The Iron Age 1916-05-04: Vol 97 Iss 18

New York, May 4, 1916 fABLISHED 1855 VOL. 97: No. 18 Machine Molding in a Jobbing Steel Foundry The Sivyer Steel Casting Company’s Plant Equipment and Methods Illustrative of Progress in Manufactured Steel Castings BY O. J. ABELL Notably a development of the last decade, the Nor is this foundry representative only of the anufacture of steel castings for common use has quantitative evolution of the steel castings industry vrown in spectacular fashion. Manifestations of The change from melting in crucibles and the as the rapid increase in the demand for the product of cendancy of the converter, and more latterly the the steel foundry are everywhere at hand, in the’ electric furnace, are here illustrated by concrete ex imber of steel foundries and in the astonishingly ample. The original foundry with a possible out short intervals elapsing between successive enlarge put of 75 tons monthly was equipped with ten oil ments of the individual plants. A typical example burning crucible furnaces. Of these furnaces all ; . zi - - ae a 4 os £) . oe 7 A k t i 3 4 a Its Wood-block Floor, Showing Location of Cleaning Tables, Tumb z Mills, Sand B ' Annea : té rapid expansion is found in the Sivver Steel but one have been dismantled, and that one is lim Company, Milwaukee. In a period of six ited in its operation to the melting of alloys and vy € Output of this company’s foundry has mul- the heating of pots. Meanwhile a Tropenas side » such a rate as now to engage all the facili blow converter of one-ton capacity has become the or space of approximately 54,000 sq. ft. main dependency of the foundry and with a con nent of advanced type afford, as compared sistent average of 23 to 25 blows per day is making itput of a frame-housed floor area of 9000 675 tons of steel per mont! A 3000-Ib. Snyder nducted practically by hand, the status of electric furnace, with a basic bottom, has now been v when it was started in May, 1910. installed and is being used to supply steel for tt ba *tG 1047 ack R 1048 THE IRON AGE The Convenient Relation of The Concrete Storage Bins to the Cupolas manufacture of the smaller castings. From this furnace a monthly production of 250 tons is ex- pected. The accompanying floor plan indicates the pres- ent layout of this foundry, and by means of the heavy dotted lines and corresponding dates the suc- cessive stages in its expansion. From this a gen- eral idea may also be had of the foundry equipment and railroad facilities of the plant for receiving raw materials and shipping castings. The plan does not show the two 5-ton Pawling & Harnischfeger cranes in the main foundry bay and the 3-ton crane in the cleaning room which appear in the accompanying general views, and constitute the primary means of handling the heavy castings and materials. The original foundry floor space is now used almost en- tirely as a core room with an area at the far end for storage purposes. The arrangement of the main foundry floor pro- vides for making up the smaller molds at the end farthest from the cleaning room and immediately adjacent to the electric furnace. In front of the May 4, 1516 converter and cy polas an open spac is reserved ' the handling of the hot metal and the shaking ou the larger molds The molds are not shaken out where poured, but aré picked up with the crane and carried to the middle or the cleaning room end of the foundry where the sand is accumulated in large heaps. These larger molds are made up and poured at the end of the foundry nearer to the cleaning room, in the natural or- der for the move- ment of the mate- rials in process t be continuously in a forward direction as far as possible. The exceptions are so few that it may be said that, although distinctly a jobbing shop, nearly all of the molds are made up on machines, a practice markedly exceptional among steel foundries. The machines are located in general as indicated in the floor plan, in one or two instances a jolt-ramming machine being apart from the general group of ma- chines where it is more accessible to the floor on which certain work is being put up. The machine equipment includes both Tabor and Herman jolt rammers, Tabor power squeezers, Adams-Farwell hand squeezers (for the smaller patterns) and Prid- more stripping plate machines. The treatment of the problem of patterns has much to do with the success this company has had with machine molding. Generally speaking, the work taken by the jobbing foundry would not per- mit of mounting the patterns for machine molding, certainly not if metal patterns or matchplates were attempted. While some metal patterns mounted on The Dates on the |] n Show the Pr 1049 1, 1916 IRON AGE are used iis foundry an order les a suffi- long run, general prac- is to use wood pat- which are nted after come to the dry on boards are made to e as the char- ter of the work iires as a fol- vboard or as a stitute for a hplate. This pedient 1S en- tire successful nvolves no eater cost than ommensurate th the job. The npany also 4 es particular The Sand-Blasting Equipment wated at the Fou of ning R F ttention to the tion of properly made patterns, consulting with per day were obtained with the ordinary silica bi ts customers before the work in the foundry is lining dertaken. The very short interval betwee ows calls for \s stated above, the melting equipment includes a system of handling hot metal from the converte l-ton converter with a cupola lined to 38-in. diam which will avoid delays. The blown metal is pours ; ter, one smaller cupola as a spare, and the electric into a large ladle, which takes the entire heat. the E irnace. Raw materials for charging the cupola ladle then being transferred | ranes to a stand a ; for making and repairing cupola and converter short distance from the converter, where it is set ngs are received into and used from a row of down and where the slag | mer ff, prepar te-covered bins which parallel the main foun tory to transferring the metal t ill ladles. | FB lilding on the side of the cupolas, extending the meantime the converter turned ymplete E the foundry and the receiving railroad over, the slag dropped and th erter made read : The storage yard for pig iron extends be for