The Iron Age 1920-08-26: Vol 106 Iss 9

IE IRON AGE New York, August 26, 1920 3 OT A Be, 7 SPRING" ea BATH a ea EE eS VOL. 106: No. 9 - i ann MODEL eae em cer) Pee nr By Gilbert L. Lacher HE Wisconsin Steel Works, Batteries and Gene O “1: >¥y-Products ‘lant South Chicago, Ill, re- Roof of the Boiler cently completed a by-prod- Two 14-Ove n Coke a ° . “acilities 1 the uct coke plant which is note- can the Binet fare worthy for its up-to-date equip- sin Steel ment and various features which represent departures from previous practice. The coke plant proper, con- sisting of two 44-oven batteries and auxiliary facilities for obtaining the by-products from the gas, was built under contract by the Wilputte Coke Oven Corporation, New York. The coal and coke handling facilities were designed and con- structed by Heyl & Patterson, Inc., Pittsburgh. The first battery of ovens was fired on Nov. 13, 1919, and the second on Feb. 7, 1920. The minimum cok- ing time of the ovens with a normal supply of coal is 14 hr. In every 24 hr. 1800 tons of coal are charged and 150 ovens are pushed. Owing to ad- verse transportation conditions which have inter- fered with deliveries of coking coal, figures regard- ing normal output of coke, gas and by-products are not yet available. _ One of the outstanding features of the Wiscon- sin Steel Works plant is the arrangement for mixing the coal before it is crushed. The coal used by the company consists of 25 per cent low volatile West Virginia Pocahontas and 75 per cent high volatile Benham coal from the company’s own mines in Ken- tucky. In a coal car unloading building the coal is either dropped into hoppers below, by means of an ea = operated traveling crane with grab a ie a nich removes the coal from gondola cars, : pow narged directly from hopper cars through the track A pan conveyor carries the coal from 507 S Steel Works - View of - the hoppers to a 36-in. belt con- Take fro the ; i cies minaeutoen veyor by which it is taken to the nd Coal Handling top of the breaker building. distance may be Here i . lisch od i ® ae of the Wiseon ere it is discharged into a Works Bradford breaker 12 ft. in length and 9 ft. in diameter and sit- ting on a 19 deg. angle to permit the discharge of foreign matter from the lower end. From the breaker the coal drops into three bins, each having 250 tons capacity, which feed the coal to mixing belts. From the belts the coal is dropped into a mixing hopper, whence it goes to a Williams “Jumbo” crusher with a capacity of 200 tons per hour. Mixing the coal before crushing is said to be distinctly advantageous as it gives a better mix than the older method of mechanically mixing after pulverizing. From the crusher the coal is taken by belt to the top of a larry bin with a capacity of 2000 tons, or ample to supply the ovens with coal for 24 hr. The coal is transferred by gravity from the larry bin to larry cars standing on platform scales. The cars are then moved by elec- tric power to points of discharge over the ovens. On the top of the ovens, as will be noted in one of the accompanying illustrations, are Smoot gov- ernors for controlling the gas pressure in the collect- ing mains, while to record the pressure on the mains hydrogages have been provided. The Smoot gover- nor, manufactured by the Ratteau-Battu-Smoot Co., New York, is air operated and simpler, it is said, than electrically operated governors. One of the novel features of the coke plant is the arrangement for automatically controlling air, gas and stack draft in a central control room, which ‘s located between the two batteries of ovens. The y Se aaa : : ' A> tect nape « ecm 508 flow of gas and air to the ovens is controlled by Smoot governors, while the stack gases are regu- lated by a Wright-Connelly governor. A Venturi meter measures the flow of gas to the ovens and a Bacharach pressure gage indicates the gas pressure on the fuel mains. For reversing the flow of gas and air a Cutler-Hammer system is provided. Thirty-five per cent of the gas produced by the ovens is used for fuel. The ovens consist of two sections which operate alternately every 30 min., the idle section being heated, of course, by the gases of combustion from the active side. Each oven is 10 ft. 10% in, in height and 39 ft. in length between buckstays. On the pusher side it is 15 in. wide and on the coke side 17 in. wide. The taper in the width to the coke delivery end facilitates the clearing of the brick work when the coke is pushed out. The oven ca- pacity is 12% tons of coal. The plant is of the cross-regenerative type con- nected together longitudinally. During operation air enters the oven at the bottom, passes through the heated checker work and then joins the gas for combustion in the vertical flues. The gases of com- bustion pass through horizontal flues near the top On the Coke Delivery Side of the Ovens an Electrically Ope! ‘ Combined Door Macl 1 Coke Rac tra $ tl D i i serve Guid tl Coke a I I S 1 fre ( ns Ir t} Q ( Below wt 3 so Shs THE IRON A \ Tr ss 7) a. AGE August 26, 1999 of the oven walls to the opposite half of the batt... where they flow down through the flues and throyo: the checker work to the stack flues at the ho... of the ovens which, when operations a: are used for the inflowing air. Air is fed to +, ovens by steam engine operated No. 8 Sirocco fan: built by the American Blower Co., which are locate; in the fan room, below the chart room. There ar: three fans, one for each battery and a square whic) can be used on either battery. - The batteries are served by two Wellmar Morgan pushers equipped with 50-ft. operate on tracks running the length of one sia; the ovens. These machines perform the combined service of pushing the coke, leveling the coal charge and extracting and closing the oven doors. On the coke delivery side of the ovens an electrically erated mud car conveys the mud used in sealing the doors before each heat, and an electrically operated combined door machine and coke rack extracts the doors and: serves as a guide for the coke when is pushed out of the ovens and delivered into the quenching car below. Both the mud car and the door machine are mounted on tracks laid on a plat- form which is on a level slightly lower than the