The Iron Age 1923-11-22: Vol 112 Iss 21

ESTABLISHED 1855 THE IRON AGE New York, November 22, 1923 VOL. 112, No. 21 Manufacture of Post Office K.quipment with the coincident stoppage of important con- struction work, resulted in the naval establish- ments being confronted with the serious problem of reducing personnel to a point commensurate with the reduced activities remaining under the provisions of the treaty. This deflation required intensive reorgani- zation of departments in the manufacturing establish- ments and involved consolidations and similar moves for maintaining efficient operating conditions. To carry on the necessary remaining naval work there was required a nucleus force of skilled mechanics whom, by reason of their many years of experience in the manufacturing and fabrication of ordnance material and special navy material, manifestly it would be difficult to replace in periods of national emergency. While the treaty did not necessitate abandonment of all Sssceauaveanscucnvonnaevunoncencnonocnnennannnanseneeconeecucanenenisiey Fig. 1—(Upper Left) Match Plate Pattern Equipment Permitting Independent Operation of Two Separate Molding Floors Before Pouring Castings Fig. 2—(Lower Right) Another View of Match Plate Pattern Equipment (Oval) A Day’s Result of Spraying of Letter Boxes Ready to Be Placed in Baking Oven S IGNING of the treaty limiting naval armament, HCE UaEa MON REOD Naval Gun Factory at Washington Makes Tools for Production Work and Then Does That Work—Experiments with Non-Corrosive Metals lines of naval construction, the work which could be continued was not of such status as to permit it to be carried along without delay. Substitution for the activities which were stopped by the treaty called for obtaining material for new lines of work and the per- fecting of plans for carrying on the work ahead of the original building program. This condition presented a problem in profitably employing the necessary nucleus of skilled workmen in the meantime. As government manufacturing plants are forbidden by law to enter commercial fields and to take on work of a purely commercial character, it was necessary to limit consideration of profitably using naval plants to the requirements of other federal departments, In- vestigation showed that a considerable amount of sup- plies for the federal departments could be manu- factured in plants such as the naval gun establish- ment at Washington as economically as when pre- viously obtained from commercial sources. And manufacture of such material in a government plant, that otherwise would be operating on a limited scale, would result in cutting down unit overhead expense and bring about a saving to the federal treasury, even more than might be evident at first glance. a ee 7 ee aL ere eee nen “ 1370 THE IRON AGE Fie. 3—After Cooling, Castings Are Gaged and In- spected for Precision Before Shipping Convinced of the potentiality of cooperation be- tween federal departments, the Post Office Depart- ment placed with the naval gun plant at Washington a manufacturing order for the production of the letter boxes required as a supply for one year. Previous to placing this order, the Post Office Department de- cided to redesign and standardize the several types of letter and mail boxes. This was to eliminate, as far as possible, features which tended greatly to increase production costs, and also to make possible the fabrica- tion of the boxes by use of production methods with machinery to a larger extent than was possible with previous designs. In connection with the manufacture of the box of new design, the Post Office Department also planned to have pro- duced, as the property of the Govern- ment, all of the necessary stamping and forming tools for the manufacture of parts. These tools have been made to fit the average commercial equipment and are to be furnished to contractors who may receive subsequent contracts for boxes. In carrying out these plans the naval gun plant was authorized to design and manufacture the necessary tools for use in manufacturing detailed parts for the boxes, with a view to eco- nomical production methods. Design of the letter boxes having provided standardization and_inter- changeability so far as possible, the tools were designed and made with the object of effecting the greatest latitude of interchangeability of tools between the several types of boxes, together with the necessary accuracy to permit maximum economy in assembly of the parts produced. In addition to the establishment of mechanical standards in the manufac- ture of letter boxes, the department has been confronted for some years with the problem of preventing deteriora- of mail box equipment in service, due November 22, 1922 primarily to corrosion. In maniggections of the coun try, such as along the seacoast and in manufacturing centers, salt air, acid fumes, etc., cause rapid deterior tion of steel equipment. This necessitates large ex). ditures for upkeep and replacement. Hence the depar: ment desired to conduct practical tests under ser\ conditions of mail box equipment made from mate: more resistent to corrosion than ordinary steel. The partment previously had been utilizing copper-bearing steel for this purpose, as it was recognized that th material is slightly superior to steel containing no copper, but this in itself has not proved entir satisfactory. With the cooperation of producers of other classes of metal, it was arranged to make experimental lot of standard letter boxes from brass, zinc and mone! metal, and there is under consideration other materia! more resistent to corrosion than steel. The naval gu plant made of these metals a number of boxes which will be sent out into service in localities where serious deterioration of steel boxes previously has taken plac This will provide a practical test under service con ditions, and determine whether the higher cost in volved in the initial production of the boxes, when made from the more expensive metals, is justified in view of the additional service obtained. In addition to the work in connection with the manufacture of boxes from special metals, all of the small steel boxes manu- factured by the naval gun plant were treated by the