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BUREAU OF STANDAF

STANDARDS

OCT i

MONTHLY

LIBRARY

cy

A Review of Progress in

Commercial Standardization and Simplification

ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS OF THE

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE, WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A.

Vol. 7, No. 4 OCTOBER, 1930

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D. C. See page 3 of cover for prices
U. S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

R. P. Lamont, Secretary

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS

George K. Burgess, Director

COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY

S. F. Tillman, Editor

DIVISIONS OF THE COMMERCIAL STANDARDIZATION GROUP

DIVISION OF SIMPLIFIED PRACTICE, Edwin W. Ely.

'The division of simplified practice was formed in November,

1921, to provide a clearing house or centralizing agency through

which the manufacturer, distributor, and consumer groups

could meet to discuss their common problems and decide upon

eliminations which would prove of mutual benefit to all con- cerned. The activities of the division are purely cooperative

in character. It orders nothing; it dictates nothing; the ini- tiative must come from business itself. It has no regulatory nor police powers to enforce adherence to the simplified-practice

recommendations that industry develops under the auspices

of the United States Department of Commerce. Its chief function is to serve as a neutral meeting ground for the purpose

of bringing together producers, distributors, and consumers, whose aims are sometimes divergent and possibly antagonistic,

and who would be unwilling to cooperate, except through some

unbiased central agency. Following the approval of the tentative simplified-practice recommendation by a general conference

of all interested elements thereof, the project is then presented

to the entire industry by letter referendum for its approval and

written acceptance, the publication and indorsement of the recommendation on the part of the Department of Commerce

being dependent upon acceptance of the program by at least 80 per cent, by volume, of the manufacturers, distributors, and

users concerned.

BUILDING AND HOUSING DIVISION, J. S. TAYLOR. The division of building and housing cooperates with business, technical, and professional groups in practically all its undertakings on building and housing. Its work to modernize

building codes and to encourage improved standards for the

quality of building construction promotes the practical application of the latest development in design and use of build- ing materials. This division was also formed in 1921. In furthering home ownership, an effort is made to develop an enlarged, steadier, more intelligent, and more discriminating

demand for soundly built dwellings, the largest single class of buildings which the construction industries provide. The

division also cooperates with many business and professional groups in efforts to distribute building activity more evenly

throughout the year, and to secure less fluctuation from year

to year. The work on city planning and zoning has in mind

the broad objective of buildings made more useful because

well located with respect to other buildings, a well-coordinated

street system, and appropriate public works. Good city

planning and zoning likewise encourages stability in land

values and property uses, and thereby contributes to the demand for durable structures.

DIVISION OF SPECIFICATIONS, A. S. McAllister.

The duties of the division of specifications are to promote and

facilitate the use and unification of specifications. In doing so

it carries on activities involving cooperation with technical

societies; trade associations; Federal, State, and municipal

Government specifications making and using agencies; producers, distributors, and consumers; and testing and research

laboratories. The cooperation with technical societies and

trade associations includes ascertaining the standardization

and specification promoting activities of these organizations,

and bringing to their attention the work being done by the commercial standardization group. The cooperation with

governmental agencies and other consumers includes the bringing of Federal specifications and commercial standards to the

attention of the maximum number of producers and the maximum number of users of commodities complying with these

specifications and standards, thereby assisting in broadening

the field of supply. The cooperation with producers involves the compilation and distribution of lists of manufacturers who

have expressed their willingness to certify to purchasers, upon

request, that material supplied by them on contracts based on

certain Federal specifications or commercial standards comply

with the requirements thereof. The cooperation with distributors involves bringing to their attention the benefits to be

derived by them as both buyers and sellers from handling

nationally specified, certified, and labeled commodities. The

division prepares the directories of governmental and nongovernmental testing laboratories; the Directory of Specifications;

and is working on an encyclopedia of specifications, the first volume of which, Standards and Specifications in the WoodUsing Industries, has been issued. It also aids in preparing the Standards Yearbook.

DIVISION OF TRADE STANDARDS, I. J. Fairchild.

The commercial standards unit, now known as division of trade standards, was created on October 1, 1927, for the purpose

of aiding those industrial and commercial groups desiring to establish standards of grades, quality, or measurements for their products or their purchases on a purely voluntary basis. The division functions only at the direct request of the in- dustry concerned. Its procedure is similar to that of the divi- sion of simplified practice, except that at least 65 per cent of the industry, by volume of annual production, must accept

the commercial standard in writing before it is published by

the Department of Commerce. A certification plan is applied on request as a means of increasing the effectiveness of such

standards. Provision is made for regular revision of the standard

through the appointment of a standing committee to consider

periodically any necessity for revision of the standard, in order that it may be kept constantly compatible with progress in the

industry.

Except where otherwise indicated, for further information address

BUREAU OF STANDARDS

WASHINGTON, D. C.
COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY

A Review of Progress in

Commercial Standardization and Simplification

Volume 7 WASHINGTON, D. C., OCTOBER, 1930 Number 4

CONTENTS

FEATURE ARTICLES

Page

Clay products improved by Federal research 118 Massachusetts has 300 local safety committees 98 Measuring consistency of plastic materials 115 Need for standardization of electrical controls 114 Production standards applied to motor vehicle mainte- nance 119

Safety responsibility law to curb reckless driver 109

Safety work in compressed gas industry 101 Standard elevator regulations 122

Standardization in welding industry 107 Standardization movement in South Africa 117 Standardization of biological stains 116 Standardizing Army engineering equipment 102 Standardizing storage and property accounting 99

Standards for dry skim milk 113 Standards for screw threads fixed by national commission 105 Standards in gas industry 112 United States Navy a pioneer in standardization 111 What weights and measures mean to the housewife 103

TRADE STANDARDS NEWS

Standard approved for red-cedar closet lining

Page 127 STANDARDIZATION NEWS

Aggressive merchandising 127

A. S. T. M. activities covering gypsum products 121 National Bureau of Standards to conduct survey to im- prove its assistance to governmental purchasing 113 “Car card” certification for lumber shipments 117 Current activities of the American Standards Association 125 Higher silicon allowed by revised standards 100 Labels for eggs increases sales 110 New tentative standards adopted for copper-base alloys

in ingot form for sand castings 110 Preventing fire casualties 115

Specifications for nonmetallic minerals published 126 Standardization briefs 120

Status of Federal specifications 127

AN INVITATION TO VISIT THE BUREAU OF STANDARDS

An interesting fact in the growth of the bureau is the steady increase in the number of visitors. From all over the world experts come to see the work in progress in many specialties. Not alone the

experts but in growing numbers many of our people visit the bureau from a public-spirited desire to acquaint themselves with its research work. All visitors—from the newspapermen, who have called the

bureau a “ house of wonders,” to the specialists, who use its services—are welcome, for it is their bureau

in a very real sense. They are the owners of the business and its beneficiaries. The annual per capita

cost of 2 cents which the average citizen pays toward the operation of the bureau yields returns sometimes a hundredfold or a thousandfold. How science turns wastes into profits, increases the useful life of materials, adds new efficiencies to industry, advances new arts, such as aviation and radio, by research

and discovery—these are to be seen first-hand in the scientific and technical laboratories of the bureau.

A cordial invitation is extended to all citizens interested in scientific progress to visit the laboratories

of the Bureau of Standards when in Washington. A personally conducted trip is organized at 2.15 p. m.

daily except on holidays. Special trips for groups may be arranged at other times by writing to the

bureau in advance. The bureau’s illustrated Visitor’s Manual may be had for the asking. This lists the wr ork in progress and gives an airplane view of the ensemble and a brief statement of typical discoveries and inventions which have been notable, basic contributions to radio, aviation, and other modern

arts and industries.

George K. Burgess, Director.

12787—30 1 97
MASSACHUSETTS

has 300

LOCAL SAFETY COMMITTEES

Many Local Municipalities Cooperate

in the Wor\

<We have established more than 300 local safety committees in

the various cities and towns throughout the State of Massachusetts. They are carrying on investigations in an effort to devise and

put into effedt methods that will prevent many of the accidents

now occurring upon the Streets and highways.

Many municipalities are cooperating in this work, as are the

various State departments. Steps have already been taken to make

regulations and signs more uniform throughout the State, thus

simplifying the movement of traffic for both the motorist and pedestrian. All the municipal agencies are doing a great deal to prevent

accidents. This safety work is a personal matter, and every one, both motorist and pedestrian, must assume the responsibility that

is his own by practicing precaution at all times.

Many boys and girls are injured on the Streets. By crossing them

carefully at all times, by using the proper cross walks, by obeying

the signal of the traffic officer, and by refraining from playing in

the Streets the young people will be doing their part in this great

work. Boys and girls who are now pedestrians will soon be automobile drivers. It is important that they know how to think and

adt safely. If they begin now by forming safety habits they will

grow up to be citizens of the Commonwealth, prepared to assume

the responsibilities which go with capable citizenship.

FRANK G. ALLEN

Governor, Commonwealth of

Massachusetts +
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 99

STANDARDIZING STORAGE AND PROPERTY ACCOUNTING

Veterans’ Bureau Supply Service Has Found That Standardization of Equipment and Simplification of

Property Accounting Have Reduced Costs

By John D. Cutter, Assistant Director, Supply Service, Veterans' Bureau

In the storing and warehousing of supplies at supply

depots and field stations of the Veterans’ Bureau,

standardization of equipment and simplification of

methods are carried out. All items of standard supplies are stored by classification stock number in separate sections, material and supplies being so arranged

that the old stock is used first and by following this order of progression spoilage, deterioration, and wastage are reduced to a minimum.

The standardized and simplified methods of ware- housing used by large commercial concerns have been

adopted with the result that at the present time the Veterans’ Bureau is conducting its storage and distri- bution operations at a lower cost than that obtained

in commercial concerns. All Government departments are required to maintain an adequate property accounting system. The

processes of accounting begin with procurement of

property and terminate with its disposal. In maintaining accountability records for the property and

supplies purchased the Veterans’ Bureau has adopted

simplified methods which were developed by its own

personnel which has effected a saving of approximately

$100,000 a year through personnel reductions with in- creased efficiency and accuracy of records, the maximum result being secured at the minimum cost. The

problem of the Veterans’ Bureau has been to evolve a simplified, uniform, accounting system that will ac- curately record the receipt, location, movement, and

final disposition of each item of property procured for

use in Washington, D. C., and its field stations in the

United States and foreign possessions. Inventories

of bureau property and supplies cover some 21 classi- fications which include 10,000 separate items and a

total of millions of units.

Fundamentally all systems of property accounting- are based upon the principle that property received

becomes a debit until dropped by proper credit fol- lowing disposal. All debits and credits must be

substantiated by vouchers containing prima facie evi- dence of the propriety and authenticity of each transaction. At each regional office and hospital of the

Veterans’ Bureau there is a bonded property custodian

in whom accountability for public property is solely

vested. Under his direction and supervision all property is received, stored, safeguarded, issued, and ac- counted for. Bureau adheres to Government principles.

With respect to the above outline, the Veterans’ Bureau, of course, adheres to principles commonly fol- lowed by all Government agencies. During the eight

years from 1920 to 1928, partially successful efforts were made to adapt existing procedures to bureau

uses, but it finally became apparent that a truly simple and effective system could never residt from modified, borrowed practices. It became necessary to dis- card methods which were archaic and to evolve an

entirely new system based upon the bureau’s own particular problems and conditions. Within the past

three years, step by step in order not to retard cur- rent operation or impair availability of existing

records, there has been introduced a simplified system

which is not only far more dependable, but which

eliminates fully 85 per cent of the clerical work. The

major changes are briefly discussed below:

Unposted voucher method.—Property expended or permanently installed at time of receipt is theoretically picked up and dropped on one voucher without

posting, thereby eliminating three operations. A 10- item voucher accomplished in one operation by this

method avoids 30 or more additional, separate postings and voucher operations, yet furnishes a complete

record of the purchase, receipt, and proper disposal

of the property.

Skeleton postings.—Property record cards used by

other Government agencies and formerly by the Veterans’ Bureau, contained columns in which were re- corded the date of transaction, voucher number, unit

price, quantity received or issued, balance remaining

on hand and total money value. For articles received,

the bureau’s revised property record cards merely

show unit price, quantity' received and voucher number. For articles issued the unit price is omitted.

For articles either received or issued the date, balance,

and total money value have been eliminated in all cases. This system has eliminated the possibility of original errors becoming cumulative, thus necessitating a recheck of the past transactions to effect a correction.

The new system furnishes all the data essential to the

proper and permanent accountability record and stock

balances can be determined at any time by subtracting total credits from total debits and, if desired, the

total value can be ascertained by merely multiplying

the credit balances of the items by the unit price.

In the event that additional information regarding

any transaction is desired it can be secured from the

voucher file, which is serially numbered, the numbers

agreeing with the entries on the card and the occasions when it becomes necessary to refer to this

voucher file are so few that it is surprising why departments have for years religiously copied this

plethora of data on property record cards at untold

labor, expense, and duplication of effort. Daily progressive inventories.—A complete physical inventory of any large activity is an enormous task

and its taking is complicated by so many problems

incident to continuing operation while the inventory

is in progress that the completed inventory is seldom

dependable. After studying methods employed by

commercial organizations and other Government

agencies, only three systems were found which could

possibly be considered, and each of these systems had

serious disadvantages. It became necessary to work

out a method differing fundamentally and radically

from any system in known use. This method is now

in successful operation and is referred to by the Veterans’ Bureau as the “ standard inventory.”
100 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930 When a factory takes inventory it usually suspends

operation, assigns all available personnel to the task

and conducts a rapid, simultaneous inventory of all departments. This method is not possible in bureau

operation. Hospitals, regional offices, and other activities must maintain continuous uninterrupted service, and the task of conducting a physical inventory

during such operation is too great to be accomplished

in any short period.

This “ factory ” method was one of the three con- sidered and discarded. Another was accomplished

once and sometimes twice a year. Its taking necessarily extended over a period of from 30 to 90 days,

depending upon the size of the activity. As items were counted results were turned in to the property

office, where it then became necessary to keep adding

and subtracting from these figures at each incoming

and outgoing movement of stock until the inventory was 100 per cent complete. This system required

continuous paper adjustments with the result that errors due to the human element inevitably crept into

these suspended final results so that when the inventory was completed it was invariably an inaccurate

compromise between physical count and clerical arithmetic.

A third scheme considered and discarded was known

as the “stock-plus-receipt” method. For all items of

property not actually in his storehouse the property

custodian holds memorandum receipts from the operating departments. Theoretically his accounts are perfectly balanced if quantities on hand plus items on

receipt equal the total balances of which he is accountable. A make-shift inventory may be conducted by

counting the items in stock and adding the paper bal- ances shown on memorandum receipt, but this will not

reveal shortages in the departments and merely

straightens out the property custodian without determining the true condition of the property on memorandum receipt for which the department heads have

signed up and for which they are held responsible.

The inventory method finally worked out and

adopted by the Veterans’ Bureau requires each property custodian to conduct a complete physical inventory once a year, but allows him to perform an equivalent

percentage of the total task during each working day

of the year. This splits the task into small, easily

performed, separate units. In this manner each item

is inventoried independently of every other item and

all suspended totals and suspense records are eliminated. The inventory, instead of being conducted under pressure during the closing month or months of a

year, progresses in an orderly, scientific manner as a part of the daily duties of each employee concerned in

its taking.

At the end of each month reports are made of the

items inventoried and adjustment vouchers are submitted b}r the station to take care of any shortages or overages discovered during the month. By the end

of the year the entire task has been completed without

turmoil, confusion, or disruption of normal activities. The monthly reports furnish valuable operating and

statistical1 information. Losses, breakages, and expenditures can be worked out on an accurate, comparative

basis. Depreciation in inventory values can be ascer- tained, weak spots in station accounts detected and

promptly remedied. When a new hospital, or one

already in operation requires equipment or supplies it can readily be determined what is available at other

stations, and unnecessary purchases may be avoided.

Positive identification of property by a system, of

mmvberiny. —Property record cards are maintained

alphabetically and numbered serially. Duplication of

cards and discrepancies in nomenclature are averted

by requiring that all inventories, property vouchers,

and memorandum receipts show card numbers as well

as description of items.

Other methods.

In connection with the above methods for simplifying and unifying property accounting processes there

are a number of minor improvements not mentioned

in this article which interlock admirably with the general scheme and which in the aggregate considerably

reduce work, hasten final action, and increase accuracy

in all branches of the supply section. During the past

three years in which these methods have been experimently introduced and finally perfected under actual

working conditions at more than 100 activities the

average accuracy of property records has increased

from less than 50 to almost 90 per cent. By the end of the calendar year 1930 it is expected

that the general average of accuracy will be between

95 and 99 per cent. These percentages are determined

by field auditor-supervisors who visit each station once

a year, examine and verify the property records, and

ascertain the ratio of error in the accounts examined.

Accounts which are only 50 per cent accurate might

just as Avell be 100 per cent inaccurate. Accounts

above 90 per cent in accuracy mean that 9 times out

of 10 they can be absolutely depended upon and that

in the tenth case the putative inaccuracy is probably

relatively so small as to be practically immaterial.

HIGHER SILICON ALLOWED BY REVISED

STANDARDS

A. S. T. M. Announces Revisions of Several Specifications

Covering Steel Products

In revising the A. S. T. M. specification for struc- tural1 steel for forge welding, allowance has been made

for higher silicon content by agreement between purchaser and manufacturer, according to an announce- ment of the American Society for Testing Materials.

The society also announces the formal adoption of a number of other revisions in the standard specifications for various steel products. Among these are the

specifications for commercial quality hot-rolled bar

steels and cold-finished bar steels and shaftings applicable to the screw-steel grades increasing the sul- phur content to provide better machineability.

The selection of test specimens in specifications for

l'ap-welded and seamless steel and lap-welded iron

boiler tubes, and the tolerances for this material have

been modified, and specifications for alloy-steel bolt- ing material for high-temperature service have been

limited to cover bolting stock up to and including 21/2

- inch diameter.

