The Iron Age 1924-08-28: Vol 114 Iss 9

THE I ON AGE New York, August 28, 1924 ESTABLISHED 1855 VOL. 114, No. 9 Improves Rail and Track Supply Plant Colorado Company Makes Alterations to Handle 39-Ft. Milled-End Rails Also Manufactures Oil-Quenched Angle Bars and Track Bolts BY GILBERT L. LACHER* Pacific Coast, the Colorado Fuel & Iron Co., (J Pacite co located between Chicago and the Pueblo, Colo., is an important producer of rails and track supplies for western and transcontinental railroads, To keep abreast of the new demands of the carriers the mill recently made extensive altera- tions and installed new equipment to manufacture 39-ft. milled-end rails. Within the past year and a half it has also put in new departments for the heat treating and oil quenching of angle bars and track ' bolts. Modifications in the rail finishing department be- _¢ame necessary when the company réceived an order ?from the Southern Pacific early in April of the cur- yent year for 60,000 tons of 39-ft. rails, milled at both ends. . As the length specified was 6 ft. longer than * Weate?fn editor, THe IRON Ace, Chicago. sueennnevennennennnenenssnennnsoeniareneube tiene VOLDONOGANEROONDLNNONDOCLAMAEOODADNORERNAHUNE DUDE HONDG) ONODONSDONEFDNAD onEn ous DI vOnNTsHUmD the previously prevailing standard ‘and end milling was called for, changes had to be made in the arrange- ment and equipment of the finishing facilities of the mill so that this tonnage might be handled on a pro- duction basis—in other words, as economically and expeditiously as possible. Inasmuch as the contract required delivery against 25 per cent of the tonnage by July. 1, it became expedient to effect the altera- tions. promptly. In this instance, also, the manage- ment met the wishes of its customer, completing the changes in 51 days, without interrupting operations, The hot bed, as previously arranged, consisted of three parallel units wide enough to handle three parallel rows of 33-ft. rails. Each section of the bed was widened 2 to 2% ft. by adding an extra skid. In addition, a fourth section was constructed, so that now four parallel rows of 39-ft. rails may pass over dagPrverrvennsnne ate wane geene@ eres SOLE L OOUELORL NT LAUEDE ERS OEEORUEARESAD DY 18. SOTORETEDIOMADDNGS BORHEEUERE N00 05 100 One) UNION LHe NRE The Rail Hot Bed Had to Be Widened to Handle 39-Ft. Lengths. Three parallel sections were widened by adding one skid to each. An entirely new fourth section—the one in the foreground—was built also, so that now four paral- lel rows of 39-ft. rails may pass over the bed simultaneously 49 - 0 eS 496 THE IRON AGE the bed simultaneously. As enlarged, each half of the bed, embracing two parallel sections, takes up all the space between the building columns, so that if still longer rail lengths ever come into general demand alterations cannot be made without reconstructing the building. The bed is of the inclined type, 160 ft. wide x 92 ft. long, and earries the rails upward to the finishing department. The inclination of the bed was dictated by the contour of the terrain rather than any prefer- ence for that type of construction. It so happens that the railroad siding serving the finishing end of the mill is necessarily on the same level as a nearby bridge over an irrigation ditch which passes through the company’s property. Hence, it was in the interests of economical handling of material to elevate the finishing department above the inspection and loading dock, and the dock, in turn, above the railroad track. The bed delivers the rails to a distributing table August 28, 1924 of one rail is being milled, the other end of the ad- jacent rail is being milled by the opposite ending machine. At the conclusion of the simultaneous milling operations the workmen first advance the rail which has been milled at both ends and then roll over the next rail, which has been milled at one end only, so that it is in position for milling at the other end. Like- wise, they advance another rail from the row which has left the straightener, to position for the first milling operation. The same procedure is followed by the drilling ma- chine operators except that when they advance a rail which has been drilled at both ends, it is ready to be passed along the skids through openings in the outside wall of the building to the inspection and loading dock. The finishing department embraces seven identical sections of the type just described, equipped with straightening press, a pair of ending machines, a pair of drilling machines, and the necessary intervening PULOUODDON HOU D REDE LUNAS EADODNNDOREEHNARANOE HAN CHaELA In the Finishing Department the Straightening Presses and Drilling Machines Had to Be Respaced for the 39-Ft. Lengths and Ending Machines Had to Be Installed for Milling the Rail Ends. The illustration shows part of one of seven identical units, comprising a gag press, two enders and two drilling machines. Prominently shown at the left is a straightening press; at the extreme right is one of the drilling machines (marked 12); the machine adjacent to the drilling machine at its left is an ender extending along one side of the finishing building, a structure 774 ft. long by 56 ft. wide. The first essential change in the finishing facilities was the respacing of the straightening presses and the drilling machines to handle the 39-ft. lengths. The presses at both ends of the structure were left in their original positions. This was possible because the gag press at the end nearest the bed was originally placed at more than the usual distance from the next press so that it could handle 60-ft. tram rails ordered in relatively small tonnages by electric traction lines. The remaining five intervening presses, however, were all relocated. No changes in the building itself were required outside of a 6-ft. extension at the end farthest from the bed, to accommodate the 39-ft. lengths when handled in the gag press at that extremity. Out of the 14 drilling machines—two for each straightener—all but two had to be relocated. It was also necessary to install 14 ending machines. These were constructed in the company’s own shops in the short period previously indicated. Gag presses, ending machines and drilling