The Iron Age 1929-10-31: Vol 124 Iss 18

New York, October 31, 1929 ESTABLISHED 1855 VOL. 124, No. 18 Gy ‘ Output Regulated by Simple Plan Inexpensive Method of Controlling Flow of Materials in a Forging Plant Reduces Production Costs OR the relatively small — company making a mul- titude of parts, close control of production to keep oN “ORE than 95 per cent of When material reache ck hop. the finished ste room, whether it comes from an out- side source or from the shop, | | th facturi ti ad e manufacturing estab- ae stocks within normal bounds is |] ; : 3 & the information is entered i ene ee ae ; | lishments in the United States em- aaah 2 just as important as for the 1] 4 the fourth column marked “to Si , ; | ploy less than 250 men, in numer- open ; arge company. When the 1] , f f 5 to 50 stock.” Each day’s cumulative : |] ous cases as few as from 25 to 50. , number of parts is several hun- : orders for each part are re Many of them produce a variety . F corded in the fifth and sixtl dred, the matter of controlling | stocks becomes acute and calls for rigid supervision. To solve || control are this problem in a simple yet h . : ° spects to those effective has been the E of the Kilborn & | Bishop Co., New Haven, Conn.., | way achievement successfully used manufacturer of drop forgings. Making close to 500 differ- the company found it advantageous from the standpoint of to inate, so far as possible, the __ keeping of elaborate records. Cluttering of the office files with innumerable cards and record sheets serves no good out over ent parts, has costs elim- purpose. It occupies the undivided time of one or more clerks and in many cases means duplication of effort with- out tangible benefits. After experimenting over an extended period with the trial and error method, the Kilborn & Bishop Co. has de- vised a system which is simple but adequate, inexpensive but profitable. It centers about what is termed a “supply and demand sheet,” which is equivalent to a perpetual in- ventory of material in the plant. for each individual article made by the company. A separate sheet is used In the first column are recorded production orders or purchase or- ders for material bought from an outside source. The figures in this column give a running grand total of the production or purchase orders for each part during the fiscal year, which consists of the 12-months’ period from one annual inventory to the next. Data Regarding Outside Purchases Recorded In the second and third columns, designated “invoiced” and “received” respectively, are kept data regarding it side purchases, the date of the invoice and the date that the material was received. These columns t for production orders going through the company’s owr 115: of articles and consequently their problems of production and stock similar This article, setting forth the plan ploying about 25 men and turning 500 different should be of special interest to the small manufacturer. columns, which are headed the title “sales.” Incidentally in various re these two columns do not tell of larger plants. the size of individual orders o1 where each order is going, thi by a company em- . Information Deing given on an d ther sheet. »roducts, hy i The total of ordered part (obtained from the first col umn) minus the total of part in the finished stock room (fourth column) gives” the numbe1 of parts in proce This, assumption that all of the parts ordered have already been started through the shop. The stock total (fourth column) the total (fifth number of finished parts in of course, is based on the minus sales or sixth column) gives the stock available for sale. At the top of the sheet, opposite “date and source,” the of the peen are which outside and the first of The serial its name, size and finish are put at the bottom sheet. The the By “minimum” meant the part that should kept in veing derived by multiplying the total s for one proc I from the date material given name company pul chases have made order wa placed with that number of the part, the corded. source of “minimum” for part also is re 1S minimum amount stock, ales of that to if each be finished thi figure | part month by the number of months necessary ire from an outside source that particular produce part, for obviously it essential to keep on hand in fin hed stock enough parts to supply customers for that Every time the “available for sale’”’ int fall heet” i amo Helow scanned Here units of he “supply and demand ermine whether a new sho i For inst thiy sale minimum ild be set ince, 1f 300 $s, and two months ars ild be 600 nimum wo units. month. changed to conform with the requirements of the situa- tion and a new minimum is set. When the number “available for sale” is below the minimum, a signal is attached to the center of the card. In an emergency, when there actually is a shortage and stock at hand is not sufficient to fill orders (that is, the 1.7 ‘available for sale” is a minus quantity or the sales are greater than the stock), the signal is put at the right ide of the card. Ordinary paper clips are used for danger The company believes that clips are the cheap- easiest article to employ for this purpose. lorry pnals. TRACING SHEET ror Their Name When the amount “available for sale” drops be- low 600, advantage is taken of the opportunity to see whether recent sales have been averaging 300 units a If not, the figure for the monthly average is ORDER minimum, based on the experience of the preceding two months, is usually established. When a card is started for a new part, in the “ordered” column is placed the total supply available or soon to be available, which includes the number in finished stock, the number in process and the number on production orders on which manufacture has not yet begun. As each pro- duction order is issued, the number of parts on that order is added to the total already in the ordered column. In the “to stock” column is entered the number in stock and each delivery to stock is added. In the sales column the number of unfilled shipping orders is first entered and then every additional order received by the sales depart- ment is added. Any red entries on the sheet are of a negative char- QUANTITY SHOP ORDER DE NO LOT NO FINISH