Engineering Wonders of the World
Volume III

REMARKABLE MACHINERI7. 269 often as high as 600 feet per minute, and all the other motions are correspondingly fast. Thanks to its multitudinous movements and great range of action, a single machine does the work of a great many men. One man driving the machine can, without any assist- ance from the ground, catch hold of the cast- iron ingot mould, push out the ingot, and set down the mould ready for the next cast. He then picks up the ingot and carries it off to the soaking-pits. The machine removes one of the lids without setting down the ingot, puts the ingot into the pit, and replaces the lid. It then returns for another ingot, and repeats the cycle of operations. When not in use for stripping and charging, the machine draws ingots from the soaking-pits and carries them to the rolls. One should remember, in order to appreciate steel-works’ machinery at its full value, the high temperature of the material handled, the omnipresent dust and dirt, and the fact that the machines have to run night and day continuously for six days a week. All cleaning and adjustment must be done in the course of a few hours at the week-end. The conversion of an ingot into plates or sections in a rolling-mill is an interesting operation, and one that requires very sub- stantially built machinery. For rolling rails, angles, etc., Rolling Mills. a “ three-high ” mill with three rolls always running in one direction is used, the sections travelling between the middle and bottom rolls in one direction, and returning between AN ELECTRICALLY DRIVEN CHARGER FOR OPEN HEARTH FURNACES. • The charge (of pig-iron) is carried at the end of the arm, which is run into the furnace and revolved to empty the charge. By means of this machine 4 tons of pig-iron can be fed into the furnace in one operation.