machines are all individually driven by electric motors. Both the enders and the drill presses are slightly staggered so as to expedite the handling of the rails, which rest on intervening skids. In other words, while one end skids. Rearrangement of the skid rails, of course, was made necessary by the relocation of gag presses and drilling machines. The ending machines, alone, were entirely new additions to the equipment and they are of the usual design, consisting of a gear-driven rotating milling head, on which are three diagonal cutters fas- tened in place by set screws. Milling is now deemed necessary by some roads to secure squareness of the rail ends and positively to eliminate hot saw burrs. With larger rail sections coming into general use relatively less room for expansicn is left between the abutting rails, so as to improve riding qualities and to prevent the spreading, nicking and chipping out of the rail ends. A further improvement of the finishing department of the rail mill is the contemplated construction of a gantry crane to command the inspection and loading dock. At present the rails are moved by hand down the inclined skids on the dock to the loading track. The rail mill, as now equipped, has a capacity of 500 to 600 tons per 8-hr. shift. It embraces a two-high 88-in. reversing blooming stand, which takes a 22%-in. square ingot weighing 7200 to 7400 lb., a three-high 28-in. roughing stand, a three-high 26-in. intermediate stand, and a two-high 26-in. finishing stand. All of the stands are steam-driven. Heretofore, the heaviest re August 28, 1924 THE IRON AGE 497 PO ad ee ae Angle Bars Are Heated to 1800 Deg. Fahr, in the Furnace Shown at the Right. They are then passed by conveyor to the slotting machine to be noted at the left, following which they are punched, straightened and oil quenched rail produced by the mill has been 100 lb. per yard, but preparations are under way to roll 110-lb. sections for the Southern Pacific system. Although the mill equipment is standard in most respects, the hot saw is of a type commanding atten- tion. Instead of being belt-driven, the usual method of propulsion, it is equipped with direct motor drive, the motor being carried on the free end of the tilting arm and being connected with the saw arbor by a flex- ible shaft. The hot saw is 48 in. in diameter and has a speed of 1300 r.p.m. The feed of the tilting arm is also motor-driven, power being transmitted through a worm gear. The tendency toward more rigid specifications in rails is also to be observed in track supplies. Within the past few years an insistent demand has developed for hot-worked and oil-quenched angle bars, which are free from fine cracks and internal stresses and strains and at the same time show material improvement in strength and ductility, or toughness. About a year and a half ago the Colorado mill built equipment for supplying this demand. Angle bars are cut to length in a motor-driven down-cut shear constructed in the company’s shops. They are then carried by a roller conveyor to the feed- ing end of a heating furnace, where they are charged in two rows by motor-driven pushers. The furnace is 10 x 27 ft. x 5% ft. high over all, and is constructed of silica brick covered with steel plates between the buckstays. The angle bars pass down a solid skid over which are hung water cooling pipes. The furnace is fired by by-product coke oven gas, but is arranged so that oil may be burned, if desired. Blast is supplied by an American motor-driven blower. Burners are located on the sides, both above and below the skid and at the discharge end. Angle bars are ordinarily heated to 1800 deg. Fahr. and remain in the furnace chamber an average of one hour. At the discharge end they are deposited on a continuous motor-driven conveyor, which carries them out of the chamber to a roller conveyor serving slotting and punching machines. By means of a gravity con- veyor from the shear to the conveyor leading to the slotter, angle bars may be by-passed for cold working. The slotter was built by the Long & Alstatter Co., Hamilton, Ohio, and is direct-driven by a motor, which Angle Bars Are Quenched in a 20,000-Gal. Oil Tank at a Temperature Held Under 190 Deg. Fahr. The bars are carried from the straightening press by a roller conveyor, shown in the right foreground, and discharged into the bath. <A continuous slat-type conveyor passes them through the oil to the discharge end, where they are deposited on an inspection and sorting table we~- 198 THE IRON AGE is also used to propel the furnace discharge conveyor. After slotting, the angle bars are passed under a G-type Long & Alstatter punch press, which is located on the other side of the conveyor to obviate the necessity of turning the bars around. From the punch the bars are advanced on the conveyor to a Hilles & Jones straight- ening press from which they are carried by gravity conveyor to the quenching tank. The straightener, punch and shear are driven by single rope from indi- vidual motors. The quenching tank is 10 x 40 ft. x 8 ft. deep, and is constructed of reinforced concrete with a covering of steel plates. It has a capacity of 20,000 gal. The temperature of the bath must be kept under 190 deg. Fahr., and is recorded on a thermometer located on top of the tank. That regulation of the temperature has been uniformly successful is indicated by the fact that in one and a half years of operation the bath has never caught fire. Temperature regulation is facili- tated through a continuous circulation of water through coils of pipe located around the inside walls of the tank. The oil itself is in continuous circulation, being pumped to and from two 10,500-gal. steel reservoirs situated outside the building. Two Kinney 8 x 4 x 8-in. oil pumps geared to 10-hp. motors are situated in a con- crete pit adjacent to the quenching bath. One pump only is used, the other being held in reserve for emer- gency purposes. Eureka quenching oil supplied by the Continental Oil Co., Denver, is used. For quenching purposes an oil is required which wid! not get viscous and has the most favorable cooling properties. The accumulation of oxide scale from the bars is not large, as it has been necessary to