SSRRRERRRERRRRRR Ree TTT i \} \} Control of Stocks Revolves About a Supply and Demand Sheet (Center) Which Is Equivalent to a Perpetual Inventory of Material in the Plant. A tracing sheet has been provided to keep track of material in process etween the time it is entered in the ordered column and in the stock column of the supply and demand sheet [f the minimum plus sales is greater than the number £ parts in stock, the stock is low and deliveries from the duction department to the stock room are closely atched. On the other hand, if the minimum plus sales T greater than the number of parts ordered, more stock must be ordered from the production department. During the first two months of the current fiscal year, the monthly sales average from the previous year is used to determine nimum. At the end of that period, however, a new 1154—The Iron Age, October 31, 1929 acter. In the stock column they are goods which for any reason have been returned from finished stock to the shop. Red in the sales column is the sign of either a cancellation or a returned shipment. Only in these few cases is there any subtraction on the sheet. One of the main purposes in originating the sheet was to get away from subtraction, in which tests have proved that employees make far more errors than in addition. To keep track of material in process between the Form 334-2000 Ang 1926 — Name of Part Revies? CRicene ee Seth of Past General Remarks: Forging Wgt..______L be. Each of Size Cut of NAME OF OPERATION Tims | Per | Werk | MACHINE USED F wa | | Feed | FIXTURE Hre Hoer F j | — sianieinsliiiaaes = 1 | | | | | eaannas dala | i ee ae | aa J } } | —— j } | ee ; + + t Eade] a | | ; annus } | | tions Order on : s USED | TOOLS USED NSPECTION, REJECT? + } | t ——_____ p ARTS Are Manufactured in Accordance with Instruc a General in Which Various Operations Are o nm “ ae 2 Die Na Mize Length r imish Sheets Sheet —___of Catalog Number Finished Wgt____. Lbs. Each Packed Per Box wN AND REMARKS ———— Plan Which the Done | ists Be Sheet >ARO NO or j ee 7 “7 a | PCE a | PEt | | i { i a Ez ! i | | } j ' ; ; | a Sums from Trac ing Sheet Are Transferred tor Filing Purposes to a Rate Card (Above) Which Con tains Condensed Information About Rates of Various Oper ations in Producing Parts HEN Parts Are Re- jected by Inspectors or Pieces Are Spoiled in Produc- tion Departments, a Scrap Re- port Is Sent to the Office to Be Scanned by the Manage ment The Iron Age, October 31, 1929——1155 ne it is entered in the “ordered” column and in the “to In these cases the theory that all errors are compensatory stock” column, a tracing sheet has been provided. One is followed. Thus, if all errors are within 5 per cent of acing sheet ised for each production order. However, the actual value, the average of the grand total of the second order for the same part is issued before the inventory would be within 42 per cent. mpleted, the information is put on the same When parts are rejected by inspectors or pieces are she Data contained on this sheet include the names spoiled in production departments, a scrap report is filled f irious operations in manufacturing the part, the out and sent to the office for perusal by the management. rk price (if any), operator’s clock number and The report contains the die number, last operation on the worked, number of pieces on which operator worked piece, quantity, order number, reason for scrapping and I nsumed in doing the work. the name of the inspector who was responsible for scrap- r} il sums from the tracing sheet are transferred ping the material. The operators know that a report of all ng rposes to a rate card which contains condensed scrapped material goes to the office and consequently the rt I ut the rates of the various operations in psychological effect is beneficial. g the part The time for making forging dies Orders for special forgings are handled in a slightly I } s, fixtures and repairs also is tabulated. different manner than orders for stock items. The trac- [he shop production schedule is usually decided upon ing sheet and the rate card are retained, but instead of he ronology of orders. However, the matter of giv- the supply and demand sheet a master card is kept. It ge precedence to spe orders is determined by an in contains the customer’s name and address, description of erence of the sales inager, general manage) the forging, die number, size and weight of stock, size s| superintendent All parts are manufactured in and quality of die blocks, finished weight, order number, y h instructions on a general production plan date, quantity price and material cost. A separate card is s the order in which various operations are used for each special part. n One c f the plan sheet goes to the shop The entire system has been designed to handle periodic n file the office. There is a plan sheet production of the same pieces and from it many benefits ul have accrued. Complete information regarding produc- Ar I i nvento? nateria tion contro] and the rate of operations is tabulated on ! lh tockkeeper in charg‘ the stock roon three sheets: the supply and demand sheet, tracing sheet t count of finished parts and puts the and rate card. In fact, the tracing sheet is only of tempo- rt on a separate inventory card, which rary service, as it is filed after the totals have been trans- he office The cards ar rted according t ferred to the rate card and is seldom referred to later. ger accounts, the sum totals of the general From an inspection of previous sales, as reflected by ransferred to inventory ledger sheets the “minimum” figure on the supply and demand sheet, the Ih ter of inventories, the fundamental rule of management can tell instantly at what rate the shop to calculate each part of the annual state should turn out any given part at any given time. The i me degree of accurat is every other part system also reveals at all times what the shop has been regarded as distorting values to de asked to produce, what it actually has produced and what ne within a f¢ ents the worth of a lot of material amount the sales department has sold. Moreover, it $5 when it is a matter of judgment shows the rate of production on all previous orders, a heth¢ achir costing $1,000 shall be