The Iron Age 1933-03-16: Vol 131 Iss 11

ess than 929 stg. XCesg of finished » Crude ures We abroad, has fall. ‘centage exports ould re. DUSINEegs in 1930, Instead, duction, ith the Ploiting world, tivating in our at large dards, ed and West is \ merica World. to im. LW ma- petitive we can e earn- d wage Ww ma- up the aid: staged ; of an rely by present ort by at the a rep- y ina ar bet- market of our [ap id tap ferman 1perin- hicago, vachin- at the b. 22. pplica- stand apping d 800 satis- and 3, 1 taps es and pping ration tap to of the . that d tap- en the orrect ..THE IRON AGE... MARCH 16, 1933 ESTABLISHED 1855 Vol. 131, No. 11 Rediscovering America HE crisis of the past fortnight has proved the mettle of the American people. Patient, under- standing, sympathetic and hopeful, our citizens have demonstrated how free-spirited men can act in time of common adversity. With no peasant tra- dition of serfdom, with no proletarian consciousness of class oppression, with no caste-enforced sub- mergence of their self-respect, they have no ‘‘under- dog’ complex to drive them into unreasoning out- bursts. For all they have gone through, Americans know their country as a land which has been and again can be the land of opportunity. They know that it is a land predominantly of enterprising, energetic, resourceful, honest and well-meaning people. Well aware that they are paying the price of their own folly and their misplaced trust in the grasping few, they have turned their backs on the past and are looking forward to a new deal. Grateful for the unselfish and unremitting labors of the President who has gone, and having the utmost confidence in the President who has come into power, they do not expect the impossible. But they have faith in their ability, under vigorous leadership at Washington, to i We 2 = — S rc. purge the land of Mammon’s poison and to restore its productivity. They recognize that this must be done under the handicap of untoward international influences. But they are now in the mood for action. No longer will there be temporizing or indecision. No longer will other nations’ troubles take precedence over our own. With want stalking through many lands, with war invading the Far East and Latin America, and with dissension and unrest permeating Europe, the United States has learned at long last that it cannot settle the problems of the world. America no longer looks abroad. And it is fortunate that this is so. Looking inward perforce because of the banking crisis, this country has rediscovered its own vast potential strength in material resources and in the san- ity, fair-mindedness and courage of its people. America, chastened and united by adversity, and taking stock of proximate possibilities rather than ultimate objectives, has set itself to the task of build- ing up a domestic economy that will be sound, stable, productive and equitable, an economy that will be secure in the face of international convulsions. Eliminating Red Tape in Controlling Production ROPER routing of orders through a shop is essential to efficient production and_ to prompt delivery of materials to cus- tomers. While this is important in the shop operating on a production basis, it is doubly necessary in plants in which every order can be classed as a special order. Such is the case at the Michigan Tool Co., Detroit, manufacturer of cutting tools and special machines. Close attention to control of materials in process has resulted in a reduction of processing time, decrease in in- ventories of raw stocks and ability to meet emergency requirements of cus- tomers. At a time when most compa- nies have adopted a policy of holding stocks down almost to the vanishing point, so that deliveries are measured in hours rather than days, the desir- ability of meeting service demands of buyers becomes increasingly impor- tant. The Michigan Tool Co. has elimi- nated red tape. Elaborate forms and index systems, which need constant © By BURNHAM FINNEY Detroit Editor, The Iron Age checking by a large clerical force, are frowned upon. A few simple records contain all of the information bearing on production. This is shown best by following an order from the time it is received by the company until it is ready for shipment. As soon as an order is placed, it is checked to see whether a similar order has ever been filled. If so, the blue print is in the company’s files; if not, a blue print should accompany the customer’s order when it reaches the company. In case the job is not new, the previous order is referred to for instructions. Then the order is typed and sent to the engineering depart- ment, copies going to the shop super- intendent and the shipping depart- ment. One copy is retained in the office for invoicing purposes and an- other is attached to the blue print which is sent to the shop. No. Pieces on Order ‘24—The Iron Age, March 16, 1933 SKETCH DESCRIPTION AND Sizt Customer Orver No Date Rec’ An acknowledgment of the order is mailed to the customer, a form headed “Acknowledgment” being used for this purpose. On the right side of the form is a brief record of the shop order, listing the order and requisi- tion numbers, date received and date promised. A yellow copy is sent to the company’s sales representative, so that he may be informed of the trans- action, and a pink copy is kept in the files, When the order is transmitted from the office to the engineering depart- ment, a blue stock card goes with it. . This card enumerates the job num- ber, number of pieces ordered, name of customer, date of order, date of delivery, description of work, kind of material and the various depart- ments through which the work must pass in the shop. This card is filled out during its journey from the office to the shipping department. In the shop it stays with the material in process until it emerges from the last inspection as a finished article. In- formation is added on the card as it CCOMPANYING each order when it is transmitted from the office to the engineering department is a stock card which stays with material in process until it emerges as a finished product, being filled out en route (at left). fF ACH order (below) is represented on the visible card indexing system by a