Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1916-09-28

pits and storage tanks. From here
it is elevated and dumped into the
Sturtevant ring roll machine con-
tanning big steel ball which crush
es the klinker into a fine powder.
This powder is again elevated
through covered conveyors and con-
Quoted by screw conveyors to the
last operation through two more
tube mills. These, like the first tube
mill. are loaded with steel slugs and,
during the rotating movement of the
tubes, crush the powder to a very
fine dustlike consistency which is
carried on an endless belt to another
belt running at right angles and de-
livering the finished product to the
four storage bins with a capacity of
10000 barrels of cement of $50
pounds each. Side-tracks run along
these storage bins and six cars can
be loaded at once.
Throughout the plant one can not
help but notice the result of careful
planning to accomplish the best re-
suits and to eliminate all unneces-
sary expense. Each machine has an
individual motor and drive, thus
making it Independent of an acci-
dent any place else. Rigid grinding
machinery has been avoided wher-
ever possible and the breaking down
of the material accomplished by
force of gravity utilized through mo-
tiOn. Complete fire protection is Sc
cured through a water system pump
ing water into reservoir from
Rogue river. The power is furnished
by the California & Oregon Power
Company, which develops $500
horsepower ct the Gold Ray dam. OF
this the cement company uses 800
horsepower through three big trans
formers. Crude oil is used for the
furnace and is stored in large tank
some distance from the plant, for
safety.
At the lower or reserve quarry the
company has spent about $4,000 to
100000 in development and con-
struction work. Here 300 of the
1900 horsepower is used. The COM
pany has paid out $4,000 in freight
alone. In addition to the necessary
buildings for machinery and storage
they have another building for of
fices, testing rooms, supply room and
machine shop. In the latter are
made many repair parts. A good
stock of extras is also kept on hand.
The chemists, probably three when
the plant is in full operation, will
test every car of cement sold and
will keep the results of the tests
probably for ten years.
The limestone in the company's
quarries is of the best and tests out
as SO per cent calcium rock. Last
fall the company put out about
1000 tons of limestone fertilizer.
This was used largely by the farm
ers of the Willamette valley. For
the finished cement the company ex-
poets to find a ready market from
Portland south we'll down into CalS
fornia. The freight rate into Port
land iss3S cents per barrel. About
two tons of raw material are re-
quired for every ton of finished
product. The situation of the mill
at the quarry thus eliminates all
freight on raw material and enables
the company to operate at less ex-
pense than if 1t should have to pay
freight from the quarries to the mill,
then back from the mill to the con-
sumers.
During the past year the company
payroll has averaged from $4,000 to
$4,000 per month. They now en-
ploy about sixty or seventy men and
expect to begin making cement with
in two weeks with this number of
employees. The officers of the COM
pany, all of whom live at Portland