depreciated matter essential in determining manufacturing costs. It > Sit 3150. The compan s of the opinion that sets forth the facts necessary for the management to oper- sed within 5 per cent of its actual valu: ate its business intelligently and accomplishes efficiently poses has been calculated closely enough. what much more elaborate systems often fail to achieve. ° Money Rates as a Business Forecaster M \JOR swings in money rates have forecast accu- rising money rates have been followed, after a long lag, rate iny months ahead, the major fluctuations by declining business and easing money rates have been isines tivity for 1927, 1928 and 1929—and, it might followed, after a similarly long lag, by improving business. evel ear since the war, says Alvan T. The long lag is seldom recognized, says Mr. Simonds. si president, Simonds Saw & Steel Co., Fitchburg, Business in the United States is too big, its inertia is too Mi ! lhead for Ne great, to be stopped and turned in a different direction at g major swings in commercial paper rates as a once—indeed, it requires months. I forecaster, it was evident at the beginning of On this basis Mr. Simonds believes that the next major ) he assert hat 1928 would probably be a year of upswing in business activity will begin nine to 15 months V [This forecast was corroborated as the decline in after the approaching turndown in money rates. ) eveloped and continued to the end of the year and as He also calls attention to the fact that each major fall- ! noved lower all through the year (1927), ing off in business since the war has been less severe than . r a rise in business activity in 1928. Similarly, the previous one. The recession of 1927 was briefer and ‘ ginning of 1928 money rates began to move up less severe than that of 1923-1924. The recession of ind iT 1923-1924 was de- t £ cidedly less se- nd t iS 5 vere than the de- - : z pression of 1920- ! ing i 3 1921. Emotional ‘ ; z pessimism would ‘ < | COMMERCIAL PAPER RATES REVERSED---= z now be a mistake O FEDERAL RESERVE BULLETIN i) 3 - c x in Mr. Simonds’ } ; 3 VOLUME OF MANUFACTURE +4 . . . Sen 3 DATA FROM HARVARD ECONOMIC SERVICE ¢ view, since it a ar - 1926 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929 | 1930 ™ would help to in- a crease any reces- Se eee The Curves for Commercial Paper Rates (Reversed) and Volume of Manufacture sion of business » ne wal Show Correlation, But There Is a Lag Between Them that may be ahead. 1156—The Iron Age, October 31, 1929 Heat Treats Stainless Steel Tubes British Firm Forms Soft Strip into Tubing and Draws It Through Pair of Dies with Electric Furnace Between INCE 1924 Boulton & Paul, Ltd., Norwich, England, has been engaged on research, design and construc- tional work for the Air Ministry in connection with the giant airship R-101 (described in considerable detail in THE IRON AGE, June 27, page 1753). In this time the firm has successfully developed new types of members, mate rials and methods of manufacture. In the latter part of 1924 two experimental longitudinal girders were con structed of the type ultimately adopted for the ship, incor porating several patented features, in particular the use of the process for continuously heat treating steel mem- bers after forming, and embodying the results of the re search work on structural stainless steel which had been under way for a year or so previously. It was this work which rendered possible the use of stainless steel for ait ship construction. For many years aircraft practice in Great Britair had been to form the required section from the already hardened and tempered strip, the forming being carried out either by rolling or drawing. These operations in- volved shaping the strip only, and not a reduction of thick ness. It was realized, however, that this method of form ing would not be particularly suitable for large scale pr duction owing to the facts that (a) The strip used, which had been hardened and tem pered in the coil, was not uniform in its mechanical pro; erties along its length; hence the “spring back” from thi rollor die was not consistent. This resulted in uneven sec tions being produced at the first pass, and often the irregu larity was so marked that the section had to be passe through dies several times to make it more uniform. (b) The design of sections was limited by the ductility a 7m or lack of ductility of the hardened and tempered strip To avoid these disadvantages there was developed a method of working the softened strip and, after having completely formed it to the requisite shape, carrying out the hardening and tempering by a continuous proce Solid drawn tubes were not and are not now availabl n the material, size and mechanical properties required for the airship, viz., to quote one item: 1%-1n. tubes in metal ranging from 26 to 20 gage, length up to 47 ft and having a minimum proof stress of 145,000 |b. per sq n. The above process therefore, then in its early stage of development, was the only method of providing the re juired sections. The fact that quantities like 30,000 ft 1%-in. tube for longitudinal girders have been pro ed shows that the method is a practical one for pré a at tl nm working Plant for Fabricating Shapes The actual plant used for the manufacture of the an hip section comprises four drawbenches, shown in an at ompanying illustration, each 70 ft. long, two rolling ma hines, one strip cutter and one section cutter The drive of the drawbench is through a friction disk that a variable speed of pull is obtainable, which ilso capable of being very gradually changed Dies are held in special holders fitted to the drawbench channel and definitely locked in position by a downward moving head operated by a hand wheel. Speed is controlled from the die head end of the bench means of a push rod, so that the operator setting the dies can readily control the speed of the chain. Each drawbench may also be fitted with an electric fur if san tet General View of the Four Drawbenches at Boulton & Paul’s Norwich Works, Which Were Used in Forming Sections for the Airship R-101 The Iron Age, October 31, 1929—1157 i Longitudinal in Assembly Jig. This nember 1s made of stain ess steel tubing witl closed joints, the ends ntering