Parker rust-proof process and also were painted, in the belief that this treatment would enhance their re- sistance to corrosion. In this manufacture of letter boxes plans were made for dividing the project so as to facilitate production, effect economies and produce boxes of the several classes at the rate desired by the Post Office Department. While under ordinary conditions the manufacture of boxes all of one kind as a lot would have been the easier method, the needs of the department required boxes of the several types to be produced coincidently. This necessitated a program of work which would pro vide an adequate number of boxes to meet the needs of the service for each type of boxes.. With this in view, the CO eas ae Fig. 4—A 500-Ton, Single Action Press Embossing and Forming Sides of Letter Box, with Blank in Position for Operation November 22, 1923 THE IRON AGE Fig. 5—Showing Process of Sub-Assemblies Together With Final Assembly projects for the several classes were divided into lots which would permit efficient production. Consequently a program was arranged to carry each operation on a given type of box so as to preclude loss of time of equipment and personnel. The following general plan of operation was adopted in the handling of the work: 1—Design of tools. 2—Procurement of sheet steel and other commercial raw materials by purchase. 3—Manufacture of tools. 4—Production of the necessary patterns for manufacture of castings. 5—Cutting of sheet metal required in forming up parts in quantity by special shears and equipment formerly used in the manufacture of-ammaunition containers. 6—Manufacture of castings required for pull-down hirge fittings, ete. 7—Forming.-of- corner moldings for package boxes. and combination boxes, with special dies, using forge-shop equip- ment, : 8—Stamping; forming and~punching sheet metal details in heavy presses. designed, and ordinarily uséd,-for the nianu- facture of-ordnhance material. In these opefations the special tools and, équipment belonging to.thé Post ‘Office Department were utilized. ; 9—Production of sub-assemblies from detailed parts, such as hinge assemblies on fronts, punching additional holes. for final assembly, etc. 10—-Parkerizing and painting such. sub-assemblies as could not. be dled in the finally assembled box. 11—Final assembly of boxes from sub-assemblies and details > 12—-Méchanical inspection of assembled boxes. as a 13—Patitiang. of bowes.—In -this work small boxégg‘were painted by the,spraying method, one coating of red lead befng ap- plied and -air-dried, after which a coating, 2 of baking enamet Was applied and the b baked for setting the enamel. In the case of package boxes and combination boxes one coat of afr. dreing red lead. and one coat of air-drying standard paint were applied, 14—Final inspection of boxes.was by a commissioned officer of the United,;States ~ >. Navy and by Post Office inspectors: ’- : 15—Crating of boxes for shipment. 16—Shipment of boxes to various points as designated by the Post Office Depart- ment. * Productive patterns were made for use. in the manufacture of all castings, including pull-down parts covering the letter aperture, operating levers and feet. These patterns, when mounted on a split pattern, jar and squeeze, ram, pattern-draw molding machine, per- mitted production of castings at a minimum cost. Figs. 1 and 2 show the match plate pattern equipment, which allows the operation of two separate molding floors, each operating inde- pendently of the other until final as- sembly before pouring castings. After cooling, the castings are gaged and inspected for precision as shown in Fig. 8, thus assuring the minimum difficulty in assembly previous to ship- ping from the foundry. The tools were designed primarily so as to be applicable to any similar project, and for use on any or all of the various metals which have been mentioned. Embossing and Forming Blanking, embossing and forming of the metal mem- bers of the boxes was accomplished by the use of the power presses of the naval gun plant machinery equip- ment. . Until recently these presses were used in the manufacture of various sheet metal parts of torpedoes for naval use. It is of interest to observe that they range from 150-ton to 750-ton capacity. In Fig. 4 is shown a 500-ton, single action press in operation embossing and forming sides of the letter box, with the blank in position for operation and the resultant product in the hands of the operator. The back and front members, together with detail parts, are being produced by a similar method on double action presses. Fig. 5 shows the process of the sub- assemblies, together with the final assembly. The rout- ing of this material along with the operations is fol- lowed in sequence, to maintain a constant flow of Fig. 6—Corner Molding of Package Box Under Welding Process by Use of Acetylene Torch Se ee etc ce ae ae ad Pen erenas ss ea ne aS 1372 THE IRON AGE material for each succeeding operation and preclude as far as possible all lost motion and duplication of effort. Manufacture of the package boxes presented certain operations that were somewhat difficult, due to their design and size. These are made on machines similar to those used for making smaller letter boxes, the operation being identical except as to dimension and shapes. One 300-ton press operates a gang punch, capable of punching simultaneously any number or size of holes—from two to 18 in number and % in. to 1% in. in diameter. Fig. 6 shows the corner molding of a package box under the welding process by use of the acetylene torch. These corner molding members previously have been formed and bent hot by use of a die in a forge shop, later trimmed to the correct dimen- (In Circle) Final Assembly of Package Boxes for Red Leading and Painting Fig. 8 (Above) No. 2 Letter Boxes Be- ing Painted by Compressed Air Spray Under 40-Lb. Pressure sion and then ready for welding prior to assembly. Corner molding is riveted to side members by means of a pneumatic power-operated riveting machine. The corner molding functions in a dual capacity by (1) forming the main construction member of the box and (2) extending below the body of the box to the ground line and thus forming four