floor reversed “Seaver. rams, whic} \\ 5) = WON Rs . sa ae A AA ae -— Wy Ce , Se PE. a el beweeeeen es es) a —— ee le be ewe ee) » =e [ ‘a ~~ » 9 we Kk -k par re 03 | i i - = A Ce 4 a ey - x On the T the ( the Ovens lecting Mains 4 Equipped with ©" Governors f trolling the Ga sure, and with Hydro- gages to Record Pressure In background ™ rry seen the | the larry August 26, 1920 d to the Steam Operated Sirocco aa re which | ised on , battery. i‘ room is nder the room f 4 the ovens. The quenching car, which was fur- shed by the Alliance Machine Co., Alliance, Ohio, is moved by a General Electric locomotive to a quench- ing hood designed by the Wilputte company. After quenching, the coke is delivered by gravity from the ned floor of the car to a coke wharf. From the vharf the coke is fed by a Heyl & Patterson recip- ting feeder to a 36-in. rubber belt conveyor rries it to a screening station, consisting tary screens 21 ft. long and 6 ft. in diam- re the coke is separated into breeze, do- d blast furnace coke. the ovens the gas passes to standard type be primary coolers from which it is ex- two 74-cu. ft. Roots exhausters, driven by ill engines operated by direct steam from | y’s power plant. The exhausters pass the =“s Through P and A tar extractors to a direct _ ‘ery saturator without preheating the gas. This feature, as most other direct processes r preheating. Sixty-degree sulphuric acid the saturators. ’ Saturators the ammonium sulphate crys- rmed as the gas comes into contact with of sulphuric acid. The crystals settle to THE IRON AGE 509 Air, Gas and Stack Draft Are Auto- matically Regulated in a Central Control Room. The flow of gas and air to the ovens is controlled by Smoot governors, while the stack gases are regulated by a Wright - Connelly governor the bottom and are pumped out by an air ejector to a drain table, where the mother liquor is drained off into liquor vats or back into the saturator and the remaining salt crystals are drained into cen- trifugal driers of the Schaum & Eulinger type, with a capacity of 500 Ib. per charge and a speed of 650 r.p.m. Each of the two saturators is served by two driers. Each drier is driven by belt from a Wachs vertical-type steam engine. From the driers the sulphate is dropped into two-wheel barrows and de- livered into the sulphate storage, after weighing. The mother liquor is pumped by a steam turbine- driven centrifugal pump from the mother liquor res- ervoirs directly into the saturator through cracker pipe inlets. In the sulphate storage room a motor-driven portable belt conveyor suspended from a chain block operating from a monorail is used for loading bulk shipments direct from the floor to cars on tracks ad- jacent to the building. The conveyor is also utilized to fill bags. As will be noted in the illustration, one end of the conveyor is placed on a stand equipped with a hopper through which the sulphate passes directly into a bagging machine. The machine is fitted with scales so that the bags may be weighed eee ieee 510 THE IRON AGE August 26, 1999 while filling. The method of handling sulphate, just to as an improvement on previous practice described, was devised as a means of handling the renders it easy to discover leaks and to rey salt until such a time as a traveling crane and _ before damage is done to the concrete foundatio bucket is installed. After being separated from the tar th: seanaal In most coke plants the saturators and the liquor condensed from the moisture in the ie Sa 545, as mother liquor vats are sunk into the floor. In the obtained from the primary coolers, goes to an an Wisconsin Steel plant, however, as will be noted in’ monia still. Two stills have been provided salle. the illustration, both the saturators and the two which has a capacity to handle the entire sian mother liquor vats are mounted above the concrete output of the plant. The vapor from the still enters floor level. This method of construction is pointed a header between the tar extractor and saturator and as alr then eZ sf One of two 74-cu. ft Roots Boosters (fore- ground), Which Force the Surplus Gas to the Mills and to Other Points of Consumption Two of three 74-cu. ft. Roots exhausters (left background), which draw the gas from the primary coolers and pass it through P & A tal extractors to the Saturator The Saturators and the Mother Liquor Vats Are Mounted Above _ the Concrete Floor This method of constructi is an improvement 0 previous practice as renders it easy to dis cover leaks and to fr pair them before dam- the age is done to concrete foundations Witte Tea ra 2 _ a 29 The Pump Room Is so ER MSR Or Placed That the Space Under the Primary A ite Coolers May Be Util- ized. This arrangement has proved advantage- oer a ous because it made it e unnecessary to sink the hot drain tanks and pumps in pits to receive the discharge of con- densates flowing from the coolers August 26, 1920 THE IRON AGE 511 ere mixed with gas going into the saturator. as from the saturators passes to the final rs. which are arranged for direct water cooling, vater coming into direct contact with the gas. ater is sprayed from the top and trickles down oh wooden grids, as the gas passes up from the From the final coolers the gas goes through ries of three hurdle scrubbers, 85 ft. in height 2 ft. in diameter, the gas entering at the bot- nd the absorbing oil at the top. Here the Provided (Right) in the tform Has Been which Gives Easy Access to the Dephlegmators, which the Temperature at the Top of the Stills. The structure houses ntinuous light oil stills, a crude still and two refining nate Storage ortable Con- for Loading ts Direc tly Cars on the Filling Bagging Benzol Distil! benzol products are washed out of the gas and the benzol absorbing oil mixture is pumped by Goulds direct motor-driven centrifugal pumps to the benzol plant proper. A novel feature of this section of the Wisconsin plant is the pitch extractor, which was designed by the Wilputte company and has been nicknamed the “tar baby.” The tar baby consists of a motor-driven shaft with scoop arms operating in an horizontal cylinder. The arms scoop the pitch from the bot- Foreground (Left) \re t Hot Drain Tanks e Wilputts ‘Tar Baby in the Left Back ir the Ammonia