The Iron Age 1924-12-04: Vol 114 Iss 23

§ ESTABLISHED 1855 a THE IRON AGE ‘New York, December 4, 1924 VOL. 114, No. 23 a Making Steel Tubes for Roller Bearings Electric Furnace Plant for Alloy Steel—From Ingot to Seamless Tube in a Series of Mills—Piercing Mill Used BY F. L. PRENTISS Bearing Co., Canton, Ohio, of a 35-in. blooming mill and soaking pits have given the company a complete modern type steel making plant. This com- pany has for some time past occupied a unique posi- tion in that it manufactures not only a highly finished steel product but also all the alloy steel required in A Dearing to the steel plant of the Timken Roller — BUEETNGNNSELA LEN PDGEELOEOATeHENETMENT ENCED reSLTHEOLY making that product. The latest additions enable the company to supply outside customers also with electric alloy steel. The products made aside from roller bear- ings, comprise hot finished and cold drawn seamless steel tubing, merchant bars and cold drawn wire. The first Timken roller bearing was made in a small shop in St. Louis, this being only a plant for assem- bling bearing parts made to order by other concerns. In 1901 the company moved to Canton and began, in a small way, to manufacture its own parts. From this modest beginning has grown a plant covering 24 acres. In addition the company has built a plant at Columbus, Ohio, which started operations late in 1919. The out- put has grown accordingly, so that now 110,000 com- 1463 plete bearings can be turned out in a day. When running to full capacity the company has 6200 on the pay roll, 800 of whom are employed in the steel plant. This recent increase in capacity permits the com- pany to turn its attention vigorously toward applica- tions of roller bearings in the general industria! field, which had been neglected heretofore because the entire oe STOSUEDL 1 RSD HOLT SONEORAEOUERUDEDEDNSUONDED F0G6 1.14) 0510089 61) 60) be OOFRREREBOSERUPS Ltn catene treneneneny or OAKING Pit Crane Delivers the Ingot from the Soaking Pits (just off the left of the picture) onto a Platform Alongside the Blooming Mill Ap- proach Table. Then a pusher in the pit in the foreground pushes the ingot onto the blooming mill table, thus eliminating an ingot transfer buggy vee cen nen ee PSEA inamerceereneT | ober tees output was absorbed by the automotive industry. To develop the application of roller bearings in other fields, the steel plant has been equipped generally with Timken bearings and new applications are constantly being added. Several of these installations that are of spe- cial interest are referred to in this article. Eolling of steel by the company began in 1916 with the vperation of a Mannesmann mill (described in Tue iron Ace of April 27, 1916) for the manufacture of 3 to 6-in. seamless steel tubing. Since then various units have been added and the plant now comprises four Heroult electric furnaces, a %365-in. three-high blooming mill, a 22-in. billet and bar mill, a 16, 12 and 10-in. merchant nrill, a seamless tube mill complete with 1464 weenie Huyeesennnnersvvannneeseceeseseieesennens Scrap a Outside THE IRON AGE MTR Tuseé, Mize Me/+ (Elecfric urnaces) Weg reheat Continuous furnaces Tubes La. or v Weigh Reduce vnenen Lan aenN ne ENN: MERCHANT Mitt Wesg December 4, 1924 onginvous furnace Hot Saw Roll 16"Mi i Roll 42°Mil/ Roll 10°! Corl STocK STRAIGHT STOCK Weigh che Inspect “er rc InsPect phpuc. [Weigh Copy aus Weigh — - INSPECT Pl BPH Pornt - sence | Hot Saw | Saw Inspecr Inspect Straigh ten woe Lo iee [ time or Dope) [dere] [cool—HoF Bed | CaM Dro 4 Cold Draw - and Annea. Cold Draw and Arnea/ Inspect |__ Sage : , Weigh | (Wei li Straighten ot | : Straigh nt tne Straighten Tuse SQUARE andtu —y —— ae INSPECT cof on Cut OFF a jiameen SMALL tans Rack ROLLS INSPECT [Weigh] “rr FIniSHED Po 7uses 7 a Pack For LARGE Re AN Colo DRAWN TUBES OLLS AND all necessary auxiliary rolling, cold drawing and finish- ing equipment and a department for the cold drawing of rods and wire. Timken roller bearings, while manufactured in a wide range of sizes are made up essentially of four parts: an inner race or “cone,” an outer race or “cup,” a set of tapered rollers and a “cage” for spacing the The races are turned from hot finished or cold rollers. SMALL CONES, 76 BEARING FACTORY CUO eeEsaseroESHENORaaScONEENEHNoOnNEE OOF cONDONDELODODOEDOOORELONEDEDOBOSOEDADOTONDOOHROEDEDEREDDELADONONLAUEDONORHEDEDLE THOLEOEREULANEEDODUELEVEEOEREDEODECUERTHVELEAT TOO PeDOrUELEE.nvaEvenerenetONEENALetHOHtONT EL veer een ane éé LOW Dia- F gram” from the Raw Materials to the Time the Rods or Tubes Enter the Bearing De- partment. The care taken in - inspection is em- phasized. It will be noted that some material is heated four times ec ReNNREAARELEED OUD DHAT DO EEETEDEA ENE LETUTE drawn seamless steel tubing, the rollers from cold drawn merchant bars or wire and the cages are stamped from strip steel, the latter being the only steel bought outside. Due to the severity of the service to which a roller bearing is subjected, it is of para- mount importance that the steel be free from defects. Inspection therefore is rigid and frequent, and becomes more frequent as the material progresses through the Tc pees = a a: en nee ee SE ea December 4, 1924 THE IRON AGE 1465 Rear of the Blooming Mill, Showing the Construction of the Guide Boxes on the Delivery Side bearing factory. This article is confined to the mak- ing and shaping of the steel up to the point where it is delivered to the bearing factory. Electric Furnace Department All steel is made in electric furnaces from select heavy melting scrap. The scrap comes partly from outside sources and partly from the company’s own plant. The light scrap, consisting of turnings and bor- ings from the bearing factory and tube mill, being un- fit for electric furnace consumption due to its bulk and low specific weight, was up to two years ago sold in the market. Now a briquetting machine compresses this material into a cylindrical briquette 7 in. in diam- eter and 4 to 5 in. thick, having a density of 70 per cent of a solid. The hourly paeduction of this machine is 6% net tons. The turnings are mostly trucked to the machine from the different shops but in the near future a complete suction system for conveying