supports or feet upon which the box rests when installed. Fig. 7 shows the final assembly of package boxes, after which they are ready for red leading and final painting. Fig. 8 shows No. 2 letter boxes being painted by compressed air spray operated under 40-lb. pressure. By this method one employee is capable of red-leading, or applying the final coating of chrome green enamel, to 220 boxes in a day of 8 hr. The boxes are then baked in an enameling oven at a temperature of 180 deg. Fahr. for a period of 4 hr. One illustration on page 1369 shows the result of a day’s spraying ready to be placed in the baking oven. It is interesting to note that otherwise idle mold and core-drying equip- ment in the foundry is being utilized for baking these enameled boxes. Reports received up to the present from the service regarding the boxes produced at the naval gun plant November 22, 1923 have been to the effect that the steel boxes compare favorably with any boxes previously produced. Enouc time has not expired to give an opinion with regard +, the justification of the use of higher-priced meta! the fabrication of the smaller sized boxes. Standard Sanitary Mfg. Co. Starts Construc- tion of New Baltimore Plant Standard Sanitary Mfg. Co., Pittsburgh, recen broke ground for its new Baltimore plant, which \ represent completed an investment of around $4,000 000. The plant, which will be located on a 48-acre s about one-half mile back from the waterfront, is to | a modern duplication of the present Pittsburgh distric: units of the company and will embrace a large found: an enameling department, a warehouse and a machine shop. Initial construction has been so mapped out that additions may be made to all of the buildings and there is space for the installation of a brass foundry and a pottery department, which the company figures ulti- mately will be necessary at this plant, the primary purpose of which is to better supply the New England and Atlantic Coast trade. There are rail connections to the site with all roads entering Baltimore and since there is only a short haul to the waterfront, it is prob- able the company will make a good many shipments by water. This plant is the largest item of an extensive building program of the company, which includes new warehouses in Indianapolis and Birmingham, Ala., be- side the extension of its Louisville, Ky., plant. The merger of the American Steam Pump Co., and the Advance Pump & Compressor Co., both of Battle Creek, Mich., has been agreed upon subject to the ap- proval of the stockholders of the respective organiza- tions. Ohio F oundrymen Meet in Toledo Association Considers Important Subjects and Re-elects Officers—Plant Visitations and Entertain- ment Features ITH an attendance of over 150, including mem- W bers of the Michigan and Indiana State asso- ciations, the annual meeting of the Ohio State Foundrymen’s Association was held Nov. 15 and 16 at the Toledo Yacht Club, where the visitors were en- tertained at luncheon the opening day as guests of the Toledo Founders’ Association and where a_ banquet and entertainment were provided in the evening. The meeting was opened with an address of wel- come by B. F. Brough, mayor of Toledo, who was in- troduced by C. C. Smith, Toledo Steel Castings Co., general chairman of the Toledo committee. An inter- esting program of papers was presented and some of these were followed by considerable discussion. Arthur J. Tuscany in his annual report as secretary-manager spoke of the marked progress that had been made by the association in the past year. During that period. 33 new members were taken in, four members were lost and the total present membership is 204. He spoke in praise of the work done by the consulting cost accoun- tant during the year and stated that 60 members are now using the cost system. A paper on “Patterns, the Starting Point of Profit and Loss,” was read by Dan M. Avey, managing editor of the Foundry, Cleveland. He referred to the waste due to inferior pattern equipment and favored educa- tional work among customers regarding proper pattern equipment. He also emphasized the need of close coop- eration between the pattern shop and the foundry. In some of the large foundries where the two depart- ments formerly did not work closely together, a marked change has appeared in the past few years and the speaker declared that jobbing foundries could profit by bringing about the same cooperation of the two de- partments. However, he said there is a third factor to be considered, this factor being the customer who must be taught to provide proper pattern equipment. The speaker referred to a practice followed by some foundries in having clauses in their contracts giving specifications for their pattern equipment and sug- gested that the foundries go further back and include pattern specifications in their forms used for making estimates. W. M. Todd, district manager of the Western Ad- justment Co., Toledo, read a paper on “Your Insurance Contracts and the Adjustment of Losses,” and also re- ferred to Mr. Avey’s discussion, declaring that the bone of contention of insurance adjusters is in obsolete pat- terns and that it would be a great help to adjusters in case of fire if there were no obsolete patterns to dis- pute over. Mr. Todd urged foundrymen to become well acquainted with the terms of their insurance contracts, stating that by so doing they might save themselves from considerable financial loss in case of fire. “Technical Control in the Brass Foundries” was the subject of a paper by Fred L. Wolf, technical superin- tendent of the Ohio Brass Co., Mansfield, Ohio, who declared that users of alloys are becoming more critical and emphasized the importance of technical control throughout a foundry and also urged a carrying on of research work in all departments. Referring to some tests in his company’s plant, he said that it had been found that a reduction of 100 deg. in the pouring tem- perature made a difference of 13,000 Ib. in the tensile strength of the metal tested. The speaker also consid- ered the core department from the technical standpoint and pointed out the advantages of technical control in that department. He said that in their plant standard mixtures