The Iron Age 1916-04-06: Vol 97 Iss 14

ESTABLISHED 1855 RN VOL. 97: No. 14 hy SF i ta he The Organization of a Modern Foundry How Responsibility for Good Service Is Placed in the Jobbing Plant of the Metals Production Equipment Company BY WILLARD F. {E modern foundry does not represent much of an advance over its predecessors unless there is a clear-cut organization and a well-planned sys- tem, resulting in improved service to the customers. In the foundry of the Quigley Furnace & Foundry Company, now the Metals Production Equipment Company, described in THE IRON AGE, Feb. 12, 1914, constant effort has been made to develop the organi- zation and the internal system in such a manner as to keep it abreast of the times. In a jobbing foundry the system is likely to be- come top heavy if it follows the lines used in foundries devoted to manufacturing standard ma- chinery, such as those connected with automobile ——— ROCKWELL’ Metals Production Equipment Company is evidenced by the accompanying chart of organization. The treasurer and general manager has under his direct charge a sales manager, a works manager and an office manager. The duties of each of these men are clearly defined, and each of them is held responsible for his department of the work. The works manager has charge of all manufac turing departments, but those duties which require continuous personal attention are delegated to capa ble assistants, who are essentially functional fore- men. The cupola boss is held responsible for clean- ing and maintaining the cupola, weighing and plac- ing the charges, regulating the blast and similar TREASURER FOUNDRY SALES MGR | | MAINTENANCE [DRAFTING ROOM __. JMANUFACTURING DEPTS|_ |_ ST | SALESMAN PATTERN-MAKING | _) ——————————————_——_— MOULDING | MACHINE SHOP i PATTERN STORAGE | | | j ‘ CLEANING > CRUDE STORES [FLASK STORAGE ee | | 1 ff ‘(= + ANS PORT 1 OFFICE MANAGER POWER HEATELIGHT PRODUCTION DEPT. PURCHASING KH BILLING | | } : “7 i | h RECEIVING | ACCOUNTING PATTERN RECORDS LABOR RECORDS INSPECTION SHIPPING | Brewnoes ] [FINISHED STORES ‘a icsenienth | | —_——$$_$$$— —————— _, — { 5 [auto TRUCK | a L — aeeneemnmnd of authority are indicated by nulacturing nary, d plants. One customer of this who manufactures automatic machinery, ‘ more than forty different types, and another ‘'s machine tools of a wide variety of types and *s calling for over 2000 patterns. ‘he jobbing foundry organization should be ‘hat the responsibility for giving good service arly defined from the time the customer’s order ived until the cleaned castings are shipped ed . That this plan has been followed at the engineer, Clinton H. Scovell & Co., Boston, lart of the Metals Production Equipment Company's Foundry, Production and Office full lines, while mutual dependence Departments. The lines is shown by the dotted lines routine. The works manager, however, takes per- sonal charge of formulating the mixture for each day’s operation, and endeavors to produce a melt to run sound clean castings with the particular qualities desired by the trade. This duty of deter- mining the proper mixture of iron is considered one of the most important duties of the works man- ager. No other single factor is so important in producing good castings. The works manager has an assistant who is responsible for maintaining the building, equipment and power plant in such a manner as to give the manufacturing department 823 | pay it 824 the very best service. This assistant also has charge of welfare and safety work. There is a foreman in charge of each manufac- turing department who is responsible for the quality of work and the economy of the department. He does not, however, have to spend time in planning work for customers, nor answering inquiries from customers about the progress of work. This is taken care of by the production department, or, as it is sometimes called, the planning department. The production department receives the order from the salesman or customer as soon as it has been passed for credit by the treasurer. Production or ders are immediately made out on each department which will be called upon to handle some phase of the work. When an order for castings is received, the production department makes out an individual order for each pattern. Copies of these orders are sent to the coreroom, the pattern storage depart- ment and the shipping department. These copies give all available information concerning the num- ber of castings wanted, the date that they are wanted, the standard time (taken from previous records if the pattern has been used before) and the estimated or standard weight of the castings. The pattern stores clerk receives his orders every afternoon and proceeds at once to get out the re- quired patterns and core boxes. The orders are attached to the patterns before being placed on a platform from which they are taken each morning by the transport department. The transport department works under the di- rection of the production department and has charge of all movements into and out of the various stores and storage departments. In every depart- ment there is a space set aside for materials and equipment which are to be moved from the depart- ment, and adjacent to this a space for placing all shipments into the department. These places are called stations. Each morning the foreman of the transfer department goes to the pattern stores sta- tion and moves all patterns to the foundry, separat- ing them into classes for bench, floor and machine molding. Flasks and core boxes are also found at their respective stations and are brought to the stations in the departments which require them. When the work called for is completed, these pat- terns and core boxes are returned to these stations and the transport department returns them to the proper station in the storage departments. Each morning the foundry foremen go to the receiving stations in their departments, and after examining the various patterns assign the work to the molders. The foremen have the standard time on all patterns taken from previous records, and are thus able to give out the work with a degree of cer- tainty that each molder, or each group of molders and laborers, will have sufficient work, and