The Iron Age 1925-06-04: Vol 115 Iss 23

— ESTABLISHED 1855 THE IRON AGE New York, June 4, 1925 VOL. 115, No. 23 When Steel Was Young How the Warehouseman of Seventy Years Ago Helped to Develop Our Domestic Iron and Steel Industry T is about seven o’clock on a fine June morning in the year 1855. The Belt Line horse-car has just discharged two high-hatted and frock-coated pas- sengers in front of a two-story building which bears the imposing sign: “Dealers In and Importers Of Iron and Steel Of Every Description.” We cannot overhear their they mount the stairs to the second floor office, but since they have a copy of The Hardware Man’s Newspaper (the name under which THE IRON AGE was first is- sued) we feel safe in assuming that they are discuss conversation as i ee A The “elegant iron warehouse” of Mr. Je i “ cimen of th in 1855, was at once “a ems ean — w hie = Se oe = — ae ert oa vas Hae KX K KON HM) KA, « 4 f - 7 Y yn : - FA ing the new method of making steel just patented by an Englishman, Henry Bessemer. It is possible that they are commenting on the opening of the new ore mines in the Lake Superior district, but this was not considered of great moment seventy years ago and it is more likely that they are thinking about the possi- bility of selling more steel in place of wrought iron. In the office there is no rattle of typewriters, no clatter of adding machines, no ring of telephone, though the clerical staff have been in their places half an hour. From the bookkeeper’s stool comes the steady arate ten ~~ a ie ge = os , a A tte a a till ttle <a een . ckersham at 312 Broadway, New York, as it appeared yt 7 aa turned out and a splendid example of the taste- f a Broadway store” 1623 scratching of a steel pen. The office boy is packing letters in a pile, preparatory to copying them in the letter-press. All business was transacted by written letter sev- enty years ago. At the time of which we write the first Atlantic cable was being laid, the telegraph was in the early experimental stages and travel was so slow and difficult that letters were the life-blood of business. Let us look over the shoulders of our two partners while they read the morning mail. Here is an order for bars and rods from a tool manufactory in Con- necticut to be sent “with all possible dispatch.” Next comes a request for a price upon a goodly quantity of “steel crinoline wire, flattened, tempered, covered and glazed.” A cooperage in Jersey asks that its order for hoops be “hastened to the utmost.” And then a notice from the Cambria Iron Co., advising that in addition to “iron rails of 50 and 55 lb. to the yard” it is prepared to take orders in limited quantity for steel rails. A letter from England notifies of a price in- crease in Scotch and Yorkshire iron. From a church in Pennsylvania comes a request for advice on bell metal. Also, there are offers of flats and squares and sheets from English iron works—offers which will be accepted by the next packet boat, for in those days the warehouseman must needs carry a larger stock to take care of his customers on account of the slowness and infrequency of shipments. Then, too, there is the difficulty of determining what goods may best be imported and those which may profitably be purchased from the new mills which were springing up all over the eastern states as far north as Buffalo. So young was the industry that many manufacturers themselves imported a portion of the articles which they sold, in order to take care of buyers who insisted upon “foreign quality.” All through the advertisements of those early days runs the thread of a quality guarantee, “warranted equal to any imported article.” The manufacture of iron was, of ¢ourse, fairly well established here even before the Civil War, though as late as 1865 there were articles in the New York news- papers advocating the cessation of iron making activi- ties in the United States and closer attention to agri- cultural pursuits “for which the land was fitted.” But the steel industry was young and it had a hard time in getting a foothold here. Tariff protection was forth- coming, despite the almost frantic efforts of Free THE IRON AGE June 4, 1925 Ne an artist’s concep- tion of sandwich-men patrolling lower Broad- way in the interests of halters and chain snaps, but a reproduction of one of the early advertise- ments in THE IRON AGE. Notice that even at that date the consumer is urged to buy through the jobber Traders, who loved to theorize at the expense of an- other’s purse. But a tariff was not enough to protect the infant industry. There was a firmly established idea that foreign steel was far superior to anything we could make at home. Unless that idea could be overcome, the chances for a successful steel industry looked very slim. And here it was that the jobbers and ware- housemen came to the rescue. They tried the domestic products, found them good and carried them in stock. Customers wishing quick deliveries found great ad- vantage in using home-made steel. Gradually the superstition of foreign supremacy was overcome. Of course the custom of advertising tools made from “the finest Swedes steel” or cutlery of “the famous Shef- field steel” has not been entirely outgrown even today, but during the ten years from 1855 to 1865 the job- bers, who held the bulk of the trade in their hands, rendered a great and lasting service to the youthful steel industry by advocating the use of American-made steel wherever possible. Though larger quantities of iron and steel had to be carried in stock during the early days of the iron and steel trade, on account of slow shipments from the mills, there were not so many sizes and shapes to be kept on hand as is the case today. One prominent New York jobber whose firm has been in business for more than half a century states that the proportion of stock to total business done in money probably runs about the same today as fifty years ago. But, he adds, “There is no need for this to be the case . for if the standardization of sizes could be carried out in the manner contemplated, the jobber could very materially reduce the investment which he has to keep on his warehouse floor.” ‘ When iron and steel warehouses were first opened in this country, the