them will be installed. The chip-handling method will be described in THE IRON AGE next week. Four basic Heroult electric furnaces are of a nominal capacity of 6 tons each; space is provided for two additional furnaces. The pouring platform is located directly across from the furnaces. Recently the furnaces have been equipped with new Westing- house 2500 k.v.a. transformers with taps at 190, 173 and 150 volts for melting down and 110, 95 and 80 volts for refining the charge. The heat, weighing 18,500 lb., is melted down in 1% hr., while the refining, due to the high quality of the steel, takes 2 hr. or more. The total output of the four furnaces averages 200 tons in 24 hr. All heats are top-poured into specially designed, inverted polygon shaped Gathmann molds on cars and transferred by standard gage cars to the soaking pits. One heat makes four ingots of 4300 Ib. each and each ingot car carries one heat. The ingot cars, furnished Vertical Shear Back of the Blooming Mill; It Has Neither Clutch Nor Flywheel, but Is Direct Connected to the Motor and Is Operated by a Master Controller. This picture shows the simplicity of the motor drive ae: ord rare” Bi iv EI oi“ an gion et SEB. —— pee aoe ery a SP ati ome eet ene 1466 by the Alliance Machine Co., are provided with Timken bearings. Soaking Pits Soaking pits recently built replace the pits that were located near a hydraulic press formerly used for break- ing down the ingots. They are housed in a new build- ing 65 ft. wide and 160 ft. long, with a lean-to 29 ft. wide, in which the valves are located. There are three groups of two holes and one stack each, each hole measuring 6 ft. 6 in. x 11 ft. and holding from eight to ten ingots. The pit covers are screw operated and run on Timken bearings. The end thrust from the screw is taken up by a Timken bearing. The pits are of the regenerative type, each hole being capable of inde- pendent reversal and regulation. At present the fuel used is natural gas but provision is made for fuel oil and eventually producer gas. The gas regenerative chamber, being nearest to the pit proper and rather small in size, is roofed over. The natural gas enters this chamber at a low point and leaves it through a port in the roof, where it mixes with the hot air before THE -IRON AGE December 4, 1924 sity for an ingot transfer device. The ingot is, how- ever, not placed directly onto the table rollers, but on a heavy platform alongside of the table, whence a pusher moves it broadside onto the table. Breakage of table rollers caused by dropping of an ingot is thereby eliminated. The blooming mill is a three-high stand with a fully inclosed pinion set, driven by a 1500-hp. Allis-Chalmers a.c. mill type motor through a 10 to 1 gear reduction and flywheel set. A Thomas coupling connects the motor to the gear set, the motor operating at 350 r.p.m. and the mill at 35 r.p.m. This speed is lower than usually employed but was found advisable, due to the nature of the steel to be rolled. The mill has electri- cally operated front and rear lifting tables with a fingered type of manipulator under the front table and adjustable, stationary guides on the rear table. The bloom is carried by a shear approach table to a vertical bloom shear capable of shearing a hot 10 x 10-in. bloom. Back of the shear is a shear depressing table, a kick- off and a set of cradles. After being reduced to 8 x 9 in. or 7 x 8 in., the Plan Cross and Sections of a Soak- ing Pit Unit, of Which There Are Three entering the pit proper. There are no gas burners and combustion is found to be excellent. To permit independent expansion and contraction, the operating floor around the pits is in no way con- nected to the brickwork or the binding of the pits, nor is it fastened to the main building columns. The ad- vantages of this construction are evident. The entire installation was furnished by the S. R. Smythe Co., Pittsburgh. The main part of the pit building is spanned by a 5-ton Morgan vertical charging crane quipped with Timken bearings. Blooming Mill The blooming mill building is 100 ft. wide and 200 ft. long, with a 10-ft. wide lean-to. Both the pit and the mill buildings are provided with ample light and ventilation. The mill buildng forms an L with the soaking pit building, and the mill approach table ex- tends into the pit building far enough to be within reach of the pit crane, thus doing away with the neces- In the Section Be- low Are Shown the Regenerator Ar- rangement and the Flues TT | - eS s & | b C ee MW YA Do fei th ahi § OOOO Ooo = CO errs fetiete t-8iet= A L | RERHR RR a) La Y ¥ Z CUULUUEERECUEUEUOUEAA CHAS LONEOGUTOUAAERDOUEHENOEUNNONREETEN L/CEELLEEHEE TEU ingot is sheared into lengths of approximately 8 ft., a 4300-lb. ingot making two blooms, weighing about 2000 lb. each after cropping. The blooms, having been kicked off, are stamped with heat and specification number and transferred on standard gage cars to the billet and chipping yard. All tables, table drives and shear drive are provided with Timken bearings. Unusual interest attaches to the bloom shear in that it has neither clutch nor fly wheel but is direct con- nected to the motor drive and operated by a master controller. The motor runs only when the shear moves, the shear making one cycle at a time only, a limit switch stopping the motion when the shear is in the “up” position. Advantages claimed for this shear over the standard type are greater cutting speed, less power requirement, less maintenance cost and elimination of breakage, since the motor will stall when too great a resistance is encountered. Mill and all tables, the gear reduction set, shear, ingot pusher, kick-off and cradles were furnished by the December 4, 1924 THE IRON AGE Annealing Furnaces Are Used for Normalizing Tubing That Requires More Than One Cold Drawing Operation. An interesting feature of these furnaces is that their charging cars are Mackintosh-Hemphill Co., Pittsburgh. A 15-ton crane with 10-ton auxiliary hoist commands the blooming mill building. This crane, built by the Morgan En- gineering Co., is equipped with Timken bearings. The sewer being higher in elevation than the mill sump, the water discharged by the mill is pumped up into the sewer. Two Weinman