follow-up card containing the order number, date received, date promised and description of the work. Date Promised moves other, ber of checke specte In 1 stock | to the card, : form kind : sary t mater also a inten¢ check rial is order cut-of and k the st mater cards with perio¢ throu Wh throu and s a fol listed the e tende cente order prom color tion in tl amp! it is tab | ent fer t in te E ente supe info ber, mat tool on inde the the of Fic tach S . tab loca er is aded for f the shop uisi- date it to e, 80 ‘ans- | the ‘rom art- h it. jum- ame 2 of d of art- nust illed fice the | in last In- s it moves from one department to an- other, these data including the num- ber of pieces, date received, name of checker, operator’s number, date in- spected and inspector’s name. In the engineering department the stock order is made out and attached to the blue print and the blue stock card, which are sent to the shop. This form lists the number of pieces, size, kind and weight of materials neces- sary to fill the order. The price of the material per pound and the total cost also are set down. In the shop super- intendent’s office the stock order is checked to see that the proper mate- rial is ordered, after which the stock order and the stock cards go to the cut-off department where the weight and kind of material are entered on the stock order card and the kind of material on the stock card. These two cards and the blue print then stay with the work during the processing period, except during its journey through the heat-treating department. When the order begins its journey through the shop, the office prepares and sends to the shop superintendent a follow-up card. These cards are listed on a Kardex visible system on the exterior wall of the shop superin- tendent’s glass-inclosed office in the center of the shop. They contain the order number, date received and date promised. Attached to each card is a colored metal tab indicating the loca- tion of the order in the shop. If it is in the milling department, for ex- ample, the card has a black tab, or if it is in the hardening department, the tab is purple. The shop superintend- ent and his assistant constantly re- fer to this visible card system to keep in touch with work. Every order coming into the shop is entered in an order book at the shop superintendent’s office. Here is listed information in regard to the job num- ber, name of customer, quantity of material ordered, description of the tool ordered, tool number, customer’s LL orders in the shop are listed on a visible card indexing system on the exterior wall of the superintendent's office in the center of the plant. At- tached to each card 's a colored metal tab indicating the location of the order in the shop. Y means of a few simple rec- ords the Michigan Tool Co., operating a plant in which every order can be classed as a special order, effectively controls produc- tion, thereby reducing processing time, decreasing inventories of raw stocks and increasing its abil- ity to meet emergency require- ments of customers. The shop superintendent handles all in- quiries from customers about the status of work in the shop. A visual card indexing system helps him to keep a watchful eye on all orders in process. ee order number, date received, date promised, and the shipping date, which is entered when the order goes out to the customer from the shipping department. This order book is refer- red to in case a customer should tele- phone for a report on an order, giving either the tool number or the order number. All inquiries regarding the status of work in the shop are transmitted to the shop superintendent’s office. This saves much time and lost motion usu- ally expended in having such inqui- ries handled through the office, which eventually must refer to the shop for accurate information regarding de- livery dates and other matters per- taining to service. This direct method of answering questions put by custom ers has made it possible to give the necessary data in 90 per cent of the cases while customers are waiting on the telephone. Moreover, it gives the shop superintendent, who is the man responsible for production, an oppor- tunity to become acquainted with cus- tomers. The shop superintendent is held ac- countable for all deliveries and prom- ises to customers. He makes no elaborate written reports to the man- agement, but confers with his superi- ors periodically about the shop’s pro- duction program. One of the funda- mental principles on which the shop is operated is to exert the greatest possible effort at all times to get work up as far as the finishing department, so as to keep that division constantly flooded with material. Then if a cus- tomer requests quick delivery some- what ahead of the original date speci- fied in the order, it is a simple matter to put it through the final process and send it to him. In many cases this has helped the company to meet unusual demands made by buyers. In addition to the Kardex system, a production report of jobs going through the shop is kept by the shop office. It lists all jobs in process with the status of each and the approxi- mate shipping date. If for some un- foreseen reason an order cannot be delivered on time, the fact is recorded with the estimated date of shipment. For the information of the shop superintendent and his assistant a daily special promise sheet is also maintained, containing the rush jobs with delivery dates. In case of rush orders a red stock card is substituted for the blue card and such orders are given the right of way in the shop. The revised American standard on steel spiral rods for concrete rein- forcement (A38-1933) (simplified practice recommendation R53-32) has been approved by the American Standards Association, 29 West Thirty-ninth Street, New York. This revision of the former American Standard A38-1927 covers largely a rearrangement of the tabular form in which certain data are presented and the removal to tables in an ap- pendix of other data now given for informative purposes. The Iron Age, March 16, 1933—425 Effect of Zirconium in Whitdlror IRCONIUM, alloyed with sili- / con, has been used as a ladle addition in many instances where special properties are