18- 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



Scpteiiilii-i- 111. 1922 



liutton control stations so that the motor for driving each group 

 of machines may be started or stopped from several different 

 points. 



The remote push button control starter is not only absolutely 

 safe from the standpoint of the operator, but it also effects econ- 

 omies in the consumption of current for a workman has but to touch 

 the "start" or "stop" button, as the case may be, instead of 

 operating a clumsy compensator, or open switch, which he will 



avoid using as much as possible. 



One of the important adjuncts to a woodworking plant is the 

 exhaust system for the removal of shavings and sawdust from the 

 various machines. If well designed it will pay large dividends in 

 promoting the safety and comfort of employees, increasing produc- 

 tion and making available for fuel a waste product that would 

 otherwise be difficult and expensive to dispose of. Woodworking 

 machinery produces large quantities of shavings and sawdust and 

 if it is not removed as soon as it is made it soon accumulates on 

 the machines and surrounding floors, interfering with operation 

 of the machine, adding to the discomfort of, if not chance of acci- 

 dent, to the operator and necessitating frequent stops to clear 

 away the refuse. 



This refuse also forms a valuable fuel and if not delivered to the 

 boilers by an efficient exhaust system it could not be fired in the 

 furnaces without a great amount of labor being necessary to collect 

 it and deliver it to the boiler room. 



Exhaust system should be carefully designed and installed and 

 should fulfill the following requirements: 



1. It should handle both light and heavy refuse satisfactorily. 



2. The hoods should be designed where possible to also act as guards. 

 .3. Hoods and piping should be laid out so as not to interfere "with the 



operation of the machine, access to working parts, or obstruct the room. 



4. It should be laid out to avoid danger of clogging and should have 

 frequent clean out openings thru which to clear the system in case of 

 clogging. 



5. The exhauster should be selected striking the proper balance between 

 first coat, power consumption, and power cost. 



6. The separator should be ample in capacity so as to obtain efficient 

 separation of the dust and deliver the refuse to the furnaces with a 

 minimum of excess air. 



The advantages, in fact necessity, of a good exhaust system are 

 generally so well understood that it does not seem necessary to 

 more than mention the salient features here. 



Artificial illumination has been given very little thought and 

 study in the majority of wood working plants which I have ob- 

 served. In a large plant which I visited recently they were still 

 using gas lights in one of the machine rooms, although the remain- 

 der of the plant is lighted with electricity. It hardly seems neces- 

 sary to state that gas lighting has no place in a woodworking plant, 

 particularly where electricity is available. 



Even where plants are lighted with electricity the prevalent 

 system, if system it can be called, consists of a drop cord and bare 

 lamp over each machine or bench with a few thrown in for genera' 

 illumination. Good illumination will add so tremendously to the 

 safety and efficiency of a manufacturing plant that arguments in 

 its favor seem almost superfluous. "Spotted" fixtures over ma- 

 chines are often advisable but at the same time the general illumina- 

 tion ought to be sufficiently brilliant so that men can see to get 

 around without stumbling over objects on the floor and so that pro- 

 duction may be maintained with artificial illumination at the same 

 rate as with daylight. There are many efficient lighting fixtures and 

 reflectors, at reasonable cost, on the market today and a well laid 

 out lighting system augmented by ceilings and w;ills jiainted a light 

 color will pay dividends in increased production and decreased acci- 

 dents, which will surprise any executive still adhering to anti- 

 quated methods. 



Other features adding materially to the safety and efficiency of 

 the plant, such as adequate fire protection, proper heating and 

 ventilation, satisfactory elevating and conveying machinery suited 

 to the needs of the plant, etc., might be dwelt on at length but 

 can hardly be treated with the brief scope of this paper. In closing 

 I wish to once more remind my hearers that as a general proposition 

 whatever is <lonc to promote the efficiency of a manufacturing plant 



will likewise promote the safety of the employees and any meas- 

 ures adopted to promote safety will bring substantial returns in 

 increased efficiency. 