The society further announces that a number of

tentative standards and tentative revisions to standards have been adopted as standard, there having been no criticism during the past year to the tentative

specifications.
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 101

SAFETY WORK IN COMPRESSED-GAS INDUSTRY

Manufacturers Association Has Worked for Standardization of Equipment to Promote Safety

As the compressed-gas industries grew and the number of gas containers in use began to increase rapidly,

it became apparent to the industries’ pioneers that some coordinated action should be taken to protect

the property rights of the manufacturers in their container equipment, and also to establish just and uniform regulations in all parts of the country (Federal,

State, and local), to govern the transportation, stor- age, and use of compressed gases and their containers.

This realization grew into concerted action which

resulted in the incorporation early in 1913 of the Compressed Gas Manufacturers’ Association. Since that

time the organization has grown until it represents

to-day manufacturers whose production amounts to approximately 97 per cent of all the compressed gas

manufactured and shipped on the common carriers

within the United States and Canada ; also gas manufacturers in Mexico, Guatemala, France, England,

Switzerland, Holland, Russia, the Philippine Islands,

the Hawaiian Islands, Australia, and India.

Working with safety in the industries as its objective, the association has extended its efforts to include

standardization of equipment and practices that further this purpose.

The compressed-gas industries are highly specialized in the arts and crafts of safety, since their problems of distribution and delivery of products are of

such a nature that safety is always paramount to other

considerations. Unlike most industries, and due to the unusual nature of their products, they find their

greatest concern in transportation, which naturally means that the transportation equipment must be

flawless and must conform to strict specifications in

order to guarantee its integrity. It is estimated

roughly that better than 50 per cent of the total capital investment of these industries is in their trans- portation equipment, which consists of cylinders, tank

cars, etc. Generally speaking, title of ownership of

these containers remains permanently with the gas

manufacturer, it being the usual practice to loan the

container to the gas purchaser until the content is con- sumed, after which the equipment is returned.

Industry cooperates with others.

Through cooperation with the Interstate Commerce

Commission and its advisory body—the Bureau of Explosives—regulations have been established that govern

every phase of the shipment of compressed gases on

carriers in interstate commerce. Likewise specifications for each type of container have been developed

and have been made mandatory by action of the Interstate Commerce Commission, for the construction of

all containers used in interstate traffic. Constant re- search has been conducted by committees of the asso- ciation to develop methods of determining the wall

thickness of a cylinder by means of simple and practical tests. The result of this work is intended to establish

further safety features in that it permits the gas' manufacturer to detect thin walled or corroded cylinders

and eliminate them from service, thus removing

cylinders that are potentially hazardous.

In developing the tests necessary to obtain these re- sults many sizes and types of cylinders were used. It was found that in all the standard types of high-pressure containers, it was practical to determine the wall

thickness by means of measurement of the volumetric

elastic expansion under pressure and to set maximum

expansion limits for each tjqie, such a maximum limit

indicating a corresponding minimum effective wall

thickness. Thus, if the elastic expansion of a cylinder

subjected to the prescribed test pressure reaches or exceeds the permissible expansion limit, it indicates

that there is not sufficient effective wall thickness, and

the cylinder must be removed from service.

Two technical papers have been published by the

association giving in detail the development of the

various factors considered in the study of these problems, and the mathematical relations of the factors

involved.

Few serious accidents.

It lias been the experience of the compressed-gas

industry that the few serious accidents that have oc- curred in connection with the handling, use, and stor- age of gases have been almost invariably the result of

abuses to container equipment or mishandling of one kind or another. To obviate occurrences of this nature

the association has prepared and circulated a set of

rules for the “ Safe Handling and Use of Compressed

Gas Cylinders.” Literally thousands of these regulations have been distributed through the member companies with the result that accidents due to such abuses

have been almost eliminated. These recommendations

covered general precautions pertaining to safe practices in the handling of all types of gas cylinders and

also specific precautions to be observed in the case of

the individual gases. The proper care to be observed

in the use of regulators and other equipment was also

given consideration.

In the early days of the compressed-gas industry it was not unusual for the manufacturers to use types of

valves, outlets, and corresponding connecting nuts for

equipment that varied in such a degree that it was

possible to connect gas cylinders with consuming equipment designed for gases of entirely different characteristics. This was undoubtedly a hazardous period,

although the industries can boast of eliminating these

irregularities with exceptional orderliness.

Standardization of valve outlet threads and connections through the mutual cooperation of the association’s member companies has resulted in the adjustment of valve equipment design and a degree of

standardization that makes interchange of equipment

impossible, a safety feature that has eliminated a

truly potential hazard.

The Compressed Gas Manufacturers’ Association has

always maintained contact with other organizations

mutually interested in the safety of industry, and lias cooperated with these organizations in the promulgation of safety codes and regulations of numerous kinds.
102 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930 STANDARDIZING ARMY ENGINEERING EQUIPMENT

Army Has Standardized Many Items of Equipment Formerly Considered Necessary as “Special”

Manufacture

By Maj. H. H. Stickney, U. S. A., Chief, Supply Section, Office of Chief of Engineei's

When section 5a of the national defense act was

enacted June 4, 1920, the Assistant Secretary of War

was charged with the supervision of the procurement

of all military supplies and the assurance of adequate

provision for the mobilization of materiel and industrial organizations essential to our wartime needs.

This and other provisions of the act have caused

to be set up in the supply branches of the Army—that

is, the Ordnance Department, Quartermaster Corps,

Corps of Engineers, Signal Corps, Air Corps, and

the Chemical Warfare Service—organizations to pre- pare plans for industrial mobilization. These studies

have resulted in the adoption of commercial items and

standards to military needs wherever possible. The

adoption of a commercial item practically assures prompt quantity production in an emergency. The

Corps of Engineers is fortunate in that practically all

its items of equipment have a counterpart in the commercial field, or can be nearly reduced to commercial

standards.

Studies have been initiated resulting in new and

revised specifications following commercial practice

in the following instances

Bags, sand, burlap.—Jute is a strategic raw material—that, is, a material produced entirely outside

the continental limits of the United States. Studies

have been made of commercial substitutes and it has

been found that Osnaberg cotton, cotton cement bags,

and cotton flour bags present substitutes equal to or

better than the jute bag. The only reason jute bags

are procured in peace time is because they are cheaper.

It has also been found that there are certain commercial bags, such as potato, plaster, calcium chloride,

sugar, and flour bags, already being manufactured and

in stock, which can be used until production can be

reached on the standard bag.

Specifications revised.

The standard burlap sand bag specification has re- cently been revised to conform more nearly to commercial practice of manufacturers. The standard size

is 14 by 26% inches, which, if strictly followed, can

not be cut economically from 40-inch burlap. The

bulk of the burlap imported is 40 inches wide. The

tolerances have been changed so as to allow cutting

40-inch burlap into strips 25% and 14% inches wide

and allowing two sizes of bags in one order. The

area of the bag must be not less than 365, nor more

than 382 square inches when laid flat. This prevents

the manufacturer from taking the minus tolerances in

both length and width in the same bag. Packing and

sewing requirements were changed, resulting in additional economies. The changes have caused the price

to be reduced from between 6.7 and 7 to 4.8 cents per

bag.

Celluloid.—Celluloid is no longer used for the

manufacture of triangles, scales, protractors, and similar items. It has been found that fiberloid is more

durable and will withstandstorage conditions in the

Tropics, whereas celluloid in a short period will disintegrate entirely. A study is now being made of pyralin as a substitute for fiberloid so as to increase the

source of supply of this class of material.

5 Jew generating sets.—The old standard 5 kw generator set was entirely special. It was heavy for its capacity, weighing some 2,100 pounds, and was comparatively expensive. A survey was made of the commercial field, which resulted in the adoption of a commercial standard manufactured by several different

firms. These sets have proven eminently satisfactory, are of light weight—650 to 750 pounds—are reliable,

and above all are procurable in quantity in case of an

emergency. Their price is about two-thirds that of

the old special set. A similar investigation is being

made to find a commercial pumping set suitable to our needs.

Pontoon equipment.—The floating-bridge equipment of the Corps of Engineers is one of the few

items of equipment that has no counterpart in commercial life. The boats, balk (stringers), chess (flooring), trestles, and vehicles, must, of necessity, be

adapted to this special task. However, certain commercial items have been adopted in part with result- ant economy and assured production.

Wagons.—Commercial trailers have been found

eminently suitable, with minor modifications of the

superstructure, for transporting boats, balk, chess, and

other items of this equipment. The original design

of these wagons was special throughout, and the cost per wagon was about $2,000. Several commercial designs are suitable, and when adopted will involve a

cost of between $700 and $800 per wagon.

Lwmiber substitute.—Considerable study has been

made of the various woods suitable for balk and chess. It has been found that Douglas fir is well suited for

both purposes and can, of course, be obtained in quantity. Redwood of select grades (prime structure) can

be used for chess. These two woods take the place of

white pine which is becoming difficult to procure and

increasingly expensive.

Steel boats.—The steel boat is being tested to determine its suitability as a substitute for the present

wooden boat. If it proves satisfactory, manufacture

will be expedited and the rapid deterioriation found

in the wooden boat will be eliminated.

Portable pile dnver.-—Before the organization for

control of industrial mobilization plans was operating

efficiently, this branch developed a portable pile driver

which functioned properly but lacked mobility; its main drawback was its special nature. Its procurement would be impossible in the first months of an

emergency. A plan was developed to use a truck

crane, portable leads hung from the crane boom, a

large air hammer, a portable air compressor, and vari- ous air tools. This group of equipment can drive piles,

place stringers, caps, and flooring, and, with the air

tools, can do practically all the work incident to building a pile bridge with power-driven equipment. It
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 103

can also be used to operate a quarry, excavate earth,

load and unload heavy materials, and to perform

many other tasks previously performed by man power

in the Army. The items that make up the plant are

all made commercially and can be procured during

the initial stages of the war in the desired quantities.

TNT demolition blocks. —During the World War,

crystalline TNT was compressed into a 14-pound rec- tangular block having a density of 1.46, with a cross

section Iff by Iff inches, and a length of approximately 3f4 inches. These blocks were coated with a thin plate of copper by an electi'olitic process, and

the finished product cost from 80 to 90 cents per

pound. Within the last two years, it was found that

the war stocks of blocks were nearly depleted and it would be necessary to purchase additional stocks. Investigation disclosed that all the electroplating machinery developed and used during the war period had

been junked. No civilian manufacturer or Government arsenal was prepared to manufacture blocks by

this process. Following the policy that commercial products

should be used to the greatest possible extent, an at- tempt was made to discover a method of coating the

blocks of compressed TNT which would be either

strictly commercial or at least an adaptation of some

peace-time product. Among the methods suggested were dipping in Duco, wrapping in cellophane or

paraffin paper, and inclosing in a box of bakelite, cardboard, or fiber board. Finally it was decided to use a 5-ply fiber-board box made by winding 0.006 fiber board around a mandrel and paraffining the inside.

The ends of the box are made of sheet iron, tinned

and lacquered. A hole is punched in one end to register with the recess in the TNT block so that a detonator can be inserted without removing the block

from the box. These boxes are very tough and furnish

a more satisfactory covering than even the copper

plate. The container is commercial, and can be produced in any quantities desired.

The initial order manufactured by this process will

cost about 55 cents a pound, including the TNT and an amount sufficient to amortize the plant, buildings, and

machinery necessary for manufacture. Later orders

will undoubtedly be considerably cheaper and thus

effect a substantial saving in the manufacture of the

demolition blocks and at the same time assure quantity

production in an emergency.

The examples furnished above indicate the trend of

thought which has resulted from the policy of adapting commercial standards to military use. In none of

these cases has there been any evidence of decreased

efficiency, but, on the contrary, the equipment has been

found, in most cases, to be the equal of, if not superior

to, the special designs formerly considered necessary.

WHAT WEIGHTS AND MEASURES MEAN TO THE HOUSEWIFE

City Sealers Prevent Fraud and Institute Punitive Action Against Violators

By George K, Burgess, Director, National Bureau of Standards

It has frequently been said that what a person doesn’t

know won’t hurt him.

Whether or not this is logical, it is nevertheless a

fact that oftentimes what a person doesn’t know is helping him a very great deal. This is particularly

true in the case of many of the activities of government—Federal. State, and local. The knowledge of the average citizen relative to government is largely confined to those activities with

which he or she has personally come into contact or

conflict. Everyone knows more or less about the local police department, because the police officer is very

much in evidence, especially at busy street crossings.

The local fire department, too, plays such a spectacular

part in the life of the community that its activities are universally understood, and heard as well. But who knows about the work of the local inspector

of weights and measures? And how many would

recognize him, if they saw him? He, however, does

or can play a very important, if unobstrusive role

in the community. Just as the policeman protects our

persons, the fireman our property, so does the weights

and measures official protect our pocketbooks. It is about his activities that I want to tell you.

What is known as “ weights and measures supervision ” is participated in by every branch of government—Federal, State, county, city, and town. The

purpose of this supervision is to insure that whenever

commodities or services are bought on the basis of

weight, measure, or count, the determination of quantity involved in the exchange shall be equitably made.

Let us first take up foodstuffs and consider only

sales at retail ; that is, to the ultimate consumer, usually

the housewife. The weights and measures official is charged with the duty of visiting every retail establishment selling food, and of there testing the scales,

weights, and measures in use, approving only those

which are correct according to the official standards

which he carries with him; where necessary, he in- structs the dealer in the requirements of the weights

and measures law as applicable to his particular busi- ness; he makes check weighings and measurements on

packages of merchandise ready for delivery, whether

put up by the local dealer or by a distant manufacturer; and he promptly investigates the complaints of

customers who believe that any irregularities exist in

the weighing or measuring practices of the establishments at which the}^ trade. To the householder, this

protection is invaluable; to the merchant the service

is no less important, because under such supervision he

is assured that he and his brother merchants are all1 on the same basis and that quantity determination is no longer an element in his competition.

Scope of duties.

But weights and measures supervision is not confined

to retail sales of foodstuffs; it extends to every field,

embracing wholesale as well as retail transactions.
104 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930

Fuel, ice, building materials, textile material, manufactured articles of a multitude of kinds are weighed

or measured commercially, and the equipment used and

the accuracy of the quantity determinations are all under the supervision of these officials known as sealers or inspectors of weights and measures. An important field of governmental activity? Unquestionably so, reaching deeply into the business and

lives of our people, and yet this work is so little known

that the jokesters who invade almost every field have

l'eft weight and measures practically untouched, and

our favorite comic strips almost never deal with the

subject.

We might note, however, that we have both

“ liquid ” and “ dry ” measures, and that there is a tendency to legislate for the prohibition of both—

“ wet ” and “ dry ” measures—and to substitute, where

possible, sales by weight alone. In this connection,

there is recalled a magazine cover depicting two

young people riding in a taxicab; the young lady

seemed to be enjoying her ride greatly, but the young

man appeared horrified by the mounting reading on

the taximeter. The artist had excellently portrayed

every detail except the taximeter; this he had drawn

with the flag in the “ vacant ” position in which the

instrument would not register any fare at all ! His

understanding of taximeter operation compares, unfortunately, with that of many purchasers of ordinary commodities, who are quite as much in the dark

as to how the scales over which they buy should

operate.

In the United States the Congress has left the regulation of weights and measures almost entirely to the

control of the individual States, although the Congress has constitutional authority for such regulation.

There are a few Federal laws, such as those standardizing barrels, hampers, and baskets for fruits and

vegetables and requiring statements of net contents on certain packages of foods, but, aside from these, all weights and measures regulatory authority arises

from State laws or local ordinances, and is exercised

by officers of the States or their subdivisions, 49 major

administrative units to harmonize.

National Bureau of Standards custodian of standards.

The National Bureau of Standards, of the Department of Commerce, is the custodian of the national

standards of weight and measure, and verifies the

accuracy of the primary standards of the States

these latter are used by the States to standardize the

testing equipment belonging to and used by their

respective State, county, city, and town departments

of weights and measures, so that an unbroken chain

extends from the devices used in trade back to the

national standards maintained by the bureau in

Washington. Unfortunately, not all States have seen

fit as yet to undertake active supervision over commercial weighing and measuring devices and methods,

but the work is gradually being extended.

Before 1905 there was no concerted movement to coordinate the work of the States to bring about uniformity, and the divergence in the requirements of

different sections was very marked. In that year, however, there was organized the National Conference on Weights and Measures, which from very small

beginnings has grown to be truly national in its scope.

Originally conceived for the primary purpose of

promoting uniformity among the States, the national

conference has come to be recognized as a body whose

conclusions represent the best weights and measures thought in the country. Without any authority to enforce its conclusions, the conference has nevertheless brought about a tremendous improvement in conditions, entirely through the cooperation of its members in putting into effect in their respective jurisdictions the conclusions arrived at by the conference

each year. In addition to the development of a model law on

weights and measures and codes of specifications and

tolerances for many classes of commercial equipment,

the national conference has become a clearing house

for weights and measures information of all kinds.

At its annual meetings in Washington, officials from

all sections of the country describe their problems and

their accomplishments for the purpose of receiving

and giving assistance to each other. Here are a few

typical examples

One State department of weights and measures

uncovered a series of frauds in connection with the

sale of lubricating oil which were being carried on

in one of the principal cities of the State. There

were more than 200 companies selling this product in

this city. Seventeen firms were prosecuted for sell- ing 29 gallons in containers marked to hold 34 gallons. No suit was contested, and $19,000 was returned

to buyers.

Another inspector, a city official this time, reported

the results of check-up measurements made on gasoline purchases. Serious shortages were found in a number of cases, and prosecutions followed. The in- spector estimated that prior to his drive against dis- honest pump operators, the motorists of his city had

been suffering a loss of $549 a day due to short- measure gasoline, a sum sufficient to operate 1.000 cars. Other frauds uncovered.