special fittings, ind with diagonals ot tensile wire > RO) OK e S/, a/R aN LAA 9 X OV WAAL QT W/L, U 40,000 MAOH SY J AOC 7 / 60C } py , | / 000+-7 j j f 0m 002 003 004 O EXTENSION INCHES Strain Curve f Steel Otrip Hardened trom 98 ( , tempered it 550 deg. ¢ IDGE Girder in End - Fitting Jig Stainless steel tubing with open joints is used at the angles, riveted to duralumin webs, flanged around all openings so as to combine lightness and stiffness 1158—The Iron Age, October 31, 1929 A YEAR OOF STRESS ee “] 52.000 LB. PER SQ.IN tor Heat-Treated Stain then the whole bent to curved shape. nace at the die holder end and also, as speed of drawing s of vital importance when the section is being either hardened or tempered, a speed indicator is attached to each bench. Drawing of Section sect ions such as the 1%-in. tubes used for the longi idinals are made entirely on the drawbench. The flat trip, in its softened condition as received from the iakers, is passed successively through a series of dies intil the desired shape is obtained. It should be noted hat these drawing operations merely form the strip to a articular shape and that the gage of metal remains con- tant throughout the whole process. For close jointed tubing (such as is shown in the frame yngitudinal) the necessary corrugations are first formed ilong the edges by drawing the strip through dies and The final seaming s carried out by pulling this section through a circular lie and over a mandrel shaped so as to fold the corrugated edges over one another. A 70-ft. tube can thus be formed easily; all work is arried out while the steel is in annealed condition. Physical Properties of the Steel Used Stainless steel strip of a composition within the limits ndicated below has been used for all members such as close jointed tubes, which are formed on the drawbenches ind hardened and tempered by the tinuous heat treatment process: 3oulton & Paul con- Carbon .. .... 0.16 to 0.22 per 22 cent Silicor : ‘ : Not exceeding 0.5 pet Nickel ; Not more than 1.0 per cent Chromium 12.5 to 14.0 per cent It has been found that steels in this range, after hard- ening from a temperature of 960 to 1000 deg. C. and tem- pering at a suitable temperature, have the following me- chanical properties: Proof stress . Ultimate stress.... Close bend (trans- VOREG) incssaane Around pin three times the thickne A typical stress-strain diagram is shown in Fig. 4. Proof stress is defined as that stress at which the stress- strain diagram departs from the straight line of propor- tionality by 0.1 per cent of the gage length. Not less than 145,000 Ib. 200,000 to 215,000 lb. per sq. in. The Continuous Heat Treatment Process As before remarked, each of the 70-ft. drawbenches may be equipped with a wire-wound electric tube furnace, fitted with automatic temperature control. When heat treating is to be done on fully formed sections, one such furnace is brought up to heat, say 50 deg. above the cor- rect temperature for the steel, and a die set up on the entry side of the furnace of such size that there is a little friction offered to the passage of the section through it. Full lengths of the formed section, such as close jointed tube, are then fed through at a rate which is dependent upon (1) The nature of the operation or tempering. (2) The class of steel. (3) The form of the section. (4) The gage of the strip from which the section was formed. (5) The mass of steel per linear foot. The section is raised in temperature and soaked at least two minutes at the hardening or tempering temperature before emerging into the air. After traveling in air a few inches, the section enters a cast iron water cooled die (set in the die holder of the drawbench) which completes the cooling and maintains the section in its correct shape. What really happens in the hardening operation is an air quench; the section has cooled through its critical range before reaching the water cooled die. An air hardening steel must therefore be used. The first die, ahead of the furnace, merely maintains sufficient tension on the section while in the furnace to insure straightness in the finished vroduct. whether hardening Formidable practical difficulties were encountered in the hardening of stainless steel in the early days, due principally to two things: (1) The high hardening temperature, 960 to 1000 deg. C (2) The comparatively slow and variable response to heat ' treatment of the stainless steel used However, a few miles of strip in this difficult steel have now been successfully and uniformly heat treated in equipment such as shown in one of the illustrations. But this has been achieved only by the closest attention to every detail, involving Very Ww are tl np t ind I tr t} in! ed t) p t bh re perature (3) Close cont of rate of feed through the muffles The tempering operation is very similar to the hard- LOSE - UP & of Die Holders on Drawbench Ar- ranged for Tem- pering Tubes for Airship B ooms. Note how rigidly the dies are held in adjustable fixtures ening described above, with, of course, a suitable adjust ment of temperature. For most of the stainless steel used for the airship a temperature between 420 and 450 deg. C has been used. In order to speed up the rate of drawing two furnaces are put in tandem on one bench for this op- eration. Uniformity of the Product The product is more uniform than has been found in steel strip hardened and tempered in the coil. Coil treated strip often showed a variation of as much as 50,000 lb. per sq. in. in the tensile strength along a length of 60 ft. As typical of the continuous process, a 50 ft. close jointed tube in stainless steel made in the above manner was taken at random and cut into short test lengths. The size was 1% in. by 20 gage, i. e., most difficult from the heat treat- ment point of view. The tests fell within the following range: Proof stress 145,000 to 154,000 Ib. per sq. ir Ultimate strength 198,000 to 208,000 Ib. per sq Transverse closed bend.. 2% to 3 thickness Control Tests on Heat Treated Sections Rockwell hardness tests and close bend tests are car- ried out on each end of every section after cutting to The Iron Age, October 31, 1929—1159 1160 Germany Extruding Seamless Tubes of Stainless The