the following charge, vhicl tery th hese bins One of the cuts shows the stor crane, released from the pre' is ladie after it h;: and the gangway for trucking materials been set down on the stand, picks up another ladk B ts relation to the melting units. of cupola metal, which is brought to the converte 7 : practically continuous operation of the con and charged into it. The blow has a duration « : ter resulting in as many as 25 blows per day, from 23 to 26 min. All of the steel treated wit! i e practice upon which it is dependent, was titanium in the ladle, the ratio be { to the 4 P escribed in THE IRON AGE of Dec. 3, 1914. This ton a lity of operation was obtained through the use The electric furnace has been lined to make basi , entire ganister lining, following an experi- steel, and the scrap from the converter steel cast i r a period in which only eight to ten blows ings is being charged into the electric furnace while f er Ni ON ee eee Main Section of the Foundry Lookins The 1050 THE IRON AGE a a) 5 ] “N+, nt @ ss A> Ey liv to Prevent Loss of Heat the scrap from the electric furnace castings, refined, mixer is installed in connection with a nov as it is, well within the limitations of acid steel rangement for handling the sand. A large hoppe scrap, is admirably adapted for charging into the or scoop hinged at its discharge end at a height cupola which melts down the metal for the con- corresponding to the top of the mixer pan inclines verter. downward with its open end resting on the floor. For the mixing of sand a Simpson intensive The sand can thus be dumped into it from whee Floor maratiol 1916 after which the hopper is swung upward apron of a concrete mixer, discharging the to the mixer. ention has been given to the arrangement iipment of the cleaning room in an excep- degree, and the finishing of the castings is ondingly painstaking. The room is 75 ft. wide 3 ft. long and lays its first claim to the un- its wood block floor, furnished by the Ayer Tie Company. At the end, opening from indry, the castings are delivered at once to the lasting room. In connection with this, pro- s made for cleaning castings piled on a truck, hich suitable trackage through and around the sand ast is provided, as indicated the floor plan, or suspended from the overhead trolley loop vhich passes through the sand chamber. The equip- ent is a combination of the tandard type of room built the W. W. Sly Company th the Pangborn sand-blast- g acnine. the sand blast the extreme end cleaning room is a bat- ! f six hack saws, where (pposite nd also al the gates and sprues are re- noved A vertical power sprue cutter is also installed ear the delivery side of the sand blast. Here the castings » their first of three thor- igh and routine inspections, that rejections may be de of any material which bvious defects before tional labor is put on it. as and electric welding , sige sie tat t is at hand for Yet Pert blemishes her faults which may be properly gy suriace rectified i: india the practice in this foundry to make a trial n every order of more than 50 pieces. This sting 1s sawed through wherever the cross be expected to show faults. If defects necessary changes are made in the pat- the method of molding such as will insure id casting. the If necessary in cases of especi- lifficult castings, a second trial casting is made nad when found satisfactory establishes the stand- practice for making that casting. The inspec- also, as a matter of policy, particularly con- tself with the detection of defects likely to ir only after machine work has been done on sting. In keeping with the same policy all are put on the grinder and the rough spots in eth completely removed. In short, the grind- chipping is pursued to a degree which fin- e surface of the casting- ready for service pt where machining is required. ner in which the annealing oven has been arcely needs description, in view of an ng illustration. Its location is indi- e floor plan and in the general view of room. The superstructure of the oven both in the brickwork and steel framing with which it is tied nis superstructure straddles a long pit ck is laid. The pit is long enough to te easily a platform truck outside of the end and is deep enough so that the neavy, THE IRON AGE LO51 truck platform is at a level with the cleaning roe floor. The sliding doors which span the full width of the oven at each end are of equally heavy con struction with the oven, and are hung on beams which extend from the oven to the building so that the doors can be swung entirely cleat the oven. joint when tne As will be seen from the illustration, the truck platform is laid with firebrick in a steel binding, and is long enough so that when the door is The manner of effecting a tight oven is closed up is of special interest. set in place it makes , aiso be tight joint with it, brick to brick. It can ma S Po aren od Poa ors een that along the sides of round tro which interlocks with the leg f a ty ign special casting which projects down int t, the é angle running the length of thi u The trough ' is filled with enough sand to serve as a luting, and an n consequence a sealed joi! effected Ihe fT “ set of the concrete wall of the pit under the overhang can also be It is apparent that the annealing furnace, one t1 ings may be prepared while the other is seen in with t! ! ement iCK aded with is * in tne oven and vice versa, the other truck unloaded and refille while the first is in the oven It the practic here not to hold the castings in the furnace unt they have cooled down, but to remove them as soor r as the temperature of the oven falls below the crit ' cal point for the steel. This obviously is a great 7 time-saver, and results in practically continuous : annealing. The oven is oil-burning. ey: The cleaning room equipment includes grinding ‘ ‘ machines which extend in a double row from the re middle of the room to the far end along one row of * columns, a row of inspectors’ tables in the center ka and tumbling mills along the opposite line of col- a umns. The grinding machines are individually salt motor driven and the exhaust is taken off in con 5 duits below the floor The inspectors able als , q incorporate new ideas The ire 1 ng 111 ; with a structural steel fran The table. as shown in one of the The Rennerfelt Electric Are Furnace’ Its Peculiar Are Flame—The Low Electrode Con- sumption and Easy Regulation—Efficiency, Power Factor and Consumption for Various Metals By Cc 6S. The Stassano furnace was the forerunner of the Rennerfelt. The former started with a radi- ating arc, playing almost horizontally over the bath, whereas the latter furnace forces the naturally large arc flame violently down on the charge and away from the roof by employing a different method of electrode arrangement. Polyphase current of any frequency and voltage is used. The advantage of a solid bottom has long been recognized, and the extensive use (33 in operation and 20 building) which this furnace has been put to in less than four years, is largely due to this Fig. 1 The of the KMlectrodes and Connectior Rennerfelt Electric Furnace feature in conjunction with the first-mentioned characteristic. The Rennerfelt furnace idea is shown diagrammatically by Fig. 1. The almost universally used three-phase cur- rent enters the transformers and is changed by means of Scott connection to two-phase three-wire system. The middle or combined conductor carries about 40 per cent more current in the vertical than in either of the side electrodes, and this forces the entire large radiating arc, by the resolution of forces and electromagnetic action, down on the bath. This form of arc has hitherto been unknown in elec- tric furnaces. The horizontal electrodes are about 15 in. (38 cm.) above the bath or slag, in some of the larger size furnaces, and the operating distance from tip to tip of the horizontal electrodes is usually from 18 to 22 in. (45 to 55 cm.) or more. These dimensions give an idea of the size of the flame, which, striking the bath, mushrooms to the sides and ends of the furnace. The heat reach- ing the roof is consequently very indirect, thus favoring low roof-maintenance costs. These low roof-refractory costs have often proven themselves in practice; for instance, when melting cold steel scrap and making tool steel quality, heats taking 5 to 6 hr. in a low-power furnace, at about 150 kw. per ton capacity of the furnace, the roof has lasted 192 heats with a 9-in. (23 em.) brick. With faster *From a paper presented at the annual spring meeting of the American Electrochemical Society, at Washington, D. C., April 27, 1916. The furnace was described in THE IRON AGE Jan, 15, 1914 Mr. Vom Baur is with Hamilton & Hansell, 17 Zatterv Place, New York VOM BAUR melting and the 12-in. (30 cm.) brick, more heat could be expected per roof. The furnace is built in different sizes. The first 30 furnaces were 3 tons and under capacity. then, a 4-ton has been placed in operation and a second is expected to follow shortly. Eight-ton fur- naces are building, while 12-ton and larger furnaces are being’ contemplated. Rennerfelt believes that with the multiple arc system, as years ago proposed in principle by Stassano, electric furnaces of 40, 50, and even 75 tons capacity can be made and operated to give satisfaction. This type of mul tiple arc furnace is shown by Fig. 3. A 40-tor furnace, for instance, would have four of electrodes of three each, the side electrodes 6 in (15 em.) and the top 7 in. (18 cm.) diameter, the furnace taking 4800 kw. at the terminals. The in- side diameter would be about 71% ft. (230 cm.) and the hearth proper about 14 ft. (420 cm.) long. Since sets ELECTRODE REGULATION AND On account of its peculiar characteristic, the Rennerfelt arc is very steady with hand regulation, and the furnace operation is electrically simplified to a marked degree by avoiding all automatic elec- trode regulation, although motors with push-button control are contemplated. As only 4 or 6 lb. (18 to 2.7 kg.) of Acheson graphite are burned awa) per ton of cold steel scrap or pig melted and treated, it is evident that the electrode regulation with such a steady arc, made between three points of sta- bility, that is, the tips of three electrodes, is : minimum, and this has been proved in practice The electrodes oftentimes do not have to be ad- justed for a half hour, and still the power con- sumption is about as steady during these periods with an induction furnace. Light metal scrap or turnings can be heaped in the furnace with the electrodes touching the charge, and yet before many min- utes the free-burn- ing are between the electrode tips has established it- self. All but three or four of these fur- naces are operat- ing, or contemplate doing so, with basic bottoms. Only a few oper- ate with acid bot- tom, and these in tool steel works where the highest class of raw material is ava!’ able at reasonable prices. The bottoms of thes furnaces last as long as similar solid bottoms © open-hearth furnaces. The sides burn away 4 little faster and wear away also, due to the slag actio! and the roof goes faster than the sides, but last as long as previously mentioned. The wear of the electrodes seems to depend three things: First, the density of the current, CONSUMPTION as Electr Are as it Appears Playing Dow Fig. 2—The Rennerfelt Bath of Metal fro! Three Electrodes on the 1052 1916 THE IRON AGE 1053 d. the circular area and length exposed inside irnace; and third, the amount of air leaking the furnace. The latter cause seems to have nost deleterious effect and hence doors are r now than formerly. Up to the 3-ton size s only one door and that over the spout, all : = a8 Y 7), et 4h SS arr \ | }P ro ee RS TRS 7 oF: AE OG REE? ‘ig. 3—Side and End Views of a 12-Ton Rennerfelt F other furnaces have but two doors and these are much tighter. The clearance of the cooling boxes is also made less. Only %g-in. (3 mm.) clearance is allowed, which is just enough room to compensate for the slight irregularity in the manufacture of what are ordinarily perfectly round electrodes. The electrical conditions are most satisfactory, because of a high power factor, at 50 to 60 cycles, of 90 to 97 per cent. The phase displacement is ilmost entirely avoided, and the phases are almost perfectly balanced. The so-called efficiency of electric furnaces de- pends, as has been broadly discussed by Hering and others, on the rate at which the heat is forced into the furnace, also upon good insulation, proper paint- ing, etc. The main point of these is the rate at which the power is consumed. Three or four years ago 200 kw. was considered ample for a 1-ton fur- nace; now 350 to 375 for this size is common prac- tice. Consequently the melting time has decreased and the kilowatt hours per ton are less, the cost of the steel in the ladle is less, and the output is correspondingly increased. The practical limit to this high-powering of furnaces is the power of the efractories to withstand the higher heat for sus- tained periods, the refractories are also subjected ‘o greater differences of temperature between feats, especially with those furnaces where the electric current cannot be maintained while there is harge in the furnace. ‘ith low-powered Rennerfelt furnaces the power imption when treating various metals has been: Kw.