | y ze 1 CUUDUEAUEEEE EOE blished 1855 New York, September 17, 1914 Vol. 94: No. 12 A Modern Shop With Unusual Features Standard Saved Machinery Company’s. New Works—How a Basement Money—Heat Treating Plant Using Producer Gas HE new works of the Standard Machinery Com pany, in Auburn, in the outskirts of Providence, R. L., are worthy, for a number of reasons, of the study of manufacturers who are contemplating the erection of factories or additions to existing plants. The buildings themselves were designed by the treasurer of the company, who is a contractor, and all details of equipment, installation, etc., were pre- pared in the drafting room of the works. The lustrations show the admirable results. Peculiarly interesting is the reason why a base ment story was given a large portion of the main building. Originally the structure was designed to have a single floor. If this plan had out a very large amount of filling would have required because of the slope of the land. As a result of careful study of the conditions, it was found to be cheaper to create a basement than to fill the land, and the large additional floor space thus afforded meant that a storehouse, the erection of which had been contemplated, would be unneces been carried been sarv. Not only was the cost of the plant decreased, x = SL rE ET TS ee = Bee es eee ee ee <xxy 4 ; 4 } ' ’ . 4 1 ' | ‘ | ! : } ‘ 4 4 4 4 + _ a - 4 . . a . = anne] 4 hae ed . if a <j ' q | } ” 4 1 ; 4 ; : 4 a ; ‘ 1 . | } ! : 4 } : ’ 4 5 Lneaggyeee) Lise | a al ‘ -~—. — —p-« ; 4 7 . _ - ’ > > oe tee ee ee ee ee ee mee ve ee ee oe ee eee es te he to het ee 4 5 ’ Fig. 2—Plan of the Main Building of the Standard Machiner __—- HDD 656 THE IRON AGE September 1” handling of finished products, mate: oundry patterns, in the routine of manufactu made more economical. The location of the plant is wholly desirable. The neighborhood has begun to flourish indus- trially. Auburn is in the city of Cranston and has five-cent fare from Providence on the electric lins In fact, it is merely a continuation of Provide for the intervening territory is continuous] settled. Within the fenced-in area, and only distance away, is the new and very modern p of the Hope Foundry, which removed its business from Warren, R. I., to become more closely affiliated with the Standard shops, and as a consequence the latter have what is practically the equivalent of foundry of their own. A spur track from the shor line of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Ra Fig. 3—The Saw-Tooth Covered Machine Shop EF ig. 4—Completed Machines Are Lowered Through Hatchways (trom Shop Floor to the Storage Space in the Basement Fig. 5—The Heavier Machinery Is Installed in the Crane Bay, t tion of Which Is Shown in Figs. 1 and 2 mber 17, 1914 THE IRON AGE piants. The site, comprising nine s of ample future growth. Next door works of the General Fire Extin- ympany. Half a mile to the south is the Dy) and W Fuse Company, and the same ’ the north are the mills of the Universal ‘ompany. The combination of industry 1ake Auburn a desirable labor center. iain building is 175 ft. wide and 325 ft. the offices, the pattern shop m which will be used as mat nspect the con pal ’s products, ners, presses, rolling mills, front are a showroom, wi re-drawing and ball and small into the important part the other end of the and swagi machines, arings which ‘un trom the es and constitute a ver npany’ s output At ys aap OT ae a et of Filling and Grading, a 3asement Was Fig ‘onvenient Location for th g 5 The Fores Provides Numerous Machi! Sawtootl Roof. F Shop and He 658 structure is the cranebay which runs across the building and takes 50 ft. of the total length. The great central portion of the factory constitutes one great room in which the lighter equipment is located and where the assembling is done. The basement extends for a distance of 250 ft. from the north end of the building. The remaining 75 ft. is solid ground, 50 ft. of it comprising the craneway where the heavy machinery is installed, directly on the ground on concrete foundations. The two cranes serve both the heavy tools and the erec- tors on heavy machinery. On the southeast of the craneway, entirely enclosed, is the grinding room, and on the southwest side the shipping and stock room. A craneway in the shipping room travels over the cutting-off machines and over the large platform scales, and meets the power cranes of the main bay, which is also met by the crane of side the large factory room, thus affording a continuous carrier system. A machine is lifted from storage in the basement and conveyed to the power crane, which transfers it to the shipping room crane, which in turn delivers it to the floor for skidding, boxing or crating. As has been stated, the land slopes downward from south to north parallel to the railroad tracks and the highway, between which thoroughfares the property is located, with a pitch of 8 ft. in the length of this one building. It was desirable to have the length of the structure north and south because of the spur track, because the windows of the saw- tooth roof should have a northern exposure, and for other reasons. It was necessary that the main floor of the shop should be on a level with the floors of the forge shop and power house, located at the southerly end, not only for convenience of trans- portation, but because of the tunnel which carries the steam pipes and electric wires from the power house. To fill the land in order that the main floor should be directly upon the ground, 300,000 cu. ft. THE IRON AGE September 17, 1914 of earth would have been required and muc} would have had to be purchased. Therefor basement story was decided upon. The mon ing has never been carefully estimated, amounts to thousands of dollars. The actu: of the building was increased only by the a of the basement columns, a matter of less $1000, the sash of the side windows and the of the main floor. The large storehouse in in the original plans was, of course, unnec: because the basement provides ample space storage that may be necessary in a long ti come. Not only did the cost of the basement | a saving as compared to filling, but the larg pense of the storehouse was eliminated. The big