will also be able to complete the work according to schedule. The foremen are able to give the various molders the particular class of work on which they have had the most successful experience. Just before the heat is ready, the timekeeper visits each molder and obtains a list of the molds from each pattern. This list serves both the cost and the production departments. In the production department the information obtained is used to in- dicate on the production order the work done for each customer. Subsequent reports from the clean- ing and inspection department show any deduction for defective work. The cleaning department shakes out the molds, prepares the sand for the next day’s work and moves the castings to the cleaning de- partment, where they are cleaned, inspected and sorted out for shipment. The shipping department THE IRON AGE April 6, 1°16 checks the order for each pattern, makes out the necessary shipping instructions, and is held respop- sible for securing accurate weights and charyes against each customer. There is a complete system of production orgs which enables the production departmen: to calculate each day the weight and cost of the melt and the percentages of good and defective castings. remelt and invisible loss. Comparison of the ship. ment weights against these figures over a given period affords a precise check on the figures. The production order, pattern records and labor records are numbered and filed in such a way that the accu- mulated information can be referred to at any time, which makes them invaluable when repeat orders are received. If this cumulative record shows a very large proportion of defective castings from any one pattern, this information is immediately conveyed to the foundry foreman, who is expected to investigate and find out whether the fault is in the pattern, lies with the molder, or is inherent in the design of the part. A copy of this organization chart is kept by each individual who is responsible for maintaining serv- ice to customers. It serves to remind them of their responsibilities, and has been effective in making employees anxious to perform their functions in such a manner as to uphold the reputation of the company. Electric Furnace Castings for Chicago’s Jobbing Trade The Electric Steel Company, Chicago, has its new steel foundry under way and is pouring several heats a day from its one-ton Snyder electric furnace. A se- lected grade of low phosphorus scrap is charged, and the treatment of the steel in the bath and the ladle is directed toward the production of especially tough and dense castings. It is expected that the furnace, working on a melting time of an hour and a quarter pe! heat, will yield an average of eight heats a day. A simple and effective arrangement for the mixing and distribution of sand well suited to the needs of this first unit of the foundry consists of a motor-driven Simpson intensive mixer located immediately in front of the sand storage bins which are housed in a lean-to of the main building. The mixer is placed astride a pit which permits lowering a large box directly unde the discharge spout. This box is handled by means of a 7%-ton Whiting crane to any part of the floor. This device, while not a finished method by any means, !s an expedient arrangement with a wide field of adapta tion. As a substitute for crucibles, the prices and limited supply of which have rendered their use well-nigh pro- hibitive, steel buckets of about 3/16-in. plate, lined with refractory clay, are used for pouring, having a life of from four to five heats. While the labor required in cleaning the buckets and relining for each heat must represent a large item of their cost, they appear to meet the requirements as a temporary substitute. A battery of oil-burning heaters is installed for drying out the linings. Oil is also used to heat the core oven and the annealing furnace, the burners being of the type 0 tainable from the National Supply Company, Chicago. Chicago has but one successfully operating jobbing steel foundry, and the Electric Steel Company still has before it the opportunity of being the first electric furnace foundry to become permanently established in the jobbing trade in that city. The C. A. Lawton Company, De Pere, Wis., founder and machinist, specializing in power transmission -_ chinery, has booked an order for 700 large metal pulleys up to 90 in. in diameter, for delivery to a factory supply house in the Central West. The company’s shops 4" working a night shift to fill the order. Some of the MONG recently developed safeguards and A safety measures at the works of the West- + inghouse Electric & Mfg. Company, East irgh, Pa., two forms of saw guards stand out spicuously. These and other devices and ar- yements looking to the welfare of the employees the company are shown in the accompanying il- trations. They represent developments made un- direction of C. B. Auel, director of Stand- s, Processes and Materials. The guard for the rip saw entirely covers the so that no part of it is visible and the support- bracket for the overlapping leaves is directly ne with and of no greater thickness than the The lightness of the different parts is note- as is also the manner in which the different ves are quickly dropped, owing to their loosely nged support, so that small pieces of wood are not hurled away from the saw and are yet_easily re- The cross-cut saw has a guard which travels with the saw as indicated in the mounting, er tne wortny novable. ind when the sawing operation is ompleted, the saw is returned to a protective housing which has a door giving access to the saw, also as nown., Another one of the views shows partly collapsible gate for an ele- or well. Where the headroom is sufficiently great to allow a high gate to be moved far upward; in er words where the gate would be Ti va ha Saws: Safety in Westinghouse Electric Later veloped at the* East Pittsburgh Plant an Elevator Gate with a Flexible Top Extension; the Women Employees 825 Works Safeguards De- heads their into the elevator well in looking to ascertain the position of the car, the upper part of the gate space so low that workmen could easily put is closed with a sheet of asbestos cloth. This