-hr. per Me- tric Ton ass eee —e 168 ire copper ere eck se 197 iron oes oone @ sivsndsoOannnne 290 br OR... ines een ee Len ws osdweDsdeEeneee” eee per cent ferromanganese dit oles cur agatan s- 40 eel scrap, not ready'tO pour.......4.~...<.:; 455 nad “killing” steel scrap on an acid bottom. | refining steel scrap on a basic bottom, about 700 » per cent ferromanganese and holding. tapping AreIng 741 per cent ferrotungsten, small scale 5,730 ‘lectric Steel Furnace The characteristic features ef the furnace ma) be summed up as follows: 1. The heat is generated with an arc with the ab sence of exceedingly hard strains on the power supply 2. On account of the steady power and on account of the large flame widely diffused, as shown in Fig. 2 Showing Double Set of Electrodes the heat is communicated to the charge quicker than with arcs of the thin-pencilled type. 3. A large flame or a series of them sweeps all ove the major portion of the charge in the center of the furnace, or at regular distances along the major axis and is directed and violently deflected downward. 4. The heat being thrown downward as a radiating are of large volume, favors higher efficiency, giving the ioof a long life. 5. Only one small hole in the short-radius roof for each set of electrodes makes for strength and low cost. The hearth is more easily surveyed and acces sible, during operation, than in are furnaces having electrodes only 2 or 3 in. (5 to 8 em.) above the slag. 7. With larger furnaces multiple arcs are used, this method starting in with the 6-ton furnace.- The heat distribution is markedly better than with arc furnaces of equal size, using the metal to conduct the current. 8. The heat is applied directly, though the are is not. 9. The heat gradient in an electric are is greater if it takes place in the widely spread-out heating zone rather than in a narrow space. 10. The radiating are is a much more rapid way of transmitting heat than the slow heat of conduction of other arcs. 11. There is no water-cooling below the bath, which consequently avoids danger of explosions. 12. The voltage at the arc is from 75 to 100, de- pending on the furnace size, and these potentials are harmless if a shock is experienced. 13. The amperage per electrode in large furnaces is small, only 5400 and 7700 in a 3600-kw. fur- nace, whereas with other 3-phase and 3-electrode fur- naces this wouls approach, at 80 per cent power factor at 110 volts, 23,600 amperes. This higher amount of current causes skin effect troubles, because these larger currents have to be brought to single electrodes. 14: The hearth bottom is burned in by the are without the use of coke or other material. 15. The electric current can be kept on the furnace during tapping and charging, thus keeping the furnace at a@ more uniform temperature, with its consequent advantages of keeping the refractories from checking. The furnace thus does not cool down and a saving of 10 to 20 min. in time can be made on this account per heat, this being the usual charging time; whereas most other electric arc furnaces have the current shut off during the charging period because it is unavoidable. ye act The Sales Engineer and Machine Desig How Studies of the User’s Special Problems by the Maker’s Engineer are Calculated to Hasten Progress in Machine Tool Evolution BY A. rhe user of a machine tool has of late learned to demand of the machine tool manufacturer a spe- cific study of his (the user’s) requirements, which studies have, and will more markedly in the future, influence the design of the manufacturer’s product. The “service” plan, which covers many trades from tailors to tires, has become a part of machinery or- ganization. This condition has led to developing the sales engineer. His predecessor was the original demon- strator, who was and still is a man unusually skilled in the use of the machine which he demonstrates. He is sent out to break in the workmen and to assist the customer in obtaining high production from the newly installed tool. These demonstrators in their visits to the differ- ent plants accumulated considerable experience in regard to the uses and weaknesses of their ma- chines. They served as a highly valuable inter- mediary between customer and manufacturer, and following the natural onward tendency, they were in some cases replaced, or augmented by engineers, whose duties were not in any way connected with the demonstration or practical operation of the machine, but rather as to observations of the use to which the machine were put. These observing engineers carrying back to the factory their au- thentic data, were able materially to influence new designs. They were still, however, concerned only with the standard type of machine and were only brought into contact with the customer’s require- ments after the machine was installed, and usually when some trouble had developed. The next step was in the utilization of these en- gineers in conjunction with salesmen, or agents, to investigate the customer’s conditions before recom- mendations were made as to the installation of ma- chines. You will note that his function was not to sell the machine; in fact, it was his duty to pre- vent the sale of machines where his knowledge made it evident that the customer’s best interests would be so served. It became necessary, therefore, par- ticularly