desired in the metal. Recently it was re- quired to make a special gray iron, using a malleable hard iron mixture, producing a gray iron. (This mal- leable hard iron without any addition would, of course, give a white hard iron.) It was thought of interest to deter- mine the effect of zirconium as dis- tinct from that of silicon with which it was alloyed. In order to accomplish this result, a series of ladles of molten malleable iron were treated so as to contain constant silicon, with increas- ing amounts of zirconium. This was accomplished by adding sufficient ferrosilicon to give a final analysis of 2 per cent to the first ladle, with no addition of silicon-zirconium. The second ladle was treated with 0.1 pei cent zirconium in the form of silicon- zirconium, with sufficient ferrosilicon added to give 2 per cent in the final castings. On each successive ladle, the addition of silicon-zirconium was increased and that of the ferrosilicon decreased. The following table gives the results: Zirconium added Brinell Hardness Per Cent 0.0 241 0.1 241 0.2 228 0.3 217 0.4 212 0.5 217 0.6 212 0.7 217 0.9 217 1.0 212 The results shown in the _ table check with practical experience. It is obvious that the zirconium has a Fig. 1—Effect of zirconium on the Brinell hardness. Fig. 2—Ordinary malleable hard iron showing inclusions. Unetched. All photomicrographs reduced one- half from 100 diameters 426—The Iron Age, March 16, 1933 » We. %e =! Fig. 3—Same as Fig. 2 but etched. 100 diameters. considerable effect on the physical properties of the iron, aside from the effect of silicon with which the zir- conium is alloyed. In this particular case an addition of 0.2 per cent starts the softening effect on the iron and 0.4 to 0.5 per cent gives the maximum result. Fig. 1 gives the effect of zir- conium on Brinell. The effect of zirconium would seem to be, in this material, the same as in steel—a deoxidizer and a scaven- ger. “Work at the Bureau of Stand- ards has shown that residual oxygen after treatment with zirconium-silicon alloys is only one-half to one-sixth as great as after treatment with ordi- nary ferrosilicon.” (THE IRON AGE, June 11, 1931, page 1895.) Photomicrographs illustrate the structure of malleable hard iron, the same metal after treatment with zir- conium and ordinary gray iron. The small size of the graphite in the zir- conium-treated metal is of particular interest. It is obvious that metal of this matrix will have a greater de- gree of strength and impact resist- ance. Photomicrographs, Figs. 2 and 3, show a sample of the untreated mal- leable hard iron. Figs. 4 and 5 show this same metal treated with silicon- zirconium. The _ zirconium-treated metal appears much the cleaner, al- though the time for separation of non-metallic inclusions was very short; a matter of only a few seconds. It would seem probable that zir- conium-treated iron would be more machinable and give longer tool life Fig. 4-—Malleable hard iron treated with 0.70 per cent zirconium; most of the inclusions eliminated. Un- etched. 100 diameters. Ee to § prac are brie to k act as \ mot stre cre: tha’ mo th than fewe Zit Th hard 0.78 addit was cent addi to d conil give Belo each Meta F Tens Lb. ] Sq. 45,0( ‘itdlron Mixtures ical the zir- ilar rts and um zir- ‘em as en- nd- yen con as rdi- GE, he the ir "he ir lar of de- ist- a mm & XPERIMENTAL data on the effect of additions of zirconium to gray iron, believed to be of practical value to foundrymen, are offered by the authors in this brief article. Zirconium is shown to have a softening effect and to act as a deoxidizer and scavenger, as well as to render the graphite more finely divided. Tensile strength and elongation are in- creased. The authors believe that zirconium-treated iron is more machinable and that one of the results is longer tool life. oe than an untreated iron, due to the fewer non-metallic inclusions. Zirconium in Annealed Malleable (Cupola) The silicon content of a malleable hard iron was increased from 0.60 to 0.78 per cent by means of ferrosilicon additions to the ladle. Another series was brought from 0.60 to 0.78 per cent by means of silicon-zirconium additions. The purpose of this was to determine the actual effect of zir- conium additions. All samples were given the regular malleable anneal. Below is the average of eight bars in each series: Metal Treated With Ferrosilicon Metal Treated With Silicon-Zirconium Tensile Elong. in Tensile Elong. in Lb. Per 2 In. Per Lb. Per 2 In. Sq. In. Cent Sq. In. Per Cent 45,000 8 47,600 9 Fig. 5—Same as Fig. 4 but etched; shows small grain and fine graphite. 100 diameters. By F. B. RIGGAN and H. C. AUFDERHAAR Mefallurgists, Birmingham, Ala. No attempt has been made at an extended research on the addition of zirconium, but it was thought that the experimental data obtained might be of practical value to the foundry- men. Rubber-Lined Tanks for Chromic and Nitric Acids CIDS of strongly oxidizing char- 4 acter, such as chromic and nitric, have been considered beyond the range of corrosive materials which could be satisfactorily handled in rubber-lined tanks. A new develop- ment, which widens the scope of ap- plication of rubber-lined tanks to in- clude these powerful oxidizing acids, has been announced by the B. F. Goodrich Rubber Co., Akron, Ohio. Applications, it is stated, will bein chrome plating and in processing of stainless alloys. Controls Valve by Push Button or Time Switch For centralized remote control of flows of gases or liquids under pres- sure, the Northern Equipment Co., Erie, Pa., announces a new Copes thrustor-operated control valve. It is operated by a General Electric thrust- or, mounted at the side of the valve by a bracket bolted to the valve bon- net. The thrustor applies a straight- line, constant-pressure thrust on the valve lever, to open or close the valve, depending on the service requirements. The thrustor operates in one direc- tion only, the weight acting to return it to the original position when the electrical circuit is broken. The thrustor can be controlled by push button or time switch. External adjustment is provided to increase or decrease speed of the valve movement. The valve, it is emphasized, can op- erate at a rate of 40 times per minute without injury to any part and has sufficient power to handle heavy vis- cous liquids. Penn State Will Conduct Executive Course in June The eighteenth annual summer course for executives in the funda- mentals of production management will be conducted at Pennsylvania State College, June 7 to 15, under auspices of the department of indus- trial engineering in cooperation with the engineering extension department. The curriculum covers elective courses that include consideration of cost problems and special plant training. Other topics regularly included in the course embrace industrial organiza- tion, production control, economic con- trol of quantity and quality and other studies related to industrial manage- ment. One session will be devoted to discussing current economic indus- trial problems. Fig. 6—Ordinary grade of cast iron revealing coarse graphite. Un- etched. 