vertical pumps provided with automatic float control perform this duty. Bar Mill One building 100 ft. wide by 965 ft. long, with a 10-ft. wide lean-to, houses the bar mill, tube mill and merchant mill. After being pickled and chipped the blooms are carried, by overhead monorail and magnet, to a reheating furnace and charged through the fur- nace end by a pusher. This is a continuous oil or natural gas-fired furnace with a chamber 10 ft. wide and 80 ft. long. The blooms are discharged from the furnace through its side by another pusher and run Tubes in -the Smaller Sizes Are Reduced in Diam- eter on a 16-Stand Reducing Mill with Rolls Set at an Angle of 45 Deg (in Rear). The hot saw and hot bed are in the fore- ground equipped with motor drive attached to the ends of the cars over a short transfer table onto the mill table. The bar mill consists of four 22-in. three-high stands ar- ranged side by side and has front andgear traveling tilting tables. It is driven by an 800-hp., a.c. Westing- house motor through a rope drive, the motor operating at 250 r.p.m. and the mill at 60 r.p.m. This mill produces round billets from 2 to 7 in. diameter for the tube mill and square billets in various sizes for the merchant mill. Some of the 8 x 9-in. blooms are rolled down to 2-in. square billets 140 ft. long. Reduction to billets of this length is made pos- sible by use of swinging tables which form extensions to the tilting tables and are automatically carried along by them. After being sawed into required lengths on a United Engineering & Foundry Co. hot saw equipped with Timken bearings, the billets are allowed to cool on a hot bed and re-chipped; they then are ready to be taken either to the tube mill or the merchant mill. The orig- a ge? ON pagent ice Tex aie weer Cees ee ea ae —— 1468 THE IRON AGE inal plain type bearings in all the mill tables are being replaced by Timken bearings. The maximum output of this mill is 25 tons per hour. Merchant Mill Billets received from the 22-in. mill are charged by a pusher into a continuous heating furnace through its end, the furnace chamber being 17 ft. wide and hav- ing an effective length of 40 ft. The fuel is either natural gas or oil. Discharge is effected through the side of the furnace by means of pinch rollers and peel rod. Close to the furnace outlet is placed a 30-in. United Engineering & Foundry Co. sliding frame hot saw for cutting the billets into required lengths. The use of a hot saw in such a location is rather novel but it is stated that it has proved entirely satisfactory. From the furnace the billet goes to a 16-in. three- high roughing stand built by the Lewis Foundry & Machine Co. This stand is driven by an 800-hp., d.c. variable speed Westinghouse motor operated at 410 to 720 r.p.m., a Faweus 1 to 5 gear set with flywheels reducing the speed to 82 to 145 r.p.m. at the mill. A Faweus flexible coupling connects the motor to the gear set. After being roughed down, the bar is reduced further in five 12-in. three- high stands set side by side, which are direct connected, through a Francke flex- ible coupling and a flywheel, to a 1200- hp., d.c. variable speed General Electric motor, operating at 150 to 250 r.p.m. There are also three 10-in. three-high stands driven directly by a 400-hp., d.c. variable speed General Electric motor, operating at 250 to 500 r.p.m. Both 12-in. and 10-in. trains, which were furnished by the Wheeling Mold & Foundry Co., can deliver to a hot bed 120 ft. long, built by the Mackintosh- Hemphill Co. The bed consists of a belt- driven mill run-out table, a kick-off, an incline, moving fingers for spacing the bars, shuffle bars and a lower run-out table toward a Mesta shear. Here again is an interesting feature similar to the one in connection with the bloom shear, in that the kick-off, which extends the full length of the bed and may be repre- sented by a straight edge hinged below the mill run-out table rollers, is coupled directly through the gearing to a motor. The motor therefore starts and stops with the kick-off, a limit switch insuring that the straight edge will stop clear of the rollers. One com- plete motion of the kick-off is accomplished in 1% sec. but can be completed in less than one second. Merchant mill product consists of 5/16 to 2%-in. round bars, or their equivalent in other standard shapes. This mill is equipped also for rolling automo- bile spring steel and all high-grade alloys, the bed al- lowing stacking of the spring flats for annealing. Coils of 300 lb. each can be produced in sections from % to 13/16 in. and smaller sizes in proportion to good mill practice. Two reelers made by the Wheeling Mold & Foundry Co. are provided for coiling. The maximum capacity of the merchant mill is 20 tons per hour. All tables and the entire hot bed are equipped with Timken bearings. Wire Drawing Department Coils as well as a certain amount of straight stock from the merchant mill go to the wire drawing depart- ment. There are two Morgan units, one consisting of three standard blocks and the other of a two-reel Mor- gan bull block. After pickling, the stock is washed by a stream of water pumped at 100 lb. pressure to insure the removal of all scale and dirt. Pointing is done on a 2%-in. Dayton swaging machine. The coiled stock eventually is fabricated into rolls on heading machines in the bearing factory; the straight stock, into large rolls and small cones on automatic turning machines. Sizes are held to very close limits so as to require the PO ee ee et December 4, 1924 least possible amount of machining or grinding in the subsequent operations. Tube Mill The tube rolling department has been materially en- larged, additional rolling equipment installed and man- ufacturing processes have been improved since the orig- inal mill was first started. The operations are as follows: Rounds from 3% to 7 in. diameter, as received from the 22-in. mill and chipped, are heated in a continuous 10 x 60 ft. furnace. A Mannesmann piercing mill, built by William Tod and having rollers 19 in. in diam- eter, converts the round into a rough tube of approxi- mately the same diameter as the round and having a wall thickness of from % to 19/16 in. The mill exerts a tremendous pressure on