had been adopted for different cores as well as various combinations to produce the same results. Core losses formerly amounting to 40 per cent had been reduced to less than 8 per cent last year. “Foundry Costs, Ferrous and Non-ferrous,” was discussed at some length by E. T. Runge, E. T. Runge Cost Co., Cleveland, who circulated a questionnaire among the foundrymen asking them to make an esti- mate of the cost of making 100 lb. of gray iron based on certain stated prices for material and labor. Re- plies to this questionnaire showed a range of from 4.80c. to lle. per Ib., or a difference of almost 6.20c. per bb. A similar questionnaire on the cost of making brass castings showed a difference of 9c. per Ib. in the estimates. T. E. Jones outlined courses for the training of foremen and of conference leaders that are being of- fered to the manufacturers of Ohio by the Trades and Industries Division of the Ohio State Board of Voca- tional Education, with which it is affiliated. He pointed out that the modern foreman lacks the background of training. In the foreman’s course the plan he sug- gested was to pick out 15 from 25 or more foremen in a plant and give them a course of training for two weeks and during the same time he would select from the 15, five or six of the most competent men and give them an intensive course of instruction with a view of having them supervise or conduct the work after the outside agency has given it up. It is the aim in the foremen’s course to train the men in proper methods of instruction and show them how and what to teach. The course for the training of conference leaders is designed to prepare executives to conduct conferences on departmental administration. During a round table discussion, suggestions were made that the foundrymen might be able to arrange for a clearing house of credit information in order to keep each other posted regarding the credit of their customers, and also that some plan of mutual fire in- surance might be worked out that would reduce their premiums. These matters were referred to the board of directors. Addition to the uniform trade customs was proposed. One provides that when a quotation on castings is made it is for acceptance within 30 days and the pattern equipment is to be furnished imme- diately. In case a quotation is for more than one class of work at different prices, the quotation, if accepted, must be accepted for all the work quoted on. A mini- mum charge was also proposed for any order. These additions to the uniform trade customs were referred to the board of directors, for further discussion and later action. J. H. Bruce, Bowler Foundry Co., Cleveland; George Altens, Altens Foundry & Machinery Co., Lancaster; Henry Loudenslager, Loudenslager Foundry Co., Co- lumbus; I. W. Warden, Wellston Mfg. Co., Wellston, Ohio, and A. H. Kramer, Advance Foundry Co., Day- ton, Ohio, were elected directors for a three year term. All the old officers were re-elected. They are: President, Frank W. Huber, American Rolling Mill Co., Middle- town, Ohio; vice-president, J. H. Bruce, Bowler Foun- dry Co., Cleveland; treasurer, Walter Seelbach, Wal- worth Run Foundry Co., Cleveland, and secretary and manager, Arthur J. Tuscany. At the banquet Thursday evening John R. Cowell, president of the Toledo Chamber of Commerce, was the principal speaker. J. Edgar Lee, president Michigan Foundrymen’s Association, also spoke. Following the speaking a very entertaining program was provided through the courtesy of a number of leading pig iron distributors. Friday morning the foundrymen inspected the plant of the Willys-Overland Co., which entertained the visi- tors at luncheon, and later as guests of Pickands, Mather & Co., they visited the plant of the Toledo Fur- nace Co. i. ere Pr 1373 beara Nears denen cates ane ete anette a Sitar eared attain : aN a Rot oti Poe a a Ee ee ae i ieelhistenedl satitenet ctameaenre dt tetaanindaraaie permeate esos 8 samen e dle Pas al ad fos oe ee ey yr renee OR ae Fa heed aden atnentnateneete a a LR aa ili . , 7 ee nen saat Manufacture of Scrap-Yard Machinery Milwaukee Plant Designed and Equipped for Exclusive Production of Alligator Shears—Sequence of Operations Well Planned BY GILBERT L. LACHER UANTITY production owes much to metal-working machinery. Machine tools made it possible for the automobile industry, in hardly a quarter of a century, to put its product within reach of most American purses. Throughout all branches of manu- facture, metal-working machines have both reduced cost of production and accelerated rate of consumption. In which generous window space has been provided. Co tinuous sash in the outside walls is further insurance 0} excellent natural lighting. Briefly, the middle bay i used for machining the larger parts of the shears and for final assembling, while the side bays are employed on the smaller parts. A standing principle of the plant's operations is always to have an ample supply of sma \ \ »/X- OPITIAle >i J J ry j | | Dri Shaper | | 00.in Vertical! “ADrill Press Borina Ms H/ ” E Hack Saw y ¢ v| |Babbitting Bench Dp Pd a | s| < _. Ch-inxla-ftlathe = mf $| S| ERECTING 50.111. 20-F# Lathe KS FLOOR AS S Switch Turret Lathe TOOL ROOM - z a —_ — Oe < =S ae og rw fact, so rapidly are our natural resources being con- verted into goods for the use of mankind that their exhaustion has become a recognized danger. Conserva- tion is now widely urged and increasingly practised, and one of the most potent agencies operating to that end is the reclamation of waste materials for re-use in industry. In reclaiming materials, metal-working machinery plays as prominent a réle as in increasing their con- sumption. Out of approximately 6000 alligator shears in use in this country, fully 95 per cent are employed in iron and steel scrap yards for cutting up material into suitable lengths for rerolling and remelting. This type of machinery has been made largely in shops where the main output has consisted of other products. The fact that a recently constructed Milwaukee plant is engaged exclusively in the production of alligator shears is convincing testimony to the growing size and importance of the scrap business. The new factory of Doelger & Kirsten, Milwaukee, built less than two years ago to take care of expanding trade, was designed and equipped for manufacture on a production basis. Having a capacity of 850 machines a year, this plant is laid out to permit uninterrupted progress of fabrica- tion from the time castings are received at one end of the building until completely assembled shears are loaded on railroad cars at the other end. There are three parallel bays, the roof of the middle bay project- ing above the side bays in the form of a cupola in £ & } © 1 A : | aoe F / a Battery of Planers & Ix a » bly <\ 18 «Gy + Boring Bar & S lh . TIS 4-Ft Radlial Drill _ Transfer Trach _ Hori2z'l Boring Mills: i ‘ fs = ) AD = Sensitive Milling. 