convenience was so readily recog- nized that customers came direet to the warehouse and dickered for the material required. It was not until Some years later that the iron and steel salesman was regarded necessary to keep up a respectable sales vol- ume, A much larger proportion of the total business was done on a cash basis in the “good old days,” for there were no commercial credit agencies from whom ratings could be obtained and the banking system was not so well organized as is the case today. To those companies deserving and asking for credit, terms were ~— the Same as those in vogue today. rices were pr tions of 1925, Dieting? ee ee. ional habit—per- - June 4, 1925 Ts pig which is seen tumbling off the cliff at the right is supposed to refer to pig iron, if we read this illustrative ad- vertisement aright. Such delicate, humorous touches were not infrequent in the advertising of the seventies and eighties Cc. haps a national pastime—and the prices given in the early issues of THE IRON AGE may have been shaded more frequently than is the case nowadays. In the market columns of the sixties there may be found fre- quent references to “good brands of Scotch” which re- ferred, however, to pig iron from the Caledonian fur- naces. A goodly part of the iron trade was in wrought iron, as the illustration on the previous page will in- dicate. According to an early description of the process for making wrought iron fences, railings, etc., “it is so woven together by means of powerful ma- chinery that any given pattern may be followed with the same ease as upon a piece of embroidery. An enumeration of the uses to which this patented proc- ess applies includes gratings, verandahs, balconies, furniture of all kinds, bedsteads, statuaries, settees, fountains, hat-stands and all manner of iron work.” Fully three-fourths of the early advertisements re- ferred to iron or iron products—and as late as 1865 the volume of steel production was so small that it was not considered worthy of attention from the United States Census Bureau. The first jobbers were really importers, for only a negligible part of their trade consisted of American iron. Then came the period when the functions of jobber and importer were merged. The peak of im- portations of iron and steel came in 1873 and from that time, with but few interruptions, the domestic industry forged to the front and took possession of the business which was its own by economic right. The most notable change which has taken place in regard to the type of materials carried in stock is the development of the structural steel business. The de- mand for rounds and squares and flats has grown, of course, and there are some items which are no longer carried in such large proportion—hoops, for instance, have been much affected by the prohibition amendment. The jobber has shown an increasing tendency to spe- cialize or concentrate upon supplying certain trades in which he possessed a special knowledge or acquaint- anceship. There are many jobbers who do not carry 4 structural steel stock today. Many iron and steel ware- houses which used to do a heavy hardware business have dropped this branch entirely. There are even instances where an iron and steel jobber for many years carried a full line of shelf hardware, but few instances of this sort are seen today. Asked whether the conflict between some of the THE IRON AGE A. W. HILL, P. HOUSUM, a = Coat A ~ LOOK OUT steel mills and certain jobbers in regard to the taking of mill orders direct was a modern development of the jobbing trade, one leading New York jobber said: “As far back as I can remember—and I can remember near- ly fifty years ago—the mills have always gone after small orders when business was slack. The present con- dition is nothing unusual. It has existed a great many times before and may happen again. When the mills need business they go after it, and sometimes the jobbers feel that they are being treated unfairly. “But some of the old mill practices have been dis- continued—some that were far more disconcerting and damaging than those which are troubling the trade to- day. I remember a certain mill salesman who always made a practice of coming into this territory and sell- ing direct to the consumer all the sheets he could un- load. Then he would come around to us and solicit our order. Not knowing that the consumers who would normally buy our goods were covered by sales which he had just made, we would load up on sheets. A few days later we would discover the true state of affairs and start seeing red. But he worked that same trick on dozens of jobbers in various parts of the country before the practice was stopped. “What do I think of the future of the jobbing trade? Well, I think that fifty years from today the jobbers will probably be doing just about the same proportion of business they are doing today—if not more. The mills in this industry realize that the function of the jobbers is just as necessary today as it was fifty years ago, though a far smaller part of the total volume of business comes through the jobber’s hands today.” A gasoline-engine driven welding set for use where electric power is not available has been added to the line of the General Electric Co., Schenectady. This outfit consists of a standard WD-12 welding generator driven by a Buda engine, all mounted on wooden skids to the line of the General Electric Co., Schenectady. This is a Buda model WTU, and is rated at 22.5 hp.; at 1400 r.p.m. the actual bhp. is 33. The new outfit is being marketed complete with all accessories. The Republic Rolling Mill Corporation, recently in- corporated to operate the former bar iron plant of the Republic Iron & Steel Co. at East Chicago, Ind., has opened offices in the Westminster Building, 11% South Dearborn Street, Chicago. cs ~ a " o ta oe | ae ro ees o - " a ee eT a Mill Scrap Specifications Submitted Standardization and Simplification Leading Topics at Purchasing Agents’ Meeting—Revolutionary Change in Coal Buying Recommended—Dependence on Trade Papers ENTATIVE iron mill scrap specifications and a uniform purchase contract for iron and steel scrap were among important proposals which were sub- mitted at the tenth annual convention of the