100 diameters. Fig. 7—Same as Fig. 6 but etched. 100 diameters. The Iron Age, March 16, 1933—427 Steel Profits Depend Upo NY change in the price of a com- modity is caused by a change in the demand for it. An in- crease in price is due to an increase in the demand with regard to the available supply. This increase in demand will later be translated into production. Any improvement in both price and production will naturally bring about an increase in earnings. Consequently an increase in price tends to engender a spirit of optimism which is, in itself, an important factor in improving business because it en- courages reluctant buyers to make commitments which they have been postponing for better times. Higher prices may effect earnings in two ways. First, they allow the manufac- turer a greater margin between his selling price and his cost of produc- tion. Secondly, if the higher prices are accompanied by a higher rate of production, the manufacturer can de- crease his unit cost by spreading his overhead over a greater number of units. Since both price and production play a part in the making of profits, this analysis falls into two parts. We must first determine if it is true that the changes in steel prices precede changes in production, or at least, if they move together. If so, it will be sufficient for our purpose to examine the relationship between earnings and prices alone. If price and production do not move together, it will be neces- sary to analyze their joint effect upon profits. Prices and Output Do Not Always Move Together In this analysis we will consider the influence of steel prices and produc- tion upon the earnings of the United States Steel Corpn., which are avail- able for more than 80 years in com- parable form. The steel ingot produc- tion of that company will be used as the index of production because the ingot is the common raw material of all finished steel. While a certain portion of the ingot is lost in process. we may assume that percentage to remain fairly constant. For an index of prices, the average annual com- posite price of finished steel, compiled by THE IRON AGE, will be used. In order to make these three series readily comparable, each was reduced to a percentage of its respective figure for the year 1919. The relative figures for price and production are plotted on Chart I. It will be noted that in 1905 prices rose slowly while produc- tion increased rapidly. In 1909 pro- 428—The Iron Age, March 16, 1933 Per Cent duction increased greatly over 1908 while prices continued downward. The year 1912 saw another improvement in production over the previous year in the face of lower prices. In 1915 and 1920, both lines rose together. In 1922 the rise in production preceded that of prices which did not occur until the following year. In both 1925 and 1928 production was higher than in the previous year while prices were lower. If we consider the eight years during the period in which ingot pro- duction recorded an increase over the preceding year, we find that in three instances the increase was coincident with an improvement in prices. In four years production increased in the face of falling prices; while in one year, 1922, production actually pre ceded the rise in price. Considering the general movements of the two curves over the period, it can be seen that there was a gradual decline in prices from 1902 to 1914 and again from 1923 to 1929. In the first of these two periods production increased steadily while in the latter period it also showed a slight upward trend. Only during the war period do the two curves move together. Clearly there is no fixed and unchanging rela- tion between price and production While their yearly fluctuations coin- cide at times, their trends move in opposite directions. Consequently it will be necessary to consider the effect of both factors upon earnings. Earnings in Relation to Production The earnings of any company are computed, more or less accurately, by Production 200 ee Price > + —____-___— -——---—- — +4 150 100 an elaborate system of accounts, Changes in accounting methods, plant operations, and many other factors may affect the figure for earnings aside from the physical volume of production and the price which it commands. Furthermore there is a certain lag between price and earn- ings due to the fact that large orders, taken at a certain price in one year, may not be completed until the subse- quent year and will affect production reeords and earnings for the year in which they are completed rather than the year in which they were taken. For these reasons we will examine the trends of price and production as compared with earnings rather than the relationships existing from year to year. Thus we may hope to escape any errors which arise from inherent defects in the figures used. To bring out the trends, a three-year moving average was taken of the relatives for earnings, prices, and production. (The choice of the three-year moving average is based upon an article by W. W. Hay which appeared in Tne IRON AGE for Jan. 2, 1930, “Steel Earnings Show Three-Year Cycle.”) The resulting curves are shown in Chart II. The curve for earnings clearly shows three major cycles. The first be- gan with the formation of the corpor- ation and reached its low point in 1913. The second covers the war period and