basement room is well lighted by sid windows which vary in hight from 5 ft. at the north end to 2 ft. at the south. No provisi: 1 , ZZ aR ——— i The room is not wired It was considered unnecessar) and also safer owing to the presence of the great number of patterns. The removal or storing of ma terials and machinery can be arranged to be acco! plished in the hours of daylight, and in case of a! emergency a portable electric lamp can be employ: d receiving its current through a cord from a so located on the main floor. Large storage capac required in this business because many tomers, especially among the manufacturing jewe! ers, of whom there are hundreds in Providence a! vicinity, demand instant delivery when they ar‘ the market for machinery. The structural details of this building art particular interest, especially because of the f that they were planned, as has already been statec without the assistance of professional mill e! gineers. The main floor is supported by cast-1! columns, their bases resting upon concrete pila! in the basement floor, and surmounted by truss‘ plates, cast solid with them, which support th made for artificial lighting. for electric lamps. is Sept ber 17, 1914 Fig. 10—The Work Bench a eams. Extending longitudinally are 10-in I-beams, while the lateral supports consist of 12 x wooden timbers. The roof is supported by ns consisting of steel pipes which are exten- of the floor columns. Each sawtooth of the has a span of 18 ft. The lights of the steel f the skylight are of ribbed glass. The lights t tip, as is frequently the practice, and there- ist no unusual shadows. Instead of securing ge by pitching the roof sideways, the roof the teeth slopes to either side. It will be Fig. 7 that the running of the roof beams of the building permits of the creation rms by means of stringers to support the well up within the sawteeth. nding most of the length of the main fac- traveling crane with hand hoist, which nto the showroom. At intervals in the — 7 { Th Wwe Be } ZZ LZR a LZ) ach | eh j ; { — be J beeen be bed | 1 bod + -—2 - “4 he Patte S nd Tables in the Pattern Shop Lie at THE IRON AGE 659 Right Angles to t floor beneath the craneway are hatchways through which the lighter machines are lowered to the base ment where they are received on trucks and wheeled to the points where they are to be stored The toilet rooms are located in the room. main tactory The fenced-in enclosure seen at the left hand in Fig. 3 is the coat room. The gates are provided with locks and the men cannot without secur ing a key from their foreman. Each individual hook. The offices and drafting room ar enter man has his neated so that dur ing cold weather in case of overtime work, the engineering department is very separate main from the power house, wher busy, or in in ventory season, this portion of the building can be heated without compelling waste of steam in the manufacturing departments The walls of flat roof, which extending its entire length. by two cranes, capacity. the cranebay run straight up narrow windowed This the other of 7 t Each is arranged with an electric h and the larger has the attachment of a cab, to gether with two additional mot be operated b) power throughout At the southerly end of the mai the forge shop, 70 x 100. ft., attached the power house, and the gas-producer plant is located close by. The forge shop is one of the most complete in New England, as will be illustrations, especially in Fig. 9, layout in detail. has a room is served one of 10 tons, + ; ; I ‘ lilding whi [ noted in the which Producer gas is employed for the heat-treatment of forgings, the used being anthracite pea coal. The Standard Machinery Com pany is one of the first in the East to use this fuel in its heat-treating department, and already has found the process satisfactory and economical, es- pecially in the face of increasing prices of fuel oil. The pattern shop is an interesting department of the plant. The details are shown in Figs. 10, 11 and 12, including the construction of the work benches They are placed at right which permits of a better gives tne fuel angles to the windows conservation of floor, permits two men to work at a bench and gives a better light from the windows THE IRON AGE September 17. 19) . ree! A a iad RAKES The Finger-Like Points on the Inside of the McMurray Cast- iron Coke-Oven Door, for Re- j taining the Campbell Plastic Clay Lining, Are Shown in the | Middle Picture At the Right md Left, Respectively, Are the j Cole nd New Ways of Sealing — ~ the Doors COKE OVEN APPLIANCES Recent Developments in Mechanical Equipment for Bee Hive and Horizontal Coke Ovens A number ot new and interesting developments in equipment of bee-hive and horizontal coke ovens have come into the field in the past few years. Among these are the McMurray door, the Stauft coke extractor and Campbell’s plastic clay for filling and daubing coke-oven doors. It has been customary to line all coke-oven doors except the McMurray door with fire-brick of special shapes or blocks. The McMurray door, the inven- tion of William McMurray, superintendent of the Mount Pleasant Coke Company, near Mt. Pleasant, Pa., is of solid cast iron with finger-like projections on the inside, which serve as retaining points for a fire-clay daubing mixture. One of- the accom- panying illustrations shows the inside of the door. The projections are set in an upward angle and maj) be cast in place, but modifications of the idea con sist of rivets which can be renewed if the projec- tions get broken off or burnt out. Another picture shows the door in place on a machine front, arranged for mechanical handling. Mr. McMurray uses his door on rectangular ovens in four sections on account of the size and weight. Hinges are set in the oven wall, but there are other methods that might be adopted. The door for hand and machine bee-hive ovens is in two sections with the top dropping back on a hinge for leveling. The door proper for machine and bee-hive ovens weighs between 500 and 600 lb. with the lining THE PLASTIC CLAY to tind suffi- In developing this door it was necessary a suitable daubing mixture which would be Stauft, Tavlor Coal & Coke MceMurra Patented by D. B Door Extractor Company, for