as the mechanical responsibility of the whole transaction devolved upon him, to make a reasonably __ thor- ough analysis of the problem _be- fore proceeding with any recom- mendations. This analysis, in many cases, leads di- rectly toward the design of new machines of pos- *From a paper read | before a joint meeting in Cincin- nati, March 16, of the Cincinnati Sec- tion of the American Society of Mechani- cal Engineers and the Engineers’ Club of Cineinnati. The author is identified with the Cincinnati J. BAKER sibly the same general classification, but o tirely different type and I propose to ment here a few of the causes that bring this about in muct greater measure than when the older method machine design was followed. The original machine designer usually devot himself so closely to his own particular machin that he was not thoroughly in touch with develo, ments taking place on other classes of machines Even to-day, in the great majority of cases, that condition prevails. The sales engineer, on the con- trary, being brought directly and frequently touch with the last installations of such machines. immediately returns to the factory with advance i; formation of the encroachments that the new typ of machine is making on his own field. The designing department, lacking a detaile acquaintance with the last usage to which machines are put, loses its proper perspective in regard to the relative time values of the different functions of the machine. The sales engineer, with any reasonabl) well-developed analytical faculty, can clearly see that a certain portion of the operation consumes more time than is really necessary, that the output is governed by this factor and advises the home engineer of the need for improvement in this re- spect. The home engineer includes in each new machine or each new design certain parts, which, while necessary, or at least desirable, under the old system of comparatively low production, are not only unnecessary, with the present high production ratio, but are absolutely undesirable on account of added complication. The sales engineer, being brought face to face, as he must often be, with the relative selling prices of machine tools, will natur- ally tend towards an elimination of those less de- sirable features with a consequent simplification 0! the machine. It is idle to suppose for a moment that such im- provements are found. only in the larger shops, which, as a rule, the visits of the home engineer are confined. It will often be found that the small shoy with its restricted equipment will have produced some interesting and instructive method of pro ducing the de sired results, where the larger and wealthier shop has been con- tent to increase its quota © standard m* chines. Carefully tab- ulated records 0! similar jobs pe formed in differ: ent shops W! nearly always | dicate parts which may be omitted and functions thet should be added Milling Machine Fig. 1—Triple-Spindle Attachment Fitted with an Adaptation of the Semi- Company. ° : a- automatic Milling Machine which inform 1054 1, 1916 annot be ob- in any way with the same nty or the speed, and ese ways the nce of the engineer on lesign of his pany’s prod- annot fail to ery marked. His influence production, hile closely con- ected with de- yn and thus of nterest to the anufacturer, ll be of more | and material terest to the istomer. The general adoption yineering system nmediately places at the disposal of the machine iser, a corps of highly trained engineers whose col- lective abilities are likely to exceed greatly those over which he would normally have control. HOW THE SALES ENGINEER WORKS It must be apparent that the recommendations of the sales engineer cannot be made on the spur of the moment, but must receive a reasonably thor- ough preliminary study and investigation. In the company with which the writer is connected, it has been the practice for the last half dozen years to make comparatively elaborate time studies, for which considerable advance information is needed. This information must not only cover the end which is desired to accomplish, but should also include a reasonable amount of data as to the earlier and existing methods. This is particularly essential ecause it has developed that the sales engineer, seeking continual outlet for his machines, will often invade the field that has been considered the ex- lusive property of some other type of machine. It is sufficiently obvious that there must be much de- batable ground to be fought over by the competitive ‘epresentatives of the engine lathe, the turret lathe and the automatic machine, and again among the planer, shaper and miller advocates. The ideal conclusions drawn from such investi- rations can only follow a very full consideration ' all of the factors connected with production and t only, as is sometimes the case, with the number pieces turned out per machine per day. For these reasons certain standard forms are used on vhich is entered the following information, derived the user of the machine: ® quantity per annum. if possible, the size of the lots in which the work * put through the factory. legree of finish required quality of material e depth of cut. he machine on which the work is now being done. time consumed. e wage rate paid. burden or overhead charge (particularly if depart- mental burden is available). a the objections, if any, other than as to the time onsumed, that may be made to the existing method. This latter may deal with the labor supply, the de- endence upon certain materials, or certain limited Oonditions Fig. 2—Attachment to Prevent Marking this sales en- tion of Milling Cutter THE IRON AGE 1055 Chis report is supplement- ed either by a sketch of the plece, or preter ably by the cus tomer’s blue prints. Samples for preliminary cutting tests are also obtained whenever _— possi ble. With all of this information, a time study can now be made up, which will give in full detail the separate opera- tions, the time taken for each part of the opera tion, the speed and feed neces sary and a sketch and description of the fixture and cutters to be used. The resulting total time, which will then represent the time required for the pro duction of the individual