sheet is suspended from an iron rod along the top or near the ceiling and the iron rod is free to move a lim- ited distance with the gate as indicated. Flat spa- cious hooks attached to the gate lift the rod and at the same time keep the asbestos from bagging. In one particular case where this type of protection gate has been installed, the elevator gate manually by the elevator operator. Two of the reproduced photographs show safety measures applied to ladles. Besides being in the nature of safety devices, the ladles self-skim- ming as will be seen, the lead, for example, pouring through the spout from the bottom and leaving the dross on top. The ladles are adapted to right or left- hand workers. The remaining pictures facilities provided for the is handled are the the idea of for give some luncheon hour women workers. A coffee kitchen is installed and the distribution is through the small coffee pot, to the local service tables. Chairs with a wide arm for holding dishes, such as are common in self service res- taurants, are provided for individual use. The lunching space is provided in a balcony of one of the larger shops, which are conspicuous for their great length. Arrangements for Luncheon for the Conserving the Worker’s Health and Energy’ Proper Shop Hygiene, the Study of Fatigue of Rest Periods for Maintaining Health and Increasing Output and the Institution pa 2. B. To all interested in the human element the prob- lem of conservation is, perhaps, more interesting than any other. This has to do, in the case of the industrial plant, with the holding of the men once they have been obtained and trained, and with pre- serving or increasing their mental and physical health, and prolonging their years of productivity. The boys of the organization are of two kinds: 1. Those who are not apprentices, but who enter the organization without any particular agreement as to the amount of time they are to remain and the amount of actual training they are to receive. 2. The apprentices who are, preferably, of several kinds. The advantages of having several types of ap- prentices is that in this way boys and young men may be received into the organization, say, at the close of the grammar school period, at the close of the high school period, and at the close of the col- lege period, and may be trained in a more system- atic way to their own advantage and to the ad- vantage of the organization. These apprentices are held not only by reason of their agreement, and their pay, which is sufficient and which increases at such a rate that they are willing and glad to put in that time required for their training, but also by reason of the diplomas that they receive at the end of their time. The second group of workers in the organization who demand attention are the grown men who have been employed, but either not successfully placed, or placed in a position that, while it seemed at first satisfactory, has proved on longer occupancy not thoroughly satisfactory either to them or to those in charge of the placement. Such men are held by being shifted from one line to another until that line or place that is best suited to them is discov- ered. The third type comprises the adult skilled work- ers who have been properly placed, and who must be so employed that they will be held with mutual satisfaction in the position to which they are as- signed. This is usually not a difficult matter, as the functional division of duties permits many more op- portunities for the man to be assigned to work that he likes, and as proper incentives in the line of pay, promotion, and interest are provided for the pur- pose of stimulating his ambitions. The fourth class of workers is really a sub- division of this third class, consisting of the older men whose life of activity in the average organiza- tion would have ended. PROLONGING THE WORKING PERIOD Scientific management can pride itself upon the fact that it, more than other types of management, has prolonged the years of working activity for those who work under it. This it does in three ways: 1. By actually conserving the health of the worker and thus allowing him to have more working years, even at work that demands strenuous physical ex- ertion. *Copyright, 1916, by F. B. and L.'M. Gilbreth +Consulting engineers, Providence, R. I. 8 AND L. _— M. GILBRETHt 2. By so functionalizing the work that, if a kind demanding strenuous exertion becomes too exacting the worker may be transferred to another sub- division of the same or similar work, and may thus continue active. 3. By its constant demand for teachers who are trained and experienced workers. The worker who finds that all continuous physical exertion is tiring may be transformed into some type of teacher, and may thereby prolong his years of usefulness almost indefinitely. Measured functional management appreciates, as has no other type of management in the industries, the value of conserving and using the experience of the older men. TAKING CARE OF SURPLUS WORKERS The second phase of the problem of conservation concerns what is to be done with the surplus work- ers; in fact, with all members of the organization, during dull times, when the work is scarce. The real solution of this problem lies in prevention rather than cure. It is an important function of the management to maintain as even regularity of employment as is possible. All departments of the organization are supposed to co-operate to see that work is distributed as evenly as possible through- out the year. It is the duty of the selling depart- ment to estimate the probable demand for the prod- uct as far in advance as is possible. It is the duty of the production department to sort the work, and to see that any work not immediately required is postponed until what would ordinarily be the dull season, etc. Much work that has always been considered to be seasonal has been rearranged or supplemented in some such way that the workers can be employed throughout the entire year. A new line of seasonal work that is busiest at the dull season of the regu- lar work may be taken on. Other special ways of keeping the men at work are: To utilize slack time to make up ahead certain parts which will be needed during the