The Iron Age 1920-07-22: Vol 106 Iss 4

a ey ! te a 8 4 Usp ar eS aS ise, sters 1.55 1.65 1.7 2.00 13.00 14.00 15.00 16.00 BO 9) 9.50 0.50 12.79 dt. be. 206. 94g. 940. » lle lie. Ode. h 1X ot ‘THE IRON AGE New York, July 22, 1920 ESTABLISHED 1855 VOL. 106: No. 4 Production Planning and Tracing System Work for Moreland Motor Truck Plant Planned on Production Chart and Closely Followed by Means of Operation Tracer Cards PRODUCTION planning and routing sys- tem that has proved itself under actual working conditions and facilitates the handling of the many production details that crop ip all the way from the engineering to the ship- ping department has been installed in the More- ind Motor Truck Co.’s plant at Los Angeles, Cal. Not only is a perpetual stock record maintained, declares H. M. Fitz, who has developed it, but many jobs that can scarcely be classed as produc- tion jobs, which, however, may later become such, are also well taken care of by means of this sys- tem. The records list all materials on order in the rough and in process, finished and assembled units. The production sheet~ illustrated herewith shows the planned production of parts to build the scheduled number of units promised (these may be trucks of from 1 to 5 tons rating, passenger busses, passenger cars or motor street sweepers). ’rinted on this sheet as shown are the part num- ers of trucks scheduled, amount of finished parts in stockroom, number of parts per truck (listed nder class), total number of parts required, on brder and left over, and under the days of the ionth at the top and to the right the number of ssembled units planned for each day. Produc- tion lines are drawn opposite each part number as shown and indicate how many trucks can be built with the parts scheduled and at what date the materials must be finished in the machine shop to keep up the assembly process. Close tab is kept on every job by means of the operation tracer card, illustrated herewith, on which is printed all information pertaining to the job as shown. The card is made in different colors for different departments and classes of work. Blue, for instance, is used for standard pro- duction, red for repair and mail-order work, and yellow for “sent-ahead” jobs. All work is ordered into process by the planning department as “Reg- ular Production,” “Repair” or “Special Work.” No material can be issued from the stockroom without the tracer card, since the card is, in fact, the order to commence work. Two detachable receipts are provided as shown, one being filled out and signed by the stock clerk when the card is sent to the stockroom as a requi- sition for material, and the other by the foreman on receipt of the material, who then sends it on to the planning department. The operation card minus the detachable receipt is next assigned by the foreman to one of the workmen under him who ‘tion Pertaining to a Job Is Printed on This Operation Tracer Card, Which Follows the Job Until Com- pleted, 183 When each operation is finished and approved the card is punched in the O.K. column 4 ‘ 184 ™*" — OPERATION TRACER TBO. porn, Amt en _Dwg. No. 3, “Part Name 4 ton casitier No. _Mat. Req. co. 1, _ Mat. Fur. Date Fin. Date eto/z 2 set Fe eaean Ree'd Bs. Sent he SUTTS TTT TUTTE Tee eee eee ae ea BEBE R OEE RSES Fa BESET EE SERS ES HE BEES RECEIPT FOR MATERIAL Amt Dwg. No No Signed ETACHED, FILLED OUT, SIGNED BY } RNED TO PLANNING DEPARTMENT TRACER REQUISITION ; Yr Dwg. No t be DETACHED, FILLED OUT, SIGNED and RETAINED BY STOCK CLERK. «c This Planned Production Chart Gives at a Quick Glance the Production of Parts to Build the Scheduled Number of Automotive Units Promised is provided with a special rack in which the card is filed and which is placed in plain view con- veniently near the machine with the workman's machine number marked on it. The rack has three compartments and the placement of the card in one of these compart- ments indicates whether the job is in the hands of the workman, is soon to be undertaken or is fin- ished. Compartment No. 1 contains all tracer cards for jobs which are designated for the work- man, but on which he has not commenced work. The foreman arranges the cards in this compart- ment in the order the completion of the jobs is de- sired by the planning department. The workman then knows how and what to prepare for in the way of securing drawings, tools, jigs and fixtures before it is time to work on the job. Compartment No. 2 is for the card covering the job in hand, while compartment No. 3 contains the card for the job just completed. When approved and punched by the inspector and information on it recorded by the timekeeper the card with material is ready for removal to the next machine as designated opposite operation following. At this next machine, of THE IRON AGE July 22, 192: course, the card is placed in No. 1 compartme: until the workman is ready to work on the job. A special effort is made at all times by prom; inspections and time keeping to keep the co: tainer No. 3 empty and the work moving to t) next. machine, or, if it is finished, to deliver th various parts with tracer card to the storeroon In the storeroom, receipt is made out for go pieces delivered and the tracer card passed on t the stock clerk for entry on the stock records. T} card then goes to the planning department to recorded and finally to the cost department, whe: information on it is checked with time tickets. The fact that the workman has moved a ¢a: from container No. 2 to No. 3 and from No. 1 No. 2 indicates, of course, that the workman h: finished a job and is starting on a new one. T timekeeper keeps close watch of every rack and soon as a man has moved a card, he makes note it on the man’s time ticket, transferring all nec: sary information, including the time the job w started and finished, whether standard time contract price is to be allowed, and also the nu ber of good pieces and those with foundry defects as designated by the inspector. REASONS FOR SCRAPPAGE OR SENT AHEAD MUST BE STATED-OPPOSITE OPERATION NO. ON WHICH SCRAPPAGE TOOK PLACE EEE frond % sherk, dabrys A- o ell 5 vg HOF ee legit - 7 Wecng yeah eek 2 Tonge 4 This Form Is Printedon the Back Side of the T? Card The inspector