clean out the tank only once since operations were started. Angle bars are carried through the bath by a motor- driven continuous slat-type conveyor built by the Link- Belt Co., Chicago. The conveyor is inclined toward the discharge end, and deposits the bars on a gravity conveyor leading to an inspection and sorting table. They are subsequently carried away by overhead elec- tric erane for weighing and shipment. The speed of the bath conveyor is variable, ranging from 5 to 15 ft. per min., propulsion being by a variable speed motor. August 28, 1924 The capacity of the hot working department is 45 tons of angle bars per 8-hr. shift. Adjacent to the hot working equipment are a shear, slotter and punch with connecting conveyors for cold- working angle bars. In the same building is a battery of four punches with a capacity to punch 4000 tons of tie plates a month. Both tie plates and angle bars are rolled on a 14-in. merchant mill (in the same structure). This mill, incidentally, is used also for the production of merchant and concrete bars, small shapes, and light rails. It is served by-two hot beds, one for bars and the other for bar angles, light rails, tie plates and angle bars. Within the past 10 days the two heating furnaces serving the mill were altered to use the surface system of gas com- bustion, and it is estimated that the change will in- crease their capacity 33 1/3 to 50 per cent. Coke oven gas is burned. The company’s department for heat treating track ee In Twin Bolt Furnaces the Track Bolts Are Heated to 1300 to 1500 Deg. Fahr. and Then Are Raked Out into a Chute Leading to a Roll Threading Machine, Lo- cated on the Platform Below. From the threader the bolts pass by gravity chute into the oil quenching , bath shown below Ce ee weet ee Ft. bolts is also of commanding interest. Heat treating increases the tensile strength of bolts 50 per cent and, likewise, permits the use of a much heavier nut, % in. thicker than those ordinarily employed. The depart- ment has been in operation for a year and a half and its capacity is 65 kegs per 8-hr. shift. Bolt stock (0.40 to 0.50 per cent carbon steel is generally used) is given a preliminary heating in a continuous coke-oven gas- fired furnace and is then passed into a 1-in. semi-hot bolt machine, built by the National Machine Co., Tiffin, Ohio. The feed rolls of the machine are water-cooled and every working part is oiled. There are three oil reservoirs and with every 19 revolutions of the ma- chine, some working part is subjected to a stream of oil. The machine is driven by flywheel from a counter- shaft. Bolts are discharged from the machine to a con- tinuous conveyor and then down a chute to a bucket elevator, supplied by the Link-Belt Co. The elevator carries the bolts up to a gate by means of which they are thrown on either side into hoppers serving twin bolt furnaces. The furnaces have three burners each, but it has been found necessary to use only two, or 4 total of four. Coke oven gas is burned. Blast for these Lpemenes on ere August 28, 1924 burners, as well as the eight burners on the furnace serving the bolt machine, is supplied by a No. 10 Sturte- vant blower. A single motor supplies power for the blower, the bucket elevator and the bolt heading ma- chine. The heat treating furnaces are constructed of fire brick supported by buckstays, and raise the tem- perature of the bolts to 1300 to 1500 deg. Fahr. Both the bolt furnaces and the continuous preheating fur- nace are equipped for burning oil in an emergency. Bolts are raked out of the heat treating furnaces to a gravity chute leading to a motor-driven roll threading machine. After threading, the bolts are kicked into an oil quenching bath with a double circu- lating oil system, like that used in the angle bar de- partment. The oil is contained in a 5000-gal. steel tank, 5% x 28 ft. x 5 ft. deep, and reposes in a larger con- crete tank filled with water, so that it is water-jacketed. In addition, water circulating pipes are located inside the oil tank itself. In an adjacent concrete pit are two motor-driven oil pumps, identical with those serving ler) ov a (CRaeenery sasneenerrerveneeatenaneniiennennennannenen rrnnesanenNnEnE nT nenennenn Eee senTierenerery THE IRON AGE 499 Heated Bolt Stock Is Fed into the Rolls of a National Semi-Hot Ma- chine, from Which Track Bolts Are Car- ried by Con- tinuous Con- veyor to the Top of a Chute Leading toa Bucket Elevator By the elevator they are raised to hoppers serv- ing twin heat- treating fur naces } the angle bar quenching tank. One of these is used and the other is held in reserve. Oil is continuously pumped in and out of the bath to and from a 10,500-gal. oil reservoir situated outside the building. The temperature of the oil is maintained at 100 to 130 deg. Fahr. The bolts ordinarily remain in the bath about three minutes, being slowly passed through it by an inclined continuous slat-type conveyor, built by the Link-Belt Co. The speed of the conveyor is variable, ranging from 5 to 15 ft. per min. From the conveyor the bolts are discharged through a bifurcated chute to tables serving two nutting ma- chines, driven by the same motor which operates the conveyor. Here the nuts are applied and the bolts are dropped into adjacent kegs reposing on scales for weighing. Inspection is also done at this point. Nearby is a nut testing machine equipped with 24-in. wrench and scale. On 1-in. bolts an allowance of from 30 to 90 lb. is permitted. Kegs are loaded into cars from the shipping floor by a motor-driven portable elevator. By Continuous Conveyor Track Bolts Are Car ried through the Oil Bath and Discharged Through a Bifurcated Chute to Tables Serving Two Nutting Ma- chines. Here nuts are applied and the bolts are dropped into adjacent kegs reposing on scales for weighing. In the right back- ground is a nut- testing machine RD a ce em ecg aaah ane ee nah tae = 2 Qe se re 0 aia selina Ce 8 —hiuhewtile o hws bt - nm pniaieaipantion i a Oe ain Ree ten ras Sell i te tle We A th Pati Beer 2 . - hc ai RF gm Ha hE ee om eR boss Soa ices ee Congress on Management Held at Prague Presentation of American Methods for the Benefit of the Nations of Central Europe—Skoda and Witkowitz Works Visited (Special Correspondence) PRAGUE, CZECHO-SLOVAKIA, Aug. 2.