Other officials have reported the results of their sur- veys on a wide variety of commodities. Under laws

requiring that bread be sold only in loaves of certain

specified standard weights, loaves are reweighed at frequent intervals to see that the provisions of the

statute are being adhered to. Cartons of butter, supposed to contain a net weight of 1 pound, are found

at times to be deficient in weight ; often the investigation of such a condition will lead back through numerous steps to the creamery or butter-printer primarily

responsible for the shortage, perhaps in another State

from that in which the retail packages were first ex- amined, requiring the cooperation of the officials of

both States before the situation is cleared up. Flour is another commodity on which the weights

and measures official receives frequent complaints,

sometimes unjustified, the apparent shortages being

caused by the natural loss of moisture, and there being no actual shortage of nutritious ingredients. One

State, under a recently enacted statute, has been re- measuring hundreds of thousands of yards of sewing

thread to establish the correctness of the claimed yardage. The weighing of loads of fuel is one of the important winter activities of the weights and measures

official; this may be done following complaint by the

purchaser of suspected shortage, although a great deal

of reweighing is done at the initiative of the official
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 105

himself, as a part of his general supervisory program.

Loads of fuel are stopped on the street, on their way

to the customer, and the driver is caused to proceed to

a convenient scale for check weighing; legal action

follows if -necessary. Such examples could be multiplied almost indefinitely, but what has been said is sufficient to indicate

the character of that large group of the weights and

measures official’s duties which are generally spoken of

as “ supervisory ” to distinguish them from the “ mechanical ” duties which have to do strictly with the

devices for weighing and measuring.

From what has been said of these supervisory activities, the impression should not be gained that short

weighing and measuring, and fraud in connection with

sales of commodities, are generally, or even widely,

practiced. Records of weights and measures departments show that the percentage of inaccurate equipment, the percentage of package goods deficient in quantity, and the number of individuals who resort to unethical or dishonest practices, are relatively small.

By far the large majority of those engaged in trade are inherently honest in their business dealings and endeavor to give their customers what they pay for. But

carelessness, lack of knowledge of legal requirements or of the correct use or maintenance of equipment, and the inevitable deterioration of mechanical

devices combine to produce an aggregate loss to the

buyer which is large enough to be of real importance

add to this the possible effects of the operations of that

small, but by no means negligible, percentage of people

who are unscrupulous in their dealings, and the total

losses which might be sustained by purchasers will

reach a surprising figure.

These losses it is the job of the weights and measures official to prevent. How well he is to succeed depends upon the support which he receives in the administration of his department. Sufficient funds must

be provided so that the department will be adequately

manned and equipped. But even with adequate per- sonnel and equipment something more is necessary for

complete success—the department must have the co- operation and help of the community which it serves. A nation is said to have the government it deserves ; a community can have fair dealings in trade if they are

desired.

STANDARDS FOR SCREW THREADS FIXED BY NATIONAL COMMISSION

Bolts, Nuts, and Screws Hold Important Place in Everyday Life; Standardization Vital for

Interchangeability in Use; First Step in This Respect Taken in 1864

By W. H. Bearce, Secretary, National Screw Thread Commission

To one unfamiliar with industrial and engineering

construction problems, the establishment of a national

commission to standardize so simple a product as screw

threads, ordinary bolts and nuts, that can be bought

in the nearest hardware store or “ 5 and 10,” might at

first thought seem unnecessary or even ridiculous. A

%-inch bolt is a %-inch bolt, isn’t it? A machine

screw is a machine screw, and a stove bolt a stove bolt. What more is necessary?

Upon consideration of the important part played

by bolts, nuts, and screws in holding together practically everything used in engineering, industry, trans- portation, and everyday life we may well conclude,

however, that the demands upon these products are such as to make their uniformity and reliability of

very great importance.

The United States leads the world in that type of mass production commonly known as interchangeable

manufacture. Under this method of production a large number of manufactured articles or parts are made so nearly alike as to dimensions that parts can

be taken at random from a large number of similar

parts and when assembled with other articles or parts

similarly taken at random from a large number the

various parts will go together and fit and function as intended, without selection and without subsequent

change of dimensions.

Limiting dimensions and inspection.

This system of manufacture involves the setting up

of definite limiting dimensions for such articles or

parts and an adequate system of inspection or gaging

to insure that all parts that are accepted as satisfac127S7—30 2

tory will, in fact, be within the prescribed dimensional

limits.

Successful interchangeable manufacture, therefore,

rests upon two major requirements: First, that the

dimensional limits be correctly established; and sec- ond, that the system of gaging be such as to insure

that all parts that are within the prescribed limits are accepted as satisfactory and all parts outside

these limits rejected as unsatisfactory.

Screw threads have, of course, been manufactured

in large numbers for many years, but until comparatively recent years there was no attempt to make bolts

and nuts to accurately specified dimensional limits.

In the absence of such limits interchangeability in screw threads was impossible.

The initial accomplishment in the standardization

of screw threads in the United States was the report

under date of December 15, 1864, of the special committee appointed by the Franklin Institute on April

21, 1861, for the investigation of a proper system

of screw threads, boltheads, and nuts to be recom- mended by the institute for adoption and general use by American engineers.

Thread system recommended.

In its report this committee recommended a thread

system designed bv William Sellers. This thread

system specified a single series of pitches for certain

diameters from one-fourth inch to 6 inches, inclusive.

The threads had an included angle of 60° and a flat at the crest and root equal to one-eighth of the pitch.

This system came into general use and was known as the Franklin Institute thread, the Sellers thread, and

commonly as the United States thread.
106 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930

The accomplishments realized in the adoption of the

Franklin Institute, or United States Standard thread,

in 1864 were brought about largely by the great need

of standard threads by American railroads for the development of their lines and equipment. In May,

1868, this thread was adopted by the United States Navy.

In recent years numerous organizations have carried

forward the standardization of screw threads. The

American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the

Society of Automotive Engineers, sectional committees

organized under the American Standards Association,

the National Bureau of Standards, the National Screw

Thread Commission, and prominent manufacturers of

specialized threaded products have been the chief in- fluences in standardization of screw threads in this

country.

While the United States standard thread system fulfilled a great need in the period of the development of our great railway systems, it did not fully meet the re- quirements of modern manufactures because of the

need for additional standard sizes and pitches developed in other industries, and especiall}7 because of

the need for definitely specified limiting sizes of

threaded parts. To fulfill the first of these needs a thread system having finer pitches than the United

States standard system was recommended bj7 the

Society of Automotive Engineers, and a machine-screw

thread series which provided smaller sizes of screAvs than the United States Standard threads was recom- mended by the American Society of Mechanical

Engineers. The progress of machine design and

manufacture has established an extensive use of these

fine-thread series. The difficulties encountered in obtaining enormous

quantities of war material needed by the United

States Government during the World War pointed

out to Government establishments, as well as manufacturers, the need of definite and complete specifications for material required. Such specifications

should be so written that the qualities desired in the

product are stated in terms of definite measureable

standards, and defined b}7 the largest tolerance limits

compatible with the satisfactory use or performance

of the articles or material for the purpose intended.

The standardization of screw threads, involving as

it does the specification of sizes which are necessary

to industry, the elimination of unnecessary sizes, and

the securing of interchangeability, is especially important because of the use of enormous quantities of screw threads in all varieties of mechanisms. Such

standardization is important to the user of a machine, as well as to the manufacturer, as the user should be able to buy locally a screAv or nut for re- placement in case of breakage or Avear. Elements considered in screw-thread fit. A screw-thread fit can not be accurately made with

the same facility as the fit of a plain hoie and shaft. In the fit of a plain hole and shaft only three elements

are taken into account in securing a given class of

fit, namely, cylindricity, diameter, and length ; whereas in a screw-thread fit it is necessary to consider

cylindricity, length, major diameter, pitch diameter,

minor diameter, angle of thread, and pitch or lead. A variation in any one of these elements of a screAv thread may prevent a satisfactory fit, so that it is

much more difficult to make a good screw-thread fit than it is to make a plain bearing fit. Screw Thread Commission established.

Through the efforts of several of the engineering

societies the National Bureau of Standards, and prominent manufacturers of screw-thread products, a petition Avas presented to Congress requesting the appointment of a commission to investigate and promulgate

standards of screAv threads to be adopted by manufacturing plants under the control of the Army and

NaA7 y and for adoption and use by the public. As a result of this action the National ScreAv Thread Commission was authorized by an act of Congress approved

July 18, 1918 (Public act No. 201, H. R. 10852, 65th

Cong.). The original term of six months was tAvice extended by subsequent acts and on April 16, 1926,

the commission was established as a permanent body.

The commission is composed of nine members, with

the Director of the National Bureau of Standards exofficio chairman ,of the commission. Of the other

eight members, tAvo are appointed by the Secretary of

War. two by the Secretary of the NaAT y, and four by

the Secretary of Commerce. Of the latter four, two

are from nominations by the American Society of

Mechanical Engineers and two from nominations by

the Society of Automotive Engineers.

The screAv-thread standards adopted and promulgated by the Screw Thread Commission are mandatory iqion certain departments of the Federal Goa7 - ernment. The commission has had the fullest cooperation of engineering societies, standardizing

committees, manufacturers, and users of screw threads,

threading tools and gages, and the standards adopted

by the commission have been accepted by industry to such an extent that they are in fact, as well as in

name, American National Screw Thread Standards.

Activities of the commission.

The commission has given its attention primarily

to the establishment of thread series, dimensions, and

tolerances, and a classification of screw-thread fits suitable for all ordinary fastening purposes. The

classification of fits is on the basis of a uniform minimum tapped hole for all fits, with unilateral tol- erances on each threaded member. That is, all variation in the tapped hole or nut is from a minimum or

basic size to above that size, and all variation in the

bolt or screw is from a maximum size to beloAv that

size. The tolerance, or amount of variation, per- mitted in the size of each member is dependent upon

the class of fit specified.

The 1928 report of the commission (Mis. Publication Bureau of Standards No. 89) also contains tentative specifications for class 5, stud fit, which is in- tended to apply to threaded studs to be permanently

set in place, as in engine blocks, etc. Tables contained

in the commission’s report give the limiting dimensions for each size of bolt and nut and for all classes of fit. The report also contains detailed specifications for

small-hose threads, fire-hose threads, pipe threads,

threads for electrical fixtures and fittings, threads for

electric-lamp bases and sockets, threads of special di- ameters, pitches and lengths of engagement, acme

I threads, threads for cutting and welding torches,
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 107

wood screws, dimensions of boltheads, nuts and wrench

openings, and much material on threading tools, gages, and methods of gaging.

Two sections of the 1928 report of the commission

have been published separately in convenient form

for shop use. These are “American National Screw

Thread Tables for Shop Use. I. Standard Threads ” (Mis. Publication, Bureau of Standards No. 98), and

“ II. Special Theards ” (Mis. Publication Bureau of

Standards No. 99). These may be purchased from the

Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing

Office, Washington, D. C., at 10 cents each. The complete report may also be purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, for 50 cents a copy.

While most of the work originally contemplated

by the commission has now been completed, there are

still many special problems in screw-thread standardization that may well engage the attention of the commission to the end that progress in standardization

may keep pace with progress in industry.

STANDARDIZATION IN WELDING INDUSTRY

Welding Important Production and Repair Process; Scope and Functions of American Welding Society

Reviewed

By William Sprajragen, Technical Secretary, American Welding Society

Welding has now been accepted by industry as one

of its most important production and repair processes. Whereas, welding some 12 years ago was employed

principally to repair broken parts of machinery, it is now regarded as the standard method of joining

metal pieces in general manufacturing and production work.

At first welding was limited to use on small or less important parts, but, as favorable experience soon showed the desirability, its field of application was

gradually extended to heavier and more important

construction and repair work. Welding is employed

for an almost limitless number of applications, from

the manufacture of such small articles as watch stems

to the largest metal-fabricated structures—ships, locomotives, trunk oil and gas pipe lines, buildings, air- craft structures, bridges, gas tanks, and machinery

of all kinds, including the largest turbine electric

generators.

Development of welding applications was so rapid

that the new art did not always show to the best advantage. The apparent simplicity of gas and arc welding led to its use by untrained workmen and

engineers and in applications where the design of the

joint between the parts to be joined or the nature

of the material were not entirely adaptable to welding by the particular method used. Consequently, some unsatisfactory work was done which resulted

in delaying the day when engineers and the public

at large were willing to accept welding with full confidence.

Organized to benefit industry.

This condition was recognized by a number of far- seeing men interested in the conservative development

of welding, and as a result the American Welding

Society was formed in 1919 for the broad purpose of

putting the wel'ding art on a sound, scientific, and en- gineering basis. It was appreciated that only with

such a foundation could welding ever be recognized as

a thoroughly reliable process and be accepted for general employment in industry.

The American Welding Society is an organization of

individuals and companies and corporations interested

in welding by any process—either as manufacturers of

welding equipment and supplies interested in the commercial acceptance of the art or as users concerned with

its efficient application.

Cooperative efforts extend field of application.

The American Welding Society offers (1) an opportunity for personal association with the leaders of the

industry and exchange of information and ideas; (2) means to keep informed up to date on the latest developments in the welding field; (3) opportunity to

assist, through cooperative ffiffort, in increasing the

knowledge of welding and extending its applications;

and (I) assisting in the development and use of codes

and standards.

With the complexity of modern industry it is neces- sary for people working in the same field to get to- gether, as progress can be best made through such co- operative effort rather than by individual genius. It is necessary that the work of the society be conducted on

a high plane of dignity and free from the stain of

commercialism.

Standards and codes developed.

The American Welding Society has come to recognize the value of specifications and standards; for

example, in the early days, a wide variety of nomenclature and definitions were in vogue. Welding ex- perts did not talk the same language. To meet this

need a committee was appointed to draw up standard

nomenclature, definitions, and symbols. Not only has

the matter of the common language been successfully

solved, but standard symbols enable the draftsman

to specify clearly and concisely the type, location, and

size of welding to be used, thereby eliminating con- fusion and expense. Other standards developed by

committees of the society or its research department

known as the American Bureau of Welding, include

standard tests for welds, standards for arc welding

apparatus, specifications for welding wire and gages

for measuring dimensions of welds.

In the matter of codes, the society has also taken

a leading and active part. The first code issued by

the American Society of Mechanical Engineers for

pressure vessels included some very restrictive measures against welding. The society, through its re- search department, immediately carried out an ex- haustive series of tests which furnished authentic

data to back up the society in its demands for a more
108 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930

lenient code which would be fair to welding. These

demands led to the appointment of a conference committee which has resulted in the drafting of a new

code which increased the maximum allowable fiber stress for a double V weld to 8,000 lbs. /in. 2 when

made under proper procedure specifications. In the

structural welding field the society has taken the

initiative and issued a building code which has been

adopted by several important cities and which is being used by other legislative bodies in drawing up

codes in this field. In cooperation with the American Standards Association, a code is in preparation

dealing with pressure piping. Another committee

is at work preparing standard qualifications for welders for all the important industries using welding.

The need for supplying simplified, authentic in- formation which can be used by the student welder

or engineer has also been duly recognized. Instruction manuals have been prepared for arc, resistance,

and thermit welding, and outline courses of training

have been prepared for the use of instructors.

Research work developed by experts.

The research work of the society is conducted under

the auspices of a separate board, known as the American Bureau of Welding. This board is also affiliated very closely with the National Research Council, and

has representation from some 15 leading scientific and

engineering organizations.

The purpose of the bureau is to bring to bear on

the solution of welding problems the latest scientific knowledge and the scientific method of attack. To

this end, the cooperation of all interested scientific and

engineering organizations has been enlisted. It also provides an organization whose reports and pronouncements are accepted the world over as sound and absolutely free from commercial bias. The work of the bureau is carried on through re- search subcommittees which handle specific problems.

Members of these committees are interested experts

representing both the scientific and practical side, and

include also business men. In this way there is brought to bear on the solution of complex welding

problems the best talent that is available. Through

the work of its committees the bureau has acquired

during the past few years a worlcl-wide reputation as an authentic source of welding information.

The combined cost of the investigations conducted

under the auspices of the bureau will total several

hundred thousands of dollars. Results are made

available through publication to all members of the

society.

The bureau and its various committees have issued some 50 reports. Some of these deal with practical

problems, such as pressure vessels, structural steel, rail

joints. Others are concerned with the fundamentals

of welding and the “ reason why ” of various phe- nomena involved in welding, as, for example, study

of nitride needles, nondestructive tests for welds,

strength of welds at elevated temperatures, metallographic structure of welds and distribution of stresses in certain types of joints.

These investigations have enabled those interested

in welding to extend its applications, to apply the processes most effectively and to convince engineers and

legislative bodies of the reliability of welds when made

under proper procedure.

Section and national meetings.

An opportunity for the interchange of knowledge,

presentation of papers, and discussions through section

and national meetings. There are at present organized some 13 sections in important industrial centers. Others will be formed. Many of these hold monthly

meetings in season. The national meetings are held, one in New York during the latter part of April and

the other outside of New York, which is known as the

fall meeting. The latter, during the past five or six years, has been held in connection with a national

exposition on welding at which are demonstrated the

latest developments in welding apparatus, materials,

and the application of welding.

Publications report society activities.

The principal publication of the society is its monthly Journal, which is distributed to all members.

It includes papers giving accurate information on the

application of welding in a wide variety of fields. Research and technical reports are also included. Important papers presented before national and section

meetings are published regularly, as are also news

items of society and section activities, and actions

taken by the society through its various committees,

officers, and board of directors.

A membership directory is issued each year givingfull information concerning society activities, the names and addresses of all members and reports of the

principal committees of the society.

Cooperates with engineering organizations.

In the conduct of its work the society cooperates with

many important national organizations. These activities include joint meetings, research work, preparation

of codes and standards, and matters of similar nature. A partial list of the organizations with which the

society is cooperating, or has cooperated with in the

past, includes the National Research Council, American

Society of Mechanical Engineers, American Standards

Association, American Society of Civil Engineers,

American Institute of Electrical Engineers, American

Electric Railway Association, and American Institute

of Steel Construction.