writes on this the reasons of work or sending it ahead b it is completed scrapping a piece one ie? sae aie a a ae eS sre aioe em. AP ae ea DE ninco TT bE “hielo iol ST RST ARR M3 epartment, ily 22, 1920 nation Operation Tracer Card, Ticket and Blueprint Holde: tracer cards are placed in com- ments No, 1, No. 2 or No. 3 rding to whether the job is to be worked upon, is being rked upon or is finished The inspector examines e work after the comple- THE IRON AGE l 0 OPERATION TRACER 2 a ~< * n of each operation of h job and when O. K. inches the tracer card in REASONS FOR SCRAPPAGE O. K. column, as shown eae the illustration. If any wo om wach aR ack TOO PLE irts are found defective, he tes this on a form which yrinted on the back of the card with heading, for Scrappage or t Ahead,” as shown in cer .easons illustration. He writes the work is not ap- ed, and the number of es defective and places pector’s defective tag on information shop order number, part ts with such ber, number of pieces de- ve and why, whether to be scrapped De- tive parts always go to the salvage where the final whether parts rapped or not. Sometimes it is necessary to split a or send it ahead before all opera- s are completed. In such case the pector must examine the parts taken iy and make note thereof of the . of the tracer card. Authority for splitting a or sending pieces ahead comes from the plan- department and for the purpose a ead” card is provided. lhe tracer system described above is very use- n giving a comprehensive idea of status of terial in process. This is especially so when ng an inventory. Stock records in such case nstance, show how much material is in rough kK, In process, and also how much is finished, the tracer cards show the status of work in ess and from these the money spent on labor be estimated. ot and if to be salvaged, how. decision is ide as to are to be “sent last week damaged the Woburn Iron Foundry Woburn, Mass., to the extent of $12,000. The tarted in the moulding room and spread to the main building. The Palmer Foundry Co., Palmer, which is temporarily housed under a shed, the ing burned several months ago, is increasing ction and recently took on enough business to perating at capacity the balance of the year Pacific Coast Steel Co., Seattle, plans a number tant improvements to its plant, including the an addition to the open-hearth department tion of a 16 x 14 mill. New machinery wil Improvements will involve an expend ture nents estimated to cost $100.000 are to be e Sligo Iron & Steel Co.’s plant in Connells- The output of the plant is to be increased tons a month to 7500 tons. of the variables in Effect of Machining Malleable Cast Iron before twenty-third annual neeting of the American Society for Testing Materials it Asbury Park, N. J., on “Effect of Machining and of Cross-Section on the Tensile Properties of Malleable Cast Iron,” H. A. Schwartz supplied data as to the variations in the tensile properties of malleable cast ron with increase in cross-section, and also as to the effect of removal of the surface metal upon the tensile properties. These author. In a paper the recent data were graphically expressed by the Equations of the curves showing the relation the tensile strength and percentage of elon- vation and the diameter of rough and machined speci- mens were given. between ale aiso \s a result of the tests performed the author drew the following conclusions: (1) Decarbonization has a favorable influence upon the strength and ductility of the product; (2) the effect of quick cooling in freezing yn the surface metal of a casting is such as to improve the strength and ductility of the product; (3) rough- surface of a cast specimen apparently decreases e strength and especially the ductility; (4) the ulti- strength decreases with increasing diameter of amount proportional to the cube of the diameter; (5) the elongation decreases by an amount proportional to the 2% OS of the diameter; (6) the ombined effect of all three of the preceding variables ness ol mate ection Dy an TY strength amounts to about 7000 lb. per sq. in. for ms % in. in diameter or less, and becomes neg- gible at diameters of 1% in. or over; (7) the com- inea effect on elongation is about 3 per cent for smal] specimens and negligible for diameters above % jn.: (8) the yield point is apparently not affected by any vestigated. ee ee ee le 186 FORD PLANT SAFETY REPORT Continual Educational Campaign Results in Notable Reduction in Accident Toll Only one fatality among nearly 60,000 workmen at its Highland Park Plant in 1919 and 80 per cent re- duction of lost-time accidents for the past three years (based on a comparison of the accidents recorded in October, 1916, with those occurring in May, 1919) is the record in accident-prevention work to which the safety and factory hygiene department of the Ford Motor Co. points with some pride in a report recently issued by Robert A. Shaw, director of safety. To carry on this safety work the department employed four general inspectors, five special inspectors, one stenog- rapher, two educational men, one bacteriologist, and one hygienic man, with seven men to clean drinking fountains twice daily and spray disinfectants through- out the plant. Approximately 2700 orders and commu- nications were issued and completed to prevent acci- dents during the past year. A continual educational campaign has been carried on by two educational men. Bulletin boards, safety slogans on the back of all clock cards, safety moving pictures, talks by foremen, etc., were some of the de- vices utilized to push the safety educational campaign. As the result, for instance, of talks by 107 foremen on the specific hazards encountered in their particular work, 27 per cent reduction in accidents was directly noticed. The idea of lining up men at the street cars devel- oped by the Ford people and known as the Ford idea, it Norton Co. Buys French Plant The Norton Co., Worcester, Mass., has purchased a large controlling interest in the Compagnie des Meules Norton, which operates a large modern plant at La Corneuve, a suburb of Paris, manufacturing grinding wheels of aluminous abrasives. The Norton Co. takes’full charge of the management and operation of