The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-12-06
CONTINUING ITS
 IMPROVEMENTS
Tennessee Company Making
 Changes in Its Plants
$75O,OOo FOR ORE. MINES
Statement Given Iron Age By PrssI- dent Bacon-NeW HolstIng Ma chInery Being Placed In
 the Iron Mines.

The work of improvement and expan- sion being done by the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company in the Bir- mingham district is progressing satisfac- l torily. Extensive work Is being done at the ore mines. The most important im- provements at Ensley urder way just now are those being made at the steel mill.
 The development going on at the ore mines will cost, when completed. some thing like s75O.oOo. and when President Don H. Bacon was last here he stated that the Tennessee company''s outlay for improvements at Ensley within the next twelve months would be sl,5O0.OOo.
 The Iron Age of this week prints a comprehensive sketch of what the Ten nessee Coal. Iron and Railroad company is doing in the way of improvements or has decided to do. The data was obtain ed from the New York office of the company. The article follows;
 New Hoisting Plant.
 "At the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Rail- road mines nearly all of tho hoisting plants are being replaced by others of greater power and capacity. the new machinery being of such size and power that the vein can be followed to the depth of nearly a mile without additional equipment. All but two of the old crush CTS have been displaced, and others O. larger capacity are now, or soon will be, at work AS result, all of the ore will be properly prepared for furnace use. Two compressing plants, each consisting Of two compressors will after a few months, supply all of the air that is needed at mines No. 1 to D. inclusive; | the other mines being to far distant to be supplied from one of the new plants and too scattered for one plaat to supply them all. It has been necessary to re- place nearly all of the old boilers with new ones, and to provide for d largec wa ter supply. The new machinery will be | inclosed in brick buildings and nearly all danger of fire will be avoided. New l offices have been erected and a number of dwellings, and of the latter q number are still to be built. Convenient hospitals for the injured and i'll have been pro- l vIded.
 For the coal mines three new hoists have been ordered; one of which has | arrived. There are also several new boilers. As rapidly as possible, the most | productive and important of the coal mines will be equipped with boilers and | hoiSts of ample power. One new fan, with a capacity of 250.oOo cubic feet of air | per minute, is being set up, and an elec- | trical power plant for the movement of coal underground has been, or soon will be, ordered. Additions are being made | to the pumping plants, so that the mines | may be dry at all times, instead of be- | ing idle, as heretofore, because of the presence of water from three to six months of each year. Some compressors will be removed from the iron mines to the coal mines, so that advantage may be taken of compressed air for such rock work as there is to do. New pumps have | been placed and a number of men dis pensed with.
 Improved Coke ovens. Nothing has been done to the coke ovens except to put them in better condi- tion and more carefully and intelligently direct their operation.
 At the Bessemer furnaces nothing has been done beyond the addition of a num- Der of boilers. but an electrical plant for lighting the five furnaces at Bessemer, the rolling mill, the buildings, and some of the mines at Ishkooda will be set up within a few months.
 At the Ensley furnaces new bins of large capacity are now being erected Through them will pass ore. limestone and coke, which will later be moved to skips by electric trolleys. Five initial and five compound blowing engines have been ordered for the Ensley furnaces The first should arrive in February next, the rest following at intervals of about thirty days. These will take the place of ten that are now there, some of the lat ter going to other furnaces. It is the in- tention of the company to enlarge four of their five Ensley furnaces, making each stack of a capacity of from 300 to $50 tons per day. Skip hoists will be used and such additional boilers as may be needed.
 At the steel plant such changes and additions are being made as experience has shown to be necessary. The founda- tions for the mixer are in and the open hearth building Is being extended. so that cranes and ladies can be used and the fore hearths, that have proved very ob- jectionable, can be removed. A large yard crane is in place for handling heavy billets and blooms. A new building will be erected, and in 1t will be placed the electric generators, steam for the en- zines that operate them being supplied from 0 battery of boilers that will be heated by waste gases from No. coke ovens.
 New Engine.
 "An engine for the blooming min should arrive in February to take the place of the broken one now in use The new engine. being much more powerful will take care of large increase in the daily output A water purifying plant has been in use since August and the water for all the Ensley plants and the adjacent mines Is now pure.
 'The rail mill Is completed and has rolled 60 and 80 pound steel rails. It will not be operated for the regular manu- fracture of rails until the changes in the