the revolving mandrel bar, which is taken up by a large Timken thrust bearing built into the so-called “thrust block.” After piercing, the tubes are given an inspection and transferred to a os Sliding Frame Hot Saw Located at the Outlet of the Merchant Mill Heat- ing Furnace for Cutting Billets to Length Before Rolling two-high William Tod re-rolling mill, which has also a set of return rolls. This mill reduces the outside diam- eter and produces an even wall thickness by hot rolling over a cast steel alloy plug. The tubes have now a diameter of from 3% to 6% in. and a wall thickness of from 5/32 to 1% in. From this point the flow of tubes is diverted into two separate channels, one leading to cold operations only, the other to further hot working. The larger tubes, from 4% in. outside diameter up, are not re- heated but go directly to the cold drawing department. The smaller tubes, from 3% to 4% in. outside diameter, are not allowed to cool but are transferred by a high- speed conveyor to a continuous reducing mill consisting of 16 stands placed closly one behind the other. Each stand has a pair of driven rolls, the axis of the rolls in stands Nos. 1, 3, 5, ete., lying at right angles to that in stands Nos. 2, 4, 6, ete. Instead of having these axes alternately horizontal and vertical, they form an angle of 45 deg. with the floor line, mak- ing the rolls more accessible and easier to change. The tube is given one pass through one or more, up to all sixteen stands, during which operation the walls are thickened and the diameters reduced. Because the tube fills these stands simultaneously and because it must not be stretched between stands, the roll diameters and speeds must be very carefully calculated. This .mill, built by the Woodward Machine Co., now a subsidiary of the Mackintosh-Hemphill Co., is driven by a 350-hp. a.c. Westinghouse motor. The tubes are now hot sawed Siete EE cen ee eee ee nea a December 4, 1924 and allowed to cool, care being taken to preserve straightness. The hot saw runs on Timken bearings. Here the stream of tubes again divides, some going to the cold drawing department and the remainder to the turning department. Tubes going to the cold draw- ing department are first pointed on steam hammers, the point being about 9 in. long, and then pickled, there being five acid tubs, also lime, “dope” and wash tubs in the pickling department. The pickling is followed by washing, inspecting for outside defects and “doping” with a lubricating solution for cold drawing. There are three 100,000-Ib. single draw benches and two 50,- 000-Ib. double draw benches, all built by the Standard Engineering Co. For normalizing tubing that requires more than one cold drawing pass, there are two gas-fired annealing furnaces, each accommodating a standard gage car on which the tubes are placed and with a motor drive at- tached to it for moving it into and out of the furnace. Tubes as they come from the cold draw benches are from % to 6% in. outside diameter, with a wall thick- ness of from 3/32 to 1% in. After they are straight- ened, in a 12-roll rough straightener or breakdown machine and various other roll and gag straighteners, the cold drawn tubes are cut off to length on special machines, given a final inspection, oiled and taken to storage racks. THE IRON AGE 1469 Tubes going to the turning department are first pickled, then straightened on an Abramsen-Sutton straightener equipped with Timken bearings and cut off. Then they are taken to turning machines made by the Brightman Mfg. Co. These are high-speed lathes on which a roughing and a finishing cut are taken simultaneously on the outside of the tube, giving a smooth bright surface and accurate size, the toler- ance being +0.003 in. on the diameter. After turning, the tubes receive their final inspection and are oiled and placed on racks. Tubes that are given the above operation are known as hot finished tubes. A variety of auxiliary machines are used, including a Williams & White bulldozer for making automobile axle sleeves, and several hot strike presses on which cup or cone forgings are formed, these being too large to be made out of tubes. Purchased power is brought into the plant at 22,000 volts, a fully-equipped substation transforming this current into voltages adapted to the needs of the plant. The maximum hourly consumption runs up to 18,000 kw. and the system is so well balanced that the power factor is unity. Full magnetic control is used almost universally through the plant. There is a boiler house of over 2000 hp. capacity but, with the exception of steam hammers, the steam is used for purposes other than furnishing power. F errophosphorus from the Electric Furnace Type of Furnace and the Raw Materials—Analysis of the Two Grades Produced BY THEODORE SWANN* URING recent years there has been a material increase in the use of ferrophosphorus in the steel industry. It has been observed, when rolling sheets, that those made of Southern iron did not have to be rolled at as high a temperature as the others and, consequently, did not stick together. The reason was found to be the phosphorus content of Southern iron. It was therefore thought that an addition of phosphorus to sheet steel of other than Southern origin would give the same result as the use of Southern iron. At first, this addition was made by introducing phosphate rock in the blast furnace and reducing it together with the iron ore; but, because of the necessity for only small quantities of this grade of iron, the process was not satisfactory. The manufacture of ferrophosphorus was then introduced, so that additions might be made to the open-hearth furnace or ladle. Ferrophosphorus was first nfanufactured in the blast furnace. This method, however, can economically pro- duce a grade of product up to only about 20 per cent. To produce a higher grade, it would be necessary to charge a larger proportion of phosphate-bearing ma- terial; and as the rate of absorption by the iron is low, there would be an increased loss of phosphorus oxides. This feature makes the production of a higher grade ferrophosphorus in the blast furnace uneconomical. The use of high-grade ferrophosphorus in the steel requires a smaller addition and