next period of activity; to keep in touch with employment bureaus of organizations whose work may be of such a nature that they can use men not needed during the dull time; to assign high- priced men to low-priced work rather than lose them when no high-priced work is available. This 's often necessary in a scientifically managed plant. The high-priced man may be kept on the higher wages, the excess in wages being considered a re taining fee to hold his services until such time as he can again be assigned to his special high-priced work. In every case the high-priced man apprec! ates the situation, and in return co-operates in ever! possible way to make himself profitable to the 0% ganization. CONSERVATION OF HEALTH The third phase of the problem of conservatio? is the maintaining of the health of every member of the organization, called the problem of hygien® It divides into mental hygiene and physical hygien® The minds of the workers are kept in good condi: tion through the teaching, which is both general and 6 c: through the interest which the work and in which it is taught arouses; through the lation of the records of others, but more espe- if their own records; through the prompt- f the rewards, and through the elimination of ssible mental disturbance. e wastefulness of being obliged to make un- necessary mental decisions for choice of motions is well understood, and while every one is encouraged t himself to go as quickly as he can into such de- nartments as require the making of decisions, yet n every case the making and repeating of unneces- ilecisions is as far as possible eliminated. The habits that are formed by the system of edu- ation under scientific management have their ef- fect upon mental as well as physical methods, and bring about that regularity which is a fundamental ecessity of good health. THE QUESTION OF MONOTONY Many questions have been asked regarding the wisdom of the methods that scientific management uses in this field. One concerns “monotony.” Few realize that “monotonous” is not necessarily synony- mous with “displeasing” or “tiring.” Many things that are monotonous are very pleasing; for ex- ample, rhythm. It is not generally realized that rhythm is most helpful as well as pleasing in many kinds of physical effort. It is also not generally realized that monotony is often not particularly fatiguing. In fact, actual measurement shows that those who excel at any one kind of work find it less fatiguing to do it continuously than to do several kinds of work at which they are less skilled. The most monotonous work is work that one is obliged to do over and over again, but at which one is not skilled. This leads naturally to the question of speciali- zation. One who has studied the subject does not doubt that the highly specialized investigator in any field of knowledge has a most interesting and profitable life. But the moment one suggests spe- cializing the work of a laborer horror and distrust of the results is expressed. Now, it must be under- stood that the method of attack of the specialist under scientific management is the same no matter what his specialty. That is, he adopts the most efficient way of arriving at results in some particu- lar field. This method of attack, once learned and applied to one particular field, may be transferred to any other field in which the man who has learned t becomes interested. No specialist who has been trained along the line in which he is interested ever finds his work monotonous, no matter how many times he is called upon to perform it. He can al- Ways see problems that would never present them- } LA] ‘ves to one untrained in his particular line. If the man has been assigned to a type of work which, together with its opportunities for high pay, can- not arouse and hold interest, it is probably because work is of too low a grade for him, and he iid be transferred to a different field. that sn PHYSICAL HYGIENE The questions of physical hygiene may be uped under two heads: 1. Standardizing condi- ‘; 2. Overcoming fatigue. ‘. 1S not generally understood that the provision proper lighting, heating, ventilating, etc., that cr Ki + , ertaken by many of the older types of man- r ed more as welfare work than anything else, , integral part of the establishment of scien- . sade hagement. It is the duty of the organiza- 4 ‘on to provide everything that will make the ore valuable to himself and to the organ- THE IRON AGE 827 ization. In plants far enough advanced there is also much time given to questions of nourishment and clothing, and to similar subjects, that heretofore have been considered to lie more or less within the field of personal decision of the individual. While it is not desirable to do away in any respect with personal liberty, vet it certainly is a part of the duty of the management to give every one connected with the organization an opportunity to have that food and clothing which will make him best able to do his work. These problems have been excellently worked out in many parts of this and other countries in con- nection with the schools. The results there easily can be transferred into the field of the industrial plants, as has already been demonstrated. This is, however, no new idea in this field, as for many years it has been our practice not only to provide for all possible hygienic betterment in the plant, but to try to influence the home lives of the mem- bers of the organization. THE PROBLEM OF FATIGUE The problem of fatigue is closely related to the problem of standardizing all working conditions, since the first part of the problem of fatigue con- sists of eliminating unnecessary fatigue. The sec- ond part of the problem consists of providing proper rest periods for overcoming necessary fatigue, and of seeing that these rest periods are spent in such a manner as will do the most good. The inspection of the working conditions that could be done by an expert in hygiene and sanitation will do much to cut down fatigue. Much will also be done by the re- arrangement of equipment as a result of motion studies, and the standardization of devices that re- sults from motion study. Perhaps the most interesting to the general reader of such standardized