undit mills, it appear re being devel- Mannesmann compar has a mill which is Stiefel expanding mill. but uses a tension ( compression mandrel. It is claimed ie mandrel, due to vibration of the man- duces pipe ¢ al le diameter, which re re ng The ter n mandrel claimed to be tl le The De itscene Mact Ine! Ia ? k IS le ing anew expanding 1 ] rey 1 new piercing mill, which has tw rolls ke the place of the present piercing mill e are ur 1 ill told: two rolls form the I Wi tw otner rol form the f th, pa | ty; the present time he mple es have been rolled, and Ge) : : ibt the fiily of th design fo. 1 ’ ‘ , hambe} ) n r¢ 1 ‘ ne To! ed, oT Ve Ide i oT H ( er drun re fre \ } he nd that the boile ( t t trength of an inte I [ nited State Ss ich pr } nd e of the Americar ! I raulica Then the Iron Age, October 31, 1929 the length for test correlation between ne and the testing machine is realized Rockwell achine with tensile test een pulled for proof stress and ulti ess ipply such test pieces st teel used, every gage of strip g heat | trip rollers). iracter of the steel is responsible for the pal n standards I iding and pe etrators of the ments ! he making of seamless ! I were reported in address at 23, before S onal meeting of the f Mechani Engineers, by Prof. W. Institute of Technology, Pittsburg! an! I ibe ( ne ivs, extrudes imle SS n diamete ul vhat is mo! of stain ¢ ruae verti lly qaownwara \ I res { h speed (a 2 ft. tube in sideways ind $ it of the ale DY a tl g is Sal he added, about the mate They are air cooled between operations, tne manart tf our present-day seam s heat { I concerned. longe r reigns finds, no vhict ece ts name ecause the A nde I I ea Ve steps tor eps ickward, Cc ut tT true q 1ickly lite we upte small orders of h require frequent roll changing any- 1 ing. ie) German engineers l re e tl tuation and are therefore They state that for seamless tubes of f ng ar in automatic mill are co1 t 10 i I so called double For 12 24 double piercing and : ender Has Mandre! in Tension Rockwell machine are necessary for dealing with very thin strip, such as 26 to 30 gage. Cutting to Length These hardened and tempered sections are cut by means of a mild steel disk, about 16-gage thick, running at high speed. It is found that this method is quick and very economical. The machine carrying the disk is fitted with a quick clamping device on a moving table, and by the turning of a handwheel the disk is brought in contact with the sec tion. Steel ends are wedged down, and the drum is tested once more inder hydraulic pressure. Rolling from Large Hollow Ingots cost of welding sections three or Accordingly, “one steel works He the re inches thick is high. agreed that has developed a process in which ingots are cast hollow over a collapsible core. The hollow ingots are then elong- ated by means of a special rolling mill which applies a number of small rolls, say six, on the outside and an equal the of the hollow ingot. The rolls are designed for great elongation and are set slightly on a skew so that they both rotate and feed the ingot for 30 ft. number of rolls on inside ward. Seamless tubes up to 40 in. in diameter and long have been rolled by this process. In making the molds for the hollow ingots, a new core naterial is used which costs only Ic. a lb. but is limited to 114-in. thickness of ingot wall. For similar purposes an- ther core material has been developed which consists of (to The same aluminum oxide with some aluminum nitride act as a binder). It can be used for any wall thickness. material is also used in Germany as a wash for cores of steel castings and is claimed to have reduced the cost of leaning castings by more than 50 per cent. One of the most striking fruits of X-ray investigation s the recognition of the somewhat complex cell structure which exists in certain alloy bodies which are commonly Dr. Walter Rosenhain, in an address before the recent meeting of the British Institute of Metals. A work remains to done described as intermetallic said compounds, large amount of further this Closely allied to this problem is the ques- be before question can be cleared up. tion of the real nature of the complex structure found in certain pure metals, notably manganese, which displays a striking similarity to the structure of the peculiar inter- metallic combinations previously mentioned. It would ap- pear that the underlying laws of intermetallic combination the true nature of in- have yet to be discovered, and that termetallic compounds and the features which distinguish it, if a true distinction exists, from a solid solution, have ‘ + ¢ } Vé oO eC accurately defined. Three rare metals are interestingly discussed in an attractive and well illustrated booklet of 58 pages issued the Fansteel Products Co., Inc., North Chicago, Ill. The three metals are tantalum, tungsten and molybdenum, and tneir history, uses About 15 page ‘Tantalum, the Everlasting Metal”; ut 10 pages to “Tungsten, the Metal of Another World,’ pages to “Molybdenum, the properties and are discussed Sare devote d to n Metal of Radio.” A con ing section of about seven pages deals with facts and rures on rare netals Modern Electrical Repair Sho Steel Mill Requirements in Keeping Its Many Motors in Active Service —Should Not Manufacture Parts BY J. M. ZIMMERMAN N building a new repair shop a steel mill purchased of the storeroom, next to the foreman’s office, but 1s not some $30,000 worth of modern equipment. A great connected to it except by a window through which the deal of thought was given to the layout of this necessary clerical work passes. The receiving door 1s at shop and its system of costs. It is now operating, with the far end of the storeroom. an enviably low maintenance cost. If the roof of the building is high enough the space In laying out a modern electric repai shop all lost above the foreman’s office and the washroom can be util motion in man-hours may be kept low by proper arrange zed to store parts, such as armature coils, which must be ment of the shop. The places to which the workman must kept in their original shipping containers until they are have access while performing his tasks—tool and stock used. disbursement window, time clerk’s window in foreman’s An overhead