Opportunities for a wider field of usefulness on the

part of the sections have developed recently through

the formation, in some of the larger centers, of affili- ated local organizations. Not only has such local affil- iation brought about greater cooperation and unity

among engineers—highly desirable objectives—but it has given the welding engineer a higher standing in civic and municipal affairs. It has also saved much

duplication of effort and expense and has increased

the attendance and interest at meetings.

Moreover, in its research work the society has established contacts with leading university and governmental laboratories. This has resulted in bringing to the attention of a large number of students the possibilities of welding.

Scope of activities.

It would be impossible to give a complete word

picture of the ramifications of the society activities. Some of its aims may be briefly summarized as fol- lows : 1. To collect and make available authentic and upto-date information on welding, gas and electric arc

cutting, and to he recognized as the authoritative source of such information by manufacturers in the
OCTOBER. 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 109

welding field, users of the process, engineering societies, and legislative bodies.

2. To provide a means for the interchange of

knowledge and experience to aid in the solution of

the problems of the welding art—technical, ethical,

and commercial—through cooperative effort.

3. To be the agent of the industry in cooperative

research on important technical problems, and to serve as a common spokesman of the industry in

matters pertaining to its welfare.

4. To provide opportunities for social intercourse,

and thus to promote a better understanding among

manufacturers, users, and scientists in the weldingfield, and to foster a spirit of cooperation for the

common good.

5. To encourage the development of welding

through improvements in present applications and

expansion of its uses into new fields, and to develop

technical and ethical standards for the welding in- dustry.

SAFETY RESPONSIBILITY LAW TO CURB RECKLESS DRIVER

Standard Code Would Tend to Reduce Accidents

By Owen B. Aug.spurger 1

With more than a third of the motor-vehicle owners

in the United States and half of those in Canada now

operating under one or more of the essential principles of the safety responsibility law, substantial

progress can be reported in securing international rec- ognition for a legislative weapon designed to curb the

reckless driver, without penalizing the great majority

of careful drivers.

In advancing this law, which has already proven

most effective, major attention was given to the problem of preventing accidents, rather than financial protection for those injured. In other words, protection

against financial loss has been made secondary to the

humanitarian aspect of safeguarding life, limb, and

property.

Earlier experiments sought to assure compensation for accident victims and with this one objective

overlooked the fact that this assured compensation

removed the incentive so necessary to decrease the

number of accidents, the incentive of being adjudged

a careful driver and remaining free from the penalties that fall on the negligent. Later experiments

have proven that it is possible to penalize the criminal

minority and, under the fear of permanent suspension

of driving rights, force them to compensate victims

and assure their future responsibility. To accomplish

this end, all legislation should undergo the acid test of

the effect it will have in promoting safety.

The committee sponsoring the safety responsibility

law, dii’ected its attention to the fact that the use of

fast-moving vehicles on the highways may be made

dangerous in the hands of careless drivers, or even in

the hands of the careful who fail to respond properly

to an emergency.

Effect since law was advanced.

Twenty months have passed since the law was advanced as a result of careful study and long deliberations. During this time 12 States have enacted the law

or amended existing laws to bring them in harmony

with its various provisions, while the Province of

Ontario, Canada, after one of the most comprehensive

studies of the subject ever undertaken by any agency,

has accepted all its principles. This Canadian Province has 50 per cent of the total motor-vehicle registra-

.

1 The author is a member of the American Automobile Association National Executive Committee and chairman of the National Committee of Seventeen, which drafted the safety responsibility law.

tions in the Dominion. The State of New York, which

led the way in the adoption of this law in the United

States, has 10 per cent of the Nation’s registered motor

vehicles, or more than 2,000,000. When it is considered that the problem has challenged the best minds

in the legislative field since the advent of the auto- mobile, there is every reason to regard with optimism

the endorsement so far given the safety responsibility

law.

The Congress of the United States has lifted the

safety responsibility law from the list of various proposals advanced as a means of promoting safety in the

District of Columbia. Although this measure died on

the Senate calendar with the adjournment of the last session of Congress, it had already been passed by the

House and Mill be a live topic with the convening of

the next ^ssion in December.

Briefly summarized, the law which embodies four

cardinal principles, provides, first, a universal drivers’

license law; and in this day and age it is difficult to believe that this demand will meet with any sound

opposition. Second, a mandatory suspension of the

driving privileges of all persons convicted of serious

violations of the motor-vehicle laws until proof of

future financial responsibility has been established.

This is in addition to penalties under the State motorvehicle code. Third, it provides for the suspension of

the driving privileges of all persons against whom a

final judgment establishing the driver’s negligence has

been legally rendered and who have failed to meet

the judgment, this suspension to remain in effect until

the judgment has been satisfied and a guaranty of

future responsibility established. Fourth, it provides

for the insertion in the drivers’ license law of every

State, a proviso which will prevent the issuance of a permit to any person whose right to drive is at that

time suspended in any other State, thus in effect providing for the interexchange of suspension rulings as between the States and rendering the disability nationally reciprocal.

Experiments were carefully watched.

Prior to the formulation of this suggested model' for

legislation, the Nation had watched experiments with

compulsory automobile insurance. Massachusetts was

in the limelight with this plan. Every car owner was

required to carry public liability insurance as a pre-
no COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930

requisite to his right to operate a motor vehicle. From

its inception the American Automobile Association

opposed this drastic step, and based its opposition on two things: First, it would not promote safety, and,

secondly, as a consequence of the first, it would impose

a financial burden on the careful driver as a penalty

for the negligence of those who were reckless and

irresponsible. Moreover it resulted in politics entering

a field in which there should be no politics and paved

the way for alleged fraudulent claims and the co-called

ambulance chaser. An effort is now being made to overcome these conditions.

Compulsory insurance is not an issue. The Massachusetts l'aw, the English, and the New Zealand law,

as well as the safety responsibility law, include some form of insurance, but the latter is based upon the

idea of using compulsion in a reasonable manner, with- out oppressive legislation that would affect the innocent equally with the guilty, the careful equally with

the reckless, and the financially responsible equally

with the financially irresponsible.

Leading up to the adoption of the safety responsibility law in the Province of Ontario, was an ex- haustive study of all phases of the problem by a Royal

Canadian commission. It was headed by Hon. Mr.

Justice Hodgins, eminent Canadian jurist and student

of law. This commission, after a comprehensive consideration of every phase of insurance in its relation to

motor-vehicle accidents, whole-heartedly indorsed the

safety responsibility law. To quote Justice Hodgins:

I have definitely concluded, after much consideration, that

legislation introducing compulsory insurance in any form into any community, should not go the whole length that the State

of Massachusetts did, but should proceed rather on the lines of the safety responsibility law and should be largely based on the American Automobile Association's bill, so far as it provides for compulsory insurance on the occurrence of im- portant breaches of the highway traffic act or criminal law or the causing of fatal or serious injuries.

The Massachusetts law and the safety responsibility

law fundamentally differ. In the case of the former

all motorists are required to insure on a certain day,

while the latter leaves the car owner alone until he has

been convicted of a serious violation of the existing

traffic or criminal code or has caused serious or substantial injury through an accident. Then it is re- quired that he provide security against future casualties and, as a further condition of the restoration of

his license, that he shall pay the damages caused by

the accident in which he has brought himself within

the scope of the legislation.

This difference serves to make the safety responsibility law more logical and less oppressive, and it has

the merit of affecting only motorists who have demonstrated that they are negligent or careless drivers.

Thus it is not a penalty on the responsible citizen for

the acts of the irresponsible.

NEW TENTATIVE STANDARDS ADOPTED FOR

COPPER-BASE ALLOYS IN INGOT FORM FOR

SAND CASTINGS

Non-Ferrous Ingot Metal Institute Sponsors Research Associate to Study Alloys

New specifications for copper-base alloys in ingot

form for sand castings have been accepted as tentative

by the American Society for Testing Materials. These

specifications represent a complete realignment of the

specifications covering copper-base alloy ingot metal

and are the direct outgrowth of a survey during the

past few years, by a special committee of the society,

of the many alloys in this field, in an endeavor to develop specifications that would greatly simplify the

present conditions.

This survey was prompted by the desirability of

having specifications available for use as a basis for

price quotations in trade papers, and to improve the

existing condition that definitions of alloys in ingot

form, upon which price quotations in the trade papers

are based, are exceedingly lax. The special committee was accordingly organized, consisting of producers, consumers, general interests, and trade-paper representatives. The committee was assisted through the

whole-hearted support of the Non-Ferrous Ingot

Metal Institute. Through the membership of that

institute, information was received concerning the

alloys at present in use and the uses to which these

alloys are put. More than 600 alloys were reported

upon.

At the suggestion of the joint committee the NonFerrous Ingot Metal Institute also sponsored a re- search associate at the National Bureau of Standards

to study certain of the alloys within each of the classi- fications, with the object (1) to provide the industry

with more complete information regarding the alloys

in use, (2) to be used as a guide in greatly reducing

the number of alloys used, and (3) to be used as a guide in revision of present A. S. T. M. specifications.

Based upon the survey, the specifications for brass

ingot metal were completely revised to include a more

extended list than in the previous specification, and

to formulate more practical and workable specifications. The list includes 15 alloys. These, it is believed, through conscientious effort, education, and

determination, may be used in place of the more than

600 alloys now in use by the industry.

These specifications are published as tentative in

order that they may serve until further knowledge is obtained through the work of the research associate,

and through experience, after which the specifications

Avill again be reviewed and possibly amplified.

LABELS FOR EGGS INCREASES SALES

Greater sales and, in some cases, premium prices for

eggs sold under the New England quality label, in con- formity with the New England Council" farm marketing standards, are reported by New Hampshire

poultrymen, who are enthusiastic over the use of the

label, according to the New England News Letter for

August, 1930. Price premiums ranging from 4 to 10 cents, depending on whether the eggs are sold at wholesale or retail, are being received by some of the producers. All of

the 35 producers in southern and central New Hampshire, who are using the label, believe that it is stimulating sales and helping to establish their product

with the customer as one of high quality, wholly dependable from week to week.
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 11 ] UNITED STATES NAVY A PIONEER IN STANDARDIZATION

Materials and Fittings for Naval Vessels Have Been Standardized

By Capt. Henry Williams, U. S. N., Maintenance Division, Bureau of Construction and Repair, Navy Department

With naval vessels plying the seven seas, far from

sources of supply of materials, the need for standardization was realized long ago, and the Navy has been

consistent in advocating and practicing standardization for many years. Practically all of the materials

that enter into the construction of a man-of-war have

been standardized and are purchased under standard

specifications. Similarly, fittings, appliances, and

equipment all have been standardized and are listed

in the Federal Standard Stock Catalogue in such a manner that they can be ordered according to an

item number as the sole description with assurance

that the article desired will be received.

The small boat outfits of naval vessels offer a good

illustration of the methods employed. These boats

are built according to standard plans and each standard boat of a type is practically identical with every

other of the same type, no matter whether construction is at a navy yard on the East coast or the West

coast. The engines are of standard type and dimensions and installed in the same manner. Parts are interchangeable and spares may be ordered from any

one of the several supply depots. Materials of construction, deck fittings, canopies, fuel tanks and piping, fire-extinguishing systems, lighting installation,

etc., are all standardized and interchangeable.

While it is not possible to standardize the construction of men-of-war to the extent that it has been done

for the small boats, all of their materials and fittings

have been so standardized and many of them are interchangeable. For example, if a ship goes to a navy

yard in a damaged condition requiring extensive hull

repairs, the yard officials can proceed with the assembly of materials with the assurance that those in

stock Avill be entirely suitable. The steel in the struc- ture is purchased according to detailed specifications

giving physical and chemical requirements for each

kind of steel used.

Structural parts may be replaced with assurance

that the strength of the hull and its parts will not be

impaired and affected by the neiv materials. Airports,

stanchions, deck fittings, furniture, galleys, steam kettles, cooking utensils, anchors and chain, plumbing

materials, piping, flanges, valves, boat davits and fit- tings, and other parts too numerous to classify are all made according to standards and thus are easily re- placed from stock materials.

Benefits from standards.

Besides the advantages of standardization, from the

point of view of ease of replacement of damaged and worn out parts, from materials and articles in stock,

there is a very great benefit to be gained in the assur- ance that materials used will be those that have been

determined to be most effective and economical ; for

example, it was the custom formerly to issue to ships

the raw materials for painting, leaA7 ing to the best

judgment of the painter the mixing of the materials

to make paints as required for use. More than 20

years ago it was decided that this procedure was not

the most economical nor efficient, and since then paints

have been issued ready mixed for use according to formulas which haAT e been determined to be the most

effective and most economical for the various purposes

for which required.

The Navy has been a pioneer in this regard in standardization of ready-mixed paints. Now it is almost

universally the practice in the trade to sell paints

mixed, ready for application, according to formulas

which have been determined to be the most effective. The Navy maintains paint -manufacturing plants in

several of the navy yards, and experiments continue

with new materials and formulas in the effort to improve their product.

The National Bureau of Standards has been of

great assistance in this work, as well as the technical

organizations of the manufacturers’ associations. As

a result of this practice naval ships are painted uniformly and economically and ahvays appear to the

best advantage. In this connection the standardization of paint has resulted in the saving of many millions of dollars to the Government, as not only the

Navy Department has profited by the use of these

standard paints but the Merchant Fleet Corporation

and other branches of the Government draw their

paint supplies or utilize the standard formulas developed by the Navy.

Navy cooperates Avith others.

The Navy Department has always cooperated freely

with the National Bureau of Standards, the American

Society for Testing Materials, the American Standards Association, and with other technical societies

in the preparation of its standard specifications in order to obtain the materials best fitted for its purposes

and to conform so far as practicable to commercial

practice.

In selecting for its use the appropriate grades of

commercial material the Bureau of Construction and

Repair of the Navy Department collaborated with the

leading manufacturers and representative trade associations. Several years ago this bureau revised its entire system of lumber purchase by adopting the

standard grading rules and requirements of the national lumber associations. This policy has resulted

in a more uniform quality of lumber purchased and.

in addition, a net saving of more than $200,000 a year, due to the elimination of nonstandard requirements.

Similarly, by cooperation with the Hemp Brokers

Association and the United States Department of

Agricidture the Navy purchases of hemp for the

manufacture of manila rope have been placed on a sound, as well as economical, basis. In preparing purchase specifications for materials

the NaAr y selects standard commercial grades in all cases Avhere such commercial grades are suitable for

the work in question. This is of great benefit and

economy, whether purchasing in large quantities for

stock or in small quantities for urgent repair.
112 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930

Outstanding examples of Navy Department leaflet specifications covering grades of material comparable

with standard commercial grades are : Wire rope,

nails, machine screws, bolts and nuts, corrosion-resisting steel, paint materials, pipe and tubing, sheeting and sheets, thread and twine, fire hose, glass, canvas, and both hand and machine tools. Not only has the Navy profited by this policy of

standardization, but the commercial world and the

trade similarly have been benefited.

STANDARDS IN GAS INDUSTRY

Gas Industry Has Always Functioned According to Approved Specifications or Standards

By Alexander Forward, Managing Director, American Gas Association

The gas industry has many ramifications which ex- tend from the procurement of the raw materials for

production, through the various processes of modification right into the appliances installed on customers’ premises where the ultimate product is utilized. Geology arid mining play an important part in the

selection of the raw materials suitable for conversion

or the extraction of an already finished product from

the depths of the earth; an intimate knowledge of combustion, and its application in changing solid and liquid raw materials to the conveniently handled gaseous

form, is essentially based on the fundamentals of

physics and chemistry; so also is the processing to which the gas is subjected after production in order

to render it suitable for commercial and domestic

utilization as well as recover valuable by-products.

Measurement, storage, and distribution, the latter whether a few miles locally under normal holder pres- sure or many hundreds of miles under high pressure, are operations dependent almost entirely upon the well'- established laws of physics.

It will, therefore, readily be seen that in the production of gas the question of standards has always

played an important part. From its inception, more

than a century and a quarter ago, the manufacturedgas industry, for example, has always functioned, in

all its activities, according to specifications or

standards. The majority of such requirements, particularly as to quality, were originally self-imposed,

such as candlepower, later displaced by heating value,

purity with regard to freedom from hydrogen sulphide

and minimum sulphur compounds, as well as limited

ammonia content. Later, as regulatory bodies were

created and municipal legislation enacted, these specifications of quality were incorporated into the requirements of State and municipal regulatory bodies.

In the production of gas, for example, either at the point of manufacture or place of extraction from

the earth, meters are used for indicating and recording the respective volumes of the product handled.

The quality also, as expressed in terms of heatingvalue (British thermal units) is also determined, and

in both these instances measuring devices and thermometers as calibrated by the National Bureau of

Standards, are employed for standardization of the

installed' equipment.

Association correlates activities.

The American Gas Association, as the national body

of a united gas industry, coordinates and correlates

the manifold standardization activities of a great

and widespread industry. Much of this is accomplished by cooperating in the work of the American

Standards Association, the U. S. Department of Commerce through its Bureau of Standards and Bureau

of Mines, U. S. Public Health Service, and other

recognized Government and commercial agencies. In

its own laboratory, the American Gas Association

practices standardization to a marked degree in that

specifications of quality and performance for all types

of gas-using equipment are prepared by appropriate

and representative committees to which the respective appliances must conform; such conformity must

be clearly apparent upon investigation and practical

test at the American Gas Association testing laboratorjq Cleveland, Ohio.

In preparation of the specifications of quality and

performance by representatives of the gas companies,

manufacturers of equipment, interested departments

of the United States Government collaborate.

As a result of all this, the industry now has available for its customers, appliances which are known

to be safe and satisfactory in all respects, a condition

which is indicated by the laboratory seal of approval

thereon ; such equipment is to be found in the show- rooms of the companies and dealers throughout the

land and is gradually forcing the inefficient and sometimes dangerous equipment off the market and so out

of the homes of the people.