National Association of Purchasing Agents, which was held at the Auditorium, Milwaukee, May 25 to 28 inclusive. A standard contract for the purchase of conveying equip- ment was acted upon favorably. Throughout the ses- sions, which were largely attended, standardization and simplification were urged, both in addresses and in discussion. According to a statement by H. R. Cole- man, Division of Simplified Practice, Department of Commerce, in Washington, fully ten billion dollars a year could be saved through simplification and stand- ardization. Caution lest standardization be carried too far was recommended by Dr. John A. Mathews, vice-president and metallurgist, Crucible Steel Co. of America, New York. That the elimination of waste in industry has a defi- nite relationship to stability of prices was indicated by revolutionary changes in coal-buying methods recom- mended by Mark Kuehn, National Malleable & Steel Castings Co., Cleveland. He proposed that purchasing agents refuse to buy consignment or “distress” coal, which has such a demoralizing effect on market condi- tions, and, furthermore, that they contract for at least one-half of their normal yearly requirements of coal, in the interests of stabilizing coal output. A large part of one session of the convention was devoted to the consideration of current business condi- tions. In another session it was brought out that an overwhelming majority of purchasing agents faithfully consult the trade papers in their fields. The registration at the convention was approxi- mately 1000. The “informashow” embraced 140 sepa- rate exhibits of machinery, equipment and materials. Iron Mill Scrap Specifications Submitted eae scrap specifications for iron rolling mills, embracing 24 different classifications, pub- lished on page 1627, were submitted at an iron and steel conference as the joint work of B. L. Verner, Interstate Iron & Steel Co., Chicago, and E. W. Krueger, Union Bed & Spring Co., Chicago. These specifications, which will be considered by the Iron and Steel Committee of the association during the coming year, are intended to supplement the other scrap specifications adopted by the association and last January submitted at a meet- ing of all interested parties held at Washington under the auspices of the United States Bureau of Standards. Those specifications were confined to scrap for use in ssunsevensunsuonsenuevsunvueevuensnveneuenneenvensonenesnvovenuennnensuoustansovanternnensenenortsnnonnoesuecnuvnnguenoqannnananensunnaqensssannnnnneevuersquerdneeiynetty Pr blast furnaces, scrap for use in basic open-hearth fur- naces, low phosphorus and low sulphur scrap for use in acid open-hearth furnaces, scrap for use in electric fur- naces, scrap for use in gray iron foundries and scrap for use in Bessemer converters. Attention was drawn by: H. C. Miller, American Rolling Mill Co., Middletown, Ohio, to conflict between the scrap specifications of the purchasing agents’ asso- ciation and the specifications of the American Railway Association, especially so far as they refer to No. 1 heavy melting steel. In this connection, Frank Parker, Briggs & Turivas, Chicago, stated that the division of purchases and stores of the American Railway Asso- ciation, at a recent meeting at St. Louis, voted to retain its specifications without change. Mr. Miller emphasized the necessity for widespread adoption of the scrap standards of the purchasing agents. During a recent investigation he found that 13 different kinds of scrap were being used in 13 steel works as heavy melting steel, and this apparently was not due to any fault on the part of dealers but to the necessity of meeting the individual requirements of the various plants. Purchasing agents were urged to use more care in preparing their scrap accumulations for sale to dealers, by E. G. Howell, Hickman, Williams & Co., Chicago. A particularly bad practice, in his opinion, is the sale of some grades at a price above the market, for use in adulterating other grades. Mr. Parker, Briggs & Turivas, called attention to the initiative exercised by the scrap dealers in developing new outlets for scrap and thereby creating the need for new classifications. In another session, the value of serap specifications was given exhaustive consideration in a paper by C. H. Lipsett, publisher of the Waste Trade Journal, New York. The annual turnover of iron and steel scrap is approximately 20,000,000 tons with an estimated value of several hundred million dollars, he said. Scrap is only one of a half dozen commodities constituting the waste material industry, which furnishes raw materials to brass works, paper mills, woolen mills, rubber man- ufacturers, etc. There were no standardized specifica- tions in any of these commodities fifteen years ago. Today every one of them, with the exception of scrap iron, has standardized specifications approved by buyer and seller. In spite of the magnitude and importance of iron and steel scrap there has been nothing re- sembling uniform specifications until recently. The absence of standard scrap specifications has been a source of prolific waste. On an advancing market mill specifications become flexible, whereas, UeUPUOWOOUOGHOONREEL ANON DEENNORGOEROGOHNRaSONNODGECEOONEHUHOEREOOEGOTOOTEN? Officers for the Coming Year President R. M. Sedgewick, Standard Chemical Co., Ltd., Toronto, Ont. Vice-presidents by Districts No. 1. W. J. Morris, Portland Electric Power Co., Portland, Ore. 2. BE. A. Cook, Twin States-Sun Oil Co., Tulsa, Okla. No. 3. Kirk H. Taylor, Illinois Glass Co., Alton, Til. No. 4. L. W. Brice, Continental Motors Corpora- tion, Detroit. No. 5. R. M. Sedgewick, Standard Chemical Co., Ltd., Toronto, Ont. No. 6. G. E. Price, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Akron, Ohio. Z 9 bo No. 7. N. B. Rhoads, Board of Port Commissioners, New Orleans. No. 8. M. G. L. Harris, Standard Gas Equipment Co., New York. No. 9. J. Walter Mills, Rhode Island Supply & Sprinkler Co., Providence, R. I, Vice-presidents at Large A. G. Hoperaft, Ferro Machine & Foundry Co., Cleveland, Fred J. Arthurs, Larkin Co., Buffalo. Treasurer Fred J. Arthurs, Larkin Co., Buffalo. Secretary W. L. Chandler, Chandler, N. Y. seeveenvennecoventenee HEE Er