crane is essential for quick handling of office, and washroom—should be located centrally, where heavy motor parts. The plan as shown in Fig. 1 pro his coming and going will not interrupt the workmen in vides such a crane to span the center bay and travel it other groups. entire length. Machines handling the heavy work are lo With this in mind the foreman’s office is in the cente1 cated in this aisle, while those doing the light work ar of one wing of the building, with the washroom on one located in bay III, with the exception of the coil repair side and the storeroom and toolroom on the other. Th department, which occupies the end of bay I stock and tool disbursement window is as near the fori The shop is divided into nine sections, each being sep man’s office as is convenient, so that it will be near the rated from the other by white lines on the floor. Two center of the building. The stores office is in the corne} wide aisles at right angles are provided for electric. truck traffic. One runs from the foreman’s office through the eit tintin a ila alii, lea eh, center of the building to the exit on the opposite side, East Pittsburgh, Pa oer — vhile the other runs the entire length of bay II]. These ha Dynamometer Testing Set, with Control Board, for Load Testing. The frame permits easy alinement for motor shaft The Iron Age, October 31, 1929—1161 arteries enable small shipments of stock to be brought in or removed from the shop quickly. Since the receiving and shipping department is the be- ginning and finishing of any job, we have arranged the the end of bay I. The is lifted by the crane off the truck and shop to receive and ship the work at The outside doors permit a motor truck to enter. part to be repaired This doors can be opened ver the wall to a section reserved for this material. ld, so that the without chilling the shop. The ves ; 1 SHC storeroom is connected to this tr and a monorail crane is provided to ft the electrical supplies from the truck, thereby saving | t abor of handling them. Testing Department The testing department is conveniently located betwee1 nloading department and the assembly floor, to elimi- e excess handling When a mo of complete equipment. ir shop for repairs it is moved to the testing department, where the extent of the repairs is From the test floor goes to the assembly wr to be disassembled. On its outward journey it returns from the assembly floor for a final test before being = i : . , : } ; mquipn tin the testing department includes the dyna eter and control board for load testing. The control | f panels, one for starting and controlling t i ng I I i third r cor , I tor; and urth for powe y } i y ’ hecys ne ‘ on I x tpu t dynamon ma he Mi l nnecting and mn necting of motors to generator. The generator is of suffi- cient capacity to overload by 50 per cent the largest gen- eral-purpose motor in the plant, for a period of 15 minutes to obtain the best results. A welded fabricated steel frame mounts generator and motor. The platform on which the motor is to be mounted for quick alinement to the generator shaft is raised or lowered by four jackscrews, one at each corner. Each screw has a sprocket wheel, all driven by a common chain, for the raising and lowering operation. The outside cor- ners of the platform should be supported by feet sliding up and down, as When the correct height of the table is obtained, these feet should be permanently clamped so as to form a solid base for the motor, thereby eliminat- ing vibration. The platform has two steel cross channels which can be spread to fit the various feet dimensions of any motor being tested. shown. A lathe chuck pressed on the generator shaft will re- several sizes of center pins, as needed to fit the va- sizes of centers in different motor shafts. A dog placed over the motor shaft serves to drive the generator. This manner of connecting the motor eliminates a lot of sizes of couplings and makes it possible to operate the set efficiently without accurate alinement of the shaft. celve rious Assembly Floor After disassembling equipment to be sembly floor distributes parts to the repaired, the as- various departments Such repairs made, the parts are assembled and the equipment is turned over to the testing department for final test. This department should fitted with a complete set of wrenches, each in its own when not in use. In addition there should be a port- and puller. This depart- , 4 where they will be repaired. piace able drill, air hammer, pinior Lockers = Shop for Steel Mill, >. Showing Location S - . . | nO of All Equipment a and Relations of AYOUT of Elec 4trical Repair | Equipment ' Departments Unloading nD x = Y 3 ePst xu jee ous alk . a & >~ o3>] 9 + Onn re) o~c¢ = © Y BENCHES, DESKS, AND CASES Instrument case —Tester’s desk ( Field coil repair table D—Armature coil repair table E—Insulation detail repair bench F—Cut insulation bins G—Commutator repair bench H—Small motor and control repair bench I—Machinists’ work bench Machinists’ work bench T K—Babbitting work bench and mandril case L—Time clerk’s desk M—Motor assembly tool rack N—Check board P—Clear R—Mac k bencl S—Wel g work benct 1162—The Iron Age, October 31, 1929 Equipment Installed MACHINES AND TOOLS i—Panel for test set 2—Load test set 3—Emery stone and buffer 4—100-ton hydraulic press 5—30-in. lathe 6—Milling machine 7—24-in. Planer 8—24-in. Banding lathe 9—Stator winding table 10—Armature winding table 11—Shear to cut insulation 12—Tension device for tool 13 13—Coil winding head 14—Electric gluepot 15—Coil taping machine 16—Coil pulling machine 17—Dipping tank 18—Car for baking oven 19—Electric baking oven 20—18-in. radial drill press | 21—10-in. radial drill press | 22—35-ton forcing press 23—Bearing machining lathe 24—Electric babbitting pot 25—Portable emery wheel 26—Storeroom monorail crane and track 27—Monorail crane for welding department 28—Exhaust fan for cleaning booth 29—Exhaust fan for welding booth 30—Band saw 31—Coil testing set 32—Portable stand for commutator repairs 33—Bench drill 34—Bench drill 35—Armature winding lathe for small motors 36—Small emery wheel 37—Hand press 38—Commutator undercutting lathe eee _ — ment is the most convenient place for locating the