Lifting Out Doors ciently refractory and remain in place for factory period of time. It soon developed that th usual mortar made on the coke yard fron clay and ground brickbats gave at best on] months of service on account of its cracking falling off, causing hot spots on the iron fram: R. Campbell, chief chemist for the H. C. Frick Cok Company, became interested in the summer of 1913 for D. B. Stauft, who was desirous of securing a trial of the door with a better daubing materia] Mr. Campbell has developed a plastic-clay daubing mixture which he claims has solved the problem ot the proper lining for a door of this type. On ac- count of the high-grade materials going into the composition of this mixture and the careful prep- aration necessary, it is urged that it be made at the brick works and not on the coke oven plant, where there are usually no facilities for such work. The mixture consists of refractory material of flint and plastic nature with special binding material. It is shipped in its plastic and tempered state read to be applied. In case storage of the material necessary, as for minor repairs, it is buried in a pit and kept damp by sprinkling occasionally wit! water and covering with a wet brattice cloth o1 something similar. In application it must be well tamped in frame and, if possible, the door should be allowed to dry out before being placed in service. The heat from the oven burns the mixture into a solid brick and a glaze appears on the inside which resists wear. At this writing, no doors have actually bee! lost through failure of the daubing from a refra tory standpoint, nor has it failed to stick to th projections on the McMurray door. The daubing has also been used on the Hun phries door instead of tile. It has also been found to make a good lining for by-product coke-ove! doors and has been used around open-hearth fur naces and boiler furnaces. The mixture is covered by a patent granted to Mr. Campbell and the Har bison-Walker Refractories Company, Pittsburg! has the manufacturing rights. the THE STAUFT DOOR EXTRACTOR Another illustration shows the Stauft door ex tractor, which is used by the Taylor Coal & Cok« Company, Uniontown, Pa., to remove the MeMurras door. This machine is the invention of D. B Stauft, general manager of the Taylor Coal & Coke Company. It is a jack on a truck, which runs ahead of the coke machine. The door is swung out for inspection, i. e., to see the condition of the daubing material, and then placed on the supports at either side of the oven door. This method is similar to that used in handling by-product coke-oven doors. Another mechanical appliance developed }) Mr Stauft is a patented coke extractor. C er 17, 1914 vements like those described indicate that ecoke-oven operators are probably finding ary to adopt mechanical and labor-saving » reduce the cost and enable them to com- the by-product coke ovens, which now pro- third of the coke made in the United of nd are increasing the percentage each year. ew Production Recording Device nstrument intended to increase efficiency in tool operation was recently placed on the the Esterline Company, Indianapolis, a meter operating on the same general as common graphic or curve drawing in- ts. It is equipped with pens up to the num- ay, ten. Each pen is controlled electrically, when a record is made, a vertical line about n length is drawn across the chart, the pen ng to the zero position after each record is ording When R Machines Are in Ascertainir g Rates or Efficiency of P: Operation oduction (he controlling devices for the various pens ected to different machines so that one produced for each operation or for a cer- ber of operations. On account of the aveling through the meter by means of the resulting record is a series of short e spacings of which represent the rate at erations are being completed. If the ma- being operated up to capacity, the series will be close together, but if the machine lle for several minutes, a straight horizon- ill be drawn across the chart showing that was accomplished during this time. lock may be equipped with gears giving eds of 34, 1%, 3,6 or 12 in. per hour. An nt can also be provided giving additional eeds of 45, 90, 180, 360 and 720 in. per ne operation of the instrument may be in- at any time. nstrument is mounted in an enameled THE IRON AGE 661 metal case with rubber-covered binding posts cated at the bottom for making the electrical ! nection. The case has lugs for fastening to a wall or partition. One instrument the superintendent’s or manager’s office ated by small wires, connected to the cated at various parts of the plant feet away. Any yf direct battery, or shop or trolley voltage may be The instruments are also furnished with a counting attachment arranged to total perations and thus give production quickly for the day or may be located in and, oper machines lo several thousand source ¢ current, storage used 4] ne o Max Ams Machine Company’s New Plant The Max Ams Machine Company, now located at Mt. Vernon, N. Y., is erecting an additional plant 3ridgeport, Conn., to take care of its increasing ness. It has a large and growing export trade whicl is handled through its representatives in South Africa, Australia, India, China, Japan, South America, E1 land and the Eu nt ropean contine The area of the new site approximate l and the plant is to be equipped with every faci handle its output economicall) The main sl adjacent saw-tooth sections, practi struction, will contain every mode that the progress of the industry requiré Phe erecting shop will be provided with 2 cranes, and railroad sidings will 1 facilitate the handling of these buildings there will be a special ad building, having three stories, for the general and pr vate offices and drafti connected by means o ng room. This f bridges with the wi The power and heating plants will be in separat The~welfare of the employees will be looked after the erection of a special recreation building and the laying out of baseball grounds and tennis cou The output of the company is largely the making of tin containers, applied more particula to the food industry, its specialty being for the mar facture of the Sanitary can, now so extensively intr: duced