eerie enernern Nien neee EEE TEE June 4, 1925 uniform set of specifications. of labor, time and energy. PY neenenenesne nen seerseeenenee when a decline sets in, they become unnecessarily Material is purchased subject to buyer's weight, rigid, resulting in wholesale rejections which result in grading and approval losses running into millions of dollars annually. While this condition appears to affect the dealer principally, it is an expense item which is eventually borne by the mill. ‘Phe average scrap dealer is anxious to have It would mean a saving At the present time the or to buy an yard foreman, and even the common laborer employed THE IRON AGE Standing that the material a the either decline it is is not buyer may, on 1627 This order is given and accepted with the under- subject to strikes, accidents and causes beyond the buyer's control If any of delivered as herein provided, written notice to the seller, to receive such undeliverd tonnage equal tonnage in th» open market and charge the seller with the excess cost, if any. Proposed Classification of Scrap Specification for the Iron Rolling Mills 1. Iron Agles Iron railroad car axles; M.C.B sizes, free from locomotive axles and defective or imperfect ings. . Steel Axles Steel railroad car axles; M. C. B. sizes, free from locomotive axles and defective or imperfect ings. 3. Iron Rails Standard section T rails, orig- forg- bo forg- inal weight 50 Ib. per yard or heavier, minimum length 4 ft.; free from frog, guard, switch, curved and turntable rails. 4. Steel Rails Standard section T rails, suit- able for rerolling, original weight 50 lb. per yard or heavier, mini- mum length 5 ft.; free from split heads, frogs, guards, switches, curved and turntable rails. 5. Shafting Iron and soft steel, 114 in. to 8 in. round and square; 4 ft. and longer in straight bars. 6. Arch Bars Iron railroad transom bars. . Iron Angle or Splice Bars Wrought iron—50 per cent to be whole bars. 8. No. 1 Railroad Wrought Heavy wrought iron from rail- road- shops and cars, 6 in. and longer, including links and pins . No, 2 Railroad Wrought and Track Scrap Heavy wrought iron and soft steel scrap from railroad shops and cars, 2 in. and longer, including track bolts, spikes and nuts, free of steel shapes and plates. 10. Cut Forge Iron and soft steel scrap suit- able for piling purposes without further preparation. Material to be % in. or heavier, 4 in. or nar- rower and not over 26 in. in length or shorter than 2 in. May include wagon tire if cut into 6-in. lengths or shorter; also horseshoes if cut arch bars and © Oovvevnrveneresoeennenenersesnenene menneesnernERSHEeNeNN® in loading cars, must be highly trained to be able to distinguish the various niceties in the specifications of Mr. Lipsett recommended that any standards that are adopted and finally command general acceptance should be rigidly adhered to, re- different steel mills. gardless of market conditions. Uniform Scrap Contract Proposed DRAFT of a uniform purchase contract for iron and steel scrap was submitted to the iron and steel conference by W. W. MacMillan, National Malleable The iron and steel committee will consider the contract on the basis of suggestions and criticisms received from the associa- tion and will also take it up in conference with the National Association of Waste Material Dealers. The important provisions of the contract are as follows: Material must be loaded in gondola cars. Cars arriving without notice showing weights will be held and car service charged to the shipper. & Steel Castings Co., Cleveland. 14 16 into three pieces. Must be straight and flat; also free sheet, from washer plate, hoop and scrap, punchings and similar material Shop Scrap steel bar, punchings from clippings and hard steel, all suit- able for fagoting. No. 1 Busheling Iron and soft pipes and flues (clean): tank and bands No 12 and heavier boiler plate punch ings and clippings, and soft steel and iron drop forgings and trim- mings; nothing to be over 8 in Wrought and soft shape and plate ends and shearings, free curly steel long or wide, free from galvanized or tinned stock All steel must be under 0.12 per cent carbon No. 2 Busheling Cut hoops, sheet and similar light cotton ties material; noth- ing to be over 8 in. long or wide; free from dirt, galvanized or tinned material or other similar inferior scrap Pipes and Flues Wrought and soft steel. Must be free from dirt or lime and from riveted seams; nothing over 6 in. in diameter. . No. 1 Mill Iron and soft steel bars not less than % in flats no thinner than No. 12 wire gage, sheet; tank in separate sheets and round or square and including heavy railroad rings; boiler sheet and rings, olean punchings and clippings and strictly soft steel pipes and flues, heavy agricultural implement shapes. Alj steel must be under 0.12 carbon No. 2 Mill Iron and soft steel hoops and railroad cotton tie ties, skeleton sheet » light for No. 1 free from gal- badly rusted sheets, sheet, clippings and scrap and iron t mill; scrap shall be vanized, tinned or material. No. 1 Railroad Sheet To be under \ in. thick, con- sisting of cut smoke stacks, hoops, voice 20 Note ear service charged Contract number must be shown on each in Render separate each car shipped. In the discussion of the contract, reference was made to the experience of one company which elimi- nated the bunching of shipments by dealers through the enforcement of a clause that shipments must be distributed in approximately even parts over the period of the contract. Mr. MacMillan called attention to the fact that while the contract submitted was tentative, no contract could cover all of the individual require- ments of purchasers. cannot be insured through stipulations in a contract. The suggestion was made that to protect the buyer from the expense of sorting scrap and throwing out band iron and steel, pressed steel hand car wheels, scoops and shov- els, free of wood, wire rope, cush- ions and other similar springs and lime encrusted pipe and flues from boilers Must be free from gal vanized iron or tin Azle Turnings Wrought iron and soft steel railroad car axles, turnings and chips. Free from tire turnings Turnings Machine wrought and soft steel, clean and free from borings