piece, receives the addi- tion of a certain percentage, which will, of course, vary with the nature of the shop and is a figure that can be easily established as a standard. This information is then submitted to the cus- tomer and in certain cases accompanied by a cost sheet, comparing the suggested and existing meth- ods. This sheet will specify the time per piece, in- cluding the above percentage, the total time per annum for the quantity of pieces required, the wage cost, the burden or overhead cost, showing annual saving over the old established system, which saving can, of course, be balanced against the increased cost of equipment as contemplated by the customer. Such cost comparison and estimate sheets are in themselves not necessarily final, but their great virtue is that they form a nucleus for specific anal- ysis and recommendations on the part of the cus- tomer and his engineers. It is particularly im- portant that such detailed information should be submitted, because the production from a given machine is very often entirely independent of the ability of that machine to carry through a certain cut; it is often entirely dependent upon the chuck- ing time afforded the operator and still again, fre- quently dependent upon the spacing of the feed marks, or quality of finish. This latter may very well be a commercial necessity and entirely inde- pendent of the degree of accuracy. The user will more often clear his mind of all the details of the machine and reach the pertinent points that are connected with production. He is more apt to compare the machine the sales engi- neer may be interested in with some other entirely different machine, which incorporates some feature of marked importance to his particular class of work. It would seem, for instance, that the day of the automatic power return of the tables of small milling machines would have come much sooner had its users compared the miller with the planer in the way that should have been done. It would really not have been necessary to compare the miller with the planer but with some of the larger planer-type milling machines, on which such apparatus is stand- ard equipment. It would further seem that the of Work by Quickly Stopping Kot * sg Rie Pe Se tte e% —* wah Nee Se ed . rt ee ees ee 1056 flooded lubrication of milling cutters should have come sooner had the proper comparisons been made between a milling machine and a grinder. Parallel cases could doubtless be found throughout the full machine tool field. The change in the make-up of the machinery salesmen or agencies has been very marked and their ability to render practical service to the con- sumer much greater than ever before. Some agencies are controlled by men of marked mechani- cal attainments. Their influence on production is very great indeed and it is probable that the full record of the influences of the separated selling houses on machine-tool design would make highly interesting and instructive reading. The accompanying illustrations show the par- is ticular influence that has been exercised on one type of machine tools, namely, milling machines, by such work as I have above endeavored to describe. Fig. 1 shows a triple-spindle milling attachment fitted with an adaptation of the semi-automatic mill- ing machine. Before this equipment was considered the work was handled in the stereotyped way, which consisted of one chucking, milling one set of bosses, indexing through 120 deg., milling the next set, indexing, milling the third set and removing. With this equip- ment, the three spindles mill all of the surfaces at one passage and the work it- self automat- ically clamped in place by means of the spring is s—Ma plunger shown in the center of the hine Made Substantially fixture. The table is provided with an automatic quick forward movement, feeding movement, quick return to the fixture on the other side, feeding movement, and so on. The functions of the oper- ator in this case are restricted to that of hooking the work on to the central locating stud and re- moving it. The operations are timed to allow the removal of one piece and the insertion of the other while the cut and the quick traverse from the work take place. In connection with the milling of turbines, Fig. 2 is shown. It illustrates an attachment to machines which will in all probability ultimately become standard either along the lines adopted in this instance, or through some other mechanical appliance. It is commonly found in practice that cessation of the feed movement when combined with a continued rotation of cutter nearly always results in an indentation or marking of the work. Normally, this is not of great importance because the majority of cuts are such that the cutter can be run completely over the work and the feed cessa- tion can take place when there is no engagement between these two parts. In the particular in- stance for which this machine was_ required, this was impossible, and as the section of the work had to be uniform the indentation was a serious matter. The machine was equipped with a pneumatic cy]l- THE IRON AGE A i Simple utomatk May 4, 16 inder connected with the starting handle. cylinder is operated through the usual compr. air system in the factory and controlled thro: pair of valves on the feed trip rod. As so the feed plunger is depressed by the trip the feed movement is stopped and the spind stopped also, not simultaneously, but as sox the momentum of its moving parts can be come. The momentum in this particular case was sufficient to just disengage those teeth which wer cutting at the moment of the feed cessation an so avoid leaving any ridges where the teeth wer in contact with the work. The machine is available for the operator to return the table either by hand or through the power quick returp and after the new piece has been chucked in place of the one already machined, a movement of the feed lever throws the spindle clutch back and starts up both speed and feed simultaneously. The third example shown, Fig. 3, is interesting in that the conditions that had to be overcome before this equipment could be installed were such as to make hardly possible to effect a saving The pieces that are milled with this apparatus