New Britain herald., 1918-03-14
Steel andPig
Iron NJ kelS
The Iron Age says;


ence at Washington between tins steel
manufacturers and the War Industries
Board is bringing to q head the is
sues raised by various producers.
The diverse interests Of the small
prod ucers. who must have y u.-h
price, and of the largest inte2rated
com panles, who can go on on the
present basis, are more sharply
Cented.
Fayoring weather has put up the
production Of pig iron and steel, but
the dere n cement and insu fficiency Of
transportation stall stand out every
where. There is little dissent there
fore, from the view that the industry
Will fall considerably short Of capacity
production in 1918. AT the sa me time
demand for other than war purposes Is
meager and in some lighter products
the outlook for mill operate is not
SO promising.
eanwhile plans are developing
rapidly at Washington for larger steel
reQulrem ents for the second half of
the year. The sheli-steel tonnage for
that period is estimated at 2,3e9. as
against 100000 tons for the first six
months The governm emit is about to
place the first OF the loe,0e0 cars
and 25o9 locomotives In its program.
and the standard types of steel
freight cars have been agreed upon
A good many 7e-ton cars are wanted.
SO that car and locomotive require
ments in steel are put at 100000
tons. The shipyards are expected to
take twice as much steel in the sec
ond half or the year as in the first
half
Car builders have barely months
work left. In the six general types
Of cars now agreed on an effort has
been made to reduce materially the
use of plates suitable for shipbuild-
ing, and universal plates may be used
for much of the pressed forms. Car
man ufacturing costs will probably be
made the basis o. contract figures,
and prices for carwheels. axles etc,
Will be fixed
On the order books OF the rail mills
are 100000 tens for 1918. and on
these deliveries are now behind.
Canada wants 29&00a tons. and her
mills can furnish but a small part.
Some of these rails would now be
going into American mills but that
the Canadian government demurred
at The prices asked, Incidentally,
this years rolinss will turn cut badly
for one or two mills whose costs are
well above tire sac basis fer open
hearth rails.
Great Britain's plate inquiries have
now increased TO 500. 0ee tons. Slabs
would be taken for part of this, as
British plate mill capacity is avail
ablc.
Contracts now In the hands of steel
producers from all sources represent
bout eight months production. but.
are not evenly distributed over that
pcrion. With the heavier government
buying promised for tho second half
the need of ali the steel that can be
made might he inferred. but the ques
ton Of fuIl demand for all the lighter
products is still an epen one.
The crux Of the sftua ton rs it Will
come before the price conference next
week is the -ount1y's ability to pro
duce sufficient pig Iron. 4 higher
price Is being urged his smaller fur
mace com panies. On the other hand,
some buyers OF pig iron ask that the
price be reduced. particularly on
Southern iron.
A prime factor In all calculations
as to steel for the second half Of the
wear, which has not had sufficient en-
phasis thus far; Is ability to increase
the shipbuilding program. as we'll as
to transport to Europe the larger ton
mage Of munitions and of plates and
other finished prN6uets involved in
present plans:
TIE Be- per cent. "cHrtatirn cut [
in passenger autoul abi4e production |
agreed on by manufacturers and the !
War Industries Board means little |
change in fact from the recent scale !
Of operations due to falling demand !
Only two large makers are named as
likely to cut down present output !
The sentin1 ent is growing An some |
Washington quarters that consider |
able part of the alloy steel now going |
TO the automobile industry should be !
conserved fer war steel uses.
Exceptionally heavy orders have
gone TO the mills in the past two |
weeks for ship material Some plate |
mills have full bookings for All the |
first halt.
A transaction which throws light !
on the shortage Of pig iron Is the pur- !
chase for the Steel Corpo raefons basic |
steel works at Penceyd, Pa, Of $4,000 f.!
tons Of standard Bessorne ct iron which |
had been lying for months at an East
err port awaiting shipment to France. ,
At $500. tho official price for Bes- |
senior iron, $3.50 more per ton was
paid than basic metal would bring, !
hut basic iron could not be had. !
At q meeting OF pig iron nanufac- |
tnrers to be held in New Work tntin>,
q number OF smaller blast furnace
com panies will urge their riH1iI- L., I
a higher government price. There is /
also the view Of some larger m erchent !
pig iron producers that with not |
enough coke to go around the better !
equipped furnaces should get more. |
while the highest cost furnaces should |
go out Of blast.
large Eastern consumer Of Lake
Superior ore contracted for DO ut