THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



lOcTOBER 1, 1918. 



duccd at great cost, .'\fter more than three and one-half years 

 of warfare the rubber .situation in Germany has become such 

 that the production of munitions dependent on rubber will hardly 

 become an increasing menace to the allied cause. 



IMPROVED EQUIPMENT INCREASES NUMBER OF WOMEN 

 TIRE WORKERS. 



At the Morgan & Wright plant of the United States Tire 

 Co., Detroit, Michigan, some 500 women are now employed in 

 many departments where the work taxed the endurance of the 

 able-bodied men who formerly did it. 



Improved equipment, however, is constantly reducing the 

 amount of physical exertion required by the various operations 

 in tire building. For example, with the aid of a lifting jack — a 



With the Aid of 



Lifting J.\ck, Women Become Efficient 

 Tire-Finishers. 



device developed from the idea of an employe — the physical 

 elTort required fnr tlie work in the finishing room has been 

 reduced to such a degree that women are now employed on 3, 

 3'.i and 4-inch tires. 



The tires are brought into the department on- trucks which are 

 fitted with T-shaped steel uprights from which the tires are 

 suspended. When the worker is ready to start on a new tire 

 she approaches the loaded truck with a lifting jack. Upon 

 turning a wheel at one side an arm is raised. This is guided 

 under the nearest tire, lifting it off the T-shaped fixture on the 

 truck. The lifting device, which is mounted on casters, is then 

 pushed to the worker's bench ; the tire is lowered, and transferred 

 to the finishing bench. The plies of fabric and the gum strips are 

 then applied by hand in the usual manner, rolled and the edges 

 cut. The lifting jack is again used in removing the tire and 

 placing it on a truck. 



Women have completely replaced men in supplying stock to 

 the workers in the finishing room. The coils of wire for pneu- 

 matic tire beads are made and soldered by women, also wrapped 

 and trimmed. Many women are employed in the pocket de- 

 partment where pieces of fabric are taken from books about 

 eight feet long, cut to the required length and stretched, one 

 layer above another, over a large drum of equal circumference 

 until a certain thickness is attained. These bands are then 

 removed from the drum and conveyed to another department, 

 where they are put over a tire core by men. As the books are 

 to heavy for women to carry, men supply the workers as needed. 



In other departments where women are employed the work is 

 of lighter character. A number of women are engaged in cutting 

 treads: several trim the uneven fabric edges from the rubber 

 tread, while others cement the ends together; another group 

 make.? patches for repair kits ; still others stamp sizes and names 

 on inner tubes, and others work in the packing room where the 



product is boxed. Numerous women are engaged as inspectors 

 in various departments. As the finished casings are finally in- 

 spected they are sent to women who check their serial numbers 

 and weigh each tire. 



The vestibule school system of training has proved unsuccess- 

 ful in the rubber industry, and it has been found preferable to 

 train students among the other workers, as they develop and - 

 grasp efficient methods and short cuts more rapidly. Women are 

 quicker to learn than men, and are taken out of the student class 

 after six or seven weeks. Excepting the students, the women 

 receive the same rate of pay as the men, but in the aggregate 

 their earnings average slightly less. 



Special rest and locker rooms are provided, to which the 

 women may retire at any time. A matron is constantly on duty 

 and aims to make the women feel as much at home as possible 

 and to lie with them during the luncheon hour. 



WATERPROOFERS ORGANIZE TO SPEED UP 

 GOVERNMENT WORK. 



To speed up waterproofing work for the army, the waterproof- 

 crs have formed an advisory body to be known as the Water- 

 proofers' Committee of the Naval Consulting Board. 



The members comprise V. G. Guinzburg, I. B. Kleinert Rub- 

 ber Co., New York City; R. K. Goodlatte, T. R. Goodlatte & 

 Son, Delaware, New