—The Prague International Management Congress, held in this city, July 20 to 24, and supplemented by a tour of the country to inSpect its industries, was attended by upward of 500 engineers and manufacturers, of whom over 60 were Americans. Judged by the char- acter of the papers presented and the standing of those attending, the congress will rank as comparable with any engineering congress ever held. Judged by its results, it will undoubtedly prove to be one whose effects are far-reaching and of momentous importance. Every one of the eight formal technical sessions was crowded to the capacity of the hall, and the proceedings were followed with intense interest throughout. Origin of the Congress The congress was conceived by the Government of Czecho-Slovakia as a means of introducing into that country the methods of management that have helped to give America its industrial supremacy. The Gov- ernment recognized that the only hope of repairing the damages of war and of putting the nation on a sound financial basis lay in the development of its industries and of operating them in the most efficient manner. Tle late Major Frank B. Gilbreth, in the course of several trips to Czecho-Slovakia had im- pressed on the officials of the Government the im- portance of good management in their industries, and early this year an invitation was extended through the American Engineering Council to the American engi- neering profession to organize and participate in a management congress in Prague. The organization and program of the congress was intrusted to the five American societies primarily inter- ested in management, viz., the American Management Association, the American Society of Mechanical Engi- neers (management division), the National Association of Cost Accountants, the Society of Industrial Engi- neers, and the Taylor Society. The committee on Amer- ican participation appointed by these societies con- sisted of Dwight V. Farnham, Robert T. Kent, Howard D. Greeley, Frank B. Gilbreth and Dr. Harlow S. Person. Dr. Bedrich Stepanik, former Czecho-Slovakia minister to the United States, and Miss Ruth Reticker, assistant to the director of the Taylor Society, were later added to the committee. The Czech government had indi- cated the subjects for discussion that would prove of greatest value to the industries of central Europe, and the program was laid out along the lines indicated. Nature of Scientific Management Outlined The congress was opened on July 20 in the Pantheon at Prague by a formal welcome to the delegates by the officials of the Government, of the City of Prague, and of the Masaryk Academy. A memorial service for Major Gilbreth followed. The technical sessions began on the following day with the presentation of a paper by Major Fred J. Miller, entitled “Scientific Manage- ment, Its Nature, Tendencies and Achievements,” in which was outlined the development of the philosophy of Taylor, on which modern management is based. Three supplementary papers followed by Robert T. Kent, Prof. Joseph W. Roe, and Morris Llewellyn Cooke respectively dealing with specific phases of management. Mr. Kent stressed the point that scientific manage- ment does not consist in the adoption of a particular routine or a set of forms, but is rather the application of certain definite principles, the method of applica- tion being varied to suit each case. Professor Roe emphasized the statement of the late Henry L. Gantt that good management comprises the having of the materials of production when they are needed, where they are needed and in the condition desired. Mr. Cooke dealt with the relations that should exist between the management and the employees. “Unless mutual confidence exists, there can be no such thing as good management.” Doctor Verunac, of the Masaryk Academy, then out- lined the steps being taken to develop scientific man- agement in Czecho-Slovakia. These include the estab- lishment of various institutions and commissions, among which are the Masaryk Academy of Works, the Engi- neering and Industrial Union, the Standardization So- ciety, an institute for the economical exploitation of fuel and a commission for the study of the methods of scientific management. These institutions «re making investigations into the activities of all the industries of the country. The importance of scientific manage- ment as an instrument for world peace was discussed by Stan. Spacek, who outlined an international organi- zation whose activities in the dissemination of the principles of management would tend to promote a better understanding among the peoples contributing to it, and which thereby would tend to remove causes of war. The activities of the Masaryk Academy were explained in a paper by Dr. B. Tolman. Human Element in Management The human element in management was the subject of the second session of the congress. Henry C. Link discussed the subject from the standpoint of the indi- vidual relations that exist between employer and em- ployee. His paper covered the various questions that affect the relations of the two, and touched on such points as safety engineering, medical service, health maintenance, industrial fatigue, selection of employees, psychological studies, training and education of em- ployees and foremen, and labor turnover. In the analysis of the labor turnover of a large corporation the causes of employees’ leaving were classified under different headings, which called attention sharply to several conditions that required correction in the plant. Some of the causes listed were: Dislike for the work; dislike for the working conditions; dissatisfaction with the discipline; work too difficult; wages too low; better job found elsewhere. The analysis indicated that the instability of working forces and the conditions that cause men to change are more complicated than is commonly supposed, and that the task of maintaining a stable labor force is one calling for a broad range of diverse. activities. The subject of the human element was further dis- cussed by Edward S. Cowdrick in his paper, “Labor Re- lationships in American Industry.” The paper covered two phases of the subject, that