to the The Max An Machine Company is the pioneer in that field and ha machinery canned goods industry developed the idea to practical perfection. It likewis« builds an extensive line of power presses as applied the sheet metal-working industry in general. Th pany expects to occupy its new home about F* 1915. Record of a Welded Hack Saw Blade A remarkable test of a hack saw blads that it cut off 10,000 piece s of %*-l round cold ) 1 steel, me while being broken and welded twice and ground threes times, has been learned of from E. C. Atkins & Co Inc., saw manufacturers, Indianap« It appea ha a manufacturer of automobiles in Detroit authorized th: master mechanic of the works to 1 e a test of variou hack saw blades and he was therefore inst ted to kee} a record of results. The plan was to secure infor concerning strength, cutting and lasting qualities of th material. In the case of the Atkins blade, which known a the AAA No. 440, 18 in. in length, the blade cut 1000 pieces of the %-in. round cold rolled steel and was the broken by accident, the operator droppir gy a bar on the blade. The blade was welded by the oxy-acetyl welder and then cut 3000 more pieces of the same ma terial, when a similar accident occurred to the other end of the blade. This break was repaired in the same ma! ner, after which the blade made 6000 additional cut making a total of 10,000 pieces. During the test the blade was resharpened by grinding the teeth on an or dinary tool room grinder three times. The number of cuts is equivalent to cutting 730 lin. ft. of %-in. The J. F. Lucey Sompar y, oil we supplies, ar nounces the removal of its general offices from 50 Church street to the Woolworth Building, 233 Broad way, twenty-third floor, New York City Eliminating Waste Motion in Molding How Cost and Time May Be Reduced With Little Money Expenditure— Study Made of Bench Molding BY R. E. KENNEDY AND J. C. PENDLETONT- That there are waste motions in all foundry machines being one of the important fea operations, due to improper training, poor tools cheap output. The best foremen and sup and equipment, and a lack of planning on the part of the management is realized by all foundrymen, but the steps taken to better these conditions are comparatively few; the average worker and em- ployer content themselves with the generally ac- cepted practice of past generations of manufac- turers. Statistics show that the average work- man’s efficiency is it is possible for it Much only a small per cent. of what to be, owing to the above named conditions. has been done in large plants M Bench (Cc g N } eK to eliminate and cut down the motions of workers by the installation of sand conveyors, continuous molding plants, molding machines, etc., but every shop has an almost unlimited number of places for reducing time and cost with only a very small ex penditure of These changes can be brougnt about by out the suggested improve- ments shown by careful time and motion studies, which reveal better than anything else the oppor- tunities for bettering conditions. The time is past when everythtmg can be left to the discretion of the molder. The expertly) trained all around molder mechanic is growing more and more difficult to find because of the tendency towards specialization in the foundry. The com- plete planning out in advance by the foreman of work is becoming more of a necessity all the time. “heaper and quicker methods of operation are hav- ing to be found to meet the changing conditions, which are tending towards closer competition. All orders received have to be analyzed carefully for cheap methods of production, special apparatus and money. following *From paper read before the American Foundryvmen’s Association, Chicago, Sentember 9 ‘University of Tilinois, Urbana, Il 66 ents are always viewing the work with a eye, constantly asking themselves if it ca done in a better way. They do not allow selves to be hampered by the traditional the past. It is not our intention to touch further underlying principles which make changed tions necessary, but to show by the working of an example how similar methods of investi; may be used in working out every day qui of improvement in the foundry. To best « the method we will study the use of the ordi: molding bench and the operation of turning any simple casting in small quantities, too smal pay for fitting up for machine molding. Outside of its use in combination with mec! ‘al features as a molding machine, the snap ber has been given very little consideration. Knowi: that waste motion and inefficient methods common occurrences in molding, careful stud the operations performed was determined upon. 1 get the best results, which means in this case the most information, an exceedingly detailed time and motion study was made of different operations 01 bench molding. This detailed itemizing of the operation may seem useless to many, but it well-known fact frequently proved by time studi that many important facts have been missed not obtaining for analysis the seemingly portant small detail. Time studies were made of men under ordinar shop conditions as they were performing the wor! when the investigation was first started. The ty of bench used, Fig. 1, is familiar to all foundry) men. The results of these studies are shown the accompanying table, column A. Analyzing the work done under these conditions three facts were impressed upon the minds of t! investigators: 1.—That one of the causes for delay and time was due to not having the tools in the convenient positions for handling. They were olte! covered up with unnecessary odds and ends, [ik unused patterns, extra gate pins, old cores, et 2.—The second cause of inefficiencies was tributed to the fact that very often the workma! did not have the necessary tools and quite those he did have were not in very good shapé Blunt draw spikes, inefficient rapping hammers swabs, sand cans, etc., were quite in evidence W! the workman was left to supply his own tools keep them in shape. 3.—The third large item of lost time was ca by the molders doing too much unnecessary W0!