involves, besides the economies in handling, an additional economy in trans- portation. The alloy with a higher percentage than 20 per cent can be made only in the electric furnace. In the ordinary operation of the electric furnace in the production of ferrophosphorus, an alloy may be produced containing 26 per cent phosphorus; this is the limit, for it does not seem possible to produce a higher phosphorus alloy even if large excesses of phos- phatic materials are used. The reasons for the difficul- ty in raising this percentage of phosphorus are not known. The compounds Fe,P, containing 15.6 per cent, *President Federal Phosphorus Co., Birmingham, Ala. This paper was presented at the Birmingham meeting of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engi- neers in October. and Fe,P, containing 21.7 per cent phosphorus, have been studied and it appears as if the alloy produced, containing percentages of phosphorus within these lim- its, is a mixture of these two compounds. While some investigators have stated that as many as seven com- pounds of phosphorus and iron have been isolated, the compound Fe,P,, containing 29.33 per cent phosphorus, is the closest within the range produced by the electric furnace. It may be there is a compound Fe,P,; such a compound has, however, not been isolated and it may be that the alloy produced in the electric furnace, contain- ing 25 per cent phosphorus, is a mixture of the com- pounds Fe,P and Fe,P,, respectively. Raw Materials The raw materials used in the manufacture of ferro- phosphorus consist of phosphate rock, coke, silica and iron scrap. The phosphate rock may be of the high grade commonly used in the manufacture of fertilizer, although a material containing higher percentages of silica than may be used in fertilizer manufacture has been found satisfactory. The excess of silica is not ob- jectionable because it combines with the lime in the phosphate rock and is withdrawn with the slag, in reality reducing the amount of silica that would other- wise be added. The principal source of phosphate rock is in the large deposits in Florida and Tennessee, but there are even larger deposits in other portions of the country. In the northern portion of Florida hard rock phosphate is found in tertiary formation; in the southern portion, around Tampa, there is the pebble phosphate, of more recent origin. Brown Tennessee phosphate rock, a resi- dual deposit of highly phosphatic limestone, is found near Nashville, Tenn. Iron borings or turnings are ordinarily used, but it is possible to use iron ore instead. When iron ore is substituted, additional coke and power are necessary, but this is largely compensated for by the fact that the source of iron is less expensive. When scrap becomes very expensive, other iron-bearing materials are used, such as pyrites cinder, mill cinder, iron ore, and a sin- 1470 tered mixture of pyrite cinder and low-grade phosphate rock, While eXtra power and coke are required to reduce the iron in these, the cost of the iron contained is less and the final costs can be balanced. By varying the amount of iron charged, the phos- phorus content of the ferrophosphorus may be varied. A certain amount of iron oxide tends to help reduce the volatilization when smelting. Coke braize for the elec- tric furnaces at Anniston, Ala., is obtained from the Birmingham by-product coke ovens. Silica rock of high purity abounds in the mountains and streams close to the plant at Anniston. Phosphorus could be extracted from the rock by heating it with coke or sand, but an inspection of the heat of the reactions involved shows that the reactions that use coke and sand together give the lowest tem- perature and the smallest heat of reaction. Part of the phosphorus liberated is absorbed by the iron, thus , making ferrophosphorus. The metal and the slag from the furnace are tapped together. From the tap hole, the products run into a large iron chill in which the metal remains; the slag floats and overflows into a bed of sand where it is chilled and broken up. The slag carries with it a cer- tain amount of phosphorus, but the loss can be min- imized by proper burdening. The ferrophosphorus, after cooling, is removed from the chill and broken in pieces for easy handling. Type of Furnace Used In the production of high-grade ferrophosphorus, a large excess of phosphorus must be charged and the losses by volatilization become very large. For this reason, a closed furnace is used, which permits drawing off the vapors of phosphorus through a gas main. By admitting air and moisture into these vapors, phosphor- us pentoxide and then orthophosphorie acid is formed. The orthophosphoric acid is collected by condensation PROSPERITY PREDICTED President Ker Believes the Country Will Enjoy Good Business for at Least Two Years YOUNGSTOWN, Dec. 2.—District steel companies con- tinue to receive a substantial volume of new business. The Sharon Steel Hoop Co., which has been operating close to capacity for several weeks, is booking a large tonnage, according to President Severn P. Ker. “There has not been a day since Nov. 10 when our company has not booked at least 140 per cent of its full produc- tion capacity,” he states. “On some days the bookings have run as high as 300 per cent, while the average has been in excess of double capacity.” Mr. Ker predicts prosperous conditions for the industry for at least two years. Several years ago he prophesied that by 1930 steel ingot and casting produc- tion would be 60,000,000 tons per year, or 10 per cent greater than the present theoretical maximum capacity. This prophecy Mr. Ker now repeats, also estimating that in 1930 the country will have a population of 120,- 000,000 people, with an average consumption of steel of 1000 lb. annually. He points to the growing uses of steel for fireproofing, metal furniture and filing cab- inet construction, motor car manufacture, for resi- dential and general construction and the expanding steel requirements of the railroads in support of his view that we may expect continued heavy consumption of steel products. “If metal lath were used in only one of ten new buildings erected at this time the demand would equal the capacity of this branch of the