Still Building and to Service ing stills ee ee tom of the cylinder and raise it to the level of a platform where it can be easily removed. Hereto- fore pitch has passed directly into hot drain tanks and workmen have been required to descend into the tanks with boots and shovel to remove the pitch, or a crane and grab bucket have been employed for the purpose. Another desirable point of design which should not be overlooked in describing the Wisconsin plant is the location of the pump room, which utilizes the space under the primary coolers. This arrangement is advantageous because with it it was possible to place the primary coolers at a sufficient elevation so that it was unnecessary to sink the hot drain tanks in pits to receive the discharge of condensates flow- ing from the coolers. It will be noted in one of the accompanying illustrations that the tanks are above the yard level. The pump room is equipped with two Chicago Pneumatic Tool Co, air compressors, an Ingersoll Rand vacuum pump, five Goulds absorbent oil pumps, one triplex Goulds tar loading pump, two Goulds het drain pumps, two Goulds ammonia feed pumps, one Goulds tar flushing pump, and one duplex Cameron tar flushing pump. All the pumps are electrically driven, except the Cameron tar flushing pump, which is operated by steam, this being a pre- caution against interruptions in electrical power. The compressors are also steam driven. In the benzol plant two continuous light oil stills separate the light oils from the benzol absorbing oil mixture. From the stills the light oils pass to underground tanks and from there into a crude still where they are fractionated into different crude products, including benzol, toluol and_ solvent naphtha. The residue is pumped to naphthaline pans where it is allowed to cool for naphthaline deposits. The wash oil is drained back into the absorbing oil circulation. The crude products drained from the stills pass to the underground tanks and from there are forced by steam pumps to agitators where the oil is washed with a solution of sulphuric acid, then washed with caustic soda, and finally with water. There are two agitators of 5000 gal. capacity each. The sludge from the agitators is drained directly into cinder ladles and hauled to a cinder bank where it is burned with hot slag from the blast furnaces. After the washing and agitating processes the oil passes by gravity back to the underground tanks and THE IRON AGE August 26, 1929 is then pumped to the refining stills wher pure benzol, pure toluol, pure solvent naphtha and pure xylol are made. One of the novel features in the design of the distilling building is the fact tha; a floor has been provided around the dephlegmatoys which control the temperature at the top of the stills. This arrangement gives the men in charge easy access to the dephlegmators. The placing of the tanks underground is also an innovation, which was necessitated by city ordinance. There are thirty. one 10,000-gal. tanks in all, covered with a top layer of sand. , Adjacent to the tanks is a loading b lilding, equipped with calibrated water glass gages showing the amount of oil in each tank. For each product. i.e. benzol, toluol, solvent naphtha, and xylol, separate pumps and loading reservoirs have been provided to load drums for shipment. These products are also shipped in tank cars, the cars being filled direct}; from the underground storage tanks. In the boiler house serving the coke plant are three Edge Moor boilers of 500 hp. each, furnished by the Edge Moor Iron Co., Edge Moor, Del. The boilers are fired by Coxe mechanical stokers, manu- factured by the Combustion Engineering Corpora- tion, New York. The stokers burn coke breeze but the boilers are equipped with gas connections for emergency. Among the facilities provided by the Wisconsin Steel Works, itself, is an intake and pump house, equipped with two centrifugal pumps, one driven by direct-connected motor and the other by a Kerr Turbine Co. steam turbine, which draw a water sup- ply from the Calumet River and deliver it at 110 ft. head. In this connection it is worth noting that excepting the water supply and sewer pipes, there is not a pipe underground or in trenches in the entire coke plant. The Wisconsin Steel Works also installed four service houses, each equipped .with steel lockers, wash basins, toilets and shower baths. One of the two larger service stations serves the by-product section and the other the oven batteries and the coal and coke handling department. One of the smaller stations is at the benzol plant and the other at the boiler house. Domestic ‘coke produced by the Wisconsin plant is sold to employees and is used in gas producers at a few of the finishing mills which are not equipped to use coke oven gas. Part of the surplus gas is fur- Electric Power on Tracks ground is the larry car The Larry Car Operates by Running receiving the Length of the Top of the Ovens. coal from the larry bin august 26, 1920 THE IRON AGE 513 | \Il4 “is Ny Agr tator Blalg, { || || L | SS ———— ee a rl Se 4 W|I | 11] | : 1 | | Plan View of the By-Products Plant The plant is soutl f the n n works between two slips 1 from the Calumet River It is served by switch tracks from the Pe vania System, the Chicago & Western Indiana Railroad and the Belt Railway of Chicago nished to the city of Chicago and the remainder is Employees of the Wisconsin coke plant work in ised in the heating furnaces at the company’s steel eight-hour turns six days a week, each man receiv- mills, ing 24 hours off weekly. i ' 4 Immigration Questionnaire others in all zones from those carrying a freight rate ; io _ of 15%c. and under per 100-lb. up to $1.95 per 100-lb. n Ericson, consulting engineer, Department of Since oil country pipe is the only class of material sold : Works, Chicago, recently made a survey among on a delivered price basis, the new freight on other neers of the country to ascertain their views kinds of pipe are to be paid by buyers. gard to a proposed move to modify our present stringent immigration laws in order to permit a more : lux . the pick-and-shovel type of workers. Hot-Rolled Strip Makers Organize ie also made an effort to get the ideas of these men ; 4 nae mrecent: res of : 1 har of ° n ports ee of Chinese laborers for limited per- Represe ntatives of a numbe1 of manufactt urers of er the supervision of a commission to be com- hot-rolled strip — at a meeting held in Atlantic City 1 = TT} redaw f ( > ‘ > ‘ , g igati representatives of the Department of Labor and Thursday, Aug. 19, effected a te mporary organization ' s and farming interests and under such re- be known as the Hot Rolled Strip Steel Manufac- ; ns and limitations as formulated by the com- turers Association, A. WwW. Harrison of the Superior “ ssion Steel Corporation, Pittsburgh, was elected president; This survey covering the members and associate H. G. Naugle of the National Pressed Steel Co., Mas- ; American Society of Civil Engineers has ‘ilon, Ohio, vice-president; James Lippincott of the the receipt of nearly two thousand answers, West Leechburg Steel Co., Pittsburgh, treasurer, and J isand of which, classified, shows the senti- ‘ harles M. Best, Pittsburgh, secretary. The associa- follows: tion probably will take form along the lines of the Cold i ta} ; Rolled Strip Steel Manufacturers Association. ; hinese labor a eens ‘eae } s¢ t ng for such importation i4 } exclusive of Chinese.... : 56 7 D F saving machinery. . 10 Listing Manufacturers’ Surplus Stock \ > ieee + The Manufacturers’ Stee] Exchange Co., Naperville, ; Ill., has installed a system by means of which it is list- 1,00° ing surplus stock of certain manufacturers and mak- ; ing the existence of that surplus known to other man- Se 7. 7 ne ufacturers in need of goods listed. Special printed ; mposite Price Card on Pipe forms have been prepared, on which can be written Tul - s ; : both surplus and stock required. Bi-monthly stock lists ; : ane Co., instead of issuing separate are being sent out. ; ng the net prices of oil country goods, roducing districts, has issued a composite Ww rices of the different kinds of pipe in The Railroad Administration, according to Railway : . nstead of distributing a card giving the Age, broke the record for ton-miles, but the record for oe for example, in a certain district, the the number of tons hauled still belongs to private 1a aN riy gives the price of this grade and all management. 514 Welding Castings of Different Metals The welding of castings of different metals and dif- ferent sections was discussed by George B. Malone, Bayonne Steel Casting Co., Bayonne, N. J., before the annual meeting of the American Foundrymen’s Asso- ciation at Philadelphia. To be able to weld castings of different metals, he said, was one of the most import- ant accomplishments a foundryman can possess to-day. A great many times it is possible to salvage an ex- pensive casting by welding, which was unheard of a few years ago. The speaker pointed out that brazing should not be employed except for minor repairs on castings. In the first place, he said, upon microscopic examination it will be noted that fine hair line cracks are easily discernible. All the time and labor that was spent in preparing the casting for brazing will be lost in a many yreatl cases. Preheating the Castings The temperature to which any piece should be pre- heated, it was explained, depends upon the metal of is made, its shape, size and the purpose of the “To illustrate the difference in preheating Mr. Malone said, first a heavy piece of cast iron the shape of which should not produce any shrinkage strains when cooling and on the other hand a light complicated casting such as an automobile cylinder. In the first very evi- dent that the purpose of preheating is largely to save gas and labor and that the preheating can be carried to which it preheating. ‘ temperatures,” ‘consider case 1U 18 as high a temperature as a cherry red because there will be no danger from distortion or cracking. In the second case, the conditions are entirely different. The preheating must not be carried to so high a degree as 1 it must be earried high without cracking when cooling. In amount of saved by preheating is very small. In the first the temperature may vary from 1200 to 1500 deg. Fahr., it should never exceed 800 deg. where the style or type of cylinder is low temperature is sufficient.”” The instruments be used to measure to warp the cylinder and stil permit thi Unis enough to contraction course, the gas case, of case, while in the second case In other cases, quite simple, a speaker suggested that +} + , ) . } the he LL ich as thermocouples. In welding hollow castings that might have small such as water backs, radiator castings, must be taken. } ] VW noes, + ++ + great care said, “that was emphasized tha these castings “It is very important,” he hould be preheated first. There are no special instruc- tions that can be given in these cases other than that an nte] nt welder use p ution.” Large steel castings, it was explained, may be welded where wear is not a factor without preheating, l pre rable nN ail Cases particularly where iron r ( cas S lle ina damp place or where they are subjected to intense cold, that they be brought to the welding temperature slowly. The reason for this is as soon as the welding torch applied to a cold casting the chances for crystallization are good and not only will a poor weld result but in a great many cases the casting will be rendered unfit for use. Welding Nonferrous Castings In the salvaging of brass and bronze castings by welding was pointed out that great care must be <ercised. ‘“‘When it is necessary to weld,” the speaker Lid i consider the casting to be welded and then endeavor to secure a welding rod of an analysis similar the casting. You will then find very little difficulty rs and saving a great many dollars This particularly true in welding brass or bronz ‘astings which may have to be polished and will shov 1 different color at the weld.” Monel-metal castings were explained a el! n harder to weld than ordinary iron castings if the prop procedure is followed. “On account of the combination of copper with the nickel in uL ( > Monel-metal,” Mr. Malone iid, “‘both brought to a rather hith pre temperature, say 1600 deg. Fahr., the After the casting is welded it should must be heating before weld is attempted. again to approximately 1500 deg. and placed } »l, + ve prougn THE IRON