ends in 1921. The third covers the recent period of prosperity and will probably terminate with the present depression. During the first cycle, earnings seem to have depended 90 80 70 60 1905 1910 1915 1920 1925 1930 Chart I—Price of finished steel and ingot production of the United States Steel Corpn. (Relative to 1919.) S TI pe rathe the a earni after as f the upon | tion. ' high fairly this d price reache¢ on th slight kept r Dur perio prices closel; movir of th in 19 earni! but tl high Durir move M Be; mark Both an u tinue 1928. nts, ant Ors ngs Or- in var ird ‘ity the rst ded roduction TEEL company earnings de- pend primarily on volume rather than price, according to the author’s analysis. Until 1921, earnings paralleled prices, but after that year earnings increased as production gained, whereas the trend of prices was down- ward. re oe upon price rather than upon produc- tion. The trend of earnings reached a high point in 1906, then declined at a fairly uniform rate through 1913. In this decline the curve parallels the price curve, although the price curve reached a high in 1907. Production, on the other hand, after showing a slight decrease in 1907, started up and kept rising until the end of the period. During the second cycle, the war period, the curves of earnings and prices continue to parallel each other closely. The curve for production kept moving upward during the first part of the period, reaching a high point in 1917. In 1917 the trends of both earnings and production started down, but the price curve went on to a new high figure in 1918 before declining. During this period all three curves moved in the same general direction. Marked Change Occurs in 1921 Beginning with 1921, however, a marked change becomes apparent. Both earnings and production started an upswing in that year which con- tinued without interruption through 1928-29. Prices, on the other hand, By FRED C. SMITH 200 150 100 1905 1910 1915 ——_—-— Price -<-<------ Production 1920 1925 1950 Chart II.—Earnings, price, and production of the United States Steel Corpn. (Three-Year Moving Averages.) after reaching a high in 1924 declined uniformly for the balance of the period. Here, for the first time, earn- ings increase in the face of declining prices. Even in the slump of 1930-31 prices played a minor role. Consider- ing the actual figures, we find that the average price for 1931 was 11 per cent below that for 1929. Production declined 54 per cent while earnings fell off 84 per cent. Between 1923 and 1929, however, prices dropped even more, 12% per cent, while earnings, supported by a rising level of pro- duction, increased 44 per cent. These figures cannot explain why price, which exercised the major con- trol over profits in the first period of our analysis, gave way to production in the last period. The explanation can probably be traced to the fact that the operations of the corporation were relatively stable at a high level after 1915. Whatever the reason, the fact remains that the ability of the corporation to maintain a high level of earnings depends entirely upon maintaining a high rate of operations. Whether steel prices are stabilized by some action on the part of the steel companies, or turn up through the ac- tion of general economic forces, the change in price will have little effect upon the earnings unless it is followed by a marked increase in production. SYENDERS, hood and body panels of this delivery truck are made of rustless steel. En- duro KA 2 chrome-nickel steel having a Tampico brush finish is used for the upper body panels and top of cowl and top of hood. The same steel is used below the belt molding or for the lower body panels and lower part of hood and for the fenders, but steel for these parts has a No. 1 finish. This gives the body a two-tone color effect. Auto body sheets are used for the roof, and other parts such as radiator shell and head lamps are made of steel usually used for those parts. The truck, built by the White Motor Co., Cleveland, is designed particularly for depart- ment store service. The Iron Age, March 16, 1933—429 Structural steel breakover towers, 100 ft. high, were built. HE constriction of the aerial tramway at Wheelwright, Ky., for the disposal of coal mine waste affords a good example of a large steel company making full use of structural steel in the building of towers and terminals on a major ma- terial-handling project. About 100 tons of steel went into the construc- tion of the towers and terminals. In addition, approximately 75 tons of steel was used in the manufacture of machinery and ropes. Because of rough country it was necessary to carry the tramway across two hollows on high towers, and other conditions were severe. A large hour- ly capacity, added to the fact of a heavy grade from the loading ter- minal to the first tower, imposed high stresses in all the equipment. One of the requirements of design called for the least amount of labor consistent with dependable operation. The handling of irregular material and the resulting danger of stoppages in the flow made full automatic oper- ation seem impractical. The tramway was therefore designed with many automatic features, but all under the direction and control of one man. As the flow from the tipple is more or less intermittent, a 200-ton load- ing terminal bin was built to act as a reservoir and to be fed by means of a large inclined conveyor. Electric limit switches were arranged in this bin to prevent overflow or complete emptying. These interlocking switches provide for stopping the large con- veyor when the bin is filled, and start- ing it again when the lower limit is reached. Automatic signal lights are placed in front of the operator so that he will be kept informed of the opera- tion of the switches. Under the bin are two heavy apron feeders which 430—The Iron Age, March 16, 1933 load the tramway buckets and which are push-button controlled. They are electrically connected to the bin limit switches so that they will be stopped automatically before emptying the bin. This arrangement is to prevent their running empty and being dam- aged by slate falling from the top of the bin on to the aprons. The operation of the tramway is as follows: The grip on the tramway carrier as it enters the terminal is automatically released from the trac- tion rope, and the carrier coasts to- ward the loading conveyors. The rails in the terminal are inclined, and the force of gravity is taken advantage of in handling the carriers through the terminal. In order to prevent a car- rier from running into the one in front of it, mechanical stops are provided. There is one at each feeder to hold the carriers during the loading opera- tion. One of these is released auto- matically, simultaneously with the dispatcher, and one is hand-operated. The carriers are stopped again at the dispatcher and held until the proper interval for each one to start out of the terminal. From this last position the carrier is released automatically, and the interval between carriers is controlled by the tramway itself. This spacing depends upon the capacity of the tramway, and may be regulated to suit any conditions. From this dispatcher the carrier coasts to the ee eee 4. ax s a /ee —~2 Be ae Inland Steel Co. Builds Aerial Tram ee -_ Sees 7 sm. oy Ss A\LZA & iN. x en ae Ml aS Nem» AST year the Inland Steel Co., Chicago, remodeled and modernized its coal mining oper. ations at Wheelwright, Ky., and an important part of the new construction was a_ semi - auto. matic aerial tramway which is used for the disposal of mine waste. This was designed by A. Leschen & Sons Rope Co., St. Louis, and was built by that com- pany in association with the St. Louis Structural Steel Co., East St. Louis, Ill. The Link-Belt Co., Chicago, built the tipple, coal conveyor and rotary dumps. vrvrv attacher where the grip is auto- matically clamped to the traction rope. Vertical Tension Equipment The level at which these loading operations are performed is several feet above the ground, and so _ the driving machinery is mounted conve- niently below the operator on heavy concrete foundations. The grip wheel is 10 ft. in diameter, and attached to it is a large spur gear driven through a Falk double-reduction herringbone reducer. This reducer is direct-con- ee NEI fe st wae The steel sheave at the outer end of the line is 1712 ft. in diameter. necte thrus safet from part pass out ¢ the place area was ment The and shea port and © two ft. 1 ovel thes eur’ oute ter to 1 deg fror cab at t ten: by wei pro can the The wa: wh Cor ing cal ker S teel Luto- *tion ding eral the nve- avy heel d to ugh pone con- ar sp oe This shows a carrier entering the loading terminal. Note vertical tensioning equipment. nected to a G. E. 75-hp. motor. A thruster brake for general use, and a safety device to prevent the tramway from running backward, are also a part of this unit. As the carriers pass around the outer terminal with- out detaching from the traction rope, the traction rope tension must be placed at the loading end. The ground area on which to build this terminal was limited, so this tensioning equip- ment had to be installed vertically. The traction rope is deflected upward and around the tension sheave. This sheave and counterweight are sup- ported in a tower, and move upward and downward as the loading varies. The track ropes are supported by two towers, each approximately 100 ft. high. The passage of the carriers over the vertical angle formed at these towers is handled smoothly on curved rails of long radius. At the outer end of the line a 171%4-ft. diame- ter structural steel sheave is provided to take the carriers around the 180- deg. turn without their being detached from the traction rope. The track cables are anchored in concrete blocks at this end of the line, and the proper tension is applied at the loading end by means of freely hanging concrete Weights. The carriers each hold ap- proximately 30 cu. ft. of material and can be dumped at any point between the first tower and the outer terminal. The bottoms are hinged so that the waste material is dropped vertically whenever the latches are tripped. Counterweights insure automatic clos- ing. The four cast steel, turned groove carrier wheels are mounted in Tim- ken roller bearings, and this same 1. At type of bearing is used in all the trac- tion rope guide rollers at the towers and terminals. Each carrier is equip- ped with the Leschen heavy-duty fric- tion grip. Besides the low cost of operation WELDED LIGHT STEEL FOR Where the tramway crosses the mine car track near the loading terminal a sturdy protecting net was provided. of this material-handling equipment, it affords a means of removing the slate and other waste a considerable distance from the camp and thus does away with most of the disagreeable fumes from the burning slate. BUILDING CONSTRUCTION LLUSTRATIVE of a system of steel construction intended for wide application in the building of homes, the Hobart Brothers Co., Troy, Ohio, is erecting at Troy a two-car residential type garage, 18 x 20 ft. in plan. It has a frame of light angles, welded to form channels and spaced 2 ft. apart, with welds top and bottom to a steel strip. The roof is flat, made up of No. 16 gage Armco sheet steel formed and welded to produce a cellular or box-type construction; the cells are 6 x 10 in. Stucco applied to the metal lath forms the exterior. The Iron Age, March 16, 1933—431 ’ YHROUGHOUT the United States there are over 30,000 re- tail distributers of building ma- terials. They deal in lumber, brick, cement, plaster, glass, hardware, paint and numerous other necessary prod- ucts for house builders. It is their function to make contacts with the small builder and to make up a bill of materials out of their stock to meet the requirements of their cus- tomers, and to deliver these materials to the building site as the builder may need them. If these 30,000 dealers each carried a stock of standard struc- tural steel shapes of suitable sizes for residential construction, the national market for structural steel for homes might, in time, grow to staggering proportions. But before this object can be realized there are certain steps that must be taken. The small. builder must be educated to appreciate the advantages of steel, not necessarily as a substitute for lumber, brick and cement, but as a valuable addition to these products. From the viewpoint of the average