devices, because they come most often into the line of his- experience, are the chairs and tables of two heights, with ex- tension legs. No better appreciation can be gained of the lack of improved types of management in many industrial establishments than by starting, practically anywhere, to observe whether chairs of any type are provided for the workers, and how well those that are provided are adapted for the purpose. A survey of the conditions actually existing in the shops of even the really progressive manufac- turers and retailers would surprise them, as well as the inquirer. It is astounding how few devices have been introduced primarily for the express pur- pose of reducing fatigue. A tremendous waste, consisting entirely of fatigue for which there is no earthly excuse, can be demonstrated in a short space of time. In order to stimulate interest in such fatigue- reducing devices we have started a small museum for the exhibition of devices for the elimination of unnecessary fatigue. This is interesting chiefly in that, while it has existed now for more than two years, and has been called to the attention of thou- sands of progressive business men and manufac- turers, it, as yet, contains very few exhibits, simply because of a general lack of realization of the pres- ent needless fatigue. Yet an examination of such as have been submitted will show that such devices are by no means expensive. This does not mean to say that a great deal of expense would not be justified, because such a device, especially a chair, is a piece of equipment that the worker will need throughout his entire working life. It is not apt to require frequent change, and the small expen- diture at the outset would be justified in all cases. fa ae es +e ees gtd 7 ae Te > rear > = ras oe pa Fae oe i ae 3 ye 828 THE IRON AGE April 6, ‘916 A very little time and money will not only con- serve the worker, but will add greatly to his ca- pacity for work, to the material advantage of him- self and the entire organization. The lack of de- vices for eliminating unnecessary fatigue is the result of nothing but ignorance on the part of both the employers and the employees. Some of the fatigue-eliminating devices will be used during the working periods, some will be used during the rest periods, and some used during both periods. These should be planned for at the same time, as it is now generally recognized that the most important element of a resting period is a change of blood pressure. This may often be provided dur- ing the work period by having work tables or benches made of such a height that they may be used while standing, and by devising a special high chair upon which the operator may sit during cer- tain parts of the work period without changing the position of any of his working materials or tools, or his relative height, whether standing or sitting, at his table. If such a chair is put on rollers or castings, it may be pushed out of the way, or pulled back into place with the expenditure of but two mo- tions and without even a glance to see where it is located. REST PERIODS The length and distribution of the rest periods is a problem which has as yet been properly stand- ardized in but very few trades. It can never be properly solved without co-operation with physiol- ogists and psychologists. In some kinds of work, the work itself provides natural rest periods; in oth- ers there are no such rest periods, and resting time must be arbitrarily established so as to give the greatest output with the least fatigue. But much can be one, even before accurate measurement, which is a real need, is made, by supplying the simplest of working and resting chairs, and by not- ing the effect upon the condition of the worker and the output. It must always be remembered that the worker himself is a poor judge as to what is really the least fatiguing chair or stool for him. None of us is a good judge, no matter what we do, unless we have made the subject a special study. No short time test can give reliable information as to which chair will be the best for long service. Anything to which we have become thoroughly accustomed is, of course, usually easier and less tiring than a new way of doing work, especially after the first excite- ment of the change has subsided. Therefore, the results of the old and new methods must be accur- ately measured and recorded. A striking example of this lack of realization as to what is truly com- fortable is the case of a girl who had been work- ing where there were a large number of high- speed machines that caused great vibration. By means of a simple device the vibration was entirely eliminated. The girl said she was no more com- fortable in the special chair without the vibration. Yet after several weeks of work under the new conditions, followed by a time when it became neces- sary for her to work where there was again vibra- tion, she became sick in less than half a day from the vibration, and was obliged to go home. The same state of affairs had been found to be true with workers who were in chairs too high or too low for them, or chairs with a sharp instead of a curved edge. They invariably felt sure that the make- shift cushions and bolsters or other help-outs which they had devised were much more comfortable and less fatiguing than the new form of chair. Yet after a time actual measurement demonstrated their actual improvement under the new type of Lip- ment. There is seldom difficulty in inducing a worker to try a new fatigue-eliminating device or method. if he realizes the purpose. If he is not brough: into the proper frame of mind, there is something wrong with the teaching in the plant. When the teaching is right, he will usually be glad to try any new plan suggested. If the idea of conservation is thor. oughly established in the plant, and every one under. stands that, while waste of material things has beep deplored, waste of human energy is far more seri- ous, savings will be so great as to surprise even the most sanguine. Can Company Suit Not Dropped Baltimore advices state that the Government wil! ask for a decision by the United States District Court in its suit for the dissolution of the American Can Com. pany. A conference of