5 Drills Machine Plan of Plant Showing Arrangement of Equipment parts on hand, so that assembly operations are never delayed. Shears are manufactured in a variety of cutting capacities, ranging from 1% to 7-in. square cold soft steel. Most of the machines made, including those used in scrap yards, are of the continuous-operating type. Automatic machines controlled by clutcheS\are also manufactured, to be used principally by forge shops and chain works, where it is desirable to stop and start a machine at intervals rather than to shear large quan- tities of material without interruption, as is the prac- tice in old material yards. All parts of the shears are cast or forged steel, except the flywheels, which are made of cast iron. The castings and forgings, delivered in the central bay by motor truck are unloaded by a 10-ton 40-ft. span Mil- waukee Electric Crane & Mfg. Co. overhead motor- driven crane, which travels the length of the plant. The first machining operation is the boring of the jaw and frame castings. To insure an accurate fit, the two parts are bored together. Most of this work is done on two Newton horizontal boring mills located on one side of the central bay near a door where motor trucks enter with the rough castings. Extending be- tween the mills is a track carrying two special cars equipped with jigs, which are used for transferring work from one mill to the other. After the first mill has machined the bore for the pin connecting jaw and frame, a transfer is made to the second mill, which 1374 November 22, 1923 the Left the law and Base fa No. 2 Alli- tor Shear, Set yn a Trans- er Car, Are Be- ge Bored by a Horizontal Mill. t the right may e seen the base f a No. 4 shear being placed on 1 large horizon- tal boring bar machines a bore in the rear end of the jaw for a pin joining the jaw and a connecting rod attached to the ‘rankshaft. On the same side of the central bay, just beyond the Newton mills, is a No. 6 Barrett boring bar, which is used to bore the heavier sizes of shears. The second operation is the planing of the bearing surfaces on the sides of the jaw and frame. This is done on a battery of five planers situated on the oppo- site side of the central bay. An important operation performed on the planers is the facing of the rubbing block on the frame and the rubbing pad on the jaw of the shear. This work must be accurate because the rubbing pad and block serve to keep jaw and frame in alinement during shearing. The rubbing block is at- tached to a rubbing post on the frame, while the rub- bing pad is a steel stud cast on the jaw. Beyond the battery of planers is a 100-in. Niles- Bement-Pond Co. vertical boring mill on which the shear gears are faced. This mill is used also to face THE IRON AGE 1375 the hub of the flywheel. Drilling oil holes and seats for grease cups is done by a 4-ft. radial drill, also located on one side of the middle bay. This machine likewise finishes out the bolt holes in the castings. The main pins for the larger shears are turned on two large lathes, one of them a 50-in, x 20-ft. Fifield and the other a 24-in. x 14-ft. New Haven machine. Keyways are put in pins, crankshafts and counter- shafts by a keyseating machine. Various accessories are machined on smaller tools in the side bays. Here small pins and crankshafts are turned, connecting arms are planed, shaped and drilled, pinions are cut, take-up shoes for the main pin bearing are machined and fly- , wheels are balanced. Blades for the shears are bought sharpened and heat treated. No tolerance is permitted in the thick- ness of the blades, as it is a cardinal] rule of the com- pany’s manufacturing practice that there be no shim- ming between blades and jaw or frame. Pulleys are go gah tha pe oe os Ee pan a Oe Agen pena “tacit A 7%4-Ton Shear Base Being Placed on a Planer O08 HNN ORT EEN SUPRESERMUTT SH, CL DEEN ETN OR® at “< 1376 THE IRON AGE pressed steel and require no machining. Countershafts require no work other than sawing to length and putting the keyways in. Crankshafts must be turned down at the ends. The main pins connecting jaw and frame are of 0.45 per cent carbon forged steel. The pins are of two types—one the ordinary plain pin and the other tapered and graduated to permit its easy removal from the housings. The forgings are bought rough-turned within about % in. of the finished diameter at the large end of the pin. The largest pin used has a diameter of 15 in. at the large end and is graduated down in steps to 12% in. at the small end, that being the diameter of the threads on which two nuts are screwed after the pin has been inserted in the housings. The nuts have a diameter of 15 in., the same as that of the head on the other end of the pin. One nut acts as a lock on the other, and when they are pulled tight keyways in both of them must coincide with a keyway in the pin, so that a key may be inserted. This requirement makes accurate machining and tapping imperative. Wear in the bearing in the housing is corrected by take-up shoes fastened underneath the end nuts and the head on the other end of the pin. Assembling operations are performed at the ship- ping end of the central bay. All shears are erected and tested before being shipped. The larger machines, because of their size, must be dismantled again before they are loaded on cars. Loading is done by overhead crane, and cars are switched into the plant on a spur from the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad. Erec- tion alone takes from 15 or 20 hr. up to 40 or 50 hr. for the largest machines.