aré small _ tractor binder pins, in the full length of which a half- round groove is to be found. These pins have a slight ‘taper on the _ outside. The old method for handling this work was to usé¢ a standard mill- ing machine op- erated by a man engaging the feed, returning the table and re- moving the work from the fixture. He was aided b) a boy, who drove the pieces into the work holder, of which two were provided. The work holder itself consisted of a flat strip having taper holes into which the pins were forced, the strip itself being handled as a unit after it was filled up by the boy. The machine was under such conditions cutting for quite a large proportion of its time and the boy was loading the pieces into the work holder as rapidly as they are loaded to-day, but with the method shown we were able to beat very materiall) the production per machine and to do it with one operator only. The fixture is arranged so that it automatically indexes, and the forward move- ment of the work to the cutter is taken at a high table traverse. The work does not have to be driven firmly into the grooves, since the action of the cutter itself tends to force it home to a bearing. It does not have to be removed from the fixture after the milling operation is completed because the third step in the indexing brings the finished pieces against a fixed ejector bracket which pushes them out of the holes. The operator loads into the upper horizontal surface and he can also load in the front vertical! surface should he fall a little short in his chuck- ing of the full number held in the one side. It will be seen that with the exception of the twentieth part of a minute taken for indexing from one Sul tne and Given Increased Output Attachment 1, 1916 to another, a similar twentieth taken in re- ng, we have cutters which operate all the here is thus no dwell and the operator’s cycle is ne very simplest character possible. His func- - are again confined only to putting the work ely into the holder. He does not have to move ter cutting, and the only thing left that could mproved on in this connection would be the ision of a hopper feed, so that a bucket full of nins could be thrown in indiscriminately and machine then become entirely automatic. This the next step which will doubtless follow. rhe illustrations show that an attempt has been THE IRON AGE 1057 made to depart from standard practice where the need for such action is indicated by a study of the conditions. The resulting equipment, while not ideal from a designer’s standpoint in that it is obviously necessary to start with a foundation laid down for more general purposes, does, neverthe- less, perform satisfactorily and so justifies itself from the viewpoint of dollars and cents. More important than this, however, is the clearer light thrown upon the problem, the positive indication of the direction of future design and the certainty that the combined knowledge of all concerned has been so utilized as to make it valuable for future research in meeting the user’s special problems. The Steel Industry of Great Britain How Domestic and Imported Ores Have Fixed the Lines of Development—Basic Open-Hearth Gaining, But Basic Bessemer Relatively Small BY H. H. Half a century ago there were many places in Great Britain where pig iron was made from native ores for foundry use and for puddling furnaces, and where wrought iron was produced in large quantities; but between 1860 and 1870 the acid Bessemer process was developed and it was soon found that in all Great Britain there was only one place where ores could be mined that would produce pig iron suitable for the acid converter. This was on the West Coast in the neighborhood of Barrow- in-Furness, between Liverpool and Glasgow. THE WEST COAST These beds had been worked for a hundred vears, but they were not regarded as of exceptional importance, for although it may have been known that they were low in phosphorus, yet in the old days of wrought iron this element was not a bug- bear. As soon, however, as it was found that these ores would make Bessemer pig iron they at once became valuable, and the mineral was shipped to steel plants in other parts of the country, large amounts going to southern Wales. The ore varies at different mines, but the average for the district is about 53 per cent of iron, while the phosphorus ‘ so low that the pig iron holds only 0.04 per cent. Furnaces were quickly built near Barrow-in- Furness and pig iron was sent away in consid- erable quantities, large exportations being made to the United States. Steel plants were also started and for the last 40 years this district has been an mportant center for the production of acid Besse- mer steel. Thirty years ago enough ore was mined very year in Cumberland and Lancashire to make ‘209,000 tons of pig iron, or 20 per cent of the ‘otal output of Great Britain at that time. Since ‘nen production has decreased owing to the exhaus- “n of the mines, so that the ore raised to-day is “quivalent to less than 1,000,000 tons of pig iron; ‘nc as the output of the country as a whole has ‘nereased, the ores of the West Coast now repre- “ent only 10 per cent of the pig iron smelted in . at Britain. They make a larger proportion of ‘onnage of steel, because practically every pound "|e tron made from the West Coast hematites is ec Tor acid steel. (ere CAMPBELL IMPORTED ORES Before the introduction of the Bessemer process practically no iron ore was imported by Great Britain, and as late as 1870 the receipts were only 400,000 tons; but importations rapidly increased, so that between 1880 and 1885 they averaged about 3,000,000 tons per year, almost all of this coming from Spain. There has been a steady increase in imports ever since, and in 1913 they amounted to 7,442,000 tons, the principal contributing countries being the following: Spain, 4,714,000 tons; Algeria, 763,000 tons; Norway, 490,000 tons; Sweden, 367,- 000 tons; France, 327,000 tons; Tunis, 279,000 tons; Greece, 217,000 tons; Newfoundland, 100,000 tons; Russia, 79,000 tons; while other countries sent 106,000 tons. It is by the use of these imported ores that Great Britain has maintained a prominent place as a steel producer, and this dependence