the plant and of the distribution of the product. The works will be under the supervision of William La Costa Neilson, vice-president and foreign sales manager of the Norton Co., whose headquarters are in London. Thomas S. Green, recently of the Worcester sales organization, will be resident manager. The business was established two years ago as the Compagnie General des Meules, by French interests, consisting largely of men active in the metal industries of their country. They erected the plant, which has six 15-foot kilns, and an expanding capacity of 12 kilns. It will employ between 100 and 150 men and will manufacture Norton wheels for the French trade. The Norton Co. was approached by the French owners some months ago because of their desire to ally themselves with a company having long experience in the manufacture of high grade wheels and abrasives. The result was the purchase of a majority of stock by the Worcester company, which will have a majority of the board of directors. The name was changed to the Compagnie des Meules Norton. The Norton Co. already has plants in Canada, Japan and Germany. Just before the war the company ac- quired a tract of land in Leicester, England, and was planning to establish works on the premises. The war compelled the abandonment of the project for the time being. There is no intention of going ahead to the ful- filment of that plan in the near future. Fatigue Properties of Aluminum In a paper entitled “Fatigue and Impact Fatigue Tests of Aluminum Alloys,” read before the American Society for Testing Materials at its twenty-third an- nual meeting recently held at Asbury Park, N. J., W. A. Gibson described an investigation to determine the fatigue properties of cast, forged and heat-treated THE IRON AGE July 22, 1920 is pointed out, is growing throughout the country. Agitation for this method of boarding cars has been found advantageous in preventing fights, broken arms etc. A special inspector is employed for watching th punch presses, which every one will admit provide th greatest finger hazards in modern industry; but with the complete guarding and installation of various types of safety devices originating in the press department, such as the two-hand and push-button tripping devices, a great reduction in accidents on punch presses has been noted and it is declared that the machines are now practically as safe as other machines in the plant. A special inspector for use on cranes and elevators, and another special inspector for grinders, suction and exhaust systems, welders, enamel bake ovens and stacks have assisted greatly in reducing accidents among men who work on these equipments and have also helped very much in improving the working co: ditions among these men. Lost time grinder accidents, for example, were practically eliminated and in five particular tases, eyes were known to have been saved by the wearing of goggles. Moreover, in the piston and piston ring departments the suction systems have removed the cause of requests for transfers from 22 per cent to 3 per cent. In the report it is also pointed out that 75 per cent of the accidents were eliminated during the last six months at the Ford ship plant. At the Ford blast furnace plant, elaborate plans are also being developed for safety propaganda work. It is hoped to make these two auxiliary Ford plants as efficient, so far as safety work goes, as the huge automobile plant at Highland Park. aluminum alloys, and to relate these properties to the corresponding properties of steel alloys used in places where it is thought aluminum might advantageously be used. Results of a series of tests were given upon two types of cast alloys in fatigue and in impact fatigue. Results of three series of tests in fatigue were also given upon forged duralumin, with and without heat treatment. One series of tests was given upon a heat- treated carbon steel. In impact fatigue, a series of tests were given upon various duralumins and upon a very mild steel, a heat-treated carbon steel such as is commonly used in forgings, and upon a nickel steel. In comparing the fatigue-resisting properties of forged duralumin with those of the common grades of steel forgings, the conclusion is drawn that for sec- tions of equal size the aluminum alloys are equal tc, if not superior to, forged steel. Larger Supplies of Manganese The scarcity of manganese which seemed to threatening the United States earlier in the year is no probable now. The output of ferromanganese has bee! steadily mounting each month until in June it reached 26,265 tons, according to the blast furnace reports 0! THE IRON AGE, which include an estimate of the elec tric furnace output. The average for the second qua! ter is 5300 tons per month larger than that for ‘! first quarter, or 23,318 tons against 18,049 tons pe! month. At the present rate of 20,684 tons per mo"! for the first half, the year’s output will exceed 248.) tons. The imports are also growing, those for \a) having been nearly 4000 tons, the heaviest in the !as' seven months and exceeded only three times in !!!!" Ore imports are also increasing, having been twice large in April and May as in the first quarter, °! 91,674 tons for the two months, against 44,539 tons f the three. Thus the rate to June has been over 27.(\)! tons per month or very nearly equal to the 1!" movement. If the domestic production of ferromanganese °° tinues at the present rate and the imports equa! t average thus far maintained, the steel industry’s ree“ for 1920, assuming a production of 44,000,000 tons ° ingots and castings for the year, will easily be m Earliest Iron Making in the United States New England Was the Scene of First Successful Effort— Saugus Works Started in 1642 THE OWNER DF THI " ar We 7 . . ; , . CO Mee Ga HE first at- be recorded under one name. Possibly the connection of CASTING WAS CIVEN tempt at iron Governor Winthrop’s son with the company influenced THIS CASE PE 2 RG alae making in this the court in its findings. However that may be, the crivens of Lyn country was_ court certainly set a precedent in fostering domestic made by the Vir industry. ginia Co. of Lon- Again, in May, 1645, the court publicly declared the don, Eng. It set Saugus Works