fabricating indus- try,” he states. Leading independent sheet makers, such as the Re- public Iron & Steel Co. and the Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co., have formally marked up quotations $2 to $3 per ton, in conformity with the action of the American Sheet & Tin Plate Co. The quotations on which for- ward business is being accepted are 2.75c. for blue an- nealed, 3.60c. for black and 4.75c. for galvanized and full finished sheets, all base gages. THE IRON AGE December 4, 1924 and electric precipitation with the Cottrell precipitator. In the production of low-grade ferrophosphorus (17 to 19 per cent phosphorus) it is not necessary to use the inclosed type furnace and a rectangular smelting alloy type furnace is used. If the higher grade ferro- phosphorus (containing 25 per cent phosphorus) is to be produced, it is necessary to use the inclosed type furnace in order that the evolved phosphorus fume may be collected. In the production of ferrophosphorus, the electric furnace operates at about a 94 per cent power factor and a 90 per cent load factor may be procured if care is taken. The average electrode consumption for ferrophos- phorus operation may be kept at 5 lb. per 1000 kwhr. input. In view of the fact that the furnace charge con- tains such a high percentage of carbon, it is not sur- prising that the electrode consumption is so very small. Electric furnace ferrophosphorus is marketed in two grades; 17 to 19 per cent, average 18 per cent; 23 to 25 per cent, average 24 per cent. Complete anal- yses of the two grades are about as follows: 18 Per Cent 24 Per Cent OGD 909 40:60<ids 18.000 24.000 SE ore eA wd oe bm 6a RG 0.500 0.750 xaa oe '¥ a's 0680 de es 0.005 0.005 PPE TET re 0.250 0.250 ER Sr ae 80,000 74,000 Miscellaneous .......... 1.245 0.995 Serre re rerre 100.000 100.000 The ferrophosphorus is sampled by breaking off a small piece from the large lumps of the cast. Samples of shipments consist of 200 or 300 small pieces broken from lumps as they are loaded into the ears. The prep- aration of the sample of 25 per cent ferrophosphorus requires more than ordinary care in that there is a tendency toward segregation in which one portion will analyze somewhat higher phosphorus content. This is one consideration in the statement that the 25 per cent ferrophosphorus may be a mixture of the two compounds previously mentioned. However, much tonnage remains to be shipped at the old price levels from this territory. Firm demand for merchant steel bars has strength- ened the 2c. per lb. price, while plates are stabilized at 1.90c. In this district No. 2 foundry iron is being held firmly at $20 and basic at $19.50. Annual Meeting of British Cast Iron Research Association In the unavoidable absence of Lord Weir, H. B. Weeks presided at the third annual meeting of the Cast Iron Research Association in London on Nov. 19. The chairman laid stress on the great progress made during the year and summarized the main develop- ments, particularly the extended research program and the establishment of a laboratory. Sir John Dewrance was elected president for the period 1924-26, and the following were elected vice- presidents: George Pate, Falkirk; Summers Hunter, Wallsend-on-Tyne; F. W. Firth, Sheffield; C. E. Lloyd, Dudley, and W. B. M. Jackson, Chesterfield. Comman- der C. W. Craven and Prof. T. Turner were re- elected vice-presidents for a further year. A great trib- ute was paid to the services rendered to the association by the retiring president, Lord Weir of Eastwood, who was elected an honorary member, and retiring vice- presidents M. Deacon, vice-admiral Sir George Good- win, A. Laing, P. W. Petter and Douglas Vickers. A. J. Burn, F. J. Cook, T. Donaldson, N. B. Elling- ton, J. Haigh, Major C. Howl and M. Riddell were re- elected to the council. Dr. W. Rosenhain and T. Turner were elected honorary members. Dr. Rosenhain suit- ably responded, expressing the hope that there would be even greater cooperation in the future between the association and the ferrous alloys research committee. Delegates nominated by the leading technical institu- tions were elected and thanks expressed to the profes- sors and scientists who assist in the work of the asso- ciation. mo Vacation Plans for Wage Workers’ Valuable Information Obtained from a Large Number of Manufacturers in Twenty-six States and Canada— Various Methods Adopted ROBABLY at no other time have American in- dustrialists been so keenly in quest of personnel policies of proven value as incentives to increased production and stabilized forces. Never before in the development of the modern industrial relations pro- gram has there been a more searching demand for an analysis of the costs and other economic factors in- volved. Keen competition and mounting overhead ex- pense are demanding of labor management a business- like procedure. In this connection, therefore, it is of considerable interest to note the development of an- other industrial relations feature—vacations with pay were found to have plans for salaried workers only, when the purpose of the report was to cover only plans for factory workers, meaning hourly, day, or piece workers, and not salaried employees or clerical workers. As the result of questionnaires and plant visitations in the nature of original research, a special report was composed covering 93 companies, operating 163 plants, and employing more than 342,000 wage earners. (Cf. Table I.) All vacation plans were divided into two general classifications: regular plans, granting vacations with no interruption in the continuity of production in the Manufacturers Heartily Indorse Vacations for Workers From the president of a prominent au- tomobile company: We believe in the vacation plan thoroughly As in all of our cooperative plans, labor turn- over was decreased, loyalty and efficiency of labor was greater, the man hours per car produced were less, and the quality of the cars turned out was better. From the president of a box and paper company: The most satisfactory thing we do for our employees. Increases loyalty and efficiency and we are glad we maintained it during the de- pression period. From a pipe and metal manufacturing company: We consider the plan excellent in