Among the more important and immediately tangible results from the standardization activities of the

American Gas Association, none are probably more

striking than the successful operation of the testing

laboratory and its performance requirements which

have resulted in vast!)’ improving the quality of per- formance. Similar requirements have been adopted

by the gas fraternity of the Dominion of Canada, and

a laboratory approval seal is there effective. Recommendations for comparable work are well under way

in the French gas industry, both of these developments

largely being the results of visits of inspection paid by

Canadian and French engineers.

Another outstanding development is the American

Gas Safety Code which was sponsored by the National

Bureau of Standards and the American Gas Association, covering the gas installations in buildings and

promulgating a code which it is hoped will go far

toward securing uniformity.

Association cooperates with other societies.

The gas industry has actively participated with the

Department of Commerce undertaking for the standardization of boilers used for storing heated water for

domestic purposes; the gas industry adopted the standards adopted and agreed upon at the conference be-
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 113

tween gas representatives, plumbers, and manufacturers. Another striking example of successful standardization and whole-hearted cooperation is the uniform

simple and standard resuscitation practice worked out

in conjunction with the U. S. Public Health Service

and involving highly technical and medical research

work. As a result, information in a conveniently

handled and readily learned form has been spread

broadcast throughout the country giving in simple

language precise instructions for the application of the

Schaefer prone pressure method for artificial respiration. As a result numerous lives have been saved.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the gas

industry, through its national organization, the American Gas Association, is a firm believer in standards

and their commercial as well as technical application.

An attempt has been made to describe some of the

work in which the association is most actively

participating.

STANDARDS FOR DRY SKIM MILK

Industry Promulgates Standards for Dry Skim Milk

By D. H. Proctor, American Dry Milk Institute

Drying milk has been a known practice in the dairy

industry for several decades, but it was not until 1916

that the amount of milk powder manufactured warranted a place in the United States census reports. At

that time production approximated 16,500,000 pounds.

In 1925 the American Dry Milk Institute anticipated the need for an agency to gather reliable statistics at frequent intervals, and to stabilize and promote the development of the industry along healthful

lines. In that year the production reached 73,317,000

pounds, an increase of about three times the 1916 fig- ure. Indications are that the 1930 production will

approximate 180,000,000 pounds.

Since a principal objective of trade associations is the establishment of standards of quality, the American Drjr Milk Institute took steps toward this end

almost at the outset. As opinions varied on what

should constitute fair and practical requirements for

the several grades, this matter received immediate at- tention and the setting up of acceptable methods of

analyses followed.

The first comprehensive report of the standards

committee submitted in 1927 suggested a scale of re- quirements on skim-milk powder which was classified for human and animal consumption. The two classes were determined by methods of manufacture and

quality. At that time it was felt that further work

was justifiable and the results obtained by the committee should be published. Approximately two more

years were devoted to the detailed requirements for

three grades of powder, each distinguished by its method of manufacture.

Pamphlet released in 1929.

In November, 1929, the booklet, The Grading of

Dry Skim Milk, was published by the institute as the

joint work of the members of the standards committee.

Simultaneously, the entire membership of the insti- tute subscribed to an advertisement published in all the business and trade magazines, and pledged themselves to support the standard grades that were published, and offered their product in conformity to those standards.

The establishment of standards presupposes a test- ing agency or body. Subsequently a laboratory was

set up in the institute, where impartial and accurate

analyses are made of samples submitted by manufacturers and users, and a routine trade sampling is car- ried on with a view to determine, with some degree

of accuracy, the quality of powder offered to the trade.

Three standards promulgated.

Briefly, the system embraces three grades or standards—“ extra,” “ standard,” and “ third,” with con- sideration given to the method of manufacture ; that

is, the other requirements being uniform, the solubility

requirement varies in stringency for the spray, vacuum drum, and roller dried powder. “ Extra ” grade calls for lower fat content, moisture, acidity,

solubility index, and bacterial count than the “ standard ” grade, while all powder that falls short of the

“ standard ” grade requirements is classified as “ third ” grade, and declared unfit for human consumption.

Dry skim milk is highly hygroscopic ; that is, its moisture content increases when exposed to the air. Hence the pamphlet on grades gives very specific in- structions as to the methods of taking samples, in or- der to safeguard the system of grades and quality.

Since the specifications were published definite improvement is noted throughout the industry and is reflected in a more acceptable and increased consumption of the product.

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS TO CONDUCT SURVEY TO IMPROVE ITS ASSISTANCE TO GOVERNMENTAL PURCHASING

The National Bureau of Standards is planning to conduct a survey for the purpose of determining the

best method for rendering the maximum possible

assistance to Federal, State, county, and municipal

Governments -who are engaged in making their purchases out of tax money.

Questionnaires have already been sent to all of the

officers of the various governments requesting information relative to the methods employed by them with

reference to purchases made of materials, equipment,

and supplies for the operation of their various bureaus, departments, and public institutions, and also for the construction and maintenance of highways

throughout the country. It is hoped that the information to be received from replies to the questionnaires will be of value to the bureau in its efforts to aid these governments.
114 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930 NEED FOR STANDARDIZATION OF ELECTRICAL CONTROLS

Great Diversity in Control Devices Prevents Their Economical Use

By John F. Kelly, Managing Director, Association of Iron and Steel Electrical Engineers

Some of the most interesting romances of modern

industries are the great developments made in the use of electricity in our steel mills. Application of elec- tricity has advanced hand in hand with the developments in the manufacturing of steel and, undoubtedly

has made possible many of our present economic steel- mill practices. One of the greatest advantages of

the application of the electric motors accrues from

the ease, flexibility, and accuracy with which the drive

may be controlled.

In the period of keen competition any change in

conditions or any development which affects cost is naturally of vital importance. That may be one of

the main reasons for the present-day trend toward

greater use of automatic control. Installation of

automatic control in most cases reduces the labor cost, and it removes from the operator the repetitive duties

which have to be executed thoughtlessly. By doing

this, automatic control improves the work of the man

by giving him more time to think and less chance to become tired. While great strides have been made in the standardization of steel mill auxiliary motors, the control problem has held a secondary place with the re- sult that each control manufacturer offers control

varying in many details from any other manufacturer’s product or layout. Present lack of control

standardization makes control diagrams very difficult for an average electrical man to understand, because

manufacturer’s methods differ so greatly.

In each steel mill to-day a relatively small number

of electrical men are sufficiently familiar with magnetic

control diagrams to be able to read any diagram placed

before them. As a result, in the great majority of

plants usually only a few repair men are qualified to work on magnetic control boards, and even they are generally familiar only with some particular make or type of control. When they are called to work on a different type of control it results in slow progress, because the man has not only to familiarize himself

with the new diagram and the arrangement of the

units, but he also has to find out the meaning of the

symbols used. Even though a steel plant may want

to standardize on one manufacturer’s equipment, there

is always a certain amount of apparatus of other

makes that gets in around the mills on more or less important applications. This condition applies to controllers probably more than any other class of electrical equipment.

Need for standardization.

There is a long-felt want, and it would be of great

assistance to the electrical men working on magnetic

controllers in our steel mills and of material savins in

time and money to these mills, if the various control

manufacturers would standardize on the nomenclature,

symbols for wiring diagrams, schematic diagrams, and

the general arrangement of apparatus on the control

board.

As an illustration of the present-day practice let us take a reversing controller and compare the diagrams

of some of the manufactures who build steel mill auxiliary control equipment. It is interesting to note that,

due to lack of standardization, numbering of wiring

varies many ways. Some show the sequence of contractors and scheme of main connections, while others

make up a separate diagram showing the line diagram.

The forward and reversing contactors are designated

by some manufacturers as “ F” and “ R,” while others use “ IF ” and “ 2F,” “ IB ” and “ 2B,” or “ IF ” and

“ 2F,” “ 1R ” and “ 2R,” and still others call them

“No. 1 and No. 4—No. 2 and No. 3.” The accelerat- ing contactors likewise are known as “ R2—R3,” “ 2R

3R,” “ 1A—2A,” or “ No. 11—No. 12,” etc. To further illustrate the present lack of standardization, a certain contactor is now being spoken of as

(1) line contactor, or (2) circuit-breaker contactor, or (3) negative-line contactor, or (4) contactor for

opening the side of the line opposite the reversing contactors. On the wiring diagrams some of the control

manufacturers represent this contactor by the letter

“ M,” while others call it the “ CB ” or “No. 5

” contractor. Various standard programs.

Some of the larger steel plants which maintain engineering and drafting departments make up their own

standardized diagrams to meet their plant requirements. In a plant using many hundred magnetic

controllers the cost of making these diagrams is considerable, even though many of the panels are duplicates. In smaller plants which are without facilities for this kind of work it is almost impossible to get

this redrawing of diagrams taken care of. Since the

manufacturer has to make a diagram for each different

control panel he supplies, the expense of making these

diagrams standard in regard to symbols and general

arrangement and to include all the necessary information would be small indeed and would save the duplication of this work in the steel plant as well as the

expense involved.

Operation delays can be reduced if the maintenance

electrician is entirely familiar with the control for

which he is responsible. If he has ready access to the

blue prints of these panels, and is taught to study same

and use them in a case of trouble, valuable time may

often be saved. If the maintenance electricians are

to be expected to study these diagrams, then they must

not only be made as simple as possible but must be

made in standard form, so that they are easily understood and can be readily followed.
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 115

MEASURING CONSISTENCY OF PLASTIC MATERIALS

Numerical Values of Certain Constants Ultimate Goal of Research

The study of the laws of flow, especially of plastic

materials, and the measurement of their consistency;,

has become of such great interest in a variety of in- dustries that the Society of Rheology has been formed

to consider these subjects. The first meeting of the

society was held at the National Bureau of Standards,

December 19 and 20, 1929.

Consistency may be defined as the property which

determines the flow-pressure relation, or, in more general terms, the distortion-force relation. The simplest

case is that of a liquid where the rate of flow is proportional to the pressure and the viscosity may be

expressed by a single numerical value. With mushy,

colloidal, or plastic materials like grease, paint, nitrocellulose solutions, putty, or moist clay, there is no

such proportionality, and at least two numerical values

are required to define the more complicated flow-pressure relation.

The simplest and most general method of measuring

the consistency of a, plastic material is by forcing it through a capillary tube under constant pressure. Successive observations must be made at different

rates of flow but at constant temperature. The rate of

flow is then plotted against the pressure-producing

flow, and the resulting flow-pressure graph approximately defines the consistency at the given temperature. The Bulkley consistometer, developed at the

National Bureau of Standards, and described in the

April, 1930, issue of the Journal of Rheology, is one

of the most convenient types of apparatus for obtaining data required for a flow-pressure graph.

To standardize the capillary-tube method, so that

identical results could be obtained in different laboratories, one method of procedure would be to duplicate

the capillary exactly and report merely the time of

flow for a given volume of material under standard

conditions. This is the method adopted with the

Saybolt viscometer for measuring the viscosity of

petroleum oils. Another method of procedure would

be to determine certain constants of the material which

will define the consistency and which will be independent of the method of test and of the dimensions

of the apparatus. As yet, however, there is no accurate formula available, either theoretical or empirical,

by which the factors necessary to "define consistency

may be calculated from the flow-pressure graph in

such a manner that the numerical values obtained will

be absolutely independent of the dimensions of the

capillary. Such a formula is available only when the

rate of flow is proportional to the pressure. Thus at present, although substantial progress has

been made and methods are available which are in

many cases sufficiently accurate for plant control, the

measurement of the consistency of plastic materials

is in the early stages of development. We are far

from the standardization of methods of test or of units

of measurement. It is not as yet even certain how

many or what factors are needed to define the consistency of a given material. The ultimate goal is to obtain numerical values of the factors of consistency and values which will define consistency and

can be obtained not only capillaries of different diameter but also by entirely different methods of test.

PREVENTING FIRE CASUALTIES

Estimated 6,000 Persons Die Annually From Fire

Roughly, there are some 4,000 persons in the United

States who meet death in their homes by fire each

year. It is bustomary to hear the annual fire toll ex- pressed in millions of dollars because excellent facilities are available for appraising the loss in dollars. The loss expressed in fatalities and casualties is no

less significant, although it can only be expressed

roughly as about 6,000 deaths and 14,000 injuries, twothirds of the deaths and half the injuries occurring in

places of abode, including dwellings, apartments, and

hotels. The loss of life and limb by fire, especially in homes,

is cause for serious thought as to measures for prevention. All those measures known to be effective in re- ducing property loss by fire are, of course, effective also in reducing loss of life. Additional safety measures may be resorted to for the protection of life. Chief among these are exits and means of escape. Safeguards for the home against fh‘e may be suggested by the following classifications

1.

Reducing to a minimum sources of ignition. This

includes careful habits in respect to fire and excellent

maintenance of those pieces of apparatus normally

containing fire, such as furnaces, flues, stoves, heaters,

lights, etc.

2. Construction designed to retard the spread of

fire, including slow-burning building construction,

fire-resistive roofs, and walls and stops against the

communication of fire between various spaces in a building.

3. Exits and means of escape for persons, including means of egress through widely separated parts of a building, inclosed stairways between floors, and exterior escapes.

4. Fire-extinguishing equipment, including readily

available pails of water in the home, hand fire extinguishers, and automatic sprinklers in basements, kitchens, and flue spaces in the attic.

5. Means of summoning help, including readily

available telephones, near-by fire-alarm boxes, and

automatic fire-detection devises.

When awake, the human machine is probably the

most sensitive of all fire-detecting devices, and if the

telephone or fire alarm is promptly used to summon

help, much fire loss may be avoided. Fire, however,

may gain important headway before persons asleep in a building discover it. This opens a field for auto- matic fire-detection devices, signaling competent

assistance that has not yet been thoroughly exploited

as a means of avoiding casualty from fire.
116 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1030 STANDARDIZATION OF BIOLOGICAL STAINS

Dyes Employed in Microscopic Work Are of Decided Importance and Have Presented Their Own Problems

in Standardization

By II. J. Conn, Chairman Commission of Standardization of Biological Stains, Geneva, N. Y.

The best-known uses, of dyes are for coloring cloth

and foods. There is, however, one other purpose for

which dyes are employed that is extremely important, even though the quantities thus used are almost in- finitesimal in comparison with those employed for

textile purposes. The use in question is to make ex- tremely minute objects visible when examined under

the microscope. Dyes thus employed are known as biological stains. Their standardization has presented

much more complicated problems than those involved

in that of textile dyes or food colors, but these problems seem at last to be under way of satisfactory

solution.

The standardization of biological stains has been

accomplished through an unofficial body of scientists in cooperation with the manufacturers who have vol- untarily agreed to accept the standards proposed. To

explain the situation, a little discusion of the history

of the movement seems necessary. Source of biological stains.

Before the recent war all biological stains, like

other dyes, were obtained from Europe, and nearly

all of them came from one German concern. This

concern was supposed by scientists to manufacture

these stains, but it is now realized that they probably

really purchased commercial dyes and submitted them

to a very crude and empirical sort of standardization.

On account of the small quantities of dyes employed

in this manner the stock already in America at the

beginning of the war was in most instances enough

to last until after the armistice.

The real difficulties of American biologists in obtaining dyes for microscopic work came, therefore,

during the few years following the war when the pre- war stocks were becoming exhausted and the embargo

prevented fresh importations. At about this time the

dealer’s in biological supplies found it necessary to obtain dyes from various sources, often unreliable, and

to sell1 them as biological stains. The result was very

frequent dissatisfaction on the part of the users; and

American stains very quickly fell into disrepute among

biologists, although, as a matter of fact, many of these

unsatisfactory stains were actually of foreign manufacture.

Importance of biological stains.

The seriousness of this situation arose from the importance of biological stains, as can be shown by mentioning a few of their uses. Without the use of dyes,

neither the diphtheria organism nor the tubercle or- ganism could be distinguished from other kinds of bacteria, and, accordingly, the rapid diagnosis of these two

diseases would no longer be possible. When a tumor

suspected of malignancy is being removed, a small1 piece of it is usually examined under the microscope to

see whether or not it is actually cancer and to guide the

surgeon as to the extent of operation necessary.

Beside these obviously important uses of stains and

their utilization in other similar methods of diagnosis,

they are also einploj^ed in a countless number of dif- ferent ways in microscopic research, assisting biologists in understanding the human body in learning the

nature of its diseases, and in suggesting methods for

their control. Without dyes for use in microscopic

work, much of the modern progress in the biological

sciences would have been impossible.

In such work absolute reliability of the dyes is imperative, as one must be sure that results obtained with

one lot may be duplicated with another. As such

standardization did not exist after the World War,

and as it was quickly discovered that it had in fact never existed, American biologists took the matter in

their own hands and decided to remedy the situation.

Procedure followed.

The work on this problem started with the American

Societjr of Bacteriologists, but it quickly aroused the

interest of the National Research Council under which

a project was begun with the cooperation of several of

the national biological1 societies. The result was to establish an independent body, affiliated with the National Research Council, and known as the Commission

of Standardization of Biological Stains. This commission is an organization which derives its authority

by officially appointed representatives of the following

societies : American Association of Anatomists, Society

of American Bacteriologists, Botanical Society of

America, American Chemical Society, American Medical1 Association, International Association of Medical

Museums, American Association of Pathologists and

Bacteriologists, and American Society of Zoologists.

The work undertaken has involved considerable re- search as well as the routine testing of stains. This,

of course, means expense. Very fortunately the work

at the start attracted the attention of the Chemical

Foundation, with the result that constantly increasing financial support from this organization has been

secured for the work.

Great number of dyes of value.