* such as taking several small shovelfuls of sand fill a cope or drag when one or two heaping s! would have produced the same results. S. W unl! e ARRANGEMENT OF MOLDING BENCH hes Studying the shop conditions, it was found , to have the benches made of the wall type, althous! under the greater majority of cases the porta 9 7 ber 17, 1914 ver the sand heap is most economical, due handling of sand and molds. This mold- h, Fig. 2, was constructed with the idea g a place for every necessary tool and all while having each located within the most nt reaching distance. The arrangement is it the tools cannot be placed anywhere but proper place, and the foreman or molder at a glance whether the tools are in good n. 1 a place for everything actually needed and se tools and supplies around, the common the workmen of having their benches up with extra tools, patterns, old cores, ns, ete., was done away with. The small » slick, trowel, gate cutter, etc., are kept in | tray as shown in Fig. 2. The box sets on nd and is tilted at such an angle that the an see each tool and get the one needed ractically no loss of time as in searching for s bench. This tool box is returned to the each evening when the tool room attend- that the tools are in good shape. If special are needed for a particular job, they are n the box issued to the molder assigned to aer. ler the tool box is a shelt for holding a core ard. The rammers and strike-off are kept in front, easy of access and when replaced thrown into their holders with one of the arms. A wire basket holder for the and riser the back of the an ve pins is located at h. This is a convenient position from which tain the pins when needed, the wire prevent- accumulation of sand as in a tight box (he two brackets marked A-A, Fig. 2, are for ype it is rolled over on the side shelf at B, When patterns have to be removed from pe it is rolled over onto the side shelf at B, The dust bag and swab can holders are t the right of the workman for ease of riddle is kept in the rack at the right side ench. Located above the sand, it is never way at the side of the bench as in ordinary From this position, sand can be shoveled and it can be picked up with less having to reach down to the floor level. ingement of the bench for having the tools ite place, easy to reach and replace, played t in cutting down the average time of part y olds. easily tnan PROPER TOOLS econd item of the main causes of lost time, ot proper tools and tools in poor shape, is d in the majority of foundries because of ef that the molders will furnish their own. t level has sometimes been the common perty among fifteen loam molders, and an is amount of time lost by the men in for this tool when needed. In bench work els must not be worn too small or used edges turned. Much effort is wasted when lirty shovels. In this case a tool room at- ooks after the shovels to see that the edges good condition and keeps the blades oiled ne shovels are not in use. spikes are inspected for sharpness, proper e cutters, swabs and draw screws are the men. The other small tools are looked similar manner. Bell top sprue pins are erever possible because they eliminate time ng off and in reaming out around the sprue + THE IRON AGE 663 hole. The use of a special wide strike-off iron, on stroke of which finishes the operation, was instituted on all this snap bench work. Straight steel bottom boards are used because of their durabilit: Also the strike-off leaves a smooth surface on the drag and no time is lost in bedding the board on a soft layer of sand. The third item, extra work, led t onsidera tion of such things as molders taking an excessive number of strokes with the rammers, small and many shovelfuls of sand, moving too far for botton boards, ete. One heaping shovelful of sand in the riddle was found to be all that was necessary, in the majority of cases, for both drag and cop: ‘he use of many small shovelfuls of sand to fill the cope and drag for peining and butt ramming was replaced by the use of two and three large shovel fuls. Careful placing of the bottom boards for ease in reaching was observed. These and man other like items of information observed as stand ard operation methods produced quite a saving in time and labor. Instruction cards are made for the men working INSTRYCTION CAR 1 BAS HOLDER TRAY FOR SMALL TOOLS with different patterns as the orders come into the shop. These contain information as to the flasks to be used, special tools needed, special gating, how cores are to be set and anchored and other details generally left to the discretion of the molder These cards are issued to the lder with his tools and work order. Being made up by the most ex perienced men, they insure the use of the quickest way of making with the best methods of gating holding of cores, ete. A special place is provided on the bench for holding these cards where they can be easily read. The value of the struction lies in the fact that the best making the piece is planned out ir the work. All tools and special apparatus needed are noted and are gotten together and, when ready, the work is started and continued by the without the unnecessary delavs usually en when the work is begun without being given to it. These cards relieve the foreman of having to repeat verbal instructions and pre- clude the possibility of misunderstanding which so often occurs. The use and writing of instruction written in method of advance of doing molder ountered any forethought cards impressed on the management more than any 664 THE IRON AGE September thing the need for standardization in tools, ma- bearings, as it is difficult to get at bearin; terials, and methods of work. of this type and they are neglected. T, Re Time § this trouble, an oil cup was provided at « ( feed oil through piping to the journal |} \ I Avel ° ' # ’ i eliminated Castings of the cars are of manganese sti 1 mie Ite utes 8 p Portable Press for Machine Sho; Ms. pers . 