on the out- side world becomes more and more pronounced from year to year. Thirty years ago only 20 per cent of the pig iron made in Great Britain came from foreign ore; but in 1913 the importations accounted for 40 per cent of the output of pig iron and prob- ably a little more than one-half of the steel. This foreign ore goes to all parts of the king- dom, and in 1913 cargoes were unloaded at more than 50 different ports, but nine-tenths of it was divided between three distinct steel producing dis- tricts; the immediate vicinity of Middlesbrough on Tees, the district around Glasgow, and the northern shore of the Bristol Channel in the neighborhood of Cardiff. THE MIDDLESBROUGH DISTRICT This is by far the most important iron-produc- ing district in Great Britain, and in 1913 it made 38 per cent of all the pig iron of the country and nearly 6 per cent of the total of the world. Within 25 miles are the coal fields of Durham, which fur- nish as good coke as comes from Connellsville, while the Cleveland ore beds are'still nearer. This Cleveland ore is a carbonate, containing in its natural state from 26 to 29 per cent of iron, but it carries over 30 per cent of volatile matter in the form of carbonic acid and both free and com- ~~ ya my Phage - > es a pie : ‘2a i Sa re © gst fs 1 ‘ = ar a, ng ee ee == - a . 1058 bined water, so that it is always roasted before it is put into the blast furnace. The calcined ore has the following composition: Metallic iron, 36 to 40 per cent; silica, 14 to 20 per cent; alumina, 13 per cent; lime, 7 to 8 per cent; magnesia, 5 per cent; phosphorus, 0.62 to 0.68 per cent. Costs The cost of Cleveland ore is constantly increas- ing. In 1899 the value at the mines was $1.01 per ton, which would be about 3.67c. per unit; it was 3.82c. in 1911; it went up to 4c. in 1912, and to 4.50c. in 1913. The freight and the expense of roasting must be added, so that the cost of this ore at local furnaces just before the war was about 6c. per unit. The increase in the cost of the ore has been reflected in the selling price of pig iron. In 1900 Cleveland pig iron was quoted at $11.20 per ton, while in 1914 just before the war it was $12.20 per ton. This pig iron is excellent for foundry use and is exported in large quantities to Germany, France, Belgium, Russia and all parts of the world. For the four years from 1910 to 1915 inclusive the exports of pig iron from Great Britain averaged 1,204,000 tons per year, or 12 per cent of the total output, and a large proportion of this was Cleve- land iron. The output of Cleveland ore in 1913 was 6,011,- 000 tons, which represented about 2,000,000 tons of pig iron or 20 per cent of the total for Great Britain. The rate of production has been practi- cally stationary for over 30 years, this condition of affairs being due to the domination of the labor unions, as explained in the following quotation from a paper read a few years ago before the British Iron and Steel Institute: Labor “A serious difficulty in obtaining Cleveland stone is the action of the miners who, when trade is good and wages high, elect to work short time and maintain the same weekly wage as when working full time at the lower wage in worse times; the output per man per week being thus curtailed. If more men are put on they are necessarily new at the work and at first do not mine so much ore; hence the average for the district falls and the labor union officials immediately demand an in- crease in the rate for mining stone.” As this superintendent remarked, the owners were between the devil and the deep sea. At that very moment Parliament was discussing the subject of unemployment, while more and more foreign ore was being brought to the northeast coast every vear to supply the needs of the blast furnaces. BASIC STEEL ON THE NORTHEAST COAST Some basic Bessemer steel is made at Middles- brough, but if Cleveland ore is used exclusively the iron contains only about 1.60 per cent of phosphorus and so it is necessary to use some puddle cinder, or ore high in phosphorus, as the basic converted de- mands about 2 per cent of this element. It is also necessary to use manganiferous ores to supply the requisite amount of manganese and as such ore must be imported in the almost total absence of any supply in Great Britain, these additions in- crease very appreciably the cost of the pig iron. For these reasons the basic Bessemer process has never made much headway in the place of its birth. ACID STEEL ON THE NORTHEAST COAST An increasing tonnage comes from the basic open-hearth furnace, but acid. steel from foreign THE IRON AGE May 4. 1916 ore constitutes the real foundation of the sg: dustry of Middlesbrough. In 1913 the to imports for the United Kingdom amounted t: 000 tons and the ports at the mouth of t!} claimed 3,438,000 tons, or 46 per cent of th this being equivalent to about 1,930,000 tons iron. As the total production of pig iron district in that year was 3,869,000 tons, it seen that just about one-half came from forei, There is a slight but appreciable deterioration, from year to year in the quality of the ore jn. ported into Great Britain, while the price is increas. ing, so that the cost of pig iron is rising. In 1909 the market price of Bessemer pig iron was $13.85. while just before the outbreak of this war in 1914 it was $14.60 per ton. The proportion of steel made from imported ore cannot be stated, for no accurate statistics are col- lected at present, although a movement is under way to have this done. Again it is not possible to tell just how much steel a ton of iron will make If it goes into a Bessemer converter it may make just 1 ton, but if it is used in an open-hearth fur- nace it may represent 3 tons or more. But we know that a large proportion of the iron made from the local Cleveland ore goes into miscellaneous castings, some into wrought iron and that some is exported, while practically all the imported ore eventually appears as steel; and we may say that two-thirds of the steel made at Middlesbrough has its origin in foreign ore. ttc, GLASGOW The southwest of Scotland has always been noted for the excellence of the foundry pig iron made from the local blackband. This is an iron- stone which comes from the