relation to production, turnover, and morale. Employers are very much enthused over the idea. It has done more to prove our real human considera- tion of our employees than almost any other of our industrial relations endeavors. From a large rubber company, with eleven years’ experience: for wage earners. Many enterprises are adopting various types of vacation plans, not merely as a re- ward for faithful service or as a health measure, but rather as good business policy. Not a few companies are discovering that vacations can be successfully worked out during the shutdown or inventory periods. In this country, the adoption of vacation plans for wage earners has been confined to private enterprises, as there has been no legislation covering paid vaca- tions except in governmental service, and but very few collective agreements. In Europe, however, conditions are quite different. In four countries there exists legis- lation granting all workers vacations with pay, while in England, Germany, Italy, Norway and Sweden, the number of collective agreements containing provisions covering annual paid “leaves” is large and constantly increasing. In the spring of this year, the industrial relations staff of Curtis, Fosdick & Belknap received requests from some of the clients of that firm for information covering vacations for wage earners. A search of the files of various industrial and trade organizations re- vealed the fact that there were no comprehensive data available. A selected list of firms which were supposed to have plans, was compiled, but many of these firms *Compiled by Industrial Relations Staff, Curtis, Fosdick & Belknap, Attorneys, New York. 147) There is no doubt in our minds that we are receiving value received, this fact being attested to by the fact that in spite of a period of strenuous retrenchment, our vacation plan with minor changes is still in effect. From a large metal manufacturing com- pany: The company benefits in the way of produc- tion in receiving the employees’ energy upon their return from vacation. We believe the ex- pense incurred by vacations is offset by far by the effect the vacation plan has on the morale of the organization. From a corapany manufacturing paper, building and roofing products, which has recently adopted a vacation plan: Our real basis for giving a plant vacation was the fact that we felt the plant workers were just as much entitled to a rest as most of the salaried workers. Our plant operates, and has for several years, very steadily, and we felt that these men and women were entitled to a vacation without the loss of pay plants; and shutdown plans, granting vacations during shutdown or inventory periods. In turn, the regular plans were composed of two types: straight or non- graded plans, granting a standard vacation to all em- ployees with a standard length of service, and graded plans, granting varying periods of vacations with vary- ing lengths of service. ° . wos veesses siagearees sameovenerens weseaee “ Table I.—Scope of Report No. of No. of Per No.of Per Wage Per Pians Cent Plants Cent Earners Cent Type of Plan ——“—_S S«s§ -—————_. -——_-_* Regular — Straight or non-graded .......s6: 29 31 56 34 126,166 37 Regular—Graded ...... 33 36 72 44 180,988 63 BEE co cveuesd eens 31 33 35 22 34,900 10 Teta’ «5 cae kcsnnkees 93 100 163 100 342,054 100 ar ver res cesrsens aves vee . 1:1 NRO NEN COR: PERE NET USEER AEDS Th oR ERORNRRAN REN EREM AD rCABEN FAKE The geographica] distribution of plans extended through 26 states and Canada, with the industrial states of New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Penn- sylvania, and Illinois leading. In Table II, it will be seen that over 17 major industries were represented, the petroleum, chemical, food, and metal manufac- turing industries predominating. oe eee Ee ee ee eee (Continued on page 1517) se — —— - « 1472 THE IRON AGE EXTRAS ON CONCRETE BARS New List Issued by Leading Dealer Doing a National Business One of the leading reinforcing bar dealers whose business is of national scope recently issued a list of standard extras to be added to base mill prices on concrete bars. The extras cover size, warehousing service (cutting, bundling and tagging), bending, fab- ricating spirals and engineering service. The extras have now been generally adopted by the reinforcing bar trade. The card also contains a list of standard sizes which were adopted by concrete bar dealers at the instance of the U. S. Department of Commerce. The extras are as follows: Extras to be Added to Base Price For Size % -in. I Ss 56.6 idk Keweee ks Rasa seeeascee no charge 737in eee eee CURE TT Ee 10c. per 100 Ib. SR, Sve sees asked seen ss 6t au avaslee ep hiban Gam 20c. per 100 Ib. 3 -in. i ike 4a ON wu ee bine ie Oe bale eas eee 40c. per 100 Ib. PEEEs: 0 hkS DO b ed AoKd OL babes «kee $1.00 per 100 lb. For Warehousing Service, Cutting, Bundling and Tagging Contracts for 18 tons or over................50¢e. per 100 Ib. Contracts involving less than 18 tons.......... 65c. per 100 Ib. ; For Bending Bending, other than stirrups and column lacings. 40c. per 100 Ib. Universal Tool and Cutter Grinder A universal tool and cutter grinder designated as the No. 99, and which is similar but smaller than its No. 1 machine, has been placed on the market by the Wilmarth & Morman Co., Grand Rapids, Mich. The machine may be equipped either for belt or motor drive and the belt-driven machine may be con- Motor-Driven Universal Tool and Cut- ter Grinder. All controls are on the knee below the table and directly in front of the operator verted into a motor-driven unit simply by replacing the main head. Features of the machine include front and rear control of the longitudinal feed, and micrometer adjustment to the table that can be put into use at anv angle of the table. All attachments are interchangeable with the company’s No. 1 machine. Electrical controls are on the knee, below the table, and are directly in front of the operator. The longitudinal movement of the table is 16 in., December 4, 1924 Bending stirrups and column lacings......... $1.00 per 100 lb Minimum charge for bending on or shipment......... $5.00 For Fabricating Spirals Assembled spirals of %-in. hot rolled wire OO. scenecekohen hs tamind sehen $1.45 per 100 Ib Assembled spirals of y-in. hot rolled wire POGR nc cicvcecvectessbbecsveweespeseees 1.55 per 100 lb Assembled spirals of %-in. hot rolled wire rT iT te ee er +» 1.65 per 100 lb Assembled spirals of fs-in. hot rolled wire SORE pccchasconcecebesanitusésthaseeeee 1.95 per 100 Ib Assembled spirals of 4-in. hot rolled wire rods 2.25 per 100 lt Cold drawn Wire ......eeeseceeeesseevenees -50 per 100 Ib Spirals coiled to proper diameter but unas- sembled, deduct from extras for assembled BVITAIS oo ccccccccsncecessecnssssesaeess .30 per 100 Ib For Engineering Service Preparing bar lists and bending details from plans where all sizes and lengths are BOW .c.oocodubnee eed CA>.00kb ee taneeene 5c. per 100 lb Preparing placing plans from design made by CUMGEG coc ov vdloseBeneceeanés + 4¥ieayee 15c. per 100 lb Preparing design of reinforced concrete work and placing plans ......