of industrial justice, and that of the financial incentives offered to labor. The former discussed the means that have been em- ployed to secure justice, including the development of the labor union, and the more recently forms of em- ployee representation. The latter discussed standards of wages, methods of wage payments, profit sharing, and stock distribution. In conclusion Mr. Cowdrick said that industrial leadership in the United States has devised no single formula by which the problems of labor relationship can be eliminated. These problems call for persistent effort, honest purpose and the pa- tience to wait for their gradual solution. American methods are not necessarily applicable to other nations. Principles of justice and good-will, however, are uni- 500 August 28, 1924 versal, and on the recognition of these must be built whatever systems that are to prove of lasting benefit to industry. A large number of other papers dealing with the same general topic were presented at this session. These were mainly by engineers from Czecho-Slovakia and other European countries. Budget and Production Control The control of business, both from the standpoint of the business as a whole and from the standpoint of production, attracted considerable attention, being the subject of two sessions. A masterly paper by Howard Coonley, on “The Development of an Industrial Bud- getary Control,” outlined the objects of this new device of management as: 1. A sales guide to provide an accurate forecasting of customer demand, and the use of the forecast both for a basis of production and as a foundation for a merchandising campaign. 2. A pro- duction guide to provide an intelligent program of manufacture that will insure a supply of merchandise in advance of demand, while keeping inventories in proportion to that demand. It also aims to prevent fluctuations in employment which tend to decrease effi- ciency and contentment, and further, to arrange for maximum production at the season when efficiency is at its highest point and the labor supply is ample. 3. A financial guide to estimate the amount of working capital that is permamently required by the business, and also to indicate the amount of outside money that will be needed to take care of the peak of the business, To assure proper budgetary procedure three funda- mental essentials must be considered. First, a sound plan of organization, with the authorities and respon- sibilities of the organization well defined and adequately maintained. Second, the records must be so established as to place definite responsibility on each unit of the organization. Third, the business budget itself must be a forecast of future accounts in terms of organiza- tion responsibility. Production control was discussed in the paper of Col. George D. Babcock, which laid stress on the fact that accurate control could only be accomplished by careful preplanning of all the activities of the plant. The establishment of a production schedule was out- lined, and the factors that enter into such a schedule, such as operation analysis, purchase programs, the control of stores, the dispatching of work and the in- spection of product were treated in detail. The pre- sentation of the paper comprised a description of the application of the principles described to the plant of the Holt Mfg. Co., Peoria, Ill., where a_ production record of 645 consecutive working days of exactly scheduled production had been accomplished up to July 1 of this year, a record probably unequalled in the history of industry. This paper attracted more at- tention than any other presented at the congress. In a paper on sales management, which was another subject which was considered at the request of the Czecho-Slovakian government, C. K. Woodbridge out- lined the organization and methods of the Dictaphone Co., discussing the subject from the standpoint of sales planning and sales operation. Education for Management The final session of the congress had for its subject education in its various phases. Vocational education was the title of a paper by Channing R. Dooley, who traced the development of vocational education in the public schools, in the trade schools and in the industrial plants of America. Mr. Dooley stated that the object of vocational education was first to give each student that kind of an education which he required in order to earn a livelihood in accordance with his natural ability and ambition, and second, to give him broader ideals of life which will make him a better citizen. William E. Wickenden presented a paper entitled “Education for the Profession of Engineering,” in which he outlined the trend of present-day educational policies and compared American and European stand- ards of education. George W. Coleman discussed the subject of advanced and specialized education for com- THE IRON AGE 501 merce and business administration in universities, col- leges and schools of engineering, and showed the neces- sity of closer cooperation between the educational and business institutions. In addition to the foregoing papers contributed by the American committee, there were a large number of others on the subject of education, by European engineers and educators. These included one by Prof. J. Jedlicka on uniform organization of knowledge and education, three papers on education for the profession of engineering by Dr. V. Verunac, Dr. Klir and Dr. E. Pokoro respectively, and one on the education of engineers for the management of indus- trial concerns, by J. Prokop. In addition to the papers forming the regular pro- gram, there were a large number of supplementary papers dealing with various subjects. Among these may be mentioned one by W. W. Nichols on belting purchase and maintenance, the role of machinery in American agriculture by H. R. Tolley, the United States Department of Commerce and its relation to business, by H. Lawrence Groves, and industrial re- search in the United States, by Maurice Holiand. The Industries of Czecho-Slovakia Following the congress sessions, the delegates spent a week in visiting the industries of Czecho-Slovakia. The most noteworthy plants visited were the Skoda Works at Pilsen and the Witkowitz steel works at