- The major machining operations on the shear parts also take considerable time. Ten hours are required on the horizontal boring mills, while the planing of jaw and frame takes from 14 to 16 hr. An important operation before assembling is the babbitting of the pin bearings. For this purpose a babbitting bench has been provided at one side of the erecting floor. To hold the babbitt constituting the bearing for the main pin; flanges are provided on the bore of the jaw and frame. Next to the erecting floor in one of the side bays is a stores department, where spare parts used in assembling are kept. Of brick and fabricated steel construction, the plant measures 90 x 205 ft. over all. The middle bay is 45 ft. wide, and the side bays approximately 20 ft. each. The building is heated by a warm blast system. Coils from a hot-water heater are arranged in a hot-air chamber from which the heated air is blown through pipes by motor-driven fan. The pipes are hung from the columns separating the middle and side bays and have openings at intervals for the ejection of heated air. Owing to the traveling crane, the piping could not be hung across the middle bay; accordingly a con- crete conduit was laid under the floor to connect the hot air chamber with pipes serving the farther side of the building. In addition to its production work, the company also handles shear repairs. : Likewise it carries a November 22, 1923 . Batte: Planer Ar- re ranged One Side of the Mia- dle B large stock of blades as well as other spare parts only at its Milwaukee plant, but also at large distr ing centers in other sections of the country. The Cecil R. Lambert Co., Inc., Detroit, manu- facturing engineer, has just completed the conveyor chain for the new Studebaker closed body plant at South Bend, Ind. The chain is nine miles in length, or four and one-half miles of actual conveyor system. The conveyor is equipped with steel lugs which fasten on the material placed on the conveyor and carries it to its destination, thereby eliminating racks with a saving of man power and floor space. The Lindell Die Co., Lansing, Mich., has been operat- ing at capacity for some time past and is anticipating a continuance at this rate after the first of the year. Forging operations will start in the company’s new forge plant about the first of December. Balancing a Flywheel—One of the Operations Per- formed in the Side Bays HE Schuermann side-blast cupola, the first Amer- [ican installation of which was recently completed at the Sacramento Square plant of the Griffin Wheel Co. at Chicago, was the main topic of an address in “Modern Practice in Gray Iron Foundries in Ger nany,” delivered by Dr. Siegfried G. Werner, Duessel- iorf, Germany, at Chicago, Nov. 10. The meeting took place at the City Club in that city under the auspices if the Chicago Foundrymen’s Club, following a public iemonstration of the cupola during the day to which all nterested foundrymen were invited. The first melt was taken from this cupola on Oct. 2, and tappings have been taken practically every other lay since. While the operations thus far have been of an experimental nature, results achieved indicate a saving of 20 per cent in fuel consumption and several points in the sulphur content of the melt over what has been possible with the common type of cupola. Whereas in rdinary practice the amount of coke used is fully 10 per cent of the eharge, coke consumption has been re- duced to 8 per cent through the use of the Schuermann installation. The Schuermann system was described in an illus- trated article, translated from Die Giesserei, which was published in Tite IRON AGer, Oct. 19, 1922, page 991. In his address at Chicago, Dr. Werner, who holds the patents on the cupola-and inéidentally is president of the German Iron Foundries Association, gave a more complete exposition of its construction and operation, laying emphasis on its outstanding features. Invented by E. Schuermann, Dresden, Germany, now a man of 71, the cupola, in Dr. Werner’s opinion, constitutes the first important forward step in melting practice since cupolas were introduced in iron foundries. The prime distinguishing characteristic of the cupola is the sidé blast. The windbox encompassing the combustion zone is divided in half and the blast is driven alternately through a double row of tuyeres on one side while the gases are drawn out through a sim- ilar row of tuyeres on the other side. At given inter- ASU LUA cnecieneinnemniare GNA R. SIEGFRIED G. WERNER, who addressed the Chicago Foun- drymen’s Club on Nov. 10, has been president of the German Iron Side-Blast Cupola in Operation at Chicago Schuermann System, Installed for First Time in America, Is Described by Dr. S. G. Werner, Head of German Foundry Association—Other Developments in German Foundry Practice Discussed poe . iy yen ee i ee ee ne ee at ont 5 ee ee i ee ee ee CES vals, usually ranging from 5 to 15 min. according to the rate of melting desired, the direction of the blast is reversed. The cupola described in THE IRON AGE, Oct. 19, 1922, and the one recently installed at the ae Griffin Wheel Co. plant both utilize the waste gases to HE preheat the blast but, according to Dr. Werner, the prin- ciple of the side blast may also be used advantageously without the preheating chambers. Even though the heat of the gases is not conserved, the side blast still makes for fuel economy through restriction of the melt- ing zone to the section of the cupola through which the cross currents of air pass. Various modifications of the side blast just de- scribed have been successfully tried both with and without the preheating chambers. One of them calls for a double alternation of the blast as follows: First the blast is introduced through the lower tuyeres on one side of the windbox while the gases are ejected from the upper tuyeres on the other side; then the blast is passed through the upper tuyeres while the gases find exit through the lower tuyeres on the oppo- site side. The operation is then repeated, using that half of the windbox which had previously been utilized for the withdrawal of gases (through alternate rows of tuyeres) for the injection of the blast. The advan- tage