The sun., 1918-07-28
MUNITION COSTS
CUT IN BRITAIN
Decentralization Plan Reduced
by One-half the Price
of Shell.
WOMEN A GREAT HELP
Lessons Learned in Early EX-
periments Will Be Of Much
Value After War.
WOMEN A GREAT HELP
SpeciaI Correspondence TO The SuH.

Special Correspondence TO The SuH.
LONDON, July 13.-In a tiny office in
private house in Manchester Is the
local headquarters of the Ministry of
Munitions that controls half a hundred
factories and nearly SIXTY thousand
workmen and workwomen. The motto of
Manchester and of the Ministry is de-
Capitalization.
From the first days of the war 1t was
realized that to have a committee of
local men familiar with local customs
and methods would be more advan-
tageous both to output and working.
Furthermore closer touch could be main
tanned between employers and employ
ees and where formerly firm would
have to wait several months for pay
ment of goods by the Ministry the To-
cal committee cleared UP the accounts
at the end of each week.
At the outbreak Of war it was an
ticipated that the needs of the army in
the field could be supplied from the re-
sources of the armament firms In Brit
ain. When. however, the extent of the
German effort was realized Mr.. Lloyd
George. who in the interim had been
appointed Minister of Munitions. ap-
preciated the impossibillty OF the plan.
In June. 1915, Mr. Noyd George Wis
tied Manchester and addressed large
public meeting of leading engineers and
other business men in the Lancashire
area. He made q great point Of the ma
tional requirements for shell and shell
components. and told the manufacturers
the necessity for getting immediate out
put. as he pointed out that every shell
delivered then was of much greater
value than dozens delivered later.
AS result a meeting was called in
Manchester under the auspices of the
Manchester district Engineering Trades
Employers Association at which were
present also the non-federated firms
nominated by the Chamber OF Com
merce. An executive committee was
elected consisting Of six men, who have
carried on as board OF management
OF the ornaments output committee
from that time up to date.
Big Problem Faced Early.
The problem before the manufac-
turers was div!sible under two broad
headingS-whether II was wiser to put
down national factories with special
plants for the manufacture OF shell or
to adapt the existing resources, which
while perhaps not being so efficient
would give the immediate deliveries
called for by the situation.
Ultimately it was decided 10 en-
deavor to utilize existing factories and
adapt existing machinery, and the re-
suits fully justify this policy in more
ways than one.
The use of the old machinery made
the cost of shell higher in the first
instance than may have been the case
v new special and up to date machinery
had been installed From s. to $3.50
was paid for the first lots OF eighteen,
FOUNDER shell, and to-day their price
Is from 81 TO $3.50. But the manufac-
turer In the first period did not make
any more proht out OF the shell than
he can make to-day.
When the question Of dilution became
urgent and women were largely brought
INTO the engineering industry. the wis
dom or having utilized single purpose
machinery capable of being operated by
this class of labor was shown. 1t might
be thought that the most suitable ma
chinery for operation by unskilled and
semi-skilled labor either male or fe-
male, was machinery of a more or less
automatic nature. While In normal
not been the case during the war period.
The expansion of munition manufacture
involved such a large amount OF repeti-
ton work, having to be interchangeable
when made In different parts Of the
country, called for a gauge making pro-
gramme entirely outside the prewar
possibilities of the industry This In turn
necessitated a tremendous number of
tool makers and other skilled mechan-
les being drawn away from the ordinary
factories and utilized for making spe-
cial tools and gauges. There resulted a
shortage OF men available for supervs-
ing the operation of the automatic ma
chinery, as well as for maintaining the
complex cutting tools this class of ma
chinery requires.
Owing to the lack OF hydraulic forg-
ing plants in Britain much OF the early
40 shell in the Manchester area had
10 he made out of the solid bar and
afterward changed to manufacture from
forSings which had the centre hole
pierced automatically. This brought
about considerable disorganization OF
the manufacture. and II was largely due
to the unselfsh efforts of the manufac-
turers that this disorganization was
overcome and kept within reasonable
limits
Munitions other Than She'll
Yet another point is that in the early
days of the war the only things spoken
OF were shells 1t was pointed out earlier
that there were many other components,
such as primers. fuses. container tubes,
SC. produced in the Manchester area,
any many OF the methods for the eco
nomical production of these components
were developed in the locality by peo-
pie who prior to the war had abso-
lutely no experience of this class of man.
ufacture, but as an asset were able to
bring to bear upon IT new mind I'M