AGE August 25 1920 in hydrated lime in order to prevent any a access to it. Now this same principle appli: tically every type of casting. The average fo will tell you that when the weld was made looked first rate, but 10 min. afterward cracked. The reason for this is that prope: not taken with the casting after the weld The casting should have been allowed to « Hydrated lime, Mr. Malone stated, was the stance with which he was acquainted for co ings slowly. Open Side Shaper and Planer The accompanying i.lustration shows a open side shaper and planer which is now being pla on the market by the Universal Machine & Too! ( Canton, Ohio. The column, being located on hand side, makes it possible to operate the without going from one side to the other, acc large work which overhangs the table and permits t operating of the machine without work int with the operator. There are four speeds controlled by leve operator’s side of the machine giving speeds Speeds of 7, 20 30 and 10 Strokes Per Min Are Provided on the Universal Open Side Shaper and Planer The planer, de providing 30 and 40 strokes per min. emphasized as combines accuracy with rapid product these speeds, is W hich As its goal in the improvement of tra service, the advisory committee of the Asso Railway Executives, of which Daniel Willard man has set the following definite ends: 1, A age daily minimum movement of freight cars 0! miles per day; 2, an average loading tons per car; 3, reduction of bad order cars ' mum of 4 per cent of total owned; 4, a! substantial reduction in the number of lo« unfit for service: 5, should make more eff to bring about the return of cars to the ow than 30 Marshall Furnace, Newport, Pa., is installs chinery to crush and pulverize for roofing , iron that has accumu furnaces. Slag will likewise be sent fron the Central Iron & Steel Co., Harrisbu! crushed at the Newport plant. } siag manganese The Mason Machine Works Co., Taunt other machinery, has laid off indefinit This action was necessary’ owing molders in progress three weeks. ists. Lae ae ees Pi at an Serious Labor Problems in Cleveland Truckling to Agitators in Time of the Steel Strike Followed by Many Troubles—Practical Demonstration of Working of Shop Committees BY GEORGE Aug. 19—A few motor trucks were 20 years ago, but the rapid development of the industry did not begin until about 1914. Since me, various conditions have been responsible for reased demand for this form of transportation. World War gave tremendous impetus to the manu- VELAND, { g of trucks, and it has continued in peace times extent that no one anticipated, either before or the war. The transportation troubles ntinued for months have which demonstrated atl : thi Ise ths ~ I i clearly than anything else what can be accom- many y the use of motor trucks, and now the heavy e in freight rates is likely to add to the popularity ick. While, of course, the equipment of the will be gradually improved, it is believed that tor truck as a method of delivery for fairly long Under the present freight rates, estimated that trucking can be carried on econom s will increase. ‘ompetition with the railroads up to 100 miles, ] will not be surprising if under the new freight trucking for even longer distances will be Fiah) able, talking with Vice-President Walter C. | White of the White Motor Co., Cleveland, which is manufacturing »0 motor trucks per day, I found him thoroughly opti istic as to the future of the product of his company interesting fact,” said Mr. White, “that down New England where at present there is marked de- n cottons, leather products and woolen goods, P= farther behind in delivery of trucks than in any the country. The truck is in demand, whether is prosperous or otherwise. In fact, in recent events that have ited to the popularity of the motor truck.” th 1ere has been a succession of White Shop Committees lhe White in Cleveland, and its success is due, to a very tent, to the way it has handled the labor prob- e are numerous interesting phases of its it I wish to speak only of one, that relating mittee. The men who control the policies pany, Windsor T. White, president; Walter Motor Co. is one of the most successful SMART C. White, first vice-president, and E. W. Hulet, second vice-president and production manager, believe in shop very emphatically that no system will prove of value unless employees have con- commmittees, but they declare fidence in the management and the management has confidence in the employees. While they do not express any opinion as to what policy should be adopted by other companies, they believe in a very simple system so far as their own company is concerned. The shop committee plan of the White Motor Co. 1915. operation. It has It has, therefore, successful was put into operation June 1, had five years of been in maintaining a fine spirit among the men, and it has not resulted as some opponents of employee representa tion would fear, in the management of the plant being It is no time has the manage- taken out of the control of the company officials. especially significant that at ment been called upon to bargain with the men collec these tively for wages, hours or conditions, although subjects have been freely and frankly discussed. Some six years ago, the company abandoned the idea that the law of supply and demand alone should govern in hiring and firing. A comparative study was made of the cost of living for many centuries and in many countries, showing the natural effects of wars, and, as a result of this study, the probable trend in America puted. was com- Plans were formulated for steadily increasing wage scales to keep pace with the increasing cost of living. Up to the present time, the forecast has been fully justified. In were $15.03 for 1915, the average weekly earnings 59 hr. work, while in 1919, the average was $31.64 for 491. hr. The company estimates that from 1914 to 1919, the purchasing power of a dollar de- clined to 50 cents, hence it will be seen that the advance in wages has been more than enough to make up for the decreased purchasing power of a dollar, and the men are working 91% hours per week less. Shop Committee Meetings Each department is divided into groups of ten men, and a representative is each group. The em- ployees elected by the various groups in one department 3ut to return to the shop committee system. elected by Product, Wages and Turnover given below presents a comparison of production values, number f employees and wages paid, through 1919, by the White Motor Co., showing the growth of the compar ind the policy of a con ; reasing wage to meet the increasing cost of living Average Factory Weekly Value of F. Estimate Earning Truck Trucks Value Buying Jased r Ma Produced of Average Power 51 Weeks’ Hours Hour Tota Per Per Man Product No. Men f $1.00 Work Work Pay Wage Year Per Year® 836, 2: 1,072 $14.04 60 60 $767,496 2.290 $3,578.63 097,5: 1.41! 