and drillings, other metals, dirt, humps and badly tangled material Drillings Wrought or soft ateel, clean and free from other metals, dirt and lumps Mized RBorings and Turnings, and Cast Borings Clean and “free metals, dirt and lumps from other No. 1 Caat lron To be al) clean cast iron scrap, nothing under 10 Ib. in weight, nor over 48 in. long or 18 In. wide. To contain no brake shoes, cast tron soll or water pipe, cast iron col umns, stove scrap or burned iron of any description, and be free from steel parts No. 1 Boiler Cut Boiler sheets and rings and riveted flues not under 16 In, in diameter, all rivets cut, no single plece to weigh over 500 Ib Bundled Sheet Bundled skeleton. bundled cot- ton ties or woo! ties In bundles not over 18 in. in diameter and 30 in, long, tied so they will not come apart, but not tightly compressed, free of metals Material on all of above grades, unless otherwise specified, must be free from high alloy steel. Soft steel herein considered to mean 0.12 per carbon and under carbon of mentioned is cent Until such notice is given, time of delivery will be considered as extended at pleasure of buyer Cars arriving on which there is a question about material will be held pending adjustment and all to the shipper invoice and bill of lading for Fair dealing, he emphasized, A ne Nt eeeeal en es cone sceeesiepeiiemeennasa-amen anmniemenenaionemmeniaiiedin sass ee ona rate ea nn eee ee 1628 THE IRON AGE reat Sinn ok ae i. Me, Pe th Sk objectionable material, the words “and all other charges” be added to the reference to cars being held concerning which there is a question about the ma- terial contained. In discussing the work of the iron and steel com- mittee during the past year, L. W. Brice, Continental Motors Corporation, Detroit, emphasized the need for popularizing the standard scrap specifications and the idea of a uniform purchase contract. He felt con- fident that the scrap dealer would fall in line with the purchasing agent and forget all his past objections if a real demand for scrap graded according to the standard specifications can be created. In referring to the universal scrap purchase con- tract in his address, Mr. Lipsett thought it might be advisable to insert a clause dealing with the settlement of disputes between dealers and mills. He suggested the formation of a trade tribunal for the settlement of such differences in order to keep them out of the courts and aid in amicable adjustments. Standards for Tool Steel HAT the time may be opportune for undertaking the setting up of standards for tool steel was also suggested by Mr. Brice in dealing with the work of the iron and steel committee. Producers of tool steel, however, seemed to be opposed to the move. He quoted from a letter by L. Gerald Firth, Firth-Sterling Steel Co., McKeesport, Pa., as follows: Standardization of tool steel is usually suggested for various reasons, chiefly (1) as a means of classifying different types of tool steel, (2) as a means of insuring uniformity by limiting the com- position within a more or less narrow range, and (3) as a means of encouraging price competition. It is now fully recognized that analysis is only a very small factor in quality and that what the purchasing agent desires is to insure a reasenable uniformity, so that steels of different brands will respond as nearly as possible to the same treat- ment. This at first sight appears reasonable but they will still be face to face with a far more difficult problem, the standardization of heat treatment. Consider the difficulty of standardizing types of furnaces, time, methods and temperature of heat- ing and drawing, methods and media of quenching, so as to suit the countless types of tools and the opinions of countless expert hardeners. When you consider in addition that the pur- chaser has no control whatever over the methods and manufacture of the steel (a far more vital factor than the composition), I think it will be agreed that the benefits of standardization are not so great as first might be thought. I look upon quality as partly a matter of in- surance. To specify a given analysis and then buy purely on a price basis is simply to encourage some manufacturer to quote lower than his com- petitors because he is willing to take a chance, not so much at his own expense, but at the ex- pense of consumers, for in most cases the pur- chaser loses more from poor steel than the seller. By way of constructive thought, we may say that at present there are two main groups of high speed steel, the 18 tungsten type and the 14 tung- sten type, and at least one subsidiary group, the cobalt high speed steels. Each of these has some- what different characteristics and a buyer may have definite reasons for wishing to purchase one or the other. Let the specifications, therefore, in the case of the first two groups be a broad one, with the main intention of differentiating between the two different types. Do not attempt to limit the carbon, tungsten, chrome and vanadium (the key element) within narrow limits, for different manufacturers often strike quite different balances of analysis with equally satisfactory results. Do not forget that balance is an item that is often overlooked and is exceedingly difficult to cover by specifications. There may be a number of advan- tages in the standardization of high speed steel, but it is my belief that the disadvantages are far more important. Another protest against standardization of tool steel was voiced at an evening dinner meeting which, like the day session of the iron and steel conference, was presided over by G. C. McClure, American Rolling Mill Co. “Standardization is epidemic,” said Dr. John June 4, 1925 A. Mathews, vice-president Crucible Steel Co. of Amer- ica, New York, who spoke on the subject, What a buyer should know in purchasing tool steel. “Carbon tool steels among the old companies have been stand- ardized for a century or so. This was spontaneous, and resulted from time and experience and the know!