attorneys for both sides was held April 1 with Judge Rose to determine the method of procedure to get the case before the Supreme Court It was arranged that the motion asking for a decree dissolving the company will be followed two weeks later by a brief outlining the Government’s conten- tions. The company will then have three weeks within which to answer the petition of the Department of Justice. It will be recalled that Judge Rose handed down an opinion Feb. 23 in which he permitted the company to continue business, although he held that it had been originally illegally organized. No decree was signed. This action was taken so that the Government would have the right to avail itself of the testimony taken in the case and ask for a decree against the company if it should violate the law in the future. George Carroll Todd, assistant to the Attorney-General, explained after the conference with Judge Rose that the decision is now wanted by the Government for the purpose of appeal, whether the decree is favorable to the company or the Government. New York City Wants an Examiner of Purchases Purchasing agents are invited by the city of New York to compete for the position of chief examiner, purchases and supplies, paying $5,000 per annum. This position is not to be confused with that of director, cen- tral purchase committee, also for the city government, announced in these columns two weeks ago. Applica- tions for the last-named position closed March 31, while April 13 is the last day for the receipt of applications for chief examiner. The present duties of chief examiner are: |, supervise (under the direction of the director of the bureau of contract supervision) the force engaged i0 carrying to completion the preparation of standard specifications governing the purchase of all classes of supplies and materials by the city, and in currently revising specifications already adopted; 2, to assist developing plans for centralizing the purchase, distr bution and control of all supplies for the city of New York. Applicants must have had executive exper ence of a kind tending to qualify for the position a” must be at least 25 years of age. Applications are ™ ceived at room 1400, Municipal Building. The Ingersoll-Rand Company reports for the yeal ended Dec. 31, 1915, a balance, after the payment ® preferred dividends, of $4,535,560, as against a bat ance of $973,586 in the year preceding. The earnin= for the year were $5,459,884, as against $1,967,72) " 1914, and the balance before the payment of preferre? dividends was $4,687,078. A surplus remained after the payment of common dividends of $3,265,480, #8 against a surplus of $550,241 in 1914, and a total sur plus was on hand at the close of the year of $5,333.00) as against a surplus of $2,067,843 at the close of 191 I if 5, 1916 [EAVIER LOADING OF CARS What Steel Corporation Subsidiaries Accom- plished Last Year BY J. F. TOWNSEND* vreat shortage of cars which has afflicted the » public generally throughout the country is es- ; y acute in the greater Pittsburgh district to-day. It nterfering with the operation of blast furnaces, tee! works and mills, and with the early approach of the opening of navigation on the Lakes, when the de- mand for equipment to supply mines with cars for ‘oal will be increased and cars must be found to die the greatest movement of iron ore the country has ever seen, those in touch with the situation appre- ciate that ear supply will be a very serious problem. The solution of this problem would be very simple if we could turn back but ten years and apply the methods of to-day to the traffic of ten years ago; but this is impossible. While some great strides have been nade in the adoption of modern equipment of much arger capacity and of improved methods for heavier loading of cars, the increased volume of traffic the rail roads are confronted with to-day far exceeds the most advanced plans of the railroads to provide adequate facilities for the natural increase in the general busi- ness. Some people look upon the present demands upon the railroads as abnormal and the heavy volume of traffic as of a temporary character. As a matter of fact, the periodical boom in business seen in this coun try every decade, with more or less regularity, was a little late this time and was naturally stimulated by the European demand. There can be no question that the business has come to stay and will keep on rolling up bigger and bigger until the railroads will be abso- lutely blockaded with traffic in every direction, unless there is something done by the real shippers who are responsible for the congested condition at the Atlantic seaboard and in New England to-day. f00 MUCH STOREHOUSE USE OF CARS throughout this vast country thousands of con cerns are trying to supply something or other for Eu rope at very high prices. The conditions of sale are cars at point of shipment, so that as soon as a minimum carload is loaded and the bill of lading issued, it is taken to the bank and the shipper gets his money. He cares very little about what becomes of the ship- ment or when the real consignee gets it. In other words, the embargoes that have been placed by the east- ern trunk lines are only enforced because the shipping public has attempted to use freight cars as store- houses 'here is another peculiar thing about the embar- “oes that have been placed and are in effect to-day— hat is that they do not apply to less than carload ship- ts, the most unremunerative traffic that the rail- is have, so that less than carload shippers can keep on contributing to congestion and the abuse of cars in the midst of the embargoes that are placed to eve the situation. lf the railroads throughout the West could take question of embargoes and absolutely stop the scuous loading of cars until definite arrangements een made at the seaboard for exporting the spe- hipments, there would be a chance for the ships at are sailing from New York to go forward with xoes instead of sailing as they are compelled to lay, frequently with only part of a load. ther words, it is the heavier loading of cars that ‘verybody engaged in the shipping of freight should ested in thus contributing toward utilizing cars fullest capacity. “ARGER