successful, presumably with a view to up in the Vir- stimulating public interest in and support of the enter- Colony three “iron works,’ which, accord- prise, although that is a presumption. The court, how- +o common belief, consisted of a furnace, a finery ever, at this time did proclaim, in the same breath *hafery 3ut_ before being operated, Indians with the announcement of success, that £1,500 was £ sacred workmen employed on the undertaking, needed to finish the forge and that between £1,200 and lestroved the works. No effort was made to re- £1,500 had been expended by the company up to this a i the works, inasmuch as the charter of the Virginia time. ; . ) »t sy that «: , »¢ f her : res rere * London expired soon afterward. In October, that same year, further privileges were 4 New England belongs the industrial honor of e Grst successful iron making. The word “success- this case, however, applies to the practice and a e financial results. But it was from this pioneer New England business that grew our iron and steel try, which to-day leads the world. Many early settlers of Massachusetts crossed the Atlantic for religious freedom, but they, as well . as other's who settled elsewhere in this country, were i npressed with reports of the metals to be found in a the New World. Plymouth, Mass., it will be remem- a bered, was settled in 1620. Lynn, Mass., or Saugus as Cash Is Lacking a then called, was settled in 1629, and very shortly granted the company by the court. The company itself and those who worked for it were released from taxation. Its workmen were not obliged to go to church, which in those orthodox days was a highly j significant concession In addition, the company was given free use of all materials for making or molding pots and all other kinds of cast iron ware. In Septem- ’ ber, 1645, Richard Leader, in behalf of the company, bought of George Ruggles, Braintree, Mass., 25 acres as a forge site, and in the following year this forge was constructed, as nearly as can be figured by records, 1G Not long afterward, Mr. Winthrop, Jr., removed to Connecticut to engage in the iron making business. From that time on the affairs of the Saugus Iron Works appear to have grown more and more complex, due primarily to the lack of cash, the diminishing supply of ore and lawsuits. a a vard iron ore was discovered in the flat meadows ipper parts of the Saugus River. Thomas generally credited with the discover'y, al- authorities disagree on this point. ain it is, however, that this Thomas Dexter a ded in interesting his fellow townsman, Capt. x R rt Bridges, in the possibilities of the ore, for Cap- Bridges went to England with samples of it and formed the Company of Undertakers for the Iron \ s, Which consisted of 11 merchants and gentlemen, total paid in capital of £1,000, its purpose being tablish iron works at Saugus. John Winthrop, of Governor Winthrop, Massachusetts Colony, nstrumental in forming the company and was a r of it. The company secured the services of Jenks as master mechanic, 4 man to whom our industry owes much, yet whose praises have gone unsung for nearly 300 year’s. Richard Leader was r the undertakers. Saga ng, oy ei BD ad Rat ts i MENTAL Many Concessions Granted st from the beginning of its activities the enjoyed concessions, which in these modern Federal regulations and taxation read like Work on the Saugus Iron Works was begun in 1642. In November, the following year, npany was granted 3000 acres of common land ntree to encourage the erection of iron works the river Monotcut or Monontocut. But the e of land, water rights and materials in Saugus st of labor undoubtedly soon exhausted the ers’ original £1,000, or very nearly so, for in er, 1644, the Massachusetts General Court al- ree years for the perfection of the company’s namely the finery and forge, the blast furnace that which belongeth to it” having been com- vor V é¢ ry nearly so, by that time. 1 ourt also granted citizens the right to sub- stock in the enterprise in lots of £100. Persons pay a full £100 were allowed to pool their £100 lots, with the stipulation that such sum 187 + Oo 188 Site of the Saugus Iron Works In the foreground, across piles of slag and cinders, which came from the furnace and ugent, Richard Leader The land sloped downward fron The lack of cash was for no lack of business, there being an excellent demand for the company’s products. But payment for products more often was made in grain, wood, and other commodities than which made it necessary to try constantly to raise funds by the sale of shares in the company. And that desire of the American people to sue the corporation have originated with the Saugus Iron in specie, appears to Works. There were frequent lawsuits in and previous to 1651, arising from the overflow of water. Then, too, fear that the works would cause a scarcity of timber also appears to have added to its unpopularity. As one authority stated in 1677, “the company was very much promoted and strenuously carried on for some time, but at length, instead of drawing out bars of iron for the country’s use, there was hammered out nothing but contentions and lawsuits.” Site Well Selected The works, however, was in active operation about 46 years. It was built on 60 the westerly bank of the SAugus River, formerly owned by Thomas Hudson, who is believed to have been a relative of the Hudson for whom Hudson River was named. The site was well situated as it was at the head of navigation, by a ford in the Boston-Salem highway. From various authorities it is certain the iron was near bog ore deposits, yet the exact location of these was revealed in writing or by evidence of development. These bog ore deposits prob ably law a few inches below the surface soil. The top or surface soil may have been loosened by plow and then shovel, the ore, brown in being easily accessible. As the years passed, the top soil which removed from the immediate vicinity of the ore deposits returned to its approximate original acres on selected, works deposits never removed by color, thereby was not location by the action of the river waters, and trace of the ore deposits, therefore, was lost. It certain, however, that the ore deposit was n Adam Hawkes’ meadow. Diligent search in records by the and by other interested persons fails to uncover any detailed description of the works and the exact methods em- ployed therein. Legislation and litigation records fur- nish numerous clues and these, coupled with common foundry practice in England at that time, provide a reasonable basis for deduction. The Saugus Works, it is certain, then comprised a blast furnace, a bloomery or forge, and what in these modern days would be termed a machine shop. Work Charcoal was the common fuel used in those days, coke then being unknown, and by it the bog ore was reduced in the blast furnace. In New England to-day, at least two irons, Salisbury and Richmond, are pro- duced by charcoal fuel. is reasonably ynewhere autnor Water Put to The Saugus Works used oyster shells for fluxing, a practice which has by no means become extinct by use of prepared fluxes. Molten iron THE IRON AGé the river, extending almost the agent's house to the river. July 22, up to the roadway, can be background can be seen the house of The built-up road is mod forge. In the blast furnace into V-sha produced long triangular from the which was run direct sand trenches, called “‘sowes.” Earlier furnace practice in iron making in Eng necessitated hand and foot operation of bellows blast purposes. This practice was supplemented water power operation of bellows and it was by w power that this New England works operated. To provide water power, a dam, about three-eig! te of a mile from the furnace, 20 ft. wide at the and 8 ft. at its top and about 10 ft. high, extending diagonally between two high points of land, was con 8 structed, which raised the water 6 ft. to 8 ft. submerged approximately 1000 acres. A canal, vary from 15 ft. to 20 ft. in width and from 6 ft. to 10 ft in depth, unwalled and with large rocks remaining in it, extended about 100 rods from a sluice gate in th dam to a basin at the iron works. The fall of water from the sluice gate to the was slight, but the total fall from the basin to river below was in the neighborhood of 50 ft. 1 basement of the iron works was about 30 ft. the basin, so that by this arrangement the upper was on, or practically on, a level with the pa around the basin, which permitted charcoal and ore to be fed easily into the upper part of the furnace. “ Slag from the furnace and cinders from the bloo or forge were taken from the basement and du at the ssuth end or side of the works, and recent years remained a conspicuous reminder of industry that once flourished there. Supposition is that the works was driven water wheel, 30 ft. or so in diameter, turning pit outside the building, which transmitted its to whatever point desired by a horizontal shaft. 4 ee : As to Furnace Output From the sowes, run in the basement, wrought ir a and steel were made in the bloomery. This bloom a was nothing more or less than a blacksmith’s g having a charcoal fire 4 ft. thick into which a of bar or sowe iron was thrust and in time beca pasty mass of wrought iron, settling at the bott the bloomery. Other portions of the bar wer - verted into steel when the process stopped intermediate stage between cast and wrought i1 In the machine shop the first fire engine b America, for the then “Towne of Boston,” wa structed, as were improved grass scythes and farming implements, under the directing hand of Jenks. No authentic record of furnace or casting 3 has been handed down to posterity, the value 3 duction statistics not being appreciated in . Jenks’ day. The first reference to output we h where, in May, 1645, the court recorded that m @ tuns of sowe iron is cast in readiness for the fors' Under date of March 15, 1647, Robert Child. w® was connected with the works, wrote to John Winthrop, July 22, 1920 Jr.. then in Connecticut: “We have cast this winter os some tuns of pots, likewise mortors, stoves and skel- i lets. Our potter is moulding more at Braintree as vet, which place after another blowing we shall quit, not finding mine there.” On Aug. 4, 1648, Governor Le Winthrop wrote his son that “the iron works goeth on ee with more hope and now yields about seven tons per veek,. In the following month, he wrote: “The fur- e runs eight tons per week and their bar iron is good as Spanish.” [he General Electric Co’s. Lynn, Mass., . River Works iron foundry, located, one might say, within gun \ 4 of the site of the old Saugus Iron Works, pro- a ices an average of about 150 tons per week. That 4 nnage does not include the output of the company’s . steel and‘brass foundries at West Lynn. Needless to say, the output of the Saugus Iron Works nace never equalled that of the General Electric 4 ron foundry, but there is proof that its castings’ ss tnput exeeeded the needs of the stockholders and of y people residing in its immediate vicinity. It, there- e, was necessary for the company to enlarge its sell- field. In serving outside markets the iron works’ nagement found it difficult and expensive to trans- ‘astings over the roads to Boston and elsewhere. the products were taken down the Saugus River in boats, transferred to sailing vessels and by them " eyed to points further along the coast. Joseph Jenks, or Jenckes, as he spelled his name, for the success of the iron oa cs. As master mechanic. he was active in the erec- 3 of the works, dam, etc., and he made the molds q vhich castings direct from the furnace were made. s iddition to the honors attached to the construction a ind practice at the iron works, he bore the dis- tion of being the first builder of machinery in this i intry, and of having received the first patent issued 3 \merica. -The wording of this patent, which is given, is interesting inasmuch as it gave latitude, which in these modern law-making would not hold water, and be of no protection 4 ver to him. argely responsible gins ewith at a generall Court at Bo the 6th of the ton 3th mo 1646 msidring ve necessity of raising such man ins of n s to go by hands, & pet tion water for speedy disp: th few being sufficiently inforn to pforme such workes grant hi » Oth pson shall set up, or use any such new trade for fourteen vyeares wthout ve licence of Joseph Jenkes) so far as concernes any such 3 nm, & so as it shalbe always in ye powr of =e train ye exportations of. such a4 m to mod manifactures, & ration of occasion so require what the “engine of mils” referred to in the applied is unknown. Possibly the patent re- to mill improvements as applied to water wheel as motive power, but it is also possible is to fire fighting engines, for we find ew years later Mr. Jenks built a fire engine rder of the selectmen of Boston, the first to be the country. is¢ d > ence PRR L e time he was granted a patent for “engins Mr. Jenks applied for a patent on an improved the, the form of which is followed in manu- practice to-day. The English scythe blade and thick like a brush scythe, heavy and to the user. Mr. Jenks lengthened the blade making it thinner, and welded a square the back to strengthen it. His patent was not intil nine years after his application, but this not discourage him. From Richard Leader, f the iron works, he bought the privilege ng a forge at the works for the manufacture ythes, as well as other edge tools and mills, siderable success in the sale of the scythes. ne was thus actively engaged he made the Pine Tree shilling, the first money coined intry. One authority says that Mrs. Jenks ‘rawings from which her husband made the ut 20 years after he took out his first patent, sought aid to establish a wire manufactory, ‘ppears to have been unsuccessful in this at- ‘ 1 THE IRON AGE “equipment. A 189 tempt, the court and the investing public either lacking confidence or being too busy with other things to give encouragement. He died at Lynn, in 1683, aged 81 year's. THE IRON AGE is indebted to G. S. Bliss, publication lepartment, General Electric Co., West Lynn, Mass., for photographs accompanying this article. Champion Engineering Co. Additions The Champion Engineering Co., builder of has begun a series of extensive additions and improve ments to its plants at Kenton, Ohio, and upon the cranes, completion of the building program, present produc tion will be trebled. The improvements include ex tensions to the foundry, new structural steel fabri cating shops, inclosed storage and modern: raw material storage. Every building will be equipped with travel ling electric cranes. A tool and jig manufacturing plant entirely independent from the production depart ment will be constructed, and also a pattern vault and steel foundry to relieve the present gray iron foundry new power plant will be built of sufh- cient capacity to take care of present as well as fu ture power requirements. Provision is also made for the construction of a house buildng program for the employees. Fifty homes will be constructed immediately on a plot lo cated in the middle of the grounds. In close proximity to the new homes will be built a company hotel, which will also form a civic center. For the present the hotel will accommodate 50 people, but will be provided with an auditorium 30x100 ft., with baths, gymnasium, billiard and pool tables, and bowling alleys. Lackawanna Company Earnings Improved An inerease in both profits and unfilled orders is indicated in the report of the Lackawanna Steel Co. for second quarter of 1920 over the second quarter of 1919. Profits this quarter were $1,881,946, contrasted with a deficit of $233,086 the second quarter of 1919; unfilled orders amounted to 484,267 tons the 1920 quar- ter, against 122,399 tons a year before. Total net earn ings after taxes and ordinary repairs were $2,786,107, compared with $446,757 the year before. At the end of the first quarter of this year there was a deficit of $449,720, though the unfilled orders were slightly greater than at the end of the second quarter, being 492,519 tons. The company also contrasts earnings the first half of this year with those of the first half of 1919. They were $1,432,225 this year and $974,022 last year. New Company to Make Non-Ferrous Alloys A new maker of white metals is the Pan American Smelting Works, Brooklyn, N. Y.- A building of brick, ‘onerete and glass, 75 x 150 ft., has recently been com- pleted on the corner of Calyer and Moultrie streets To facilitate the handling of incoming and outgoing shipments, the loading floor was built truck-floor high. Babbitt metals, phosphor alloys, type metals, solders and white metal alloys are the main products. They are marketed under the following trade marks: Cast vell, Aero Marine, Standard U. S. Genuine, Durabel, lowell and Rapid Transit. The president of the com pany is George Stoll who, previous to the organization of the Pan American Smelting Works, was connected with the United Metals Corporation (Syracuse Smelt- ing Works’ Subsidiary) as assistant to the president. Mr. Stoll recently returned from a two years’ trip to the Orient and the Far East in the interests of firm. Abraham Saffer is the treasurer. He has had 15 years’ experience in the metal business and was formerly purchasing agent for the Fidelity Metal Co tnis “Reamings” is the title of a new house organ pub- lished monthly by the Wetmore Reamer Co., Milwau- kee, in the interest of the company’s salesmen and dis- tributing houses. Among its features are news about the factory and outside men, talks on reamers, matters of sales policies, and comments on operating troubles and their remedies. 190 THE IRON Microscopic Measuring Machine A machine designed to provide an accurate means for the measurement of screw-thread tools, form tools, threaded work and similar articles is being 1n- country by Alfred Herbert, Ltd., Coventry, England, with an office at 54 Dey Street, New York. The machine is adapted for measuring lengths, angles and pitches. It does not depend on screws for its accuracy, but upon end measuring rods and large-dial micrometers graduated to 0.0001-in. It s explained that the measuring rods which are used in making all length measurements maintain their ac curacy indefinitely and can be readily checked by well- known means. A box bed carries 12-in. move- ment by accurate amounts through the insertion and removal of standard hardened of known length between flat hardened; these pleces are mounted one on the end of the bed and one on the end of the table The le is fitted with a pair of centers, yages, troduced into this a table capable of steel measuring rods contact pieces, also contact