claimed for this scheme is that, instead of carrying the blast straight across the combustion zone in two distinct currents, it tends to diffuse the oxidizing action of the air by means of the alternately upward and downward diagonal blasts. A further elaboration of this scheme, used, however, principally in starting the cupola, is to introduce the blast simultaneously from both sides of the windbox, the cross currents being alternately from the lower tuyeres to the upper tuyeres diagonally opposite and vice versa. This gives the blast a weaving motion, mixing the air with the gases of combustion so that the heat given off by the latter pro- motes the reaction of the oxygen in the air with the coke. These variations in the application of the side blast principle were mentioned chiefly to indicate the fe ak CMT Leal 3) ate Sea eee lena Re ts ee nis Foundries Association for the past 11 years, and from 1915 to 1919 was also president of the German Steel Foundries Association. He is likewise a member of the executive board of the German Iron and Steel Institute, and a member of the chamber of commerce of Duessel- dorf. He was born at Bremen in 1878 and, after obtaining an engt- neering degree at college, came to the United States for practical training in the steel mills and incidentally for the purpose of learning English, which he now speaks fluently. He was for four years in the employ of the American Steel & Wire Co., and during that time rose from wire drawer to chief engineer in charge of the rebuilding of the Newburgh plant at Cleveland, after inventing a link for binding woven wire. Dr. Werner is the main stockholder in four foundries in the section of Germany occupied by the French. The Stahlwerk Werner at Erkrath, near Duesseldorf, is equipped with electric fur- naces for the manufacture of thin-walled steel castings. The Werner- huette at Heerdt, near Duesseldorf, is a gray iron foundry; the Eisen und Stahlwerk Werner at Duelken, near Krefeld, is a machine shop and iron foundry, the foundry being used for the manufacture of machinery castings. The Stahlwerk Oberhausen at Oberhausen is an acid open-hearth steel foundry. He also controls the Stahlwerk Ham- burg, now under erection at Hamburg. He is the donor of the Sieg- fried Werner medal, bestowed upon a foundryman each year for the most noteworthy technical or economic development. nnn UNgngTtjtVV]]=_—__ x: i: ] 101070701500 UG RUAUEOEE neta gnomes even seeericee seers gece vegeta Hs 1877 - ee Se ee ee nen ee tee a r; ford - . rt ~ ” ) rs - . . Sak te tae a ee ee 74 DR. S. G. WERNER me 1378 wide possibilities for the further development of the Schuermann system. The Installation at Griffin Plant The speaker’s remarks, however, were chiefly focused on the type of cupola with preheating cham- bers which was installed in the Griffin Wheel Co. plant. There are two preheating chambers, which at the Grif- fin plant happen to be located on the same side of the cupola as contrasted with the installation described previously in THE IRON AGE where they were arranged on opposite sides. Both chambers are connected at the top with a smoke stack and a pipe leading to a blast fan. A reversing valve alternately connects one cham- ber with the stack and the other with the fan so that when the waste gases from the cupola are passing through one chamber the blast is being driven through the other. At the Griffin plant a motor-driven suction fan has also been provided so that, concurrently with THE IRON AGE November 22. 1992 losses through dissipation at the top of th a Particular stress was placed by Dr. Werner the more complete combustion which, it is claimed, ha made possible by the side-blast principle. Prac: ally no carbon monoxide is present in the cupola or in the preheating chambers, the carbon monoxide being oxi- dized into carbon dioxide as rapidly as it is gener: ted In fact, to reduce further the possibility of the » tion of carbon monoxide, the cupola at the Griffin pla: embodies a slight modification of the original Schue mann design. A small flue connecting the two halves of the windbox on either side of the cupola permits th: passage of sufficient preheated air to oxidize any car- bon monoxide issuing from the cupola to the preh iting chamber. The most striking feature of the Schuermann method is the saving of fuel which, for average foundry practice, is fully 25 per cent, according to Dr. Werner Moreover, the sulphur content of the melt is diminished The Preheating Chambers Are Located Back of the Cupola, Being Connected With the Cupola by the Windbox to Be Noted to the Right of the Workman. At his rear to the left is a forehearth, rarely used in this country but standard on fully 30 per cent of the cupolas in Germany the driving of the blast through a chamber to the cupola, the gases are mechanically exhausted through the opposite chamber. The chambers contain a large number of vertical flues constructed of brick so that a maximum of brick surface has been provided for the alternate absorption of heat from the gases of combus- tion and radiation of heat to the incoming blast. The effectiveness of the preheating is indicated by the fact that whereas the blast enters the cupola at an average of 800 deg. C., gases leave the stack at the low tem- perature of 150 deg. C. (1475 and 300 deg. Fahr.) While there is sufficient radiation from the melting zone to warm up the down-coming charge, there is never a flame at the top of the cupola. In fact, one can hold his hand over the top of the charge without dis- comfort. The low temperature at the top of the cupola, Dr. Werner pointed out, will facilitate the use of center charging machines. Advantages Summarized In summarizing the advantages of the Schuermann system, the speaker made the following claims for it: A material saving in fuel consumption, a reduction in the sulphur content of the iron, longer life for the cupola lining, greater flexibility in the rate of melting hotter iron at the tap hole and the elimination of heat at least 25 per cent. Inasmuch as the melting zone is kept much lower than is usual with a common type of cupola, it is possible to line the stack with iron bricks down to a comparatively short distance above the