home builder, structural steel is an unknown quantity. Centuries of use have given the older products an enor- mous advantage over structural steel that only an intensive educational campaign can hope to overcome. It should be the function of the Ameri- can Iron and Steel Institute and the American Institute of Steel Construc- tion to tackle this problem in an effort to show the public just where and how structural steel may be effectively employed in house building. Until this educational work is un- dertaken, little or no progress can be hoped for. House construction meth- ods are hard to change, but they must be changed before structural steel can be economically utilized. The age-old practice of handicraft production in the open, with its scandalous waste of time, skilled labor and materials, must be combated by scientific engi- neering intelligence, sponsored by the proper representatives of the steel in- dustry. Economies in Time, Labor and Material Hconomic construction depends no longer upon medieval handicraft methods. The use of structural steel has eliminated the time racket, by providing a skeleton frame work upon which many trades may busy them- selves simultaneously. If the steel in- dustry, acting through its proper rep- 432—The Iron Age, March 16, 1933 The Steel By ROBERT TAPPAN Architect, 445 West Twenty-Third Street, New York resentatives, should show the house builder how to overcome the time racket by the intelligent use of steel skeleton construction, it would pre- pare the path for a future national distribution of structural steel of widespread proportions. Individual experiment has already demonstrated that the same time-sav- ing economies that have been achieved in office building construction may just as readily be applied to house building. According to published fig- ures it requires over 2000 labor hours to construct an average mail-order wooden house. Generally speaking, 50 per’ cent of the cost of any typical small house is charged to field labor. If this percentage were reduced the saving could be applied to better building materials and to better house- hold equipment. In other words, a scientifically de- signed, steel-framed cottage might show enough saving in field labor a am & HE steel industry, Mr. Tappan holds, has a definite, though relatively simple and inexpensive, job to do if it wishes to increase the use of steel in house construc- tion. It must reach the 30,000 dealers now regularly serving the building trades, but not with any idea of bringing about a revolu- tion in home construction meth- ods. Its purpose, rather, should be to supply tangible information as to how steel may be utilized as a valuable addition to present acceptable materials, with special emphasis on savings in time and labor. The responsibility for such a promotional campaign, in the author’s opinion, rests squarely on the shoulders of established associations of steel makers and fabricators. The current article is the twelfth in our general series devoted to Modern Merchandising and Marketing in the Metal-Work- ing Industry. House—a Problem In Merchandising hours to do more than pay for itself, A steel skeleton for a typical six. room cottage can be assembled easily in less than 25 labor hours. As soon as it is up, a half dozen different trades may start work at the same time, without waiting for each to com- plete in part his portion of the job. Modern houses are so full of compli- cated devices that each construction operation resembles a miniature tower of Babel. Fifty years ago a cottage was a mere shell; now it is a station- ary engine. The steel skeleton can help this situation. Must Drop the Patented House Idea In dealing with new building prod- ucts it is always a temptation to cloud the issue by attempting to ex- ploit them as patented novelties. This seems to be an unavoidable step in the introduction of steel to the house building public. Inventors, fired by enthusiasm for their own novel ideas, overlook the basic problems of custom, tradition, transportation and merchan- dising. Houses require local assembly. They cannot be economically pre- manufactured in one place and assem- bled individually in another, without involving established trade channels. It should be the object of the steel industry to introduce the steel skele- ton idea for homes on its merits as a time saver, but not as a patented novelty. Steel Will Come by Evolution, Not Revolution The proper function of the steel in- dustry should be to foster an evolution in home building methods, not a revo- lution. It should be neither difficult nor expensive to prepare scientific de- signs for steel-framed houses that could be used to illustrate to the build- ing world the real advantages of steel skeleton construction, not to the ex- clusion of other products of recognized usefulness, but as a means of lower- ing excessive field labor costs. A graphic educational campaign would encourage local builders to use steel by showing them how to adapt it to their established customs and _ build- ing experience. There are certain types of small structures that are in universal de- mand. Careful study reveals the fact that these structures may readily be reduced to a few simple basic plans. These plans may be in turn used for (Continued on Advertising Page 10) when absorl of a f that t brick more quirec true small furna naril} To ment: low 1 stora: light the E Th name is cle build lined insul and store Si from is fr it we nace for brick sche per repo prov but pres ever cont som figu: lens coo) ma: itself, | six. easily $ soon ferent Same » com- e job. ympli- iction tower ttage ation- 1 can Idea prod- yn to 0 ex- This n the house d_ by ideas, stom, chan- mbly, pre- ssem- thout inels, steel ‘kele- [Ss as anted n, ‘| in- ition "eVv0- icult 2 de- that uild- steel ex- ized wer- ould steel t to lild- mall de- fact be ans. for A\n Insulating Refractory for Heating Furnaces conductivity refractory for fur- nace structures is apparent when it is considered that the heat absorbed by the walls, floor, and roof of a furnace does no useful work, and that the fuel required to heat a fire- brick furnace structure may easily be more than 30 per cent of the total re- quired per