12.82 -g 60% 127.696 1.985 3.592.33 ‘ 75 1.852 13.53 59 611, 1.278.426 1.785 3,639.17 6.795.196 1.964 : 13.45 "9 6114 1.347.064 1.785 3,459.87 4,023,172 2,202 $1.00 15.03 59 61%, 1,688,467 1.924 4,097.72 1.040.078 3,758 .90 16.51 54%, 59% 3,163,857 2.460 5,598.72 153,311 3,611 86 17.34 5414 5914 3,186,921 2.082 4,722.60 ~-.448,927 4,341 72 20.94 54, 591, 4.637.105 2.040 5,171.33 0.952.748 4.844 55 27.07 54%, 591, 6,688,051 2.720 6,389.91 56.000 5.475 =a 31.64 491, 52 c 8 £35 000 2.751 6,456.62 er, 1919, Estimated. reentage of labor turnover of the White Motor Co. has been as follows 1915, 61; 1916, 82; 1917, 74; : 1919, 24.5 ‘ . owt 515 REO 8 CNR Me NAS ro Ae iit tiation eee o 516 form the department committee. There is one commit- teeman for each 10 employees. Committees are elected by secret ballot. At the meetings, which are held bi- weekly, departments separately, on company’s time, all questions of interest, whether pertaining to the factory or not are freely discussed. The committee meetings are open Minutes of the meetings are type. written and posted on the bulletin boards of the depart- ment locker rooms. In looking the minutes of a recent I found a wide including the probable effects of the war between the Bolsheviki and Poland, but most of the topics related to matters much nearer home. If, for example, a mem forums. over number of meetings, range of subjects, ber of the committee felt that the company was selling sugar a cent higher than it could be obtained elsewhere he asked for a reason and explanation by the represent- ative of the company and it was given. If any employee believed that he was suffering from any discomfort or injustice, he talked right out in meeting. As one reads these minutes, he can hardly fail to be convinced that THE IRON AGE August 26, 1999 the way to prevent trouble of a serious ch to remove the cause in its incipiency. Men meetin, regularly, face to face, and talking over things jy this iCter js way must come to respect each other, if every mo, plays fair, and the sentiment of the White company so strong in favor of the “square deal,” that any » who did not play fair, would not long have infyene a committeeman or otherwise. The policy of the company is characteriz y sim plicity and sincerity. Ask the company officials what they think about the claim that men can prody Luce much in nine hours as in 10, and they will tel! you tha: it has been tested with “considerable success,” but they do not use extravagant language about the shorter hours, the shop committees, or any other feature of th, company’s policy. If, however, one makes even a short visit to the plant, he is convinced that the men who manage the White Motor Co., with the constant operation of their employees, have done much to demo: strate what can be accomplished by following out { very simple principles of the Golden Rule. How Cleveland Is Solving Its Problems The labor situation in Cleveland, in spite of some bright spots, has been and still is very unsatisfactory. During the steel strike last fall, the mayor openly took the part of the strikers and caused the arrest of many men for no other reason than that they came to Cleve- land to seek jobs. The courts put a stop to this high- handed proceeding after a long delay, but union labor has continued to dominate in a highly offensive manner. The plumbers have been on a strike since June 1 to en- foree demands for $12 per day and tools furnished, and have seriously interfered with building operations. They have just refused to arbitrate. The pattern makers are on a strike demanding an increase of 50c an hour, or a new rate of $1.75 per hour, a rate much higher than that of any other city in the country. Although there is little promise of early change for the better in labor conditions, some highly important influences are quietly at work. One of these is the deter- mination of manufacturers to fight for the open shop The employers of the pattern makers have taken a firm stand for the open shop and plans of 2 much more elaborate character for fighting for it as never before. will soon be announced. Another encouraging feature of the situation is the persistent and unostentatious effort that is being made to get employers and employees together in a more friendly way. This is being done by having meetings of small groups of employers and employees to discuss their common interests with the utmost frankness. That employers are manifesting profound interest in ques- tions relating to labor and capital, there can be no ques- tion. A manufacturer who has been very successful in handling labor problems has been so much in demand that he found he would be compelled to give up his business if he responded to the calls made upon him by other manufacturers. “I have finally decided,” he said to me, “that I will continue with my business, but I have set aside two days a month to devote to efforts to improve the relations of employers and employees. My idea is that I can render the best service by thor- oughly establishing the Christian principles, in which I believe, in my own plants. If they succeed there, the effect upon many other plants will be greater than any- thing I could do in any other way.” A General Manager Surprised This manufacturer believes that if employers who work with their men, treat them with the utmost confidence and tell them all there is to be known about the business, there will be no trouble. For example, recently he was called upon to settle a controversy j regard to piece rates in a factory. The general man- ager