Ostrava. Both of these plants were splendid examples of modern engineering and represented the most ad- vanced practice. The Skoda Works have been largely rebuilt since the war and are the equal of any metal- working plant in the world. Of particular interest is the foundry where gray iron castings are made, which are superior in finish as they come from the sand to any that the writer has ever seen. The striking feature of this foundry is the use of electric arc furnaces instead of cupolas for melting the iron. The forge shop is equipped with some splendid hydraulic forging presses as well as with a number of large steam ham- mers. The largest part of the forging, however, is done in the presses. Among the products noted in the forge shops were large gun forgings, stem and stern frames for ocean-going vessels, steel car wheels and axles and other very heavy work. The product of the Skoda Works is extremely varied, ranging from mili- tary equipment to locomotives and hoisting and con- veying machinery. Well-Equipped Steel Works The steel works at Ostrava is the equal of any steel! works in the world. The open-hearth plant is equipped with Talbot furnaces and the rolling mill is equipped to manufacture any form of rolled product. A particu- larly noticeable feature was the plate mill which has a capacity of rolling plates up to 166 in. wide. The mill is equipped throughout for mechanically handling the product and was operating at high speed with a remarkably small number of men. Of particular in- terest to the visitors was the power station which com- prised eight large gas engines operating on blast- furnace and coke-oven gas. The waste gases from the engines generate steam in waste heat boilers, the steam later being used in steam engines. The general impression gained by the delegates to the congress in regard to the industries and people of Czecho-Slovakia was that the industries are well equipped and with careful management will be able to compete with similar industries in any part of the world, and that the people are extremely progressive, and highly advanced from the technical standpoint. The railroads of Czecho-Slovakia are an instance of the progress that the nation has made since the war. Taking over the broken-down railroads of Austria, the Czechs have improved them to a point where they are the equal of any and superior to most of the rail- roads of Europe. The tracks are heavy, smooth and well ballasted and the locomotives are powerful ma- chines of the most improved type. The cars are above the average in size and capacity as measured by Euro- pean standards. What is true of the railroads seems to be true of every industry visited by the delegates to the congress. ot eaters, ae 1a Ce. eR aw fy = — . o> nn Pehle” 9H sapere nr RR RE Electric Cleaning of Blast Furnace Gas* Analysis of Losses Incurred by Releasing the Latent and Sensible Heat of the Gases—Comparison with Manu- factured Gas and Its Sales Value WO things may be wasted in a blast furnace gas— the gas itself and the dust which it contains. Some years ago A. E. Maccoun stated that during one test a little over 200 lb. of flue dust was produced per ton of iron made. In the production of 40,000,000 tons of iron per year, therefore, about 4,000,000 tons of flue dust will be made. How much of this is being wasted it is hard to say; for dust is caught in the cyclone dust catchers, the mains, the combustion cham- bers, and the brickwork. This 4,000,000 tons of flue dust has a real value, for its iron content is often greater than that of the ore itself. Fortunately one need not emphasize this point to blast furnace men, for the strenuous post-war period has awakened a national consciousness to the elimination of needless waste. Last year upward of 40,000,000 tons of coke, if not a greater amount, was consumed in the production of American iron. What may be the cost of this coke is problematical, but at an average price of $5 a ton, which is probably low, then $200,000,000 worth of coke was used in producing the iron of this country during the last year. Only half of the coke burden is actually consumed in the furnace; the other half is emitted from the furnace top in the form of gas. Therefore, of the coke which was charged into the blast furnaces of this country $100,000,000 worth was burned in the furnaces and another $100,000,000 worth was burned in auxiliary equipment. Yet the care and attention which the first $100,000,- 000 worth received was immensely greater than the care and attention which the second $100,000,000 worth received, although they were brothers and not first cousins. Peculiarly enough, it is much easier to con- serve that part of the coke which issues in the form of gas than the portion consumed in the blast furnace proper. The furnace operator has a definite grip on his gas every minute of the day. But the care and attention which other fuels demand are not required by blast furnace gas; for, once properly cleaned and when berned in the correct type of burners, it will yield its maximum possible thermal value with less irregularity than any solid or liquid fuel. it Comparison with Manufactured Gas Sold During 1922, according to the American Gas Journal of Dec. 29, 1923, the manufactured gas sold in the United States amounted to 488,813,860 M. cu. ft., and had a total value of $337,116,805. In the absence of more authoritative figures, we may assume the aver- age heat value of this gas to have been 500 B.t.u. per cu. ft., or a total of 244,400 million B.t.u. During 1923, if we accept 140,000 cu. ft. of blast furnace gas per ton of iron as a fair average figure, there were produced about 5,600,000,000 M. cu. ft. of blast furnace gas, to which we may give a heating value of 90 B.t.u. per cu. ft., or a total of 504,000 million B.t.u. There was consequently 11% times as much gas produced by the blast furnaces as by the gas manufac- turing plants which sold their product to the public. And the total heat value of the blast furnace gas pro- duced was a little over twice as great as that of all the manufactured gas sold in the United States. Yet the value placed upon it is less than one-third of that for which the manufactured gas was sold; in other words, the