The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-02-03
RAILROAD NEWS.
Engine Failures on Railroads on
the Increase.
Engine MileagePer Road Failure
Is ID, 900.
COME IN EPIDEMICS.
Railroad Men Look Upon This
as Bad Year.
Other Items of General Interest
in Railroad Circles.

UnhappiIy an increase in engine fall
ures is expected to accompany the ad-
vent of the winter season says the Rail-
way Review. The classified report. an
alyzing the cause of road failures, ana
also shop failures. is not quite gen
orally in use. Shop failures do not
however affect the train schedule SO
6isaStrOuSly as road failures. Regaru-
less of the definition of what consul
tutes a road failure. the following rec
ord on railroad owning about q tnou-
sand locomotives will be of interest
The engine mileage per road fa1lure :
is 5000. This includes all classes OF
locomotives and extends over perlou
of several months. A daily report o.
every road failure is received by Ine e
superintendent of motive power he
end his assistant keep personally alter
the failures, day by day. Their en-
deavor is to make up the Iallures on
the spot with the master mechanic,
roundhouse foreman, road foreman "
er gines and the enginemen II posslple.
Thus less than week elapses peio J!
enc or the other mechanical head III
travelling over the road VIII De dule
to follow up each Individual 1aliuIe,
Every effort is made to Undue the Iorce
with the fundamental idea that know
| Iadge of the real cause Of the failure
is the object of this personal lnVesei-
cation. Discipline is made incidental
to the prevention of further failures
from the same cause
According to the well eStaDllSneu
legends railroad failures come in cpl
denies each of its kind. At such times
no step is left untaken to folloW me
trorble to its source. For example the
general term ''airbrake failure Was
classified into pipe, pump, etc.
on finding that outside a few Dursl
| pipes the pumps seemed to be CAUSING
trouble, a diagram of the working paris
was issued, In the place for notation
the following information was reQuh
ed: Date pump last oVer over aeiI7,,a9 PRO.
failed? Circumstances OF falIure ~,
habIe cause of failure? Defects old OF
new? ,-h;ch
| was promptly made out by the rouIIu-
house clerk and sent direct to the me
ohonicaI superintendent, a systematic
;nsnection of air pumps was institutes
every six months. By following tne
same course with each class OF fallure
| the source was practically eliminated
| once for all. .,.~;d
For example, f1ues are always conslo.
| orad to he a source of trouble. At one
imnortant terminal on this particular
| road were 40 boiler makers, ana se.'
| ting in overtime at that by ndk!ns
| a clean sweep of the famlly WniIs
| seemed to be making work Ior ttSEir
| The uresept force consists or SIX polle,
| makers. The failures now numper oh'
where they formerly numbered nve:
Hard work, consistent and persistent
:. 81 Course, the secret of this goot
re- It was not all done in a mont 1a
re year but it was done to stay done
The road foremen of engines have beei
brought up through this process 70 +b
| state of better comprehension Oh III
Their attention has been diree TS
cbiefiy to fuel economy all along. IN IN
entire mechanical department ro SNOW y
1 the spirit of getting at the Tooe ~ y
things. The results are rerecleu III 81
excellent showing above.