There are somewhere between 50 and 100 dyes

known to be of value in microscopic work. Attention was given first to those most frequently used, but gradually the work is being extended to include also some

of the dyes less commonly employed as stains. The

standardization of each individual stain has presented a research problem in itself. The various stains are, therefore, handled in different ways, but, briefly, the

general method employed in their standardization is as follows

The manufacturer submits to the Biological Stain

Commision a sample of each batch when it is ready

to be put on the market. The stain commission has

it given an optical analysis at the laboratory of the

color and farm wastes division of the United States
OCTOBER. 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 117

Department of Agriculture (where one of the commission’s assistants is located) and then sees that the

sample is tested by one or more biologists, skilled in some technic calling for this stain, to learn whether it gives satisfactory results in actual use. If it does, the

manufacturer is allowed to sell it under a special label stating that it has been approved by the stain commission for certain definite purposes. Dyes thus labeled

are known as certified stains.

Rejection of dyes.

Dyes that are rejected as biological stains are ordinarily entirely satisfactory as textile dyes. In the

case of a stain that is rejected, therefore, the manufacturer either reworks the batch to make it more

satisfactory to biologists or has it sold for ordinary

technical use, according to whether the company has

a commercial outlet available for this particular dye.

This method of standardization has been adopted

because one can not as yet absolutely predict from the

physicochemical characteristics whether or not any

dye will be satisfactory as a biological stain. At the

present time, however, the stain commission is in co- operation with the Army Medical Museum in drawing up physicochemical specifications which will probably be considered by the Federal Specifications

Board.

STANDARDIZATION MOVEMENT IN SOUTH AFRICA

Movement Has Cooperation from All Interested Elements

By Prof. John Ore, Witwatergrand University, Johannesburg, South Africa

In a short statement it is not possible to trace all the details of the progress and development of standardization in South Africa during the past 30 years. The value of the work done by the main committee

and various subcommittees of the South African

branch of the British Engineering Standards Association is being more widely recognized by the Government departments and public bodies in South

Africa every year. The subcommittees in existence at the present time

are the mechanical, the electrical, the civil and architectural. and the chemical subcommittees, while subcommittees on agricultural implements and testing of

blasting fuzes (explosives) are being formed.

This branch of the British Engineering Standards

Association consists of representatives of practically

each Government department, each mining house,

each municipality, and the various technical societies

and, in addition to considering and criticizing where

necessary each draft specification received from the

parent body in London, keeps in view the question

as to how existing standard specifications for materials, paints, etc., might require to be modified to suit the climatic and other local conditions. It affords

every encouragement to manufacturers and consumers

to adopt the following specifications which it has

prepared within recent years, as well as those adopted

by the parent body: Lime (S. A. No. 3, 1926) ; Coal

sampling (S. A. No. 4, 1923) ; Coal analysis (S. A.

No. 5, 1924) ; White metal alloys (S. A. No. 6, 1928) ; Soaps for industrial purposes (S. A. No. 7, 1925) ; and

Water pipes and fittings (S. A. No. 8, 1925).

While realizing that a vast amount of work yet

remains to be done, the South African branch continues to work in the direction of having the British

Engineering Standards generally adopted throughout

South Africa. Much of the success in this connection

is due to the valuable assistance so freely given by the

members of its committees, and the cordial cooperation of the Government departments, mining houses,

municipalities, and other public bodies. This is indeed

the predominating feature of the standardization

movement which is so prominently identified with the

development of South African industries.

“CAR CARD” CERTIFICATION FOR LUMBER

SHIPMENTS

Consumer Identification of Lumber by National Marking System Explained in Booklet on “ Know the Lumber You

Use ”

It is only recently that it has become possible for

the consumer to assure himself of the grade, nominal

size, species, and quality of the lumber he purchases.

This innovation is resulting in marking boards and

timbers with grade marks that consumers can understand and interpret in terms of their specific needs

and in stamping them with consumer-protecting

marks carrying an organized industrial guaranty.

By way of explaining what this means to the con- sumer and how it operates and how it came about, a booklet—“Know the Lumber You Use ’’—has been

published by the National Lumber Manufacturers

Association.

“ Know the Lumber You Use ” lists the various

grades provided bv American Lumber Standards and

notes the qualities that characterize each grade. It explains how these basic grades have been applied by

all recognized associations of softwood-lumber manufacturers to the peculiarities of particular species and

how these associations stand responsible for expert

standard grading at the mills. It tells of the nationally used “ trade-mark ” applied by leading mills to accurately graded lumber, under license of the National Lumber Manufacturers Association, as an assur- ance of the entire organized industry that the lumber

will meet specifications or command a refund. And

it explains the further assurance offered carload buyers through the “ car card ” system of grade and tally

certification for such shipments. An interesting illus- tration shows how a log is cut up for different qualities and sizes of lumber.
118 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER. 1930 CLAY PRODUCTS IMPROVED BY FEDERAL RESEARCH

Various Stages of Research on Clay Outlined

By Henry D. Hubbard, National Bureau of Standards

Clay, the raw material, responds remarkably to measured processing, as research discloses through

experiment and measurement.

Clay is the basis of a group of industries ranging

from brick to ornamental porcelain. Intensive re- search on the properties of clay and their controls is modern. In 1910 Congress made such research a bu- reau function. The basic properties and data con- cerning them underlie all uses of clay. The great

variety of clay products adds specific problems in

large numbers.

The National Bureau of Standards’ research chemists and ceramists were carried into the fields of

colloidal chemistry to find ways to govern the quality

and utility of clay. By suitable blending, chemical

and heat treatment, it was found possible to produce

any quality of clay desired.

Domestic clays equal imports.

The fiction that only imported clays were suited

to certain uses was challenged by the processing of

domestic clays in the bureau’s laboratories. Research

disclosed the very qualities supposed to be distinctive

of the special clays from abroad.

The development of methods of controlling the

quality of clays made possible the use of vast clay

banks which until then had been worthless. A Congressman from a large clay-bearing State said that

the entire cost of the National Bureau of Standards

from the beginning would not equal the value of its researches on clays.

Bureau contributes new formula.

A new formula for porcelain was one of the National Bureau of Standards!—contributions toward

lengthening the flying time for a single flight. Porcelain failure meant plane failure. To illustrate, during the war airplanes failed mostly because of motor

failure. Motor failure occurred because spark plugs

failed. Spark plugs failed because the porcelain body

of the plug failed. New bureau formulas were

developed and given to the industry to lengthen the

life of the air-motor spark plugs.

An early publication of the bureau’s clay laboratories had to do with the control of clays through col- loidal chemistry. Then came studies in the technique

of brickmaking. That science could tell something to an industry thousands of years old was a discovery.

Experiments threw light on preheating treatment,

burning times, temperatures, mechanical working,

chemical treatment of the clay, mixtures, and the like. The chief ceramist assisted in conducting schools

for managers and foremen in several clay-products

fields. He visited plants, cooperated with other ex- perts in the industry, and added precision to the

measured control of each detail until the product was

so controlled that quality could be invariable and of

the predictably high quality desired.

Qualities of brick studied.

Meantime the desirable qualities of brick were

studied, tests developed, and specifications drawn.

Tests were made of built-up walls of brick with vari- ous methods of bond. Fire tests were made. The most

elaborate fire tests of columns ever made are reported

in a bureau publication showing the manner of failure

to guide engineers in the effective design of columns.

Tests were made on 16-foot columns with 40-inch

square sections, set in various mortars. A crushing

force was applied and measured in the 10,000,000-

Lahoratories in which clay is prepared and formed for ceramics research at the National Bureau of Standards
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 119

pound testing machine of the bureau. In such tests, observation of the manner of failure as well as a study

of the failed structure is important.

Scientific papers published.

Fascinating results of research often emerge. To

duplicate a porcelain glaze, the formula and firing

temperature range must be known. To discover these

by looking at the glaze is crystal gazing worth while.

The bureau’s expert petrographer with his microscope was able to observe the crystal form and measure its distinctive angles and so to identify the material and

measure the crystal size, which tells of the firing temperature. Details of the method are given in one of

the scientific papers published by the bureau covering

its ceramic work. As a result, the petrographer. by

inspection under the lens, can duplicate any formula

and firing temperature from a sample as small as a pinhead.

An important problem studied and reported upon was the effect of firing temperatures on the viscosity

of clay. Resistance to deformation is a trait which

must be relied upon to keep the shape of clay intact

during firing. Data obtained aided in making allow- ance for or controlling such resistance to deformation.

PRODUCTION STANDARDS APPLIED TO MOTOR-VEHICLE MAINTENANCE

Standardization of Operating Equipment Results in Substantial Savings

By H. B. Hewitt, Engineering Assistant Vice President—Operation, Mitten Management

The application of production standards to the

maintenance of passenger cars has been fostered by

car manufacturers. This policy represents the foresight of manufacturers to establish maintenance on a par with factory production. The owner has benefited through this policy by a more uniform car performance and reduced operating costs. Passenger-car maintenance is simplified by having

to deal with a very few different makes or models in one repair shop; therefore, repair men can become

highly skilled and special tools, jigs, and gages can

be develojied or in many cases can be exact duplicates

of those used in the original production of the car, all of which tends to improve maintenance and reduce

costs. It is to the economic interest of fleet operators

to standardize equipment as completely as the service

requirements will permit.

The standardization of operating equipment reflects a saving in every department as compared to operations including a variety of types and makes of vehicles. In Philadelphia there is one fleet of 1,000 taxicabs, all exact duplicates in construction, and a fleet of 416 busses, the chassis of which are practically

duplicates, and the bodies are divided into three types

to meet the variations in service requirements; two

hundred 71-passenger double deck, one hundred and

twenty 33-passenger single deck, and ninety-six 29-

passenger parlor coaches.

The maintenance of these fleets is quite simple as compared with another bus fleet operating in the Eastern States, which has 51 different makes and models,

and another taxicab fleet with 8 different makes and

models.

Tools and equipment.

Probably the most remunerative means of applying

production standards to maintenance is by the use of

adequate tools and shop equipment. It is much easier, more productive, and more economical to train labor

to use tools and equipment for the production of maintenance as well as for the manufacture of apparatus

than to obtain the results by their application of in- genuity and mechanical skill. The psychological effect of rapid production and

ease in obtaining it is stimulating to the entire organization. The value of machine tools and equipment

can not be correctly calculated from their direct production of saving in labor, although these factors

alone are frequently considered.

There is an economic limit to the purchase of tools and equipment and their liquidation. In the retail maintenance business they may be paid by direct

charge for their production. In an operating mainte- nance shop tool investments are carried as equipment

capital and the earnings dissolved in maintenance cost. The proper coordination of tool equipment and operating equipment is largely a matter of experience, foresight, and judgment supplemented by an investigation

and analysis of the value of each device.

Repair methods.

Standardization of repair methods is in accord with

standardization of equipment. It amounts to training the personnel to maintain one type of equipment

in a single manner. This calls for centralization of

instruction. To bring about this condition a manual

known as Standard Practice is used in Philadelphia. It is compiled by the engineering personnel

and distributed to all garage and shop foremen. The

purpose is to accumulate and disseminate all data under one centralized form.

All subjects pertaining to maintenance and garage

and shop procedure are included. The standard clear- ances and tolerances are specified. The contents are bound in loose-leaf form to facilitate additions and

revisions. All copies are called in for examination

at regular intervals.

The value of standard practice is advantageous in maintaining standardization of constructive maintenance, particularly where design changes are to be

effected when repairs are necessary. In constructive

and progressive maintenance the standard-practice

manual serves as a record of changes which have been

effected in the past.

In the preparation of standard-practice data brevity

is essential. This is attained in many cases by the

use of drawings which are inserted in the form of

photostats on a standard-size sheet. This manual

serves as a record to which all foremen can be held

responsible for the proper execution of repairs. It
120 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930

adds flexibility to the organization in transferring

and promoting men. It instills confidence in their

ability. It is also a great time saver for the executives and members of the engineering department, as

it eliminates hours of individual instruction and many

group meetings.

As production standards are applied to motorvehicle maintenance to a greater extent, the character

j of the work done in automotive repair shops will

become a commercial adaptation of manufacturing

methods and in many cases the results will be remanufacturing rather than maintenance.

STANDARDIZATION BRIEFS

Standardization of the details of the so-called

“ doctor test ” for sweetness in gasoline and kerosene

has been made by technologists of the Atlantic Refining Co. The “ doctor test ” has been used for many

years by refiners in this country, but under conditions never properly standardized.

Two grades of aviation gasoline in place of five is the hope of the petroleum industry, members of the

Society of Automotive Engineers were told at the

organization’s national aeronautic meeting held in

Chicago during the last week of August.

Tests made by the office of superintendent of

weights and measures of the District of Columbia during the last fiscal year resulted in the condemnation

of 3,363 weighing instruments.

The secretary of the North Carolina State board of

equalization has suggested the use of standardized

valuations of certain classes of property in making the

quadrennial assessments.

The National Bureau of Standards announces the

reaffirmation by industry of the simplified practice

recommendation (No. 8-29), covering range boilers

and expansion tanks. The program will, therefore,

be in effect for another year.

The latest compilation of signers of the National

Code of Practices for marketing refined petroleum

products shows that they now number approximately

16,OOP. This represents the growth in one year, ac- cording to records of the American Petroleum Institute, the code having become effective July 25, 1929.

The technical committee on rubber products has

been directed by the Federal Specifications Board to formulate specifications for airplane tires and tubes. Steps are being taken to ascertain the tire-equipment

requirements of the various Government agencies.

When this preliminary work has been completed, detailed specifications will be prepared with the cooperation of the tire manufacturers’ committee of the

Rubber Manufacturers Association.

Specifications for automotive storage batteries,

which have been in preparation for some time, have

been approved by the Federal Specifications Board

for promulgation. The specifications ai’e iioav beingprinted.

The National Bureau of Standards cooperated with

the Coast Guard in preparing specifications for some

submarine cables which will be used to connect lighthouses to shore stations. Preliminary specifications were prepared, and then a conference called of several

manufacturers to discuss the drafts. Final specifications will give a cable which is expected to be much

superior to that previously purchased, with no increase

in cost. In addition to improvements in materials for

the regular type of cable, the bureau suggested a new

type. Specifications for this type were prepared at the same time as for the regular type. Bids have been

received which show that the proposed type is some- what cheaper than the regular type. The Coast Guard

expects to purchase a few miles of the new type in

order that it may be given a service test.

At a recent meeting of the Mixer Manufacturers

Bureau, held in Milwaukee, the problem of producing

the best quality of concrete desired in construction was

discussed, which led to the adoption of four standards

for mixing concrete. These specifications are merely

in the development stage, intending to serve as a guide

for architects and engineers in producing the best

products possible, and for manufacturers in designing

and arranging their equipment to meet the requirements set forth in the specifications.

The Diesel Engine Manufacturers’ Association has

issued a booklet entitled “ Standards of the Diesel

Engine Manufacturers’ Association.” The text embodies the results of considerable study on the part of

executives and engineers associated ivith companies

actively engaged in the manufacture of Diesel engines.

This booklet contains several chapters dealing with

standard principles of business, standard practices, notes on the selection and installation of stationary

Diesel engines, and standard definitions.

Items relating to nationally recognized specifications to be included in a proposed revision of the National Directory of Commodity Specifications has al- ready reached 6,900.

A standard X-ray ionization chamber has been devised and set up at the National Bureau of Standards

for the purpose of calibrating X-ray dosage meters

used by pln^sicians in the application of X radiation

to the treatment of cancer and other diseases.
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 121

About 1.200 specifications for metals and metal

products are to be reproduced in the draft of the third

volume of the Encyclopedia of Specifications, an offi- cial publication now being compiled by the National

Bureau of Standards. Of these, 930 relate to ferrous

metals and 270 to nonferrous metals.

The accuracy of measurement of time and radiofrequency are both advanced by new equipment in- stalled in the National Bureau of Standards radio

laboratory. The equipment is a primary standard of

frequency which is proportional to the reciprocal of

time. The standard is based on the piezo-electric vi- bration of quartz. The accuracy of the order of 1 part

in 10.000,000, which is 10.000 times the accuracy re- quired five years ago in this field.

Information relating to their standardizing and

specification-making activities have already been re- ceived from many of the more important technical

societies and trade associations for the 1931 Standards

Yearbook. Information is being received from the

first of the foreign national standardizing associations, the correspondence with which is being con- ducted by the American Standards Association.

A committee of the Structural Steel Board of Trade.

New York City, has just completed a study of required

tolerances in the accuracy of the erection of steel work on elevator shafts. One inch from the true

plumb is the normal variation and this has been

adopted as standard for buildings up to 20 stories. Above this, an allowance of one thirty-second of an

inch per story is permitted, with a maximum variation of 2 inches.

An extensive study is being made of measures for

providing safety for X-ray workers and patients

from the harmful effects of X rays and high-voltage

shock. Standard safety regulations are being for- mulated for national adoption and will be proposed

for international adoption.

Simplified practice recommendation No. 111-30,

Color for School Furniture, is now available in printed

form. The program applies to color for school seat- ing, general school furniture, and laboratory furniture. The color selected by the industry is known as School Furniture Brown, and fixed light and dark

limits of shades within this color are designated.

Master color blocks in different woods used in the

manufacture of school furniture are used in the preparation of duplicate color blocks for matching in manufacturing and for sales purposes. The duplicate

color blocks, properly certified, are prepared and dis- tributed by the standing committee in cooperation

with the National School Supply Association.

Printed copies of the recommendation may be secured

from the Superintendent of Documents, Government

Printing Office, Washington, D. C., at a cost of 5 cents

each.

A. S. T. M. ACTIVITIES COVERING GYPSUM

PRODUCTS

Adoption of New Specifications and Several Revisions

Announced

New specifications, and revisions of existing standards for various gypsum products and methods of

testing thereof, have been adopted by the American

Society for Testing Materials. These include changes

in the method of determining the consistency of cal- cined gypsum. Several series of tests were conducted,

using various instruments, and a modified vicat apparatus was found to be the most desirable from the

standpoint of accuracy and ease of manipulation. It has, therefore, been adopted as standard in place of

the Southard viscosimeter.