blast furnace operator was allowed to buy *Abstract of paper read by N. H. Gellert, president Gellert Engineering Co., Philadelphia, before the joint meeting at Cleveland of the Eastern States Blast Furnace and Coke Oven Association and Blast Furnace and Coke Oven Associa- tion of Chicago District. his gaseous heat units for one-sixth the cost charged those who used manufactured gas. A large water supply is required. To clean the gas that comes from a 500-ton furnace there is needed 2,000,000 gal. and upward of water per day. This necessitates an ample water supply and a large pump- ing equipment. To pump 2,000,000 gal. of water re- quires a considerable amount of power. George M. Hohl, at the last session of the American Iron and Steel Institute stated that wet cleaners re- quire 0.04 kw. for pumping the water needed to clean 1000 cu. ft. of gas. This means that 5.6 kw. per ton of iron are used for pumping water. Even when there is plenty of water and the gas is satisfactorily washed there still remains the problem of getting rid of the water with all the dirt and sludge which it has removed from the gas. To discharge 2,000,000 gal. of dirty water into a stream is possible in some localities, simply because the community has not become sufficiently irritated at the nuisance. Ill Effects from Carrying Dust Into Stoves and Boilers Discussing Mr. Hohl’s paper on “Cleaning Blast Furnace Gas,” J. C. Barrett said that gas washed by wet cleaners often causes the residual dust, after the gas has passed through the cleaner, to bake in both the hot stoves and boilers. On the boiler tubes this wet dust forms a hard crust difficult to remove by ordinary methods of blowing. In the hot stove com- bustion chambers it builds up into a solid hard mass and also deposits as a crust on the top of the checkers. The condition is much aggravated when the cleaner is not operating at its maximum efficiency and the gases are not cooled down sufficiently. For as the tem- perature of the washed gas is increased, its absorption of moisture is greater, and the dust is naturally wetter. But this is not the only objection to moisture, for each particle of water requires the use of heat to bring it up to the flame temperature of the gas; and conse- quently the heat developed for this purpose is not avail- able for useful work. The paradox of wet cleaning is that it must rob the gas of most of its sensible heat to give it the greatest efficiency in combustion. Richards and Johnson esti- mated 11 to 12 per cent of the total heat of the gas to be in the form of sensible heat, while later experiments by Joseph, Royster and Kinney gave 10 to 12 per cent. If reference is made again to the $100,000,000 worth of coke which comes out of a blast furnace in the form of gas, and the figures quoted are accepted as correct, then from $10,000,000 to $12,000,000 worth of coke is in the form of sensible heat. This is what wet washing aims to waste, in order to get the greatest efficiency from the remaining $90,000,000 worth of coke. While a blast furnace operator would look with great disfavor on a 10 per cent dilution of his blast furnace gas, with some inert material like nitrogen or carbon dioxide, he often accepts without discussion the necessary evil of losing 10 per cent of the heat of his gas by cooling his hot gases to the required degree found necessary in wet washing. Not only are the total figures for the industry im- pressive but the figures which show what is going on at an individual furnace are sufficiently important to merit serious consideration. In a paper before the American Iron and Steel Institute in 1914 H. A. Bras- sert submitted several formulae to calculate the B.t.u. per cu. ft. of blast furnace gas, the cu. ft. of gas made per ton of iron and other interesting data. By means of these formulae there have been de- veloped data based on a coke rate of 2000 lb. per ton of iron at a furnace which has a capacity of 500 tons 502 August 28, 1924 per day. The gas which comes from such a furnace will have a latent heat of combustion of 94.5 B.t.u. per cu. ft. There will be made 142,800 cu. ft. of gas per ton of iron, with an equivalent latent heat value of 13,500,000 B.t.u. per ton of iron. But these figures do not include the sensible heat of the gas at its temperature of 400 deg. Fahr., which approximates the conditions at many blast furnaces. If we consider gas with an average composition of Ce ED <s Cé Sees ssbb eo wane 12.5 per cent Carbon monoxide ............... 24.5 per cent SONI: gla date ate d a, 64 a nieee tee 3.5 per cent PUES wdc wh b ¢ dhe Che cd v0.06 oe ae 58.6 per cent having a moisture content of 35 grains per cu. ft., then the sensible heat amounts to approximately 8% B. t.u. per cu. ft. at a temperature of 400 deg. This means that for every ton of iron made there is present in the gas a sensible heat value of 1,200,000 B.t.u. Every ton of iron, therefore, is paralleled by the production of gas with a total heat value of 14,700,000 B.t.u. Every minute there comes from the blast fur- nace, in the form of gas, a heat value of 5,099,000 B.t.u. To make it easy to calculate the B.t.u. value for a THE IRON AGE 503 furnace of any capacity, the term ton-minute is devised. The gas per ton-minute is that amount of gas given off by the furnace during every minute, for every rated ton of daily capacity. According to these calculations 10,198 B.t.u. exist in the blast furnace gas per ton- minute. Accepting the heat value of coke as 14,500 B.t.u. per lb., it may be seen that 1020 Ib. of coke is the equivalent of the gas produced per ton of iron. This means that in a 500-ton furnace with a 2000-lb. coke rate, 351 lb. of coke are consumed every minute in the form of gas. The equivalent of the sensible heat in the gas is 80 Ib. of coke per ton of iron. The question, therefore, before the blast furnace operator is clearly this: Shall he make use of these 80 Ib. of coke or shall he, literally, throw them away? The sensible heat of a gas is no less valuable than its equivalent in latent heat. [Here follows a discussion of the electrolytic process developed by Mr. Gellert for the removal of dust from blast furnace gases, and its use at the plant of the Colorado Fuel & Iron Co. This was described fully at page 422 of Tue Iron Acs, Feb. 7, 1924.] When Ordering Bicsos Sheet, Rod or Tube“ Detailed Information from Customer Important, Is View of Bridgeport Brass Co.