Fish Cites Consumers' Letters as Proof of Their 



Satisfaction with National Inspection and 



the Integrity of the Trade 



Under the caption, "Another Lie Nailed," Frank F. Fish, secre- 

 tary-treasurer of the National Hardwood Lumber Association, 

 issued a statement on August 30, in which he cites the receipt by 

 the association of 1,000 letters from consumers, as proof that con- 

 sumers do not subscribe to what he declares is the imputation of 

 "widespread dishonesty and inefficiency placed upon the hardwood 

 industry by certain southern hardwood manufacturers in their pro- 

 posal to inaugurate a ' Scientific ' system of inspection and to set 

 up guarantees of correct delivery in conjunction with the so-called 

 Hoover Standardization Plan." In full, the statement is as follows: 



Over one thousand letters received by the National Hardwood Lumber 

 Association from consumers of hardwood lumber in practically every 

 division of the trade, and covering all sections of the United States and 

 Canada, refute decisively the imputations of "widespread dishonesty and 

 inelEcieucy" placed upon the hardwood lumber industry by certain southern 

 hardwood manufacturers in their proposal to inaugurate a "Scientific" 

 system of inspection, and to set up guarantees of correct delivery in con- 

 junction with the so-called Hoover Standardization Plan. 



The consumers of hardwood lumber reveal a total lack of appreciation 

 of the handicap under which they are supposed to be laboring because of 

 the present system of National inspection, and express a strange willingness 

 to continue doing business under this inspection with its bonded guarantee. 

 If they feel the need of any other, or more substantial and perfect guar- 

 antee of the delivery of what they purchase, they fail to disclose it in their 

 letters. 



These letters were received in response to a questionnaire sent to 3,000 

 consumers of hardwood by the National Hardwood Lumber Association as 

 follows : 



1. Are you familiar with the system for hardwood grading and measure- 

 ment maintained by this association, known as National Inspection? 



2. Do you make purchases based upon that form of inspection? If so, 

 have the results derived therefrom been satisfactory to j'ou as a consumer 

 of hardwood lumber? 



3. Is it in your judgment desirable to abandon existing grade names 

 and existing standards of quality and to replace them with new grade 

 names and new standards of quality? 



4. Are you in favor of having your lumber purchases submitted to the 

 inspection of a bureau directed by governmental authority? Or do you 

 believe that such administration and control should remain within the 

 hardwood industry, which properly includes the producer, distributor and 

 consumer of hardwood lumber? 



Ninety-seven percent of the replies received express satisfaction with 

 National Inspection, and positively disclaim any desire to renounce it for 

 a new and untried system under the dominance of the Federal government, 

 however cleverly that dominance might be disguised. Additional replies 

 to this questionnaire are being received daily at the executive office of the 

 National Hardwood Lumber Association, and the entire file is open to any- 

 one who may be sufficiently interested to call and examine it. 



National's Members Own and Operate 985 

 Hardwood Mills 



The following statement coucerning tiie moot question of the 

 make-up of the National Hardwood Lumber Association as to manu- 

 facturers and wholesalers was sent out by Frank F. Fish, secretary- 

 treasurer, on August 30: 



So much false and misleading propaganda has gone out regarding the 

 make-up of the membership of this association that a questionnaire was 

 sent out to all members to determine the exact percentage of the mem- 

 bership who were manufacturers of hardwood lumlier. Replies have been 

 received from twelve hundred and sixty-eight members and, of this num- 

 ber, six hundred and eighty-three are manufacturers of hardwood lumber 

 owninj; and wpcrating mills and five hundred and eighty-five may be classed 

 as wholesale distributors. 



Many of our members operate several mills, and the actual number of 

 sawmills owned and operated as tabulated from the twelve hundred and 

 sixty-eight replies received is nine hundred and eighty-flve, with one hun- 

 dred members still to be heard from. 



It is a well known fact by those informed that the classifications in the 

 mercantile agencies are hurriedly and often carelessly compiled, and these 

 reliable figures obtained first hand, absolutely accurate and up-to-date, 

 prove conclusively that the affidavit being circulated from Columbus, Ohio, 

 which would indicate that this association is controlled by jobbers, is 

 misleading in the extreme and not in conformity with the facts. 



