The Works Of Messrs. Schneider And Co.

XIII .—TYRE SHOPS. History.—Messrs. Schneider and Co. commencée! to roli steel tyres for locomotives and wagons twenty-three years ago. During a number of years the industry was carried on in the armour-plate finishing shop (see plan, Fig. 22, Plate IV.). In 1892, however, as more space was required for armour-plate work, it was decided to remove the tyre-rolling plant and steam hammers, and to suspend the manufacture of railway tyres until a special building A. Machine shop. B. Pumps. C. Tyre mili. D. Hammer shop. E. Boilers. F. Aimealing furnace. G. Tower for tests of tyres. H. Delivery shed. could be erected. The machinery was, therefore, taken to pieces, and stored for a time. In 1894 the new works were ready, and the tyre machinery was réinstallée! in a building 550 yards distant from the Bessemer and Siemens-Martin steel works. As a hill separates the new tyre shops from the steel works, a tunnel 440 yards long was cut through it, to establish an easy and rapid means of communication by railways between them. Fig. 127 is a plan of the tyre works; Fig. 128, Plate XXVIII., and Fig. 129, are external views of the shops, the latter showing the testing tower ; and | Fig. 130, Plate XXIX. is an interior view of the tyre mill. The new tyre shop covers an area of 15,800 square metres (19,000 square yards), and consists o.f one main building 56 metres (183 ft.) wide, 68 metres (223 ft.) long, ' and 9 metres (29 ft. 6 in.) high to the springing of the roof. Arrangement.— 1. A building A, Fig. 127, for the hydraulic machinery and machine tools ; the offices and store-rooms are in this building’. 2. A shed covering the boilers and annealing furnaces F. 3. A delivery shed H. 4. A tower for the fall tests of tyres G. The main building contains ail the necessary machinery for the special manufacture, and is divided into two principal parts ; in one are placed two steam hammers. The larger of these (10 tons) is used to forge the ingot, to Hatten it, and to punch the central bole. With the smaller hammer (8 tons) the hole is enlarged, and the disc is finally préparée! for the rolling mill. These varions operations are completed at one heat. Furnaces and Hammers. — Two coal-fired furnaces, provided with steam boilers, serve for heating the ingots. A 2-ton hydraulic crâne is attachée! to each furnace and is used for charging the ingots by means of spécial tongs, and for shifting them when heated, to the steam hammer. The capacity of the furnaces is sufficient to contain from twelve to eighteen ingots, according to their size ; they are cast in the shape of a truncated cône with an octagonal base. Three charges are made per day (of twelve hours) with each furnace, which corresponds to an average output of 27 tons per twelve hours of rough tyre forgings. The furnaces are so arrangée! as to leave ample room for the free handling of the ingots and their transport from the furnaces to tlie hammers. The following are some data relating to the hammers and furnaces : Height of fall of 10-ton hammer Diameter of cylinder ... Height of fall of 8-ton hammer Diameter of cylinder ... Length of furnace hearth Width...................... Grate area 2.200 ni. .760 m. 1.900 m. .660 m. 3.400 ni. 1.690 m. 1.22 sq. m. 7 ft. 2f in. 2 ft. 6 in. 6 ft. in. 2 ft. 2 in. 11 ft. 2 in. 5 ft. 6§ in. 13 sq. ft. Furnace Boilers. — The furnace boilers are of the multitubular type, with short tubes. Tlie fiâmes go