—Tolerances Discussed UR object in preparing these questions and in- QO cluded data is to help salesmen in obtaining as much information as possible to aid the mill in supplying the customer with just what he wants. On many occasions the salesman will not ask the questions outright, but they should be a guide in obtaining the information needed. In some of the questions the request is made for samples of satisfactory and unsatisfactory material and articles made from it. We are asking this for this reason: Sometimes a customer will submit for duplica- tion a sample right “on the line” between satisfactory material and that which is either too hard or too soft. When the mill endeavors to duplicate the sample, due to commercial variations its product will vary slightly on one side or the other. If, however, the mill knows that the customer is apt to have trouble if the metal runs on the hard side of the sample submitted as a standard it can work toward the soft side. It will be found that most of the tolerances quoted below to which we hold our mill are closer than those specified by the American Society for Testing Materials. The A. S. T. M. specification numbers are as follows: POG. occ ceknen ka het cies sdea wens Ce B 16-18 BE v.xawnd dn eee bac ae tec¥ uae ees ee B 36-21 PE. caen ce cnnt.sccesee uneee kl eemeud B 43-23 Cemmenser TUDOR cic cccecécdetenbese B 44-23 T Rod:—To Determine Mixture and Temper (a) jor is rod to be used? Is it to be bent? If so, how severely? 2. Is it to be machined? If so, what kind of opera- tions are to be performed? Is extra stiffness necessary because of long overhang from chuck, small section at chuck or unbalanced tooling operation? Is it to be rolled threaded? 3. Is it to be headed or upset? If so, how severe are the operations? Get sample, if at all pos- sible. 4. Is customer willing to pay for something special to meet peculiar requirements? 5. Is it possible to obtain a sample of article to be made? If so, our experts may easily be able to suggest better methods of tooling or short cuts. A sample of satisfactory and unsatisfactory articles and material will aid in giving us a clearer idea of what is required. (b) What diameter is required? ances? All plus or all minus? What are the toler- Note: Our tolerances are: Diameter or distance between parallel faces variation Up to % in., inclusive, + .0010 in. Over % in. to 1 in., inclusive, + .0015 “ Over 1 in. to 2% in., inclusive, + .0020 “ Over 2% in. 0025 “ * Prepared by Bridgeport Brass Co. for use of salesmen Allowable I+ in dealing with customers. These are the closest tolerances that we like to hold to, as closer tolerances increase the cost of the material. (c) What lengths are desired? What are the tolerances? Note: Unless exact lengths are specified, all orders will be shipped stock lengths, which are as follows: From % in. to 1 in. diameter, inclusive, when ordered in 12-ft. lengths, no lengths shipped less than 8 ft.; when ordered 10-ft. lengths, no lengths less than 6 ft.; when ordered 6-ft. lengths, no lengths less than 4 ft. When ordered in lengths given above, the weight of lengths shorter than the length ordered shall not exceed 40 per cent of any one shipment. For rods over 1 in. up to and including 2 in. in diameter or thickness the lengths shall be random lengths from 4 to 10 ft.; for rods over 2 in. in diameter or thickness, special lengths are required, but no length shall be less than 4 ft. Note: The cheapest way to buy a brass rod is to buy a standard form and employ men with the neces- sary skill to tool it correctly, instead of putting upon the brass manufacturer the burden of supp!ying all sort of variations. Hardness has nothing to do with the free cutting qualities of brass, as it has with steel. We therefore prefer to use the word “stiff” instead of “hard” when referring to brass rod. Sheet (a) How thick is the metal required? (b) What are the tolerances? Note: Our standards are: Total variations allowed Toandincluding Over 5 in. Thickness 5 in. wide wide From 0.005 to 0.010 in....... 0.0015 in. 0.002 in. From 0.011 to 0.015 in....... 0.002 in. 6.0025 in. From 0.016 to 0.030 in....... 0.003 in. 0.0035 in. From 0.031 to 0.050 in....... 0.0035 in. 0.004 in. From 0.051 to 0.080 in....... 0.0045 in. 0.005 in. From 0.081 to 0.100 in....... 0.005 in. 0.006 in. From 0.101 to 0.125 in....... 0.006 in. 0.008 in. From 0.126 to 0.250 in....... 0.008 in. 0.010 in. Over 0.250 in....... 0.010 in. 0.010 ‘in. Gage variations given here are total variations, one- half above and one-half below the norma! thickness, and apply to the unslit bar. These tolerances are the closest that we care to be held to, as closer tolerances increase the cost of the material. (c) Is the metal to be colled or must it be cut to length?” If cut, what are the lengths required? (d) If the metal is to be cut to length, how much linear curvature is allowable? This will determine whether the metal can be slit or must sheared. Our tol- erence is \% in. in 6 ft. (e) What are the requirements as to flatness? For cup- SR el lew oes ow ee Ce aC en em — a ~ - SaaS © * e RS pean: creel emma selon « oy ab llamo ae 504 THE IRON AGE ping processes, nothing more than commercial flat- ness is required. . : , (f) If hard sheet for bending or forming is required, what kind of bending or forming is it going to re- ceive? Is a fine surface necessary on the bent por- tion? What degree of stiffness, if any, is necessary in the finished piece? This information will enable us to determine what temper is required. ; (gz) Answers to the following questions will determine the mixture and degree of anneal required. This is of the utmost importance if best results are to be obtained. 1. Is the customer going to use the brass for cup- ping, spinning or in the fabrication of tanks, boxes, etc. 2. If used for cupping— I. Is the operation a light or a heavy one? II. Is the cup subsequently to be annealed and drawn or is to be submitted to a forming process without anneal? III. Is it to be polished or nicke