- edge gained by the makers through generations in the practice of the fine art of crucible steel making. The present tendency leads to the destruction of established standards and degrades the industry to the basing of quality upon mere analysis—a frail reed to lean upon. “Tool steel manufacture is a handicraft industry and never will be a strictly mechanical or automatic process. Its products embody the personality and in- tegrity of the firm and the skill, care and patience of workmen, foremen and inspectors in a degree wanting in most industries. It is the things that cannot be written into a specification that are the essence of quality. “The basing of judgment of quality upon a chemical report as compared with a judgment based on a steel sense, born of experience in handling steel, is like trying to imagine what a stranger on the other end of a telephone is like as compared with a conversation in person with an old friend.” Malleable Castings Standards Have Risen HAT standard specifications have meant to the malleable castings industry was touched upon at the same dinner meeting by H. A. Schwartz, metallur- gist, National Malleable & Steel Castings Co., Cleve- land, who spoke on the properties of malleable cast- ings. He said in part: “Those of you who have had occasion to follow the matter of specifications for the physical properties of malleable castings as laid down by the American So- ciety for Testing Materials are aware that the standard has constantly arisen. Contrary to the common belief, this improvement has not cost the consumer anything whatever in the form of increased labor or material cost to the producer. You do, however, pay something for this improvement in the form of increased over- head for equipment and supervision, and possibly some- thing for increased foundry difficulties, although the existence of this differential is doubtful.” Simplification and Standardization Eliminate W aste ¢¢L,\ULLY ten billion dollars a year could be saved through simplification and standardization,” said H. R. Coleman, division of simplified practice, Depart- ment of Commerce, Washington, in addressing a gen- eral convention session. “Ten billion dollars is nearly double the amount that was spent for buildings erected in 1924. It is nearly half the total amount of savings bank deposits in 1923, and nearly half the capital in- vested in manufacturing in this country in 1921. “The efforts of the division of simplified practice are centered in helping business do away with waste caused by too many varieties of everything. Such varieties exist in everyday commodities to an amaz- ing degree. In many cases the industry does not have an adequate picture of the true conditions until it undertakes a survey of the variety and to measure the need for such variety by the yardstick of demand.” National Directory of Specifications i eireront was called to the compilation of a na- ~ or directory of commodity specifications, by — S. McAllister, engineer physicist, Department of vommerce, Washington, in an address entitled, Stand- ard Specifications—The Goal, and Progress Toward It. bn Federal Specifications Board has been engaged m he work of compiling material for a directory of ee for commodities purchased by the Fed- ee and municipal governments and public in- _ tons. The directory thoroughly classifies the list 0 specifications for these commodities including not only specifications formulated by public purchasing agencies, but also by recognized trade and technical societies and associations. thousand specifications are ] sists of 600 pages, and w Upward of twenty-seven » listed. The directory con- ill be ready for distribution June 4, 1925 about July 1. The advantage of the directory, the first book of its kind ever to be published, is that it will bring to the attention of all persons interested, in. formation concerning all specifications now in exXis- tence for all types of commodities as a basis for a general cooperative movement having for its initial object the elimination of many unnecessary specifica- tions, and for its later object the selection from exist- ing specifications of those found to be most nearly universally satisfactory. : Following the publication of the directory there will be issued as rapidly as conditions will permit an encyclopedia of specifications in loose leaf or loose pamphlet form. In preparing material for the en- cyclopedia, efforts are being concentrated initially on the reproduction of such worthwhile specifications as are difficult to secure. In the directory the specifica- tions will be listed by title and in the encyclopedia they will be published in part or in full. This same subject was also discussed in the convention by Joseph M. Coyle, assistant state purchasing agent, Trenton, N. J. Standard Conveyor Contract STANDARD contract for the purchase of convey- ing equipment was favorably acted upon and will stand for one year as a tentative association standard. The committee in charge of the preparation of this standard contract, of which T. W. Harris, Jr., DuPont corporation, Wilmington, Del., is chairman, met at Chicago May 22, with representatives of manufacturers. where it was approved after minor changes had been embodied in it. The contract, which covers the pur- chase of elevating and conveying machinery, is in two forms to apply on purchases both on an f.o.b. and on a delivered basis. Need for Centralized Purchasing “Centralized purchasing is an economic necessity,” said L. F. Boffey, president and editor, Purchasing Agent, New York, in discussing economies of purchas- ing. “The products of industry are a combination of two essentials: labor and material. In the workshops of a generation ago labor was the big item in production costs. So industry applied itself to reducing labor costs. This was an economic need. It brought about the invention of specialized machinery to replace ex- pensive manual operations. The story of our industrial evolution from the time of the Civil War to the present is essentially the story of inventive genius and automatic machinery. “For all practical purposes that story is finished. . . .