Other changes made in the standard methods of test- ing gypsum and gypsum products include substituting

a 2-inch cube for the 2 by 4 inch cylinder when determining the compressive strength of calcined gypsum, neat and sanded. It was felt that a cube on ac- count of its facility in molding will give more accurate and uniform results. So as to eliminate the possibility of dry-outs occur- ring in specimens used for determining the compressive and tensile strength, the standard methods of

testing were changed so as to require the specimens

to be retained in the molds in moist air until thoroughly hardened, but not less than 24 hours.

Since the adoption of the standard methods of test- ing gypsum and gypsum products in 1927 the standard

size of gypsum plaster board has been changed from

32 by 36 inches to 16 by 48 inches. The standard-size

specimen for determining strength is 12 by 18 inches.

It is therefore impossible to obtain a sample for testing

with the load applied parallel' to the fiber in the sur- facing. Inasmuch as these boards are applied with

the fiber in the surfacing running at right angles to the supports, the strength of the board with the load

applied parallel to the grain in the paper is not so important. Until sufficient data has been obtained on

the newer-sized boards, which will permit a complete

revision of the specifications for gypsum plaster

board, a note was added to section 26 of the standard

methods of testing gypsum and gypsum products

omitting requirements for test strength with load applied parallel to the fiber of the surfacing.

Revision in section 2, grading, of standard specifications for gypsum plastering sand was made after

carefully considering the specifications which had been

prepared by a joint committee composed of representatives of national organizations interested in the production and use of plaster materials. The revised

specifications insure a better grade of plastering sand.

The tentative specifications for Keene’s cement and

for calcined gypsum for use in the preparation of

dental plasters, with several slight changes, were

adopted as standard.

There were a number of inconsistencies found in the

sections on sampling and on packing and marking of

the standard specifications for calcined gypsum, gyp- sum plasters, gypsum molding plaster, and gypsum

pottery plaster. These have been revised and the

specifications adopted as standard by the society.
122 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER. 1930 STANDARD ELEVATOR REGULATIONS

Elevator Accidents as a Source of Material for Drafting Elevator Codes; Economic Advantages of Uniform

Regulations

By J. A. Dickinson, National Bureau of Standards, Safety Sectional Committee for the Elevator Safety Code

Because vertical travel is the only type of transportation which is universally provided without cost to the passenger, the average person is apt to lose sight of

the elevator as a primary means of transportation. In

a large city a study of building traffic has shown that

the number of passengers carried each day in elevators

exceeds the total carried by all other forms of trans- portation.

and serious accidents occurring in the elevators of this

country. Approximately 6 per cent are due to this cause, and this percentage is steadily decreasing due

to the use of higher factors of safety in the supportingcables, more uniform materials, better safety devices,

and closer supervision and inspection of equipment.

Occasionally cars do fall1 , and the safety devices provided for stopping such cars fail to operate or do not

General view of elevator research laboratory, National Bureau of Standards

This may come as a distinct surprise to many reader’s. However, when one considers that mail carriers, tele- graph messengers, salesmen, and solicitors are making

dozens and sometimes hundreds of visits in the course

of a clay, the number of rides of such passengers be- comes astoundingly high. This, of course, adds con- siderably to the daily total of passengers handled.

Similarly, the average office worker will use the ele- vator for at least four trips per day, and where lockers or washrooms are located on other floors, this number

may be considerably increased.

The average elevator passenger, if asked, would

probably say that the. greatest hazard in riding an

elevator is that due to the parting of the cables. Strangely enough, accidents due to falling cars are rather an insignificant percentage of the total fatal

operate in time to stop the car before it reaches the

bottom. However, these accidents are of minor importance when considering the entire question of ele- vator accidents.

Greater precentage of accident causes. By far the greater percentage of all elevator acci- dents occur to passengers entering or leaving the car, and in practically every case involves only one passenger. The use of interlocking devices will prevent

the movement of the cars away from the landing when

the hoistway doors are open or unlocked, and conversely, will prevent the opening of the door except

when the car is standing at the landing. This group

includes approximately 75 per cent of all of the acci- dents occurring in the United States.
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 123

While the modern elevator is safe, when compared

to other forms of transportation, the number of accidents would materially decrease as a result of the

universal application of a good safety code.

Practically all large cities and many of the larger

States have passed ordinances or acts of legislature

covering the engineering requirements for elevators.

Unfortunately, there are probably more than 100 different codes in the United States. The reason for

this is perhaps best explained by prevalence of the

belief that personal experience is the best teacher.

In other words, many of the rules in such codes have

been written as the result of some major accident in- volving a number of local persons. Such individual

accidents may have little or no significance from the

point of view of requirements to secure the greatest

general safety.

These local accidents probably explain why many

codes fail to require interlocks, although going into

considerable detail as to other less important equipment. While the principle of drafting a code to

correct conditions which have caused individual accidents seems to be logical, a far better way to determine such requirements is a study of elevator-accident

statistics; particularly when such statistics cover a

larger number of installations over a considerable

period of time. Codes based on local accidents are

in many cases unbalanced ; that is, undue stress is laid on certain structural or performance requirements,

while other items which should be given attention are

entirely overlooked.

There apparently is a feeling in some of the smaller

cities that their elevator regulations need not be as

strict as those in larger cities because there is not

the same hazard. It is unfortunately true, however,

that the attraction of gravity is very nearly constant

all over the United States, and a person walking

through a partially opened hoistway door on the

tenth floor of a building in Oshkosh will be just as badly smashed up as he would be after falling a

similar distance in New York or Chicago.

Wide divergence of requirements.

An unfortunate angle to the present multiplicity

of codes is the wide divergence of requirements for

the same piece of equipment. For example, the factors of safety hoisting cables may vary from 5 to as high as 12. If the factors of safety are too low, wear will be extremely rapid, and a cable which is apparently in fairly good condition at the time of

inspection may fail before the next inspection, be- cause it is operating at a stress high enough to cause rapid deterioration. Conversely, if the factor of

safety is placed too high, the building owner may be

penalized by being required to buy cables of too large a

size at a price considerably above that of cables which

would give adequate safety over a reasonable period of

time. It might be said in passing, however, that in

most cases factors of safety on elevator equipment

have not been too high. In fact, in many cases, considering the nature of the stresses involved, particularly the impact stresses during starts and stops, such

factors have been low in comparison with structural

engineering practice.

This wide range in’ requirements for the same piece

of apparatus has one exceedingly unfortunate commercial aspect. At the present time there is, aside

from the question of motors and controls, no real standardization in the elevator industry. When a contract for an elevator or a bank of elevators is placed it is necessary for the manufacturer to study

most carefully the city or State regulations governing

that particular installation, so that practically every

job is built especially to meet local requirements. The

question will naturally be asked, Why do not manufacturers build to a high enough standard to meet

all State or municipal regulations* In the case of

high-speed, high-rise passenger elevators this is done;

that is, in many cases they build to factors of safety

far beyond that required by many local codes and

ordinances, and at the same time provide many safety

devices or features that are not called for in the

local code.

Competition among manufacturers.

In the case of moderate and slow speed elevators the

manufacturer is probably in competition with other

elevator builders, including local concerns, some of

whom may be building principally on a price basis. 1 Such a builder, using a factor of safety of 4 on a car frame, would have a marked advantage over a manufacturer doing a national1 business who would have

established his own standards, using a factor of 7 for

his cars. The latter will be much heavier, involving

stronger cables, heavier counterweights, and a more

powerful hoisting engine, all of which costs money. If

a manufacturer doing a national business is to compete in a jurisdiction where such competition is en- countered, he must build equipment comparable in

price to that permitted by the local rules, which obviously will interfere with the standardization of his

product.

Let us now picture what would happen if the ele- vator regulations for the various cities and States were uniform in requirement. In such a case the manufacturer could standardize his cars, hoisting engines,

cables, and other equipment so that, irrespective of lo- cation, the same equipment could be sent out for a given speed and load. Because the equipment would

be uniform, the manufacturer could standardize his

production to meet a single set of standards rather

than attempt to build elevators to meet the requirements of any one of 70 or 80 different codes, and, barring special type or purpose elevators, could use the same equipment for any job calling for a certain load

and speed. His' entire manufacturing problem would

be so simplified that it would ultimately result in large

savings in cost of production, which saving ultimately

would be reflected in the price of such a product. The

present city or State elevator code is, generally speaking, open to the following criticisms: (1) It does not

cover all hazards. (2) The safeguards required are not in balanced correlation with the relative importance of the hazards. (3) It arbitrarily sets up cer- tain factors of safety which may be either inadequate

or excessively high. (4) Its requirements are in many

cases quite different from those of neighboring cities or States. (5) In many codes low factors of safety

permit a local builder to build lower-grade equipment

and either undersell makers of higher-grade equipment or compel them to build lower-grade equipment.

1 It must not be assumed from this that all of the smaller manufacturers build to as low a standard as permitted ; many such concerns

build an excellent product and hold to high engineering standards.
124 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930

(C) Lack of uniformity in code requirements prevents

commercial standardization with its obvious advantages.

Drafting a code.

A code should be drawn by a committee which truly

represents all points of vieiv at interest in elevators.

Accordingly, the following groups should be included

Enforcement officials (both State and municipal)

elevator manufacturers; manufacturers of elevator

equipment, such as interlocks and electrical equipment; users of elevators; casualty insurance groups;

architects; consulting engineers; various departments

of the Federal Government ; and fire -prevention

Test shaft in National Bureau of Standards showing oil buffer under test

The paper-coated drum to the right is a chronograph for recording

the travel of the car and buffer after impact. The pressure recorder on the left gives a pressure card equivalent to the full length of the

buffer stroke.

groups. It is evident that the regulations desired by

one group may be quite different from those desired

by another group. It is only through a careful consideration of all such divergent views by a representative committee that a fair and workable code can be

prepared.

With a view to working out a national standard

which could be used as a model for State and municipal codes, a sectional committee was established in

1919 under the procedure of the American Engineering Standards Committee (now the American Standards Association) and sponsorship of the American

Societ}^ of Mechanical Engineers, to draft an elevator

code.

Before this code was prepared, an analysis was made of thousands of elevator accidents covering a

period of about 12 years.2 The results of this analysis were used in the preparation of the code, which was

published in 1921. It was widely circulated and used

as the basis of several city and municipal codes. Subsequently a new edition was issued in 1925 under the

joint sponsorship of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, American Institute of Architects, and

the National Bureau of Standards, and likewise widely

used as the basis of city and State regulations. A

revision is now being jirepared and will be available

this fall. In these subsequent revisions use has again

been made of accident statistics; in some cases thousands of accident records were examined to determine

whether or not a particular hazard was of great

enough importance to warrant a special rule covering

the hazard.

Periodic revisions necessary.

•Such periodic revisions are necessary in order that

the code may keep pace with the growth and development of the industry. In no other branch of transportation have greater strides been made during the past

decade than in the elevator field ; this, notwithstanding the remarkable developments in automotive vehicles. The new edition of the code will cover many of

these new features and will, in certain cases, permit further development of high-speed, high-rise equipment.

The elevator is the limiting factor in the height of

buildings; not because it is not possible to build ele- vators which will travel higher than those now in

existence but because of economic consideration, in

balancing space occupied bj^ elevator shafts against

space obtainable by added heights. It is not possible

to provide adequate elevator service to occupants with

present-day equipment beyond a certain limit of

height without using such a large proportion of the

building area that the building itself becomes eco- nomically unsound, a fact that must be given consideration in drafting code requirements.

When the first revision of the code was prepared in

1925, it was evident that there was not available

sufficient information regarding the performance of

certain safety equipment to draw adequate code rules. The committee, therefore, decided to establish a re- search fellowship at the National Bureau of Standards to study the performance of such devices. Thanks

to the whole-hearted cooperation of the industry, adequate financial support was assured, and the work

started. The results of engineering tests on oil buffers were

used in the preparation of the section on buffers in

the 1930 edition. Work on unclercar safeties is now

under way and will be available when the next revision is undertaken.

The American Safety Code for Elevators has been

prepared with two ideas in view—first, to develop an

engineering standard by a national committee in

which all groups of the industry are adequately repre- sented so that this standard will be available for such

cities and States as wish to adopt it ; second, to provide

for periodic revisions so that the code is dependent

very largely upon the demand from citizens for its adoption. The value of such uniform regulations, we believe, is apparent.

2 National Bureau of Standards Tech. Paper No. 202, Results of a Survey of Elevator Interlocks and an Analysis of Elevator Accident

Statistics.
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 125

CURRENT ACTIVITIES OF THE AMERICAN STANDARDS ASSOCIATION

Specifications Under Consideration

The following current information relating to developments in certain standardization projects under

the auspices and procedure of the American Standards

Association has been furnished by that association

Motion-picture standards.

The Society of Motion Picture Engineers has submitted to the American Standards Association for

approval as American standard new material which

covers chiefly dimensions for the 16 mm home movie

film and dimensions for film having a sound track.

This new material is an addition to the existing standards which cover dimensions for cutting, splicing, and

perforating motion-picture film and for the apertures,

projection lens, diameters, and sprockets of motionpicture projectors, and recommended practice in the

taking and projection of motion pictures. The

Society of Motion Picture Engineers is also formally

requesting that it be made proprietary sponsor for

motion-picture standards. The request will be submitted to the A. S. A. standards council.

Revision of electrical symbols.

The sectional committee on scientific and engineering sjunbols and abbreviations of the American Standards Association has issued a revised report on

graphical symbols for electric power and wiring.

This report is a revision of that issued in March, 1930,

and the changes which have been made are a result

of the large number of suggestions and criticisms

which have been received from interested persons.

The report differs from the one it supersedes chiefly

in that the symbols for industrial power switchboard

control and auxiliary devices have been omitted. The

preface states that “ this omission is due to the wide

divergence of opinion and of manufacturers’ practice

which have been found to exist. A supplementary

report covering the subject is recommended when sufficient accord can be obtained, particularly among the

manufacturing companies.”

Gas-burning appliances.

Sole sponsorship for a project entitled “Approval

and Installation Requirements for Domestic Gas

Burning Appliances ” has been requested of the American Standards Association by the American Gas Association. The project would have the following

scope : Establishment of minimum or basic requirements for safe operation, satisfactory performance,

and substantial and durable construction for domestic

gas-burning appliances, together with laboratory

methods of test for determining compliance therewith.

This request has received the favorable consideration

of a special committee which lias recommended that

the A. G. A. be granted a sole sponsorship for the

project with the scope as given above. Final action on

this request will be taken at the meeting of the standards council, as well as upon the personnel of the proposed sectional committee. For a number of years the

American Gas Association has tested domestic gas- burning appliances in its laboratories, and they have

permitted those manufacturers whose devices have

satisfactorily met the requirements of the association

to attach the seal of approval of the association. It is now proposed that the requirements of .the A. G. A.

be submitted to a sectional committee broadly repre- sentative of all having an interest in domestic gas- burning devices in order that the requirements may be

accorded the status of American standard, thus en- abling purchasers of gas-burning devices to know in advance what they may expect from a device bearing

the seal of the A. G. A.

Vegetable-tanned leather belting.

It has been recommended to the American Standards Association by the special conference committee

organized at the February conference on the standardization of leather belting that standardization of

vegetable-tanned leather belting be undertaken. It is suggested that the scope of the project cover, with

respect to vegetable-tanned leather belting, raw material, method of manufacture and construction, marking, physical tests, and chemical tests. The committee

recommends that Federal specification No. 37 be given

careful consideration as a possible basis of development of American standard specifications for vegetable-tanned leather belting.

Code for lighting approved.

The standards council of the American Standards

Association has approved the revised edition of the

Code for Lighting Factories, Mills, and Other Work

Places as American standard. The revised code has

been developed under the sponsorship of the Illuminating Engineering Society. The scope is described in

the introduction as follows

* * * A guide for factory owners and operators in their

efforts to improve lighting conditions in their factories. It makes available authoritative information for legislative

bodies, factory boards, industrial commissions, and others who

are interested in enactments, rules, and regulations for better

lighting.

The importance of the code is indicated in Part I, Advantages of Good Illumination, in which the

effects of good lighting are listed as follows: (1)

Reduction of accidents; (2) greater accuracy in workmanship, resulting in improved quality of goods; (3)

increased production; (4) less eyestrain; (5) greater

contentment of wmrkers; (6) greater cleanliness; (7) more order and neatness in the plant; and (8) supervision of the employees made easier. The figures

given under the heading Reduction of Accidents

are of great interest to the industry.

The National Safety Council in its publication Accident Facts, 1929, estimates the number of fatalities in the United States arising out of or in the course of

gainful employment as 24,000 for the year 1928, and

also that during the same period the lost-time nonfatal

accidents reached the staggering total of 3,125,000,

about 1 accident for every 4 persons engaged in in- dustry, or 1 for every 14 persons gainfully employed.

According to the Travelers Insurance Co. there is warrant for assuming that defective vision and deficient or unsatisfactory lighting installations are con-
126 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930

tributing factors in 18 per cent of these accidents.

Simple computation will show that from these causes industry is being deprived of the equivalent of the

services of 35,000 men throughout each entire year

due to the lost-time nonfatal accidents, and that the

accepted actuarial methods of evaluating fatal acci- dents will bring the total loss to 125,000 men annually. Compensation-insurance premiums for a plant

are based on the amount of the pay roll, and the rate

is determined by the accident experience of a given

industry, modified by the experience of the particular

plant under consideration. AVith a rate of iy2 per

cent the annual premium in the case of 1,000 employees

at an average wage of $40 per week would be $31,200.

An insurance carrier might on an average pay the

claims resulting from four accidents per month in

this plant, and meet its own overhead costs, and still have a slight margin of profit. An experience of five accidents per month, one-fifth of them due to improper lighting (a not unlikely event), would probably leave the insurance carrier no option but to in- crease the rate by 25 per cent. The premium would

then be $39,000, an increase of $7,800.

If poor lighting costs only $3 per employee, or

$3,000 per year total, the owner’s annual expense for

poor illumination actually amounts to $10,800 of

which $7,800 is required by the insurance company

to meet additional accident claims. An expenditure

of $6 to $8 per year per employee for more adequate

illumination might save a large portion, if not all, of the latter amount. The important point here is

the fact that the cost of accidents, due to poor illumination, greatly exceeds the cost of providing adequate

illumination.