emery wheel and buffer. Miscellaneous Section Cleaning booth, babbitting pot, bearing machining lathe and welding booth are in one section. The motor details are sent to this department from the assembly floor for cleaning. The cleaning booth has a pickling vat and a rinsing vat, both large enough to hold the !argest motor frame. Any mechanical part which does not have insulation attached is dipped first in a caustic soda bath, and then rinsed in a bath of water. Field coils and armatures are cleaned by the gasoline spray method. The booth has two sprays for painting and for gasoline cleaning. The latter has a valve which will pass a spray of gasoline and air, or just a spray of air to evaporate the gasoline after cleaning. All repairs are sent to this booth to be painted before leaving the shop. The painting spray may be taken to the apparatus and connected to an air line for painting. This room is ventilated by an exhaust fan. The bearings after cleaning are re-babbitted in an elec- tric babbitting pot. This can be mounted on a truck so it can be taken out for babbitting large bearings which can- not be conveniently brought to the shop. After babbitting, the bearings are machined to fit the armature shaft on which they are to be used. For this reason the depart- ment has a small lathe. A 35-ton forcing press is provided for pressing a bear- ing into a housing. In this case the bearing is machined if necessary, after it has been pressed into the housing. To do this requires a large lathe which can swing the housing. A portable welder for the welding booth sets under the work bench, thereby being out of the way. It can be taken easily to other parts of the plant, if necessary. This booth has also a portable gas torch. An exhaust fan removes Armature Shafts Are Removed or Put in Place in a 100 Ton Hydraulic Press (Upper Left) Undercutting Outfit in Armature Repair Department t Permit Undercutting and Polishing on the Machin (Above) Babbitting Bearings, the Metal Being Melted in Electri Furnaces Under Close Regulation (Lower Left) excess welding heat and thereby provides a comfortable working place for the welder. Outside the booth is a Martindale flexible-shaft emery wheel to smooth off the welds and rough spots. This grinder, on a portable stand, can be moved to other departments, wherever it can be used to advantage—especially the armature stripping benches, where it is used to clean out armature slots Machine Department The machine department should have suitable tools to handle the necessary repairs, and make parts only in emergency. It is false economy to be equipped to machin from rough stock parts which can be purchased from the manufacturer of the original equipment. It is desirable to have a 100-ton hydraulic press to re- move and assemble armature shafts, tighten commutators, etc. A large machine lathe is sufficient for this section, as the bearing and armature winding departments have their own lathes. A planer and a milling machine ars handy, but could be omitted. A large drill press is neces sary. Armature Repair Department To rewind armatures and stators, the usual armature winding horses and stator-winding tables are required The banding lathe for this department should have a ten sion device for keeping the proper tension on the banding wire. A separate undercutting outfit is essential, so that the commutator can be undercut and polished on the ma- chine. The dipping tank should have a hinged cove opened by a weight connected to it by a rope passing through a pulley. In case of fire this rope would burn in two and let the cover drop on the tank. A swinging crane with chain hoist handles the parts to be dipped, and holds them above the tank for draining. After dipping they are put on a car and rolled into an The Iron Age, October 31, 1929—1163 3 i i, commutatol1 Small Motor and Commutator Repairs + } ] al ‘ itators should always be ing, so th + ind the baking oven. stand to hold the armature in upright position pair 1S ving a taping OF ontrolled electric oven to be baked. It does not pay to rewind small motor armatures if a a tier of bins to store cut insulat- man’s time is taken up wholly to do this type of work. venient yf the winding depart But it does pay to have a man do this work during spare time. Hence this department has a small motor armature- magne ils, and general repair winding tool. lating details on various kinds of Miscellaneous Detail Repairs coil-repair department. It has a band saw to cut commutator Odds and ends of control and motor details are brought press, electric glue pot, field-coil for repair and reclamation to the miscellaneous detail machine for general repair section. The best facilities here are several good vises, a emergency it has also a winding bench drill for light work, small emery and buffing wheel r., so that pate cnn be made. and a hand press for removing and replacing worn bush- ings. prov ided., it t Is section O details with +h Ufl e press is locates the thereby and close to the hydrau- Since it is easier to assem- chines. It is essential that the various operations be care- Lil armature vertical, a maintaining a quick of shop tightened thence to the over The economics of repairing and reconditioning of elec- trical parts is quite similar to that of repairing and recon- ditioning the mechanical parts of any other type of ma- with a press fully studied so that the organization will perform them with the least amount of effort and time. With this type lay-out we feel that an economical repairing schedule can be properly maintained. British Comment on Chromium Plating Temperature a Factor in Successful Results—Porosity Often a 1164 HROMIUM tle nal ies I Cy Har | ini A _ rade Porosity of Plated Product Cause of The Iron Source of Trouble—Experience Important al > Br l t i ? y ing ( ible Effects of Temperature in ige, October plated urTace 31, ed as having wid worth while using good quality metal in the manufacture be produced that is of plated articles, and using dried molds, too, when the e. There has been metal is in the form of castings. Apart from the trouble r the ting in the that may be caused by the exudation of acid from “blow itish authority, W. E holes” under the chromium