« But progressive industry had anticipated this fact. As the proportionate cost of labor in a finished commodity went down the proportionate cost of ma- terial entering into that product inevitably went up. The possibilities of economies in the purchase and use of material became apparent. They led to the estab- lishment of centralized purchasing.” Proposes Change in Coal Buying Radical changes in methods of buying coal were recommended by Mark Kuehn, National Malleable & Steel Castings Co., Cleveland, at a fuel conference. His recommendations, by resolution, were referred to the fuel committee for study and consideration. Mr. Kuehn called attention to the present demoralization of the coal industry and the great need for stabiliza- tion. Sharp fluctuations in coal prices he attributed to the practice of shipping coal on consignment. The sale of this “distress” coal breaks the market and forces every coal operator to meet the low prices, or to stay out of the market until it is again stabilized. “We must have coal, and the operator in order to live and serve must have a fair profit, and in the end the consumer pays that profit, although he occasionally has opportunity to pick up a few cars of ‘distress’ coal at prices below the market.” Mr. Kuehn recommended that buyers refuse to pur- chase consignment coal. “Thus,” he said, the = sumer in helping the producer of bituminous coal wi THE IRON AGE serve his own interests.” He also suggested that buy- ers contract for one-half of their yearly requirements to further assist in the stabilization of the coal indus- try. This practice would bring down the cost of pro- ducing coal to lower levels, resulting in lower prices to the consumer. It would mean that the operator would have on his books a certain tonnage that he could de- pon upon and he could arrange his operations accord- ingly. ; In discussing fuel oil, K. H. Taylor, Illinois Glass Co., Alton, Ill, emphasized the uncertainty of prices. The available resources in oil, of course, are an un- known quantity and from time to time we are warned that supplies will soon be exhausted. There is no fixed relationship between prices of crude oi] and fuel oil. Indications call for a continued low market in fuel oil until fall, owing to the heavy seasonal demand for gas- oline, leaving a large residium in fuel oil which must be marketed. Dr. A. P. Bjerregaard, Empire Refining Co., Tulsa, Okla., said that seven different kinds of oil are sold as fuel oil, in an address entitled, “What Is Fuel Oil?” He classified these oils as follows: (1) the residue from crude oil after distillation; (2) gas oil, one of the prod- ucts of initial distillation; (3) a combination of 1 and 2; (4) the residue from cracking the first distillation; (5) a combination of 1 and 4; (6) natural crude oil; (7) special oils. A standard fuel oil contract was submitted for the consideration of the conference and fur further disposi- tion by the fuel committee. Business Conditions séFT\HE present level of wage rates per hour for or- ganized labor is 128 per cent over the pre-war level. The cost of living is 72 per cent, and commodity prices 58 per cent over the same base. This is an un- healthy situation,” said H. M. McGill, director com- modity department, Babson’s Statistical Organization, in discussing business conditions and outlook. “Eco- nomic forces are now at work which are bound to correct this radical discrepancy, but here again it will take time and meanwhile high labor costs are preventing the re- adjustment in certain phases of industry which is es- sential. “There are certain industries that are facing a re- adjustment. There are many that could be mentioned, but the outstanding example is building. There is now no housing shortage, office and apartment building has been overdone, there is no need of industrial expansion. The underlying trend of building in the United States is downward, and as the decline progresses there should be a shake-down in building materia! prices and labor. The automobile industry should be watched carefully for any signs of a shake-down. “There are definite signs that the United States trade is suffering from the influx of foreign goods. Europe owes our merchants and investors nearly four billion dollars. This country owns 60 per cent of the total gold supply of the world. Foreign debts cannot be paid with the metal. Europe’s salvation is in buying raw materials and sending finished goods here. Europe will endeavor to regain her pre-war status in inter- national trade, and the United States, despite the tariff, will be forced to meet European competition.” The selling of merchandise on the installment plan is being overdone, according to Mr. McGill, and unless the practice is checked it may result disastrously. In Mr. McGill’s opinion the general price trend dur- ing the next ten or fifteen years will be downward and hand-to-mouth buying will be the rule. The last ten years has been a period of efficiency in production. Now attention will have to be directed to efficiency in management, efficiency in buying, efficiency in selling. In discussing Mr. McGill’s address, Frank Habicht, Clark Equipment Co., Buchanan, Mich., expressed the opinion that wages will stay on a higher plane than the cost of living. Years ago such items as the automobile and the radio were not included in the cost of living. The necessity for relatively higher wages today lies in luxuries. It is questionable whether it would be in the interests of good business to eliminate these ‘uxuries. In referring to the speaker’s recommendation that 1629 Smee 5 4 Sa a eee? Comedia ice: “tactiaal Se els ta toe eee oc. Anbee aay aching ae TRE Pe ere “ 7 ~ oe 5° aM en Dearne oo ores ne Stina oe ee wh <7 Ke, ba So Beg ee EEN So a 163 industries keep production down to the level of de- mand, George C. Pohler, Cosden & Co., Tulsa, Okla., stated that it was practically impossible for the oil industry to regulate supply to conform with consump- tion. If the man who has a lease knows that there is oil he is bound to drill, he said. Roy J. Taylor, Hupp Motor Car Corporation, De- troit, spoke in defense of the automobile industry. He stated that an automobile which sold at $2,500 before the war is now selling at $1,500 and is an infinitely bet- ter machine. Other commodities, on the other hand, are 40 to 100 per cent higher in price than in pre-war days. At the iron and steel conference dinner the steel situation was discussed by G. L. Lacher, western editor, THE Iron AGE. He called attention to the fact that