Evening star., 1927-12-08
COST CUTTING BIG
FACTOR IN. TRADE
Manufacturers Shaving Ex-
penses % Bone-Worker
Efficiency Raised.
BY j. G.. ROYLE.
III " " NHO EIs1'
Special Dispatch to The Star.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, December S-"Nobod5
wants to buy anything" said prom
inent manufacturer of power units
today. in speaking of his own pur-
chasing department II don't want
to buy anything. But IL a salesman
comes to me and shows me a product
which will increase our production,
decrease our expense or quicken our
turnover, he can get my prompt.
immediate and careful attention. I
know this attitude is typical of that
of industrial executives as whole"
The attitude of such executives. as
they will tell YOU themselves, is cen.
tered on cutting cost of operation
and reducing overhead expense,
They are searching earnestly, accord
ing to ]. J. Crumbaugh industrial re-
search engineer, who has just com.
pleted an industrial survey of the
United States. lie says that no op-
portunity is overlooked to increase a
workers efficiency or cut down ex-
pense by installing automatic or other
modern machinery.
Shop Practice Revolutionized.
Shop practice in entire industries
is being revolutionized, he declared,
in order to effect saving of two
mills on a barrel of cement or on
hundred pounds of coal or steel or
hundred bricks. He declares that
but two courses are open to those
companies who fail to follow this
trend. One coures is to merge or
consolidate with other concerns, thus
sinking old shop practices with theirs.
The other is to liqudate the business
This jS Tnare1v apofhar uau cf ca ".
ing that manufacturers have found
that it is sounder economics to cut
costs than to raise prices for the
purpose Of widening profit margins,
since the latter policy is likley to
check consumption demand in the
process. Fixed charges are the bane of
the ma anufacturer. 1t is for that reason
that many concers find it better to
give wOrkmen a more than liberal
bonus at the years end. rather than
increase their wages during the year
This is the feeling which prompted
an executive in the steel industry
to say today: "Show me a machine
which will not have to be replaced
for five years and which will take
the place of one man on our pay roll,
and if it does not cost over $40, 900 l
will buy it,
This man did not mean for mo-
ment that he wanted to fire lot of
men. What he wanted was to pro-
duce more goods with the same num-
ber and still be in such shape that
his fixed charges could be held down
in time of depression.
This effort for manufacturing eff
cheney passes all up and down the
industrial line. A cutting of costs in
one industry produces conditions
which force others to revamp their
own methods. An example Is offered
by the cement industry, where plant
capacity is far beyond consumptive
demand at this time 1t is operating
at only IS per cent capacity and com.
petition Is extremely keen. Belgian
producers are invading this market
also and individual mills are using
every effort to widen profit margins
by increased producing efficiency. The
German and Belgian imports this year
are expected to reach at least $50, ,00O,-
600 in value.
Impetus for Building.
Similar trends are shown by makers
of brick. tile. coal, marble and lum.
Der. Makers of these products realize
that the cheaper they can make and
sell these commodities the more i'm.
petus they can give to building con.
struction, on which they all live. The
trend is being shown also in cotton
and wooen textiles. foundries, stove