deposit, there is the question as success have of appearance. A pitted surface may not be conspicuous with a brass finish; but defects of this kind are neces- r car work, it ha -arily accentuated by bright plating. The thickness of Brass founders he deposit is important, and information and advice upon ( ays Mr. Ha this point should be sought from platers. he manufacture of \ fairly thick deposit is essential in many cases, and has become an indis it is not every plant that is capable of giving the required th branch of th result. In preparing the surface of an article for chro Theoretically, a coat mium plating it should be remembered that, if it is well hed, silver-like ap “dressed” and polished, the result will repay the extra tions, should 1 are in workmanship involved. All these are points worth irfa ong upo keeping in mind, and many disappointments will be obvi It ! e it does ll ited by doing so. 7 , we n Unsatisfactory Work a Bogey ' spon 5 & sound So much for the origin of much talk about chromiun leposit being unsatisfactory. It would, indeed, be sur prising if, in the case of a new process of this kind, every ; ama stented small plating plant could reach perfection straight away ines ae tre Further, it would be astonishing if even the larger plants, A ithonetl » ait where research work is carried out to discover the causs re rv slight. the defects, could be absolutely proof against every possibl wiow aw tee the cause of trouble, seeing that there is nothing in huma! eauires “St ai Ricas experience that has yet reached this ideal state. = ; veal Although chromium plating has so far been mainly in other eam considered in regard to its virtue as a “finish,” this is ener 1 the meta far from being the end of its uses or even, perhaps, the f il eas ost important, says Mr. Harvey. Its application to gi h shiek mot ids and tools has been so successful in increasing thet — vearing properties and in other respects that it is in n ow regular use for these purposes. Here, again, the correct laos «ne i aottol, t f plating must be adopted or it is useless War aieaianian. 2 \s a final word, it may be pointed out that there has ++ 1929 U4 n been much misunderstanding regarding the cleaning of cnromium There is a great difference between cleaning rouble and polishing. While the latter is unnecessary, the former responsible for s essential, and is easily done by rubbing over with a lass finish, it damp cloth and finishing with a dry one. Institute Unalarmed by Stock Break Calm Confidence in Sound Position of Business Characterizes Both Public and Private Expressions at Hotel Commodore Meeting ONVENING in its thirty-sixth general meeting the day after one of the worst stock market crashes in x history, the American Iron and Steel Institute was undisturbed by the alarm that had captured an excited Wall Street. Both public and private expressions by lead- ers of the iron and steel industry reflected calm confi- dence in the sound position of business and the reassu ing outlook for coming months. Mill Operations Still Good The growing stability of the iron and steel trade and the absence of price inflation were stressed by President Charles M. Schwab in the opening address, Friday morn ing, Oct. 25, in the Grand Ball Room of Hotel Commo dore. Extemporaneous remarks from the platform by James A. Farrell, president of the United States Steel Con poration, were also encouraging. is not justified so far as the steel business is concerned. Operations, at 75 to 80 per cent, are good. Demand is sus tained except in one or two lines and in some directions is even better than six months ago, he declared. Shipbuild- ing and structural steel fabricating plants are unusually active, being booked four to six months ahead. Enlightened Selling Urged Both Mr. Farrell and Mr. Schwab stressed the need for an enlightened selling policy, now that trade has receded “If the people of the steel industry cannot maintain their equilibrium, we won’t asserted Mr. Farrell. “If we fail somewhat from its peak volume. have good business,” at this juncture and violate the golden rule as between me1 and as between companies, then we can blame ourselves for anything that happens that will make the situation any different from what it is at the present time.” The cost sheet was recommended by Mr. Schwab as means of forestalling an unsound price structure and of discouraging attempts to produce at capacity regardless of demand. He emphasized the fact that the industry’s fa vorable showing this year has not been due to highe prices, but rather has resulted from greater demand fo1 steel, enlarged output and lower costs. The price stability of the past year has benefited steel consumers, according to Mr. Schwab, because it has en abled them to operate on a non-speculative basis. Steel buying has been for current consumption, and no big in ventories have been built up. Since prices are not inflated, he added, there is no reason why they should give ground because of the present slight let-up in demand Willis L. Laughlin Steel Corporation, also made a few remark King, veteran vice-president of the Jones & from the platform, at the conclusion speech. Mr. Schwab introduced Mr. King as “the onl American honorary vice-president this institute ever had.” The technical program ensued, and some of the papers read are abstracted in the current issue of THE IRON AG! The banquet, held in the Grand Ball Room Friday even ing, was featured by addresses affirming the good will ex isting between the United States and Great Britain. Hon Pessimism, he declared, Winstont Churchill, former British cabinet member, said that the rest of the world “is dependent almost entirely in the immediate future on the cooperation and development of the English-speaking countries.”” He committed himself to naval equality between Britain and America, saying “We have pledged our hands and hearts that Britain and the United States shall be for all time equal upon the seas, albeit strong. “We don’t want all the good people in the world to d arm while the bad ones remain heavily equipped for war,” he added. strongly armed.” “You are the friends we would most like to see Mr. Churchill paid tribute to President Schwab and to J. Leonard Repl