steel production is rapidly being adjusted to conform with demand. Prices likewise have subsided, THE IRON AGE composite price of finished steel now being on a parity with the low point of last October. The composite, likewise, is lower than the average for any complete year since 1915, save one, 1922, which was a year of recovery following the severe depression of 1921. The fact that the composite price has remained unchanged since the first week in May suggests that if the trend of prices is still downward, it has slowed up materially. An increasing number of small orders placed with the mills calling for quick shipment sup- ports the view that consumers’ stocks are fast ap- proaching the point of liquidation. The fact that some New High Record in Automobile Production Production of passenger cars and trucks in April was the highest for any month in the history of the industry, according to figures issued by the Department of Commerce. The total of passenger cars was 391,301, displacing the previous record of 358,685 made in May, 1923, while the figure for trucks was 47,664, displacing JUNE APR. MAY JUNE JAN. FEB. MAR. APR. JAN. FEB. MAR. APR 1922 1923 1924 1925 400 300 7S THOUSANDS OF CARS THOUSANDS OF TRUCKS 0 Automobiles Made in the First Four Months of 1925, with Comparison for 1924 and for the Highest Months of 1923 and of 1922. The col- umns show, by total height, the number of pas- senger cars. The black areas, on a different scale, represent trucks the previous high record of 45,804, which was made also in May, 1923. The combined total was 438,965 vehicles, of which 421,878 were made in the United States and 17,087 in Canada. Total production for the first four months consisted of 1,189,175 passenger cars and 155,268 trucks. This compares with 1,340,734 passenger cars and 137,984 trucks in the first four months of 1924 and with 1,167,916 passenger cars and 120,382 trucks in the first four months of 1923. The truck production makes a new record for the first four months of the year, while the passenger car production is second only to that of last year. THE IRON AGE June 4, 1995 of the larger buyers of pig iron have placed heavy ton- nages for the first time since last winter may also point the way to what may be expected in steel. Significance may also be attached to recent advances in scrap. The scrap market frequently portends expansion and con- traction in the steel business and in this instance may be running true to form. Other features of the convention program included an illustrated address by Frank Grossmann, United States Cast Iron Pipe & Foundry Co., on the making of cast iron pipe, including the manufacture of centrif- ugally cast pipe; a paper on the general uses and manu- facture of copper and brass products, by George A. Sloan, secretary Copper & Brass Research Association, New York, and one on secondary metals by E. G. Rapael, sales manager, Federated Metals Corporation, Chicago. George H. Ashley, State geologist of Penn- sylvania, Harrisburg, presented a practical classifica- tion of coal. Wide Reading of Trade Papers Indicated That trade papers are very widely read was clearly demonstrated at a general convention session in which the discussion was led by P. F. Jerome, International Y. M. C. A., New York. About 300 were present and a showing of hands indicated that practically all regular- ly read trade papers. In a similar manner it was shown that two-thirds of those present read trade papers in office hours and the remainder do so at home because of lack of time at the office. Improving Jones & Laughlin Chicago District Property The Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation, Pitts- burgh, is gradually taking steps toward the improve- ment of its property at Hammond, Ind., according to reports from the Calumet district. Two of the largest type of steam excavators have been assembled at 130th Street and Calumet Avenue, Hammond, to handle fill- ing material which will be delivered to the company’s site over a new spur track of the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad. The Jones & Laughlin Co. recently contracted with the Inland Steel Co., Indiana Harbor, for its en- tire output of slag and cinders for use in filling in for the first unit of the proposed plant. The East Chicago ship canal has been deepened to 21 ft. as far as the Jones & Laughlin site and it is reported that the dredging of a new channel through the property will be undertaken this summer. Plans and permits for a new private water intake from Lake Michigan and a private sewer to discharge into the Grand Calumet River have been tentatively approved by the city of Hammond. British Empire Steel Works Records Since starting operations on March 1, the British Empire Steel Corporation has made a number of new production records at its Sydney, N. S., works. No. 1 blast furnace broke all previous daily, weekly and monthly records in April, the best previous record having been made during March, 1924. The following table gives a comparison for the month of March, 1924, and April, 1925: March, 1924 April, 1925 31 Days 30 Days Daily average ............. 425 tons 450 tons vente, MC 514 tons 522 tons We WOME save sc vale ceeds 3,106 tons 3,233 tons Month +e Ov hanes Kemah 13,192 tons 13,496 tons ° The average hourly production in the rail mill was 34.5 per cent better than any previous month since the mill has been in operation, while the total salable rails rolled was 99.3 per cent; 95.4 per cent were firsts, 3.9 per cent showing mechanical and physical defects, with the non-salable rails being 0.7 per cent. June 4, 1925 NEW RAILROAD SHAPER Special Features Permit of Machining Largest Locomotive Driving Boxes The shaper here illustrated is of recent design and is intended for railroad work, being arranged particu- larly for the complete machining of locomotive driv- ing boxes and their accompanying shoes and wedges driving box brasses and rod brasses. The machine is built by the Cincinnati Shaper Co., Cincinnati and in addition to the features of that company’s 32-in. hatery: duty Climax shaper, special features have been added The Special Table with Removable Top Is a Feature. The inserts show the special chuck; the circular head pla