0 A 20-ton press for such work as stra rill axles and shafts, pressing wheels on and 6. Butt 0 7 compressing leaf springs for assembling, 5 holes, cutting key-ways in pulleys and fo as bending and shaping of material like a; I B I . t st 6 Re } 5 The results of column A of the table are the obtained on the making of molds in or- dinary practice while the subject was first being studied. Column B gives the average time of mak- ing molds similar to those of column A, but made on t bench while instructions as to striking off, filling riddle, shoveling and ramming were followed. The savings of time on the different items very small. These small each mold total to an astonishingly large amount. One minute less a mold, if the molder is putting up 80 molds a day, means that hour and twenty minutes will be gained for productive labor per man. For 10 men it $1598 for a averages he well arranged seem savings on each day an amounts to a saving 01 year. A Recent Development in Iron Ore Cars The accompanying illustration shows a gable bot- tom car of late design built by the Orenstein-Arthur Koppel Company, Koppel, Pa., for use in iron Michigan and Minnesota. To dump this car, the hand levers at the end of the car are re- leased, and the reverse moment of the hand levers locks the door. It appears that one of difficulties in the operation of cars ore mines of the greatest is to make sure that the workmen pay proper attention to oiling the ess for Garage and Repair Shor bars, was shown at the Foundry and Machine Exh bition at Chicago last week. It is manufactured b the Weaver Mfg. Company, Springfield, Ill., and as will be noted from the accompanying illustratior has a frame of one piece made up of 5 x 2-in. cha! nel steel without joints; a hand wheel, 15 in. diameter, for relatively light work, a lever whe! maximum pressure is desired. The lever is con nected by means of a link to turn the hand wheel, with a ratchet-like arrangement, and the wheel of course drives the central screw which is 2 in. in diameter with a 3 pitch Acm thread. The bolster to take the pressure developed by th movement of the screw, and which therefore carries the plate on which is held the work to be straight ened, is adjustable for hight as shown in the ill tration. The maximum adjustment is 48 in. dé tween the plate and the bottom of the screw. The weight of the screw rests upon bronze thrust bea! ings, which allow the wheel to move the screv cr down quickly. The screw has a range ot ment of 12 in. The distance between the up! of the frame is 32 in., sufficient to take aut wheels. The floor space taken by the ma 36 in. square and the weight is 425 lb. hand- shown The largest labor union in the Berlin distr many—that of the metal workers, with 88,000 m: reports 11,000 unemployed, although members are with the troops in the field. some i ber 17, 1914 S ing Water at Works of Alan Wood Iron & Steel Company ng improvements made by the Alan Wood Steel Company at Swedeland, Pa., has been illation of a water softening and purifying for its boiler feed water. The boiler plant constituted consists of two sections, the stallation of four Wood horizontal tube ind thirteen Stirling boilers, all 200 hp. perating at 120 lb. pressure, and the new lant of six 600-hp. Babcock & Wilcox boilers, g at 150 lb. pressure. All boilers are fired from the furnaces. boiler feed water is taken from the Schuyl- er, and owing to its hardness, it was recog- hat the maintenance of the high efficiency re- would necessitate the purification of the r the boilers to keep them free from scale osion. The problem was one of clarifica- well as softening, and any apparatus in- had to combine means for removing sus- matter as well as to insure accurate and treatment for removing soluble scale form- irities. Sedimentation, it was decided, could THE IRON AGE 665 livered into the reaction and settling tanks of the purifying system by means of a De Laval turbine- driven centrifugal pump. Oil carried by hot well water is removed by the treatment so that the purified water may be used hot, obtaining the ad vantage of its temperature for feed water. action and settling tanks are alternately filled and emptied. The are introduced by means of a pump from a small mixing tank in the operating house. The reagents are mixed with the water by mechanical stirring devices, consisting of a specially designed paddle driven by an electric motor located in the operating house. The paddle stirring device at the same time stirs up from the bottom the sludge of preceding purification. This mixture of sludge hastens the chemical reaction and causes the new finely divided precipitate to form large woolly flakes heavy enough to settle quickly stops moving. After treatment, stirring and the water flows from the reaction and settling tank through a floating outlet pipe, delivering the water from the top surface to two mechanical gravity filters, filled with crushed quartz. These are pro vided to remove the last trace of suspended matter tne The re reagents as soon as the water subsidence, the required clarification especially in a iter, so filtration was a prime requisite. termittent We-Fu-Go system, built by Wm. & Sons Company, Pittsburgh, having a 10,000 hp., or 40,000 gal. per hour, ed. Provision to double the the future. In this system, a definite water is treated at all times with known rmined amounts of reagents, depending tions in the quality of the supply or the h the water is used. ver water reaches the LeBlanc condenser ver plant through a concrete conduit and from the hot well by a similar conduit. bottom of the hot well the water is de- was made *urifying Plant of and they deliver the softened and filtered water into a large clear well. When the sludge has accumu- lated to about half the hight of the paddles, it is stirred up with the water remaining in the tank and with the floating outlet pipe at its lowest posi- tion, is flushed out through a sewer connection The filters washed by reversing the flow of water through them, using softened water direct from the reaction and settling tanks. The apparatus is handled from within the oper- ating house, containing the filters, special appliances and storage for the reagents. The main operating valves are located in a pipe gallery below the oper- ating floor. These are fitted with extension stems, with universal couplings and floor stands. All the are 666 THE IRON AGE Septem b: floor stands have a brass plate attached, giving the Hammer Piston Rods of Vanadiu: purpose of the valve and line in which it is located. Possibly no other machine part i The hight of the water in the treating tanks is indi- eg