at first objected to talking frankly with the m but finally consented. A complete financial statem of the company’s affairs was submitted to the me Everything that could possibly bear upon the contro- versy was discussed. New rates were agreed upon and put into effect. Some weeks later, the general man- ager had the biggest surprise of his life when a com- mittee of the men came to him and asked to have som of the rates reduced, saying that they were earning more than what they were entitled to. This manuface- turer believes with William B. Dickson of the Midva'e Steel & Ordnance Co., that, “The chief end of an indus- trial plant is to produce useful products in such a man- ner as to conserve the highest good of all of the individ uals concerned in and affected by the enterprise; 1-¢. owners, workmen and the public.” Mr. Dickson in a! address at Forest Hills, L. I., last April said, “Probably the most important truth which lies a the base of proper human relations, is that the Golde! Rule is not a sickly sentimentality, a pious platitud an invention of priestcraft, a rule fitted only { women and children, and not for the market-place an¢ factory; but, on the contrary, a stern scientific reality the proper recognition of which is as essential to cor rect human relationship as any physical law is to dustry.” Doubters may scoff but believers in the Golden Ru in Cleveland are exercising an influence which will felt in the better days that are coming. The City Club’s Forum Another encouraging feature of conditions in Cleve- land is that economic questions are being fully freely discussed, everybody being given an opportun'') to express his views. Cleveland has long been famous for the questi”! asking system inaugurated by the late Tom L. Johnso! and this plan is being carried on systematically a ; the auspices of the City Club. Meetings are held : noon in the Public Square at which a representatl’ of the City Club presides. The speaker of the day » introduced, talks for about half an hour, and then , ' swers questions for half an hour. The other ad heard Robert S. Binkerd, assistant to the es 7 the Associated Railway Executives of America, of see York, speak in the open-air forum of the City te answer to Glenn E. Plumb, who had spoken in the sa™ place two weeks before. Mr. Binkerd made an rer iC able August 26, 1920 h in opposition to the Plumb plan, which was ed to most attentively by a large audience. Then the questions. Anyone was allowed to ask a ques- which was repeated by the chairman and then red by the speaker of the day. Some questioners nelined to be unpleasant, but most of the ques- was done.in an intelligent and good natured Coal Wage Settlement in Sight wHicaGo, Aug. 21.—Notwithstanding the failure of int scale committee of the coal operators and rs to come to an agreement in Cleveland this week, believed that individual State settlements will be ed and a recurrence of the strike in the bituminous averted. The adjournment of the Cleveland ng had the immediate effect of closing the west- Kentucky and the Indiana mines and a few of the ; mines. On Monday, however, Illinois operators 1iners will meet, and it is believed that an agree- will be reached. In the central and southern portions of Illinois where 85 per cent of the tonnage is produced, the wages of ‘day” men are not in proper relation to those of ‘tonnage’ men. In the northern part of Illinois, ere the veins are thin, the wages of the day and ize men are now about the same. Owing to the e of making agreements of general application, rease in pay for the day men will make their pay r than that of the unloaders in northern Illinois, | thereby inevitably cause the latter also to demand an increase. Owing to this difficulty it is feared that the new agreement, if signed as a result of delibera- ns next week, will prove only a temporary peace. Steel Strike Leader in Seattle SEATTLE, WASH., Aug. 16.—William Z. Foster, syn- and secretary of the general committee on the trike of last year, has entered the lecture field the far West. THE IRON AGE representative learns t Foster is to lecture at a labor picnic here on Sun- \ug. 27. In many public places and across some main streets are large posters announcing Fos- oming to tell of lessons from the great steel ke. Foster has a new job. He is now circulation ger of the New Majority, a labor paper published cago. This publication desires to secure 2000 ibseribers in Seattle and nearby districts, and one mission of Foster. The picnic is given the auspices of the Metal Trades Council of an organization embracing no less than 19 trades, with its headquarters in the Collins Seattle. S Little Falling Off in Detroit olTt, Aug. 21.——The Employers’ Association of nas sent out the following statement to its mem- ler date of Aug. 18: rary to rumors and the general expectation, arometer shows a net increase of 240 men eek of Aug. 17. This barometer covers 78 an employing strength of 200,000. Some ‘irms report decreases, the total being 2833, are increasing and added in the week 3073 e firms, employing 2574 men, are running having reduced their schedule by about a week. All of the others report that they running normally, except in so far as the tage necessitates their operating part of on night shifts. ew the situation, there is a net decrease of than 7 per cent in the working forces of since April 1. } t a >uperior Sheet Steel Co., Canton, Ohio, has Pay peration its new plant at Louisville, Ohio. hot mills, two stands of cold mills and por- other departments are now in operation. THE IRON AGE 517 manner, indicating that the authors had been reading and thinking. If anyone doubts that there is live inter- est in economic questions in Cleveland, it will be well for him to attend one of the meetings in the square. Certain it is that unless a man is thoroughly informed and has some gift in repartee, he had better not attempt to speak in the City Club forum. More Cars for Oil Country Tubular Goods PITTSBURGH, Aug. 23.