tad Screw-Thread eurate Measurement of Articles It depends for it accuracy upon one of which is adjustable in a crosswise direction to enable work to be lined up accurately. A microscope with vertical movement by rack and pinion for focussing is mounted on a compound slide rest, with screw movement parallel] with the slides and at right angles to the table slide. The microscope is fitted with two hair lines across its diameter, one ro- tating with the outside tube and the other rotating with the eyepiece. The outer tube carries a graduated in half degrees. The eyepiece carries a vernier, which enables readings accurate to one minute to be made. Thus the angle between the two hair lines is indi- cated with fine commercial accuracy. A light projector is fixed to the machine to project parallel rays of light through a lens upon a mirror placed at an angle and so past the work. When meas- uring threads this attachment eliminates shadows and light projected from the flanks of the thread which tend to make the object indistinct. The mirror is ad- justable to suit the lead of the thread, and enables the object to be clearly defined through the microscope. Eight-volt accumulators are required for this attach- ment, but are not included in the standard equipment. The table is 22 in. by 3% in.; greatest length meas- ured, 12 in.; maximum diameter of work, 3 in.; mag- nification of microscope, 25 diameters; overall length of machine, 36 in.; overall width, 10 in.; overall height, 18 in.; approximate net weight, 214 lb. large dial The Stanley Belting Corporation, 32 South Clinton Street, Chicago, has been appointed special distributor for the Bull Dog shaft couplinys and collars, made by the Safety First Mfg. Co., Alexandria, Va. AGE July 22, 1920 Cylinder Reaming Sets A new cylinder reaming set has been added to its line of reamers by the Wetmore Reamer Co., Milwau kee. The set consists of a roughing reamer, semi finishing reamer and a floating finishing reamer. The roughing reamer has adjustable and replac able blades set at a right hand angle. The semi-finishing tool has left hand angle blade: like the standard Wetmore floating reamer to eliminate “digging in” and “chattering,” thus to produce a round hole that is not scored when backing out, leaving a: ideal condition for finishing. A modification of this reamer is designed for line and pilot reaming. The floating finishing reamer has a feature in tha the float is in the head of the too] directly under th strain, thus to eliminate tendency to get out of parall: or cramp. The float is an improved Oldham type, having rollers instead of sliding contacts reduce friction. The float mechanism is pro tected from dust and grit by a cap covering the front and a washer protecting the back. The blades are set at a left-hand angle and Tools, Form Tools, Gages, Threaded Work and Similar end measuring rods and irge dial micrometers staggered. Expansion and adjusting to thousandths ot! an inch are made by a graduated micrometer lock nut located at the rear of the blades. Present standard sizes are 2 7/16 in. to 5 9/16 in. The Piscataqua River Bridge Commission has ap- pointed the Strauss Bascule Bridge Co., designer of movable bridges, Chicago, as consulting engineer to design the superstructure of the interstate highway) and electric railway bridge to be built across Pisca- taqua River, connecting Portsmouth, N. H. with Kit- tery, Me. The bridge will consist of three spans, each 300 ft. in length, the center one being a Strauss double leaf bascule. The bridge will be paid for the states of New Hampshire and Maine and the United States Navy Department. Gov. John H. Bart- lett of New Hampshire is secretary of the commission. Commander E. H. Brownell, Portsmouth Navy Yard, represents the Navy Department, and L. B. Jones, bridge engineer of the State of Maine, represents that state’s interests in the project. The business of the firm of David S. Foster, Sons « Co., Utica, N. Y., iron, steel and hardware, was for- mally transferred July 1 to Gerard S. Foster and Burt A. Rogers. The death of David S. Foster was noted in THE IRON AGE of July 1. The business will continu on the same site on which it has been conducted f0 more than 100 years. The New York, Ontario & Western Railroad has awarded to the Standard Repair Co., Somerset, Pa., ™ repairs of several hundred coal cars. 3 The Production of Good Iron Castings’ Three Fundamental Conditions—The Sulphur Problem — Use of Sea Coal — Selection of Pig - BY DR. RICHARD NY discussion on the production of good castings will always bring out at least two strong view- points. There is that of the purchaser of these astings who invariably wants them to be perfect and heap. Only in times like these must he take practi- ally what is given him and at figures set by the indryman. These times, however, will not remain very ng, and the foundryman will shortly be confronted vain with strict demands for smooth surfaced, sound, ng and machinable work at low, competitive figures. Hence the importance of keeping up quality production spite of the temptation to let everything pass out of shop. From the standpoint of the foundryman it is equally ential that the work produced should be of high iality, for every rejected casting costs as much as the responding good one, and yet, on remelting, has only rap value, for it can be replaced thus in the open <et. Few foundrymen realize that molten metal ted in unnecessarily large risers and pouring basins, led and “over-iron” comes under this category and ild therefore be reduced to a safe minimum. For s reason also should the breaking in of new men be owed up carefully to judge whether within a reason- each man has made sufficient istify the further losses still ahead before adjudging m a skilled operative. Molding is an art, even if a hine performs a part of the work, and not every is gifted with the necessary qualifications. rom the view-point of the nation as a whole, it is tial for the economic advance of our industrial life the pound of iron be made to go further than and hence the indiscriminate masses of metal must give way to material of er grade in construction work of modern tent with the requirements of service and incumbent, therefore, upon