46 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[October 1, 1912. 



is a ptty that The India Rubber World has not a wider circu- 

 lation among the British public, as the map given in the August 

 number is a great improvement on what has been given in our 

 daily and weekly press. 



The Board of Trade Report, embodying the result of the 

 inquiry, held last December, into the explosion which occurred 

 THE LITHERLAND ''' ''^"^ Northwestern Rubber Co. works 

 DEVTTLCAUiZER in October, 1910, has now been issued. 



EXPLOSION. I have already given the Commissioner's 



findings at the inquiry, and the final report shows practically 

 no alteration. Although no one at the works was found culpably 

 negligent, reference is directed to insufficient engineering con- 

 trol. The cause of the explosion was hydrostatic pressure, due 

 to over-filling of the devulcanizer ; and an improvement has now 

 been effected by the Boiler Insurance Co. whereby this cannot 

 occur in the future. Referring to the future working of these 

 devulcanizers, the commissioners say that they are satisfied 

 from the evidence, that they cannot be said to be worked under 

 safe conditions, without some safety appliance which must be 

 automatic. Beyond that it must be automatic, they did not 

 propose to make any definite recommendation as to what form 

 the safety appliance should take. The matter is evidently to be 

 left to the discretion of those who use high pressure devulcan- 

 izers. and it will be interesting to see how it develops. In an 

 editorial in the March issue of The India Rubber World a plea 

 is put forward for the utilization by rubber works of the services 

 of the consulting engineer, and it certainly would seem, in the 

 light of the four or five accidents in recent years due to plants 

 using high pressure steam, that rubber factories, where no regu- 

 lar engineer is employed, sliould employ the consulting engineer 

 to a greater extent than is now customary. The inspectors of 

 the Boiler Insurance Companies in England do admirable work, 

 of course, but it is outside their province to instruct or give 

 advice ; nor in most cases have they any detailed knowledge of 

 the rationale of the operations involving the use of high pressure 

 steam. I propose on a later occasion to say more on the par- 

 ticular question of automatic safety appliances, and shall conclude 

 the present notice by mentioning that the Board of Trade Report 

 refers to the boiler which exploded, as being the property of the 

 London & North Western Rubber Co., Limited. U. S. A., oi 

 Canal Bank, Litherland. In another sentence the superfluous 

 "London" is omitted; thus indicating some slackness in proof- 

 reading. 



STATISTICS OF RUBBER SUPPLIES AND 

 CONSUMPTION. 



IMPROVED DOCK ACCOMMODATION FOR RUBBER IN LONDON. 



Advices from London state that owing to the rubber business 

 of the port having tripled within the last five years, improved 

 dock accommodation is about to be furnished. This will be 

 effected by the transfer of the warehousing of rubber from St. 

 Katherine's Docks to London Docks. 



A special warehouse is to be set aside wherein, under ideal 

 conditions, rubber can be received, sampled and stored against 

 delivery to consumers. The change will provide largely im- 

 proved facilities compared with those available hitherto. This 

 innovation is, needless to say, greatly appreciated by Mincing 

 Lane. 



THE CAB TIRE SHEATHING FOR ELECTRIC CABLES. 



The St. Helens Cable and Rubber Co., Limited (London. Eng- 

 land), have been making a cab tire for the last 9 or 10 years 

 which has proved very serviceable, and they have recently begun 

 the manufacture of a rubber sheathing for electric cables. As 

 they are making this out of the same quality of rubber used in 

 their cab tire they call it the "Cab Tire Sheathing" — which ex- 

 plains why the\' have selected this particular name for their new- 

 production. 



'T'HREE statistical tables, which have recently been issued, 

 ■*• merit special attention and comparison : That of S. Figgis 

 & Co., of London, for the calendar year 1911 (A) ; Hecht's re- 

 turns (issued by Messrs. Ilecht, Levis and Kahn of Liverpool) 

 for the rubber year ending June 30, 1912 (B) ; and the recent 

 estimate for 1913 of the Rubber Plantation Investment Trust 

 (C). 



In table A production is shown as 88,000 tons and consump- 

 tion at a like amount ; while in table B are summarized Hecht's 

 figures, which for the year ending June 30, 1912, indicate pro- 

 duction as 95,262 tons and consumption as 99,564 tons. Finally 

 in table C the estimate for 1913 is 91,000 tons for production and 

 103.000 tons for consumption. 



From a comparison of these tables, the estimate for 1913 (C) 

 it will be remarked, shows the Brazilian quantity at the same 

 figure as the report (A) for 1911 — 39,(XX) tons. Plantation rub- 

 ber, which including Borneo and Rangoon may be taken as repre- 

 senting about 18,000 tons in table A, appears in the estimate of 

 table C as 28,500 tons, this increased estimate being more or less 

 in proportion to the increased supplies now coming forward. As 

 table C does not include anj-thing for Guayule, though figuring 

 in table A, its estimate might therefore properly be regarded as 

 representing about 100.000 tons for 1913, against 88,000 for 1911, 

 and 95.262 by Hecht's figures for 1911-12. South American and 

 plantation rubber as shown in table C constitute between them 

 over two-thirds of the world's estimated rubber production for 

 1912. 



The increase of consumption as shown by the three tables is 

 more or less in harmony with the estimated increased supply 

 being for 1911. 88,000 tons; for 1911-12, 99,564 tons; and for 1913 

 (estimate) 103,000 tons. American consumption, it is satisfac- 

 tory to note, comes in for an increased estimate ; the quantity of 

 42,000 tons shown for 1911 being 47,500 tons in the estimate for 

 1913. Thus the United States is expected to continue taking 

 about one-half of the world's production of rubber. That this 

 is now the case is shown by the official returns of imports for 

 the fiscal year 1911-1912, which show a quantity of 55,(XX) tons, as 

 compared with the latest estimate for 1913 of 47,5CX) tons. Hence 

 this country is keeping ahead in the rubber procession, with more 

 than three times the consumption of England, according to the 

 English table appended (table A). 



T.'VBLE A— PRODUCTIOK AND CONSUMPTION FOR 1911. 

 (S. Figgis & Co., London. J 



Production 1911, Actual. Consumption 1911. Actual. 



Tons. Tons. 



Brazil 39,000 America and Canada . . 42,000 



W. Africa 15.000 England 12.000 



E. Africa, Penang, Borneo and France 8,(XX) 



Rangoon 5,500 Russia 8,500 



Assam, Madagascar, C. Italy 2,000 



America and Mexico 2.500 Japan and .-Xustralia. . . . 1,500 



Guayule 9.200 Germany and Austria.. 14.000 



Plantation 14.000 



Malaysian and ex'tracted 



for Jelutong 2.800 



Total 88,000 Total 



88.000 



TABLE B— HECHT'S WORLD'S FIGURES, 1911-12. 

 (Summarized.) 



Para Medium 

 Grades. Grades Totals. 



Arrivals (production) Tons 40,953 54.309 95.262 



Deliveries (consumption) 44,194 55,370 99,564 