—Sixty open-top cars daily are made available for the shipment of oil country tubular goods from Pittsburgh and Youngstown mills by permit No. 107 of the Interstate Commerce Commis- sion, further modifying orders Nos. 7 and 9. This permit, issued at the behest of the American Petroleum Institute, is expected to provide much relief for oil producers who must have supplies of pipe and casings to continue operations or complete construction of wells now under construction. Michael J. Gormley, repre- senting the American Petroleum Institute, will act with the railroad car service committees here and in Youngs- town in passing on merits of claims for supplies. The permit is not effective outside Pittsburgh and Youngstown, and only the manufacturers located in these centers will be able to secure allotments of these extra cars, which under the order are to be of Western ownership and are to move to the western and south- western oil fields, where the need of supplies of pipe is most pressing. Allotment of cars is to be upon the base of capacity of the different companies. Under this distribution the National Tube Co. is to receive 24 cars, the Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. 13, the Republic Iron & Steel 7, Spang, Chalfant & Co. 7, Jones & Laughlin Steel Co. 6, and A. M. Byers Co. 4. The Youngstown allotment will be divided by the Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. and the Republic Iron & Steel Co., as the only producers in that district. The minimum carload of pipe going West is 86,000 it., or 43 tons, but as the permit allows the use of open- top cars, regardless of the height of the side, it is probable that the loadings will average well up to 50 tons per car, making possible the shipment of approxi- mately 3000 tons daily from both centers during the life of the order. Outlook in Foundry Trade CuicaGco, Aug. 21.—The foundry industry, which has been exceptionally busy throughout the year, has not been materially affected by curtailment in automobile and motor truck output. It is to be noted, however, that many melters are working against large backlogs accumulated earlier in the year rather than on new orders. Foundries which have a diversified output are in a strong position, while those which have specialized on automotive work are reaching the point where they will need new business. That some melters are already in that situation is indicated by offerings of resale iron at several points in Michigan. The experience of a large Eastern manufacturer which was recently forced to job out its foundry work because of a strike is also indicative of easier conditions; this company, which uses quantities of castings ranging from small to large sizes, not only succeeded in contracting for all its work within a few weeks, but is still receiving numerous offers from melters. It is felt in some quar- ters that heavy purchases of equipment by the rail- roads will offset slackening in other lines, but whether railroad buying of large proportions will actually materialize this fall is open to conjecture. The Uehling Instrument Co., 71 Broadway, New York, manufacturer of fuel economy equipment, an- nounces that it is now being represented in New Eng- land by the Smith Engineering & Supply Co., 89 State Street, Boston, manufacturers’ agent and engineer, specializing in power plant equipment. S. W. Smith, president of the latter company, was until very recently associated with the Uehling Instrument Co., with head- quarters in its New York office. oh nena cm Se Tt Sa + Rego Rider oar rad wee _ e ears en ee eee 518 THE IRON AGE August 26, 1920 CANADA’S STEEL TARIFF percentages will be increased, as Canada in the past has not been enthusiastically in favor of this pref fer. a et ence. Its Relation to Exports from the United States— In the fiscal year ending June 30, 1920, the Uniteg Proposed Downward Revision States exported to Canada $890,135,023 worth f manu. factured and other products, against $810,745,169 . WASHINGTON, Aug. 24.—Plans for the revision of the preceding year. These figures were almost doub\e ES the Canadian tariff laws have a particular interest for the imports from that country. In 1920 the imports Ee the American iron and steel industry. No other sec- from Canada were $537,377,381, and in 1919 they we; a tion of the Canadian tariff statutes is so comprehensive $468,954,818. Only one country was a greater istomer e as the one whick covers importation of iron and _ of the United States in 1920, namely, England. In 19}9 Ps steel. More than 100 individual paragraphs are de- France bought more than Canada, but receded to t! 5 voted to this industry. The law, as it stands, was. place in 1920. 4 carefully written to protect Canadian industries. If The Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce P Canada produced the article in question, it was pretty has not complete itemization of all the exports of iron . sure to put that article under a protective tariff. If and steel to Canada during 1920. The more important ¥ Canada did not, the duty was low or probably removed items, however, are of considerable interest in showing E entirely. The appointment of the Canadian tariff com- the fluctuations in values of some of the larger totals mission, which has announced its program for this of this commerce. The following table contains th fall’s work of revision, was largely the result of pres- values of iron and steel exports to Canada for the fisca sure from the liberal elements who want revision down- years ended June 30, 1919 and 1920, as far as suc} ward. Much of it comes from the rural districts where exports have been compiled: the farmers complained of the high prices of agricul- tural machinery. Iron and Steel Exports to Canada The city dwellers who are not participants in a pro- tected industry declare that the tariff was responsible Fiscal Year Fk 1919 for much of the high cost of living. On the other hand pig iron ..........cccceccecceeccee $3,437,416 ‘ : . . : : : ts rag S ¢£ 3 : 3 95 5 the Canadian industrial representatives insisted that promene and blooms.......... me . ° ° s<0C0 CH «~ceeeeeereereeeeeeseeeese ‘ (,0e a reduction of the tariff would leave them defenseless Metal-working machinery .......... 4,581,495 f against American industry. They pointed out the Sewing machines ...........+....+. 550,134 ie Ee: “ile Cvpewriting m: whines Seen awk 6 CS 900,233 large number of infant industries which were estab- Wire nails .............