the foundryman to every phase of the numerous processes involved work so that he may know himself to be indus successful, as well as commercially so. There w industries in which the chances of failure are it and pit-falls are to be found at every turn. lightest mistake at any one of the hundred differ- perations involved in the making of a casting its loss, if not something more serious, and resourceful and energetic man may strive to ne a successful producer of good castings. time progress to use of grade less design, safety nean The Three Fundamentals general, the subject under discussion may be summed up under three heads. First: It is nec- work with good materials in foundry pro- All melting processes are necessarily oxidizing icter to a greater or less extent, and hence an iron or “burnt” scrap is not subject to im- nent by remelting. Again, a molding sand full of may mean disaster to the surface of a heavy while high sulphur coke will surely increase rap pile. Second: Even with the best of mate- rood results will not be achieved unless these s are put through the necessary processes with red degree of skill and attention. Hence good must be made from the right kind of sands, and | surfaces must be properly finished and black- Good pig irons and carefully selected scrap must rged judiciously and melted under practically per- ‘urnace conditions, so that when the molten metal d out, the foundryman may be certain that it iave been no better for the class of work in hand. ? ess de livered Southern -21. convention of the Atlanta, Ga., Juge 20 at the Association at 191 Iron and Serap MOLDEN KE Finally, the gating of the molds and riser arrange- ment should be planned and carried through with sci- entific accuracy, if such a term may be used in a foundry. Then the carefully selected materials which have been melted under exact charging and blast condi- tions and have yielded a molten metal full of life will be given a fair chance to be converted into castings free from undue internal shrinkage, casting strains and other trouble. The above three points are the fundamental ones the foundryman must constantly bear in mind, and if followed out carefully by properly trained men, should lead to good castings produced economically. Of what avail is it to fill up a floor with molds only to lose a large percentage through sand troubles; or to make fewer but perfect molds and lose a lot of castings by oxiding metal through poor melting; or with perfect molds and excellent molten metal to get castings full of internal shrinkage through improper feeding oppor tunity as the result of poor gating. Unfortunately, in the last mentioned instance, the defects are usually not discovered until the castings have failed in service. The foundrymen cannot be too watchful in all these opera- tions and must insist on every care on the part of the operatives, for his and that of the buying public. A more detailed discussion of these three fun damental points will, therefore, seem not amiss at this juncture. own rood The Sulphur Problem tragic industrial condition of the world during the perhaps best illustrated in the With pig iron and coke almost beyond reach and necessarily poorly made; with labor below all com- parison with anything the foundry has had to suffer in its history, no wonder there is a surfeit of abominably high sulphur, low grade work in existence which is accumulating trouble in the industry for this and the generations to come. It will require a high order of industrial education to cope with the situation when the castings made since the war began appear in the scrap pile. As the strain in our industries tapers off, the furnaceman will again obtain better fuels and ore and can, if he will, furnish bétter-made pig metal. Competition will eventually bring the foundryman bet- ter fuel, and it is only the scrap which he has to buy that will give him concern as regards his raw materials. While a high pig percentage in the mixture helps overcome the sulphur difficulty to some extent, this is not always practicable in times of sharp competition, and hence only a thorough knowledge of cupola charg- ing and melting will give fairly satisfactory results in spite of the scrap handicap. Since it is possible to make servicable and machinable castings with sulphur as high as 0.30 per cent, provided everything else is cor- rect, there is no reason why the foundryman should not be able to hold his own. There are, however, few foundrymen who are posted so thoroughly and can work in the exact routine the necessity of the case demands. Hence there is bound to be much disappointment ahead. The question of molding sand is becoming more serious in some sections of the country. The best deposits are verging upon exhaustion, and there is need of more careful sand preparation in the shop, to correct the difficulties with the natural product. Eu- rope is ahead of us in this particular, in many in- stances all of the sand used daily going through ma- chines for regrinding and mixing. Thus, after remov- ing the burnt sand adhering to the casting as shaken out, and with the me t economical use of sea-coal, The and since foundry. war 18 ever serious 192 THE IRON enough new sand is ground in to keep up the quantity and bond of the heaps to standard. While the eventual solution of the sand problem lies in preparing it arti- ficially, from even-sized rounded grains of clean silica coated with high refractory and fat clays, much can be done by grinding the natural sands to promote their uniformity in texture and bond. As time goes on, foundrymen will demand better sands, and the sand merchant will have to add equipment to his plant to produce the goods. In the meantime, however, foundry- men will do well to test their sand-heaps regularly for fineness, strength and the bonding value of the clay content. Further, they should classify their work into light, medium and the heavy grades and arrange the sand heaps accordingly, and see that these heaps are not mixed. A fine sand mixed with a coarse one sim- ply reduces the venting power of the latter without giving very much smoother work. As regards the finishing of the mold surfaces, there is this much to be said. Molding sand