+++-ee+eeees ++ 80c. per 100 Ib Minimum engineering charge in connection with any Order......cccceccccssesssses $15.00 Standard Sizes for Concrete Bars Weight Size Net Area in Sq. In. per Ft. in Lb %4-in. rounds ........0+00- 0.05 0.17 Senin, FOUMGS 2... ccccccsses 0.11 0.38 Te-iM, FOUNGD 2. cccscessses 0.19 0.66 %y-in. SQUATES .....-..+40% 0.25 0.86 Cut, COMED occ casvcvecte 0.30 1.05 S%-in, FOUNGS ......+e00e08 0.44 1.52 Toit, TOUNGT . occ cccseces 0.60 2.06 Sah, DOE 8 6.06% 65 60 00 0H 0.78 2.69 Lei, SGUATOS. cc cccvsnccnces 1.00 3.43 L24ctR, DEBTOR 2. ccc ssacs 1.26 4.34 144-in. SQUATES .....020005 1.56 5.35 the vertical movement 8 in., and the transverse move- ment 8 in. The working surface of the table is 5% by 32 in., and the maximum distance from spindle to table is 8 in. The centers swing work up to 10% in. in diameter and 20 in. long. The universal attachment swings cutters 16 in. in diameter over the table and 24 in. in diameter over the sub-table. The internal grinding attachment grinds from 9/16 in. diameter up and 3 in. deep; from 1% in. diameter up, 5 in. deep. The gear cutter attachment capacity is from 1% in. to 8% in. diameter. The capacity of the chuck is 4 in. The height of the machine from center of spindle to the floor is 48 in. and the base is 22 in. square. The weight of the motor driven machine, with all at- tachments, is approximately 1100 lb. net. Up-Set Forgings More than the usual amount of interest in a trade publication attaches to a 32-page pamphlet just issued by the American Forge Co., 2621 South Hoyne Avenue, Chicago, by virtue of the detailed views incorporated, showing the character of the metal after being forged in this manner. Reproductions of etched specimens show the flow of the grain in the process of up-set forg- ing, while a number of cases are illustrated where much metal has been saved by this method of forging, in com- parison with the older methods of working from a solid bar. Many dimension sketches are given showing the kind of work which has been done in this way and in- dicating the closeness with which the forging may be made to approach the final machining process. The special committee appointed at a recent meet- ing of iron and steel manufacturers of Pittsburgh and nearby districts to gather data and prepare a through rate proposal to Western points on iron and steel products, to meet conditions resulting from the abol- ishment of Pittsburgh as a sole price basing point in steel, expects to be ready to report on the rate proposal! early in December. The Warren Foundry & Pipe Co., Phillipsburg, N. J., has filed a record of the lease recently consum- mated with the Replogle Steel Co., at the Warren County clerk’s office, the plant to be occupied by the leasing company until 1939. A record of a mortgage of $2,500,000, taken by the Empire Trust Co., New York, has been filed, also. Se ee) a Se Sa eet December 4, 1924 Geared-Head Universal Turret Lathe for Small Work An “all-geared” model of its No. 4 universal tur- ret lathe, developed to meet the need for a machine similar to the A-type turret lathes but for smaller work and with a ram type of turret, has been placed on the market by the Warner & Swasey Co., Cleveland. A feature of this small machine is the two tool- carrying units with independent power feeds, the same as on the larger machines. The standard cross slide has five cutter positions, four on the square turret and one on the rear tool post. Cutters in these positions often operate simultaneously with the tools on the hexagon turret, which has six tool positions. The new all-geared head machine was designed. for greater power and a wider range of speeds and it is claimed that more than twice as much power is deliv- ered to the spindle as through the cone-type back- geared drive. Any one of 12 spindle speeds, forward Geared-Head Universal Turret Lathe Designed for Greater Power and Wider . Range of Feeds. A feature is the two tool-carrying units with independent power feeds. The arrangement of the gearing in the head may be noted from the view at the right and reverse, from 30 to 760 r.p.m. is available by mov- ing convenient levers on the head. The hardened gears run in oil and provision is made for the convenient ad- justment of the frictions. The geared-head is said to permit of pulling stellite cutters to their capacity and also to make possible the combining of a greater num- ber of cutters to operate simultaneously. Special attention is said to have been given to the motor drive arrangement. The motor may be mounted at the rear of the machine on the head-end leg, driving to the pulley by belt, or it may be mounted on the head. Among other advantages the use of the in- dividual motor drive is emphasized as permitting of good lighting conditions for the operation of the ma- chine. More than 75 standard small tools are car- ried in stock for the No. 4 universal machine, provid- ing for a wide range of both bar and chucking work. These tools are said to increase the productive possi- bilities of the turret lathe for all classes of work, and reduce the cost of tooling. The machine is claimed to be rapid in operation, easily handled and quickly tooled and to be suitable therefore for quantity production, and also for use in the jobbing shop and the tool room where only a very few p