tuyeres. Experience in the various foundries in Europe using side-blast cupolas indicates that the Schuermann principle allows a much wider variation in the melting rate during melting periods; one large foundry, for instance, starts with an output of six tons in the first hour, runs the cupola up to 15 tons in the next hour, and then slackens to five tons per hour as the end of the melting period approaches. Yet, notwithstanding the sharp changes in the rate of melting, the composi- tion of the molten iron remains constant. The life of the cupola lining in installations abroad, he asserted, has been found to be more than four times as long 4° in an older type of cupola. The Schuermann cupola 's covered by United States patents. New Foundry Developments in Germany Digressing from his main topic Dr. Werner enume! ated a number of other recent developments in Germa” foundry practice. Pearlitic Cast Iron: A new product which has re- cently made its appearance in his country is styled “pearlitic cast iron.” This iron has a finer grain struc- November 22, 1923 ©. LowerJuvers Horizontal Cross-Section of Cupola Horizontal Cross- Section of Chambers Reversing Valve | -Juyeres ee se Fee Broadside Elevation of Preheating Chamber Vertical and Horizontal Cross Sections Through the Schuer- mann Cupola and Preheating Chambers ture and a higher bending deformation than ordinary cast iron, and is commended particularly for its greater wearing qualities. By way of illustration the speaker exhibited a number of diagrams and photomicrographs, showing the grain of “pearlitic cast iron,” and the importance of high tem- perature of the molten iron when pour- ing. [This was described and discussed in THE IRON AGE, Aug. 16, Sept. 6 and Sept. 27, 1923.] New Acid-Resistant Iron: As an- other feature of modern European iron foundry practice, Dr. Werner referred to the different inventions of Mr. Wal- ter, of Nuremberg, Germany. Mr. Walter has developed an entirely new way of producing acid-resistant cast- ings. The patent rights of this method are in the hands of the Krupp com- pany, at Essen, and it is supposed that one or several large foundries in the United States will very soon be using the new method. In making his acid- resistant castings, Mr. Walter makes use of the reaction which takes place be- tween silicon and iron when these ma- terials are heated together to a temper- ature of about 1150 deg. C. (2100 deg. Fahr.) The reaction-which then takes place is accomplished by the develop- ment of a very high temperature—more than 3000 deg. C.; the reaction is exo- thermic. The fluid mixture of silicon and iron, containing 40 per cent of silicon, is entirely homogeneous. It consists of iron silicides. The grain structure is very fine, and there are no graphite particles showing the break. With all the other methods used heretofore for making acid-resistant iron castings, the ferrosilicon is added to the molten iron, but in that case it is impossible for the silicon to go into solution, be- higher than the melting temperature of the iron. By Mr. Walter’s method, the most complicated castings can be made without the slightest difficulty. Boron in Cast Iron and Steel: Mr. Walter has given much of his at- the chambers. the pipe passing to the right connects with the stack. A connection with an exhaust fan (visible at the right) has been cut into the connection: between the chambers and the smoke stack. A hand-operated valve located at this point enables one to operate the chambers with or without the use of the suction fan which, obviously, promotes the escape of the THE IRON AGE 1379 tention also to the addition of boron to cast iron and cast steel. His work in this line has been covered by a large number of patents, and, though it has not been possible to put all of his ideas into practical use, the results which have been obtained by the addition of boron to molten cast iron and cast steel seem to be of the greatest importance. It appears that Mr. Walter has discovered entirely new ways of influencing the formation of the structure in iron and steel. At the same time, boron will enable foundrymen to make cast iron which can be hardened in a very simple manner. In steel foundry practice, boron may aid in obtaining a fine grain structure without annealing. Synthetic Pig Iron from the Cupola: Recently Mr. Walter has devoted much of his attention to the produc- tion of synthetic pig iron out of the cupola; he has had remarkable success at one of the larger foundries in Germany, and it is probable that this new way of pro- ducing pig iron will become of interest for the foundries in the United States also. Concluding, Dr. Werner gave a description of the new Fiat electric melting furnace that has been de- signed by Cavalliere Massera, of the Fiat Works in Torino, Italy. The first furnace of this type in Ger- many will be installed at one of the works of Dr. Wer- ner, and he expects that the entire cost of the installa- tion will be repaid within six months by the savings which the Fiat furnace will show in comparison with other familiar furnaces. The address was illustrated with a number of photographs, tables and curves. An election will be held in Marquette, Mich., Dec. 3 to decide whether the city will issue $325,000 of bonds for an auxiliary generating plant and for the con- struction of a hydroelectric plant. The Chambers Are Connected at the Top to the Smoke Stack and the Blast cause the melting point of silicon is Fan. A reversing valve is situated in a central position directly above The pipe leading to the left connects with the blast fan; gases from chamber to stack Saetaneentieceecmenetetita Seeritsn Bie ore meet ; +. Se et ee ee & wens Sega cun< om ea A ae Banca cela tn tenia ieee in De eid ‘ a A . 1 a = = _ Dak calcite a SU ete J poate pe edt 1380 THE IRON AGE TARIFF PROBLEMS Commission Uncertain in Regard to Making In- vestigation Abroad—Attorney General Renders Decision WASHINGTON, Nov. 20.—No determination has been arrived at by the Tariff Commission as to when it will begin investigation abroad of pig iron costs under the application of Eastern merchant blast furnace inter- ests. The inquiry, instituted under the flexible pro- vision of the tariff act, has