STEEL CORPORATION LOADING by ‘is connection it is gratifying to state that a. ‘ipping companies of the United States Steel : on during the year 1915 showed an average nager National Tube Company, Pittsburgh. THE IRON AGE 829 carload of 77,000 lb. per car. This is almost unbeliev- able when it is realized that the average carload on all railroads throughout the United States on all traffic, in- cluding the steel traffic referred to, was only 42,000 lb. per loaded car, or an average of 35,000 lb. per car less than the record made by the shipping companies of the United States Steel Corporation. The twelve shipping companies referred to increased the average carload on outbound shipments during the 1% year 1915 only 1800 lb. per car, effecting an actual e, saving of 26,583 cars, as compared with the loading for the year 1914, when the average was 75,200 lb. per loaded car. According to the Interstate Commerce reports com- piled for the fiscal year 1915, the average haul per ton of revenue freight throughout the country of the indi- vidual railroad was 163 miles, and the loaded freight cars per train was 24 cars. On this basis the railroads throughout the United States were saved 4,333,029 car miles, or a saving of 180,543 train miles. The 26,583 cars saved means that these cars were in other service. According to the statistics compiled by the Interstate Commerce Commission, the average freight revenue was 15.32c. per car mile, so that the actual saving of the 26,583 fewer cars used resulted in increased earnings to the railroads of $663,820, without any increased op- erating expenses. NOT DUE TO LARGER CARS It might appear at first as though the adoption of modern equipment of larger capacity was responsible for this great showing, but there was very little change in the capacity of cars in the two years that are com- pared. It is rather the result of a persistent determina- tion to utilize all cars to their fullest capacity. During the last four years, the same twelve com- Ot ! panies have effected a saving of 165,696 cars through ry y the heavier loading of equipment. here The shippers, consignees and the railroads have ifs been greatly benefited in the fewer number of cars a switched and weighed, to say nothing of the great sav- 3 4 ing in operating expenses, switching service on 165,696 cars or 331,392 terminal movements, and the expense of handling this additional number of both empties and loads through the various classification interchange yards of the railroads from point of shipment to des- +R tination. It proves conclusively the money value of 34 conserving the freight car equipment, not only when 5 there is a severe car famine but at all times. Germany's High Steel Month of the War 9 Germany’s steel output for January, 1916, accord- ing to data of the Association of German Iron and Steel Manufacturers published in Stahl und Eisen, was 1,224,732 metric tons—the largest month’s total since the war Started. The daily rate was 49,029 tons, con- trasting with a daily rate in January, 1914, of 60,250 2 tons. The present rate is therefore over four-fifths of "ee that before the war. The best previous war record was i 1,215,287 tons in October, 1915, a daily rate of 47,498 eS tons. The production in January was made up of the ; following: Bessemer steel ingots, 598,137 tons; open- hearth ingots, 533,069 tons; steel castings, 71,002 tons: crucible steel, 8230 tons; electric steel 14,294 tons. The Rhineland-Westphalian district produced 696,141 tons, or 483 per cent of the January total. Spey Manganese Ore and Ferromanganese Imports 4 Manganese-ore imports into the United States in January were 16,648 gross tons as against 69,274 tons in December, 1915—a decided falling off. The average for 1915 was 26,731 tons per month. For the seven months ended Jan. 31, 1916, the total was 279,282 tons, exceeding those for the same periods in 1915 and 1914, which were 158,560 tons and 178,258 tons respectively. Z Ferromanganese imports in February, according to 5 Government figures furnished THe IRon AGE, were “. 6892 gross tons, which is next to the largest record since Jan. 1, 1915. Over 9000 tons was imported in July, 1915. Of the February imports 4664 tons came 4 through the port of Baltimore, 1617 tons through Philadelphia and 411 tons through New Orleans. THE NEW FACTORY SIGNAL SYSTEM Fire Alarm and Individual Call Code Signals— Improved Sound-Producing Devices Several large Eastern plants have recently been equipped with a and signal that is marked by the compactness and apparent simplicity of the operating instrument and by the pleasant but powerful tones of the horns employed to pro- duce calling and rooms. code system code signals in noisy machine One of the most recent installations is in the shops of the Spencer Wire Company, Worcester, Mass. The operating instrument is placed beside the telephone switchboard, and twenty-seven horns, fourteen bells and two buzzers are distributed about the plant. As ordinarily used for calling those on the code list, a black button is left pushed in on the top of the instrument, and the signals go out on the horn and buzzer circuit. For fire signals and drills, a red button is pushed in, and with pre- cisely the same method of manipulation the signals go out on the bell circuit. The buildings of the company are divided into zones for fire signals, and the number sounded on the gongs designates the location of the fire. The horns have two opposed projectors and are suspended in any desired loca- tion by chains. They are placed so that each effectively covers a large area even in the noisiest rooms of the plant. From the superintendent’s office, located in a building some distance from the office building, signals can be sent out over the system by a manually-operated push button. This is only used at hours when the factory is in opera- tion and the general office is closed. The telephone switchboard operator, when noti- fied that any man on the code list is desired, turns the knob which projects through the glass cover of the instrument, rotating the disk until the man’s Gein aetna i cienene eienipnmnces beeen View of the Apparatus as Installed in the Spencer Wire Company Showing the the Usual Position