cycle. This is especially true of the intermittently operated smaller steel-heating or heat treating furnaces, which are operated ordi- narily only during the working day. (ie importance of a light, low- To meet these and other require- ments, a new refractory, combining low thermal conductivity, low heat- storage capacity, refractoriness and light weight, has been developed by the Babcock & Wilcox Co., New York. This refractory, which has been named No. 80 Insulating Firebrick, is claimed to remove the necessity of building composite furnace walls, lined with firebrick and backed with insulation, which are not only thick and heavy, but also are high in heat storage capacity. Since the greatest saving resulting from the use of the new refractory is from the standpoint of heat-storage, it would appear that continuous fur- naces do not offer much gpportunity for fuel saving by the use of this brick, However, though the usual schedule for such furnaces is five days per week and 50 weeks per year, it is reported that actual installations have proved the economy of its use with but 50 shut-downs per year. Under present operating conditions, how- ever, the number of shut-downs of continuous furnaces per year is, in some cases, two and three times that figure. Advantages in Stress Relieving Furnaces Of the larger furnaces, stress-re- lieving or annealing furnaces offer the greatest possibility for fuel saving by being so constructed that they will have the lowest possible heat-storage capacity. In the operation of such furnaces, the charge to be heated is Placed cold in the furnace, and the temperature is raised to the proper stress-relieving or annealing point, at Which it is held for the requisite length of time. The charge is then cooled to a temperature at which it may be removed, and the cycle is re- ~& a & NEW insulating refractory, for which some interesting claims are made, has recently been put on the market. It is said to combine low thermal conduc- tivity and low heat-storage ca- pacity with refractoriness and light weight. This article sets forth the properties and the ad- vantages claimed for this new material in heating, heat-treating and other furnaces. vvv peated with the next charge. Since the furnace structure, as well as the charge, must be heated during each cycle, any reduction in the amount of heat absorbed by the structure re- sults in a lower consumption of fuel per ton of stock heated. The ideal furnace enclosure, therefore, is one with minimum thickness and weight, and with maximum resistance to heat conduction. The curves in the accompanying chart show the comparative insulat- ing properties of the new firebrick and four other standard insulators. Although two of the others are lower in thermal conductivity at low tem- peratures than the new insulating firebrick, they can be used only for temperatures up to 1600 deg. The other two reach their maximum use limit at 2200 to 2500 deg., and then only when protected by a firebrick lining. The B & W insulating fire- brick has a fusion point of 3190 deg., gH} TE Llanos 6 OMPARATIVE | 3 LLL LL! thermal con- Sita’ ductivity curves | © }|++++-+-++4 of the new insu- lating firebrick and other insula- tors. | Thermal Conductivity in BT.U/Sq.Ft/in/°F/Hr. ) 500 Mean Temperature in Degrees Fahrenheit Si ctaiclisaiintin $+—4+—+—_+-—_+4_+_— + and may be used at temperatures up to 2850 deg. without shrinkage. Porosity of the Brick Is 80 Per Cent This new product weighs only about 2 lb. per standard 9-in. brick, whereas a standard firebrick weighs about 7.3 lb. It is also of interest that the new insulating firebrick may be ground to accurate size, drilled, sawed, or turned on a lathe by ordinary wood-working tools. The new bricks are made of kaolin porosified to approximately 80 per cent. It is stated that the uniform distribution and the minuteness of the pores of the new insulator are almost wholly responsible for its unusual properties. It may be exposed directly to fur- nace gases without undergoing any change up to a temperature of 2850 deg. F. Above this temperature, there is some slight surface checking on the initial working cycle; this shrinkage, however, may be remedied by the application of a coating of high-temperature mortar. Furnace walls may be built of the B & W in- sulating firebrick to the same height as firebrick walls for the same tem- perature exposure. The great porosity results in a certain structural flexi- bility that permits internal adjust- ments when the material is subjected to rapid temperature changes. Resistance to Flow of Heat Since this new insulating firebrick weighs only about one-fourth that of standard fireclay brick, the substitu- (Continued on Advertising Page 10) —e ee ee | + . - ‘ |B aWN280- Pty | Insulating Firebrick a + —-+—4-—4—+ 4 1000 1500 2000 2500 The Iron Age, March 16, 1933—433 “NHE welding of No. 16 gage ‘| tubing, *4 in. in diameter, into a l-in. thick tube sheet has been readily accomplished by atomic hy drogen welding at the plant of the Whitlock Coil Pipe Co., Hartford, Conn. Fig. 1 shows one end of a carbon- bisulphide cooler. The 110 tube ends, spaced on close centers, were rolled into the tube sheet and then atomic hydrogen welded. Upon completion, the cooler was subjected to a test pressure of 150 lb. per sq. in., which all welds successfully withstood, in- cluding the flange rings to which the tube sheets are bolted. These flange rings were electric arc welded to the shell with G-E type L electrode and General Electric are welding machines. Plain expanded joints are suitable and are used extensively on the great majority of heat exchangers even when there is occasional heating and cooling and, in some services, even where the exchanger is subject to fre- quent alternate heating and cooling. Use of supplementary welding, how- ever, is desirable in certain other cases IG. 3 — Atomic hydrogen welding equipment includ- ing panel, electrode holder, push-button station, _hy- drogen tank, reducing valve and gages. 434—The Iron Age, March 16, 1933 By M. W. BREWSTER Arc Welding Specialist General Electric Co. New Haven, Conn. such as in multi-tubular heat ex- changers operating under particular- ly severe conditions as to temperature cha