Savings effected in econonry of production by good

illumination are estimated to be a significant item to the factory owner. The estimate prepared by the

committee in charge of the code assumes that one

100-watt incandescent electric lamp will take care of one operator; that the lamp burns on the average of

2 hours per day, 300 days per year; that the life of

the lamp is 1,000 burning hours; and that the operator

works 8 hours per day, 300 days per year, at 45 cents per hour. The total cost of maintaining good illumination, including the investment and the annual operating cost, is, therefore, placed at $6 per man per

year. The cost of labor (the annual wages per man

per year) are estimated at $1,080. In an operator,

because of good illumination, saves in production or

in better quality of product the equivalent of only

3 minutes per day for 300 days, he will offset the

annual cost of illumination. Conversely, the operator

losing, for example, 30 minutes per day through poor

illumination losses $60 per year, or ten times the cost of providing proper lighting.

Part II of the code includes sections on measure- ment of illumination; recommended levels of illumination, including tables for various industrial inte- riors; avoidance of glare; importance of adequate

electrical wiring. A Suggested Minimum Regulation to be Established by State Authorities comprises Part III of the code.

SPECIFICATIONS FOR NONMETALLIC MINERALS PUBLISHED

Bureau of Standards Announces New Volume of Encyclopedia Series of Specifications

The division of specifications of the National Bureau

of Standards announces the release of a new volume

of the encyclopedia series of publications entitled, “ Standards and Specifications for Nonmetallic

Minerals and Their Products,” issued as Bureau of

Standards Miscellaneous Publication No. 110. This publication represents an attempt to present

the substance of every available nationally recognized

specification for such commodities as are embraced

within the numerical classification designations 500 to 599 in the National Directory of Commodity Specifications, issued in 1925 and now in process of revision.

The compilation of this directory representing an in- dexing of a review made of all standards, specifications, simplifications, and testing methods in use in

this country, was directed by an advisory board composed of official representatives of 14 national organizations interested in the utilization of specifications.

As a second division of the work, this board recom- mended the compilation of a series of volumes to contain actual copies of specifications, or abstracts, instead

of merely titles. The second part of the work as outlined by the

advisory board, in the form of an encyclopedia series,

made its start in 1927 with the issuance of the volume,

“ Standards and Specifications in the AVood-Using

Industries.” The present publication, “ Standards

and Specifications for NommdMlic Minerals and Their

Products,” is the second volume of the series. This

volume adheres to the method applied in the National

Directory of Commodity Specifications, and employed

also in the publication, “ Standards and Specifications

in the AVood-Using Industries,” of using a decimal

system of classification for commodities. A third

volume dealing with standards and specifications re- lating to ores, metals, and their manufactures is now

in course of preparation.

The classes of commodities covered by standards,

specifications, and simplifications included in this new

book are those for coal, petroleum, asphalt, mineral

wax, glass, clay, abrasive materials, asbestos, chalk,

mica, precious stones and imitations, sulphur, magnesia, salt, graphite, and other nonmetallic minerals.

Tabulations, abstracts, and cross references have

been employed to make the mass of material readily

available for the use of engineers, architects, purchasing agents, or others whose interests are served by

application of the scientific, methodical, and safe

method of marketing them as specification purchasing. For many of the commodities included in this

volume there are several separate specifications.

Duplication is avoided by the use of an extensive ref- erence system. It should be mentioned that, in using

this system, no preference has been given to the standards of one organization over those of another.
OCTOBER, 1930 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY 127

This publication, comprising 680 pages of printed

material, contains the fruits of standardization and

simplification activities in the field of nonmetallic

minerals of more than 70 organizations, including

technical societies, trade associations, and similar or- ganizations qualified to speak for the industry, and

units authorized to represent the Federal Government

as a whole.

Methods of testing incidental to the formulation of

commodity specifications, which form an exceedingly

important part of the work, are conveniently set forth for ready finding. Illustrations and figures

where their inclusion clarifies the text, tables makingavailable related and similar specifications and standards, and a tabulation of the requirements for 17 test- ing thermometers as prescribed by the American

Society for Testing Materials which are used in test methods presented in this volume, are other features

set forth in suitable and convenient form.

To permit the reader to take advantage of the

proper sources for information concerning the issu- ance, later revisions or supplemental data of the

standards and specifications for nonmetallic minerals,

there is also included a list of the organizations,

together with the names and addresses of their secre- taries or other officers whose standards and specifications appear in this volume.

Copies of “ Standards and Specifications for Nonmetallic Minerals and Their Products ” are sold ex- clusively by the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C., at $2.75

per copy.

AGGRESSIVE MERCHANDISING

New England Council Recommends Simplification and Standardization for Aggressive Merchandising

The industrial committee of the New England

Council has just issued a series of six bulletins on

“ aggressive merchandising.” The object of these

bulletins is to suggest to New England manufacturers

ways and means of “ making the sales dollar produce

better net profits.” Questions which indirectly suggest simplification and standardization are : 1. Our product—Does it meet nationally recognized

standards and specifications for goods of its class or kind?

2. Our sales plan—What items in our line constitute

the bulk of our sales? Of our profits? On what

items do we lose money? Should we discontinue any

of these “ loss items ” ? 3. Are we cooperating with the other members of our industry in meeting the competition of other

industries ? 4. Our costs—Shall we discontinue some of our less profitable items and concentrate on our more profitable

ones?

5. Our results—Is our finished product inventory

‘‘ turning over,” item by item, or line by line, at the

most profitable rate for us? For our dealers?

Some simplified practice recommendations originated in New England. Its producers, distributors,

and consumers have evidenced their “ faith ” in

simplified practice by accepting many of the existing

recommendations. The results and benefits of simplification and standardization to New England in- dustries have been made known by the U. S. Department of Commerce and by the affected groups.

STATUS OF FEDERAL SPECIFICATIONS

Eight Promulgations, Seven Revisions, and Six Proposals

Announced

Eight Federal specifications have just been promulgated, 7 submitted for revision, and 6 proposed for

promulgation, according to the Federal Specifications

Board. The revisions and proposed specifications are now before the Government departments and

others interested for comment and criticism. These

specifications also bear the new designation in accord- ance with the system used in the Federal Standards

Stock Catalogue. For copies of the specifications or for further information address the Federal Specifications Board, National Bureau of Standards, Washington. D. C.

SPECIFICATIONS PROMULGATED

F. S. No. Commodity New desig- nation

Pipe and tubing; copper, seamless; pipe (standard, iron-pipe

size); tubing (for pressures up to 4J0 pounds per square

inch) _ . ... . Sodium-carbonate; granular (monohydrate crystals) Time-clock systems; electric. .

WW-P-378.

O-S-581. W-T-411.

P-S-631. H-B-531. W-F-391. HIW6.

ZZ-T-381.

Soda; caustic (lye) (for) cleaning purposes .

Fire-alarm systems; electric, hand-operated... Packing; asbestos, sheet, compressed

Tires; automobile, pneumatic (2a supplement to ZZ-T-S81)

SPECIFICATIONS UNDER REVISION

179 Paper; blueprint No. l

rgrade (sensitized) 179 Paper; blueprint No. 1 grade (unsensitized). 10B Paints; lead-zinc base, ready mixed and semipaste, white TT-P-121. 227B Cushions; ring, rubber . . . ZZ-C-796.

364 EE-S-631.

389 Mincemeat (part of F. S. 389) PP-M-351.

389 Yeast (part of F. S. 389) EE-Y-131.

PROPOSED SPECIFICATIONS

Figs; canned

Folders; heavy and extra heavy (calendered) Boxes; wooden, wire bound, empty7 Glycerine (glycerol) . Solvent; drv cleaning .. Pipe fittings (125-pound brass or bronze)

NN-B-631.

STANDARD APPROVED FOR RED-CEDAR

CLOSET LINING

Stipulation Made That 75 Per Cent or More of Each Piece

Must Be of Red Heartwood

The acceptance of commercial standard specifications for the grading of red-cedar closet lining has

been assured by the enthusiastic support of about 90

per cent of the manufacturing trade and numerous

large distributors and consumers. The quality standards established for this com- modity represent the efforts of the more progressive

manufacturers who are desirous of marketing a high-
128 COMMERCIAL STANDARDS MONTHLY OCTOBER, 1930

quality product that will merit the good will and

confidence of the consumer. While it is hardly to be expected that each prospective home owner will familiarize himself with the

requirements of the commercial standard grade of

cedar closet lining, he may be protected in his purchases by the application of a manufacturers’ label that will guarantee conformity to the established

standards.

The buyer, therefore, need not purchase cedar closet lining with a large portion of sap wood (white wood),

since the standard grading rules demand that 75 per

cent or more of each piece must be of red heartwood.

Other requirements cover standard thicknesses and

lengths, matching, and minor defects that are permissible.

October 2, 1930, was fixed as the date on which the

standard should become effective. This action was

taken by the general conference when the proposed

standard Avas approved. The conference also au- thorized the appointment of a standing committee

representative of all branches of the industry to consider the need of revising the specifications as time

requires.

o
SCIENTIFIC, TECHNICAL, AND COMMERCIAL

PERIODICAL PUBLICATIONS ISSUED BY THE

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS

BUREAU OF STANDARDS

JOURNAL OF RESEARCH

The new Journal describes the bureau’s re- search results in science and technology. The

union of science and its applications in one

journal shortens the lag between discovery

and application.

All engaged in industry and commerce should

have available for current use and permanent

reference, the Bureau of Standards Journal of

Research.

Early in its firSt year the Journal developed a

liSt of paid subscribers double the anticipated

maximum.

This Journal is full of interest to executives

and technicians controlling industries and

commercial enterprises. It enables them better to promote efficiency by determining the

scientific measured controls ofprocess through

experimental and theoretical research.

Issued monthly

Subscription price, $2.75 per year

TECHNICAL NEWS BULLETIN

The Bureau of Standards periodical with a WAR RECORD! Started during the dark

days of 1917 to keep the Army and Navy and

other branches of the Government informed

of progress in scientific war research at the

bureau. Upon urgent request this publication was continued and expanded to serve the

Government, science, and industry.

The TECHNICAL NEWS BULLETIN will

keep you informed of current progress in the

scientific and technical work of the bureau’s

laboratories, and gives each month a liSt of

the publications of the bureau. A complete

cross index is published with the December

issue.

You can not afford to be without the TECHNICAL NEWS BULLETIN. Every article is short and to the point. The busiest executive can afford the time to read it. O# JoSe

COMMERCIAL STANDARDS

MONTHLY

Issued monthly

Subscription price, 25 cents per year

STANDARDS YEARBOOK

FOR 1930

This new governmental periodical is a review

of progress in commercial simplification and

standardisation. It is the only journal of its kind. It covers the national movement initiated by President Hoover for the reduction

of needless sizes and varieties of products and

the promotion of voluntary commercial

Standardisation by industry.

The Secretary of Commerce in the firSt issue

of this new journal said: “Certain Standards,

such as those used for weights and measures,

* * * have been fixed by legislative enactment. Mandatory Standards of this character, however, are few in number when compared with the large and steadily growing

volume of Standards developed by industry

and commerce and voluntarily maintained.

* * * The activities of the Commercial

Standardization Group of the Bureau of

Standards are concerned with Standards

adopted by voluntary agreement.”

Subscription price, $1 per year

The new Standards Yearbook for 1930 is the

fourth annual issue of a publication devoted to the great and growing field of Standardisation

in its broad aspects. It gives a summary of

progress.

Standardisation is a world-wide movement.

It covers all industries. It is part of the application of scientific methods to industry. Its achievements are of interest and concern to business men and manufacturers as well as to engineers. To the technician it is full of

example of methods and results of suggeStive

and Stimulating value. To business men it discloses trends which deeply concern their

interest.

NOW READY Price, 75c. ORDER AT ONCE

“Standardization is becoming an aspect of all well- ordered activity rather than an incidental

activity supplemental to others.”

To obtain regularly the above-described monthly periodicals send your order, with remittance, addressed: Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C. Foreign prices (countries other

than the United States and its possessions, Canada, Mexico, Newfoundland, Cuba, and Republic of Panama) are: Journal, $3.75; Bulletin, $0.40; Monthly, $1.25; Yearbook, $0.90
“ * * * this department * * * is devoted solely to aiding and fostering the development of higher standards of living and comfort of our people * * * its ideals are clear: That by cooperation and not by compulsion it should seek to assist in maintaining and giving the impulse of progress to commerce and industry in a nation whose successful economic life underlies advancement in every other field.” —President Hoover, at the laying oj the corner stone of the new building

of the U. S. Department of Commerce, June 10, 1929.

THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

R. P. LAMONT, Secretary of Commerce

AERONAUTICS BRANCH, Clarence M. Young, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Aeronautics. Establishment of civil airways and maintenance of aids to air navigation; inspection and registration of aircraft and licensing

of pilots; enforcement of air traffic rules; investigation of acci- dents; encouragement of municipal air ports; fostering of air commerce; scientific research in aeronautics; and dissemination of information relating to commercial aeronautics. (Some

of these functions are performed by special divisions of the Lighthouse Service, the Bureau of Standards, and the Coast and Geodetic Survey.)

BUREAU OF THE CENSUS, William M. Steuart, Director. Taking censuses of population, mines and quarries, water

transportation, and religious bodies every 10 years; censuses of agriculture and electrical public utilities every 5 years; and a

census of manufactures every 2 years. Compilation of statistics of wealth, public debt and taxation, including financial statistics of local governments, every 10 years; annual compilation of financial statistics of State and municipal governments.

Compilation of statistics of marriage, divorce, births, deaths,

and penal and other institutions annually, and of death rates in

cities and automobile accidents weekly.

Compilation quarterly or monthly of statistics on cotton, wool, leather, and other industries; annually of forest products;

and publication monthly of Survey of Current Business. BUREAU OF FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC COMMERCE,

William L. Cooper, Director. The collection of timely information concerning world market

conditions and openings for American products in foreign countries, through commercial attaches, trade commissioners, and

consular officers, and its distribution through weekly Commerce

Reports, bulletins, confidential circulars, the news and trade

press, and district and cooperative offices in 65 cities. The

maintenance of commodity, technical, and regional divisions to afford special service to American exporters and manufacturers. The compilation and distribution of lists of possible buyers

and agents for American products in all parts of the world and

publication of weekly lists of specific sales opportunities abroad. The publicity of statistics on imports and exports. The study of the processes of domestic trade and commerce. BUREAU OF STANDARDS, George K. Burgess, Director. Custody, development, and construction of standards of measurement, quality, performance, or practice; comparison of standards used by scientific or other institutions; determinai ion

of physical constants and properties of materials; researches and tests on materials and processes; and publication of scientific and technical bulletins reporting results of researches and

fundamental technical data. Collection and dissemination of information concerning

building codes and the planning and construction of houses. Establishment of simplified commercial practices through

cooperation with business organizations in order to reduce the wastes resulting from excessive variety in commodities.

BUREAU OF MINES, Scott Turner, Director. Technical investigations in the mining, preparation, and

utilization of minerals, including the study of mine hazards and

safety methods and of improved methods in the production

and use of minerals. Testing of Government fuels and management of the Govern- ment Fuel Yard at Washington.

Research on helium and operation of plants producing it.

BUREAU OF MINES—Continued.

Studies in the economics and marketing of minerals and col- lection of statistics on mineral resources and mine accidents. The dissemination of results of technical and economic

researches in bulletins, technical papers, mineral resources series, miners’ circulars, and miscellaneous publications.

BUREAU OF FISHERIES, Henry O’Malley, Commissioner.

The propagation and distribution of food fish and shellfish,

in order to prevent the depletion of the fisheries; investigations

to promote conservation of fishery resources; the development

of commercial fisheries and agriculture; study of fishery methods, improvements in merchandising, and collection of fishery

statistics; administration of Alaska fisheries and fur seals; and

the protection of sponges off the coast of Florida. BUREAU OF LIGHTHOUSES, George R. Putnam, Commissioner. Maintenance of lighthouses and other aids to water navigation. Establishment and maintenance of aids to navigation

along civil airwavs. Publication of Light Lists, Buoy Lists, and

Notices to Mariners.

COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY, R. S. Patton, Director

Survey of the coasts of the United States and publication of charts for the navigation of the adjacent waters, including

Alaska, the Philippine Islands, Hawaii, Porto Rico, the Virgin

Islands, and the Canal Zone; interior control surveys; magnetic surveys; tide and current observations; and seismological

investigations. Publication of results through charts, coast pilots, tide tables, current tables, and special publications.

BUREAU OF NAVIGATION, Arthur J. Tyrer, Commissioner.

Superintendence of commercial marine and merchant seamen.

Supervision of registering, enrolling, licensing, numbering,

etc., of vessels under the United States flag, and the annual

publication of a list of such vessels. Enforcement of the navigation and steamboat inspection laws,

including imposition of fees, fines, tonnage taxes, etc. STEAMBOAT INSPECTION SERVICE, Dickerson N. Hoover, Supervising Inspector General. The inspection of merchant vessels, including boilers, hulls, and life-saving equipment, licensing of officers of vessels, certi- fication of able seamen and lifeboat men, and the investigation

of violations of steamboat inspection laws. UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE, Thomas E. Robertson

Commissioner.

The granting of patents and the registration of trade-marks,

prints, and labels after technical examination and judicial

proceedings.

Maintenance of library with public search room, containing

copies of foreign and United States patents and trade-marks. Recording bills of sale, assignments, etc., relating to patents

and trade-marks. Furnishing copies of records pertaining to patents Publication of the weekly Official Gazette, showing the patents and trade-marks issued. RADIO DIVISION, W. D. Terrell, Chief. Inspection of radio stations on ships; inspection of radio

stations on shore, including broadcasting stations; licensing radio operators; assigning station call letters; enforcing the terms of the International Radiotelegraphic Convention; and

examining and settling international radio accounts.

U . S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 193