reate, vibratory stresses, tending to ca cated by mereury gages. Electric alarms indicate’ the metal and resulting failure, than full and empty reaction and settling tanks. The piston rods. In such service the dynam flow of water from the reaction and settling tanks anti-fatigue properties of the metal a to the filters and from the filters to the clear well is everest test. F ee failures of su automatically controlled by float valves. The clear common source 1 aon le and Capone well occupies the entire area of th erating houses shops. As a solution of the problem thi e ‘cuples 2e re ares e operati se. l I I I ile turning to the use of heat-treated alloy The fo idations f he yeratine house serve als ; : [he foundations of the operating house serve also ause of its high dynamic strength, heat as walls for the clear well and as supports for the djym steel has proved to be particularly ad filters. The water purifying system is handled by purpose, as shown by results reported the water tenders, so that no additional labor in which have used vanadium steel in this cc the operation of the boiler plant was involved in this According to information collected by t! installation. Vanadium Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., the A Company, Milwaukee, Wis., which operates £ ranging in capacity from 1000 lb. to 16,00 A Rivet Buster trying out heat-treated vanadium steel rod years ago and now all its hammers are e While assembling structural members, sheet yanadium steel rods. It is the company’s metal work, riveted pipe, etc., either in the shop or that the life of a heat-treated chrome-vanad n the field, it often occurs that rivets must be re- rod as compared with one made from reg moved after being driven into place, in order to stock is at least three to one. permit of some modification of construction or be- . Similarly results are reported by the O ise they were improperly driven or incorrectly Drop Forge Company, Cudahy, Wis., whic! try out vanadium steel for this purpos years ago. Previously it had been using 0.4 carbon steel. A heat-treated chrome-va) rod was applied to one of the hammers o 1910. Operating continually night and day, until November 1, 1911, giving a service of and a half. The rods were 5 in. in diamete: long over ali, with a head having a diamete and a 4-in. face. The Studebaker Corporation reports that of vanadium steel rods, a rod of this material | in service 18 months and is still in first class In a 4000-lb. drop hammer, the Page-Storms Busts Forge Company, Chicopee Falls, Mass., reports heat-treated vanadium steel rod has proved hig placed. A cold chisel and sledge is often used to isfactory. knock off the rivet head. This method, however, By the use of heat-treated vanadium steel th nery Bolt Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., has m failures of hammer piston rods. ts equipmée sists of five 1000-lb. steam hammers. The fi dium steel rod was applied a year and a half is still in service. is slow and awkward and may actually result in injury to the work. When pneumatic instruments are available, the common procedure with large rivets is to cut a slot across the rivet head, similar to the slot in a round-headed screw. Then with i : : . : Tt . > . two light blows, one on either side, the rivet head Carbon Hearths for Blast Furnaces is broken off with little difficulty. Where rivets The Proceedings of the Cleveland Institut must be removed only occasionally, however, the Engineers, England, contain the following cont trouble of keeping a pneumatic chipping hammer from Dr. J. E. Stead regarding carbon and fire always at hand for only occasional use precludes hearths in blast furnaces: its more general employment under such circum- “Bolckow, Vaughan & Co. have had a carbon heart tance put in one of their furnaces, and after 10 1 Sle swe service it has worn away to the extent of a little 1 than a foot. Mr. Scott has assured me that the s! initial erosion of about 1 ft. in 10 months is not than one might expect, and states that the fur been in work continuously since the hearth was put ic riveting hammers. The end of the device is and that during the last three months no f similar to that of the regular rivet set. The rivet erosion has taken place. The slight wear of Appreciating these conditions, the Ingersoll- Rand Company, New York City, has brought out what it calls the Little David rivet buster, to be used with the regular line of Little David pneu- ry a4 ilieat set is quickly removed and the rivet buster is in- carbon hearth is probably partly due to the posi! serted in the nozzle of the hammer. It is designed f the tuyeres and to the scouring action whe! so that it can be held in place by the safety re- ("8 the furnace of the last traces of molten the finish of each tapping. J. S. Hollings, taining spring, a recent improvement on the Little : a , ; Brymbo Iron & Steel Company, in a commun! David riveters, to prevent the accidental SFeCtION cohen hentthe, states the opinion that the positi of the set or chisel while the tool is in operation. the tuyeres has a considerable effect on any ht The buster is also used for removing burrs or other that in their case the carbon hearth has sto defects from the metal and is of such a small size than the firebrick hearth under exactly simlia that it can be carried in the workman’s pocket tions. In this furnace, which has been in ! ready for use when needed. years (the whole time on basic iron) the he never been more than 18 in. below the tap h carbon block hearth is now within an inch [he American Blower Company, Detroit, Mich., its original level, as the tap hole was laid ‘ manufacturer of Sirocco multi-blade patented fans, is above the carbon hearth to start with. Son contributing to the general stock of information regard- _firebrick hearth loses very much more in the ! ing the great war by distributing an excellent map of or two than this carbon hearth has done in Europe which has on the reverse side a great deal of a year. Judging by the fact that the car! data regarding the fighting strength and resources of of this furnace has not worn at all during the contending nations. three months, it gives promise of a long life.’ The Foundrymen’s Conventions in Chicago Growing Movement Looking to a Coali- tion of the Three Associations into One Organization—Discussion of the Papers 914 foundrymen’s conventions held in Chi- tember 7 to 11 passed into history reflecting nce of new ideas and new policies of co- A programme of exceptional technical al interest was developed. The division ns gave to the meetings a logical proce- secured for the topics discussed an un- , tendance and sustained interest. Out of the ve endeavor, there is an increasing prob- the three associations, the American Association, the American Institute of Metals and the Associated Found: Foremen, will each find their own best interest erved coalition in the one organization lo provide for this contingency suitable amendments to the n stitution of the American Foundrymen’s As a tion were recommended by a committee appointé In connection with the programme there work to be done in devising a wa number of papers, their presentation and d 1s fit the time available. The wing e! features of the meetings: The American Foundrymen’s Association ture of the opening session on Tuesday was covered in the report appearing in ige September 10. In the afternoon meet- t day of the American Foundrymen’s the report of the secretary-treasurer attention was called to the in membership, which now totals <00 and promises an early reaching of the irk, toward which the association is striving. of the executive committee, submitted in form, Particular was not read but referred to as a com record of the executive committee’s ist convention. meetings \ND PRODUCTIVITY OF GRINDING WHEELS papers scheduled for the afternoon ses- where the authors were absent were e only. The paper by R. G. Williams, any, Worcester, covering the question connection with grinding wheel opera- Thomas D. West’s paper, relating his onnection with the driving back of the rried over into the afternoon. Carl Fred- , Worcester, Mass., gave a brief abstract per on the selection of grinding wheels for iry, calling attention to a need for selecting n accordance with the kind of material the work is being done. To secure the ts from grinding wheels, care must be electing a wheel of the proper hardness suitable grain size for the work at hand. nd productivity of a wheel made by a good aterial is directly measured both by the and the strength with which the grains gether. The author called attention to of grinding at a constant speed. Fre- e wearing of the wheel is not taken into on and the decreased diameter, carrying lecreased peripheral speed, fails to give expected both as to grinding and life of The speed at which the wheel is driven e adjusted to the wear of the wheel so rrinding speed can be held constant. Mr. issed the kinds of material best adapted ling of castings of various kinds—steel, and gray iron. \KING CAST IRON HIGH IN OXYGEN iper by J. E. Johnson, Jr., on the subject Material for High Grade Castings,” was on Tuesday afternoon instead of Thurs- lescribed the development of a cast iron nally desirable property by the intro- duction of oxygen in unusual proportio iron produced by Mr. Johnson is a stro grained, smooth iron with excellent erties. Reference was made to an analysis and te of this iron made by H. B. Swan of the Cad Motor Car Company, Detroit. The an: 3 W follows: Combined carbon, 1.85 per cent.; grap! carbon, 2.65 per cent; manganese, 0.26 per cent phosphorus, 0.362 per cent.; sulphur, 0.039 cent.; silicon, 1.25 per cent. The test nowe transverse breaking strength of 4505 t i875 and a tensile strength of 34,800 Mr. Johnsor pointed out that it is true where charcoal iron h shown particularly desirable properties, the ‘ content runs high and that poor iron in addition t running high in carbon contains less than 0.01 per cent. oxygen. In fact charcoal iron has enjoyed prestige over coke iron not so much because of low sulphur as of high oxygen. The operation of add ing oxygen to the metal is performed in a Besseme1 converter in which it is possible to remove all the silicon without affecting the carbor ry necessary before the oxygen ! troduced Then by introducing metal direct from the cupola the silicon content of in the blown sired without affecting the oxygen contai1 which is known, the licon metal may he made what metal retains its properties when remelted eithe in the cupola or air furnace, losing them or vhen the metal is burned in excessive heat just cast iron is made worthless from the same cau NEW TYPE OF FOUNDRY CUPOLA Following Mr. Johnson, G. R. Brandon, W} Foundry Equipment Company, presented a desigr for a new type of foundry cupola. For this new design Mr. Brandon greater accessibility and a generally management, making the cupola especially adapted to severe service requirements for large capacit and heats of long duration. The cupola is carried claimed easier operat on a framework of I-beam girder construction Instead of the ordinary type of wind box, a wind belt is substituted and an individual glass box with a sight glass is provided for each tuyere. The discussion following the presentation of the paper indicated some doubt as to the blast pressure with the arrangement suggested by Mr. Brandon, and a disposition to question the value of changes that brought with them no decreased cost of melting or similar substantial advantage The afternoon session concluded with the uniformity of air report 667 668 THE IRON AGE Septembe: ; of the committee on industrial education by Paul Kreutzpointner, Altoona, Pa. The report was a résumé of the progress of industrial education and discussed corporation schools and their functions; continuation schools and the relation of these to public schools and outlined the courses of study in their relation to each other. The other papers on the afternoon programme in the absence of their authors were read by the title only. THE COST CONGRESS At the Wednesday morning session held at the Stock Yards Inn, the importance of the question of cost was demonstrated by the most liberal at- tendance recorded at any of the sessions. The open- ing address by F. J. Stephenson, cost expert for the National Association of Stove Manufacturers, was an exhortation to the foundrymen that they make a practice of knowing their costs and tha