of the Master Office of the Comparative Size Operating Instrument ana IRON AGE April 6, 191¢ number is opposite the fixed pointer. T) operator pulls down the lever on the righ: of the instrument and releases it. At o, whole system of horns sounds the number t} out the plant, repeating it three times. Th mons the man to the nearest telephone to the operator to find out what is desired. | plants, bells, buzzers and lights are used locations in place of horns. Site When the full code system is in use, number is the man’s key number and the ing numbers give definite instructions with making it necessary to use the telephone. T method of using the system can be made ver, and flexible. Thus if No. 2 is given to the n mechanic, his code might be: ( telephone operator general manager's office mperintendent’s office wanted it oul own office (30 te powell plant The Master Operating Instrument The Desired Numbe Selected b Rotating the Knob in the Center of the Disk til the Number Is Opposite the Fixed Pointer. The Signas \ Sent Out by Pulling Down the Handle at the Right Side This equipment is called by the manufacturer, the American Model & Instrument Company, Worcester, Mass., the Amico universal industria code signal system. The apparatus is the result of some three years of development, and, while t system has been installed in several plants some months, it is only recently that the compa! has been prepared to furnish a complete stant ard equipment entirely of its own manufacture. The operating instrument at the Spencer Wi" plant is of the size commonly used. It has a rang of forty code numbers, and the entire instrumel! occupies a space only 4 x 9%4 x 115% in. over a The materials and construction of the system hav been approved by the National Board of Under writers. The instrument operates two circull, controlled by push button switches at the top the box—a black button for regular signals an¢ ® red button for fire signals. It has a slate base a™ box with a bevelled plate glass cover, and its ap pearance is well shown in an accompanying illus tration. 1 6, 1916 He Has the Feature of Two Opposed Sound i Double Diaphragms Which Can Be Tuned Wide Range of Sound Volume bv Adjusting Screws res and parts on the under side of the base wered, the grooves filled with compound and he whole base covered with a steel plate. There are two tell-tale lamps, a white lamp operating with | signals and a red lamp operating continuously vhile on the fire circuit. At the bottom of the base s an auxiliary push button for special signals and tests. The lever at the right of the box, if pulled down as far as possible, sends out the signals three times, but by pulling down one or two notches, the signal will be sent out only once or twice as de- sired. An intermittent current conveyor draws all arcing to one master contactor and obviates arcing at other contact points. From the operating in- strument any form of electrically controlled sig- nal can be sounded—horns, bells (either vibrating or single stroke), lights, buzzers, or steam or air whistles. The ideal installation is with the standard light- ing circuit connected directly through the central station instrument—110-volt 60-cycle alternating current. Extensive experiment has demonstrated that with 60-cycle alternating current, the most efficient tone and volume of sound from horns can be secured. No small part of the development work of the company has been devoted to the designing ff horns, bells and relay switches. Installations now in use in various plants are operated by 20- volt storage batteries, 20-volt motor-generator sets, volt 60-cycle alternating current, 110-volt 60- cycle alternating current, 110-volt direct current, nd 220-volt direct current. The wiring of the sig- nals is in multiple, permitting ready extension of any line. | Should any one horn or bell fail for any reason, the other orns or bells on the same r of wires remain un- fected. In some of these in- tions a program clock is de auxiliary to the system. ock can be cut in any- ere on the circuit, and op- tes the same horns or bells. he operating instrument de in three standard ten, forty or sixty num- The numbers on the ng disk have been se- that numbers diffi- read have been elimi- The forty-number in- ent most commonly used | e employed as a simple ng system by which forty St)-\ 4 rent men can be reached, d t can be used as a code - em tor ten men, to whom ca instructions can be THE IRON AGE conveyed by the code numbers. The possibilities of the combinations indicate of course various ap plications. The standard horn used on the Amico system is, as the ilustration shows, simple and unique in the use of two projectors. The vibration of the dia phragm is regulated by an adjusting screw, which permits a wide range of volume of sound. As the horn hangs free from the walls it sends out sound waves all around and is found free from the over tones which produce disagreeable effects or un- even distribution of sound. The horn for use in most localities uses only 0.05 amp. of current, and 120 horns of this type can be used on a circuit when 110-volt 60-cycle alternating current is employed without any other relay than the one in the operating instrument. For noisier quarters a horn with heavier windings is used which con sumes (0.1 amp. This horn, it is claimed, can be clearly heard 300 ft. each way in the winding room of a textile mill. Wall-type horns with a single projector are also built with either the light or heavy windings and corresponding tone values. A smaller horn with two projectors, really a “horn buzzer,” has been developed for use in offices and quiet places like shipping rooms. Sweden's Steel Industry in 1915 Swedish pig-iron production in 1915, according to the Swedish lronmasters’ Association, was 767,600 tons; in 1914 it was 635,100 tons and in 1913, 730,300 tons. The open-hearth steel output was 498,400 ton against 407,600 tons in 1914 and 469,400 tons in 1913, while that of Bessemer steel was 90,400 tons in 1915, 93,000 tons in 1914, and 115,800 tons in 1913 Rolled iron and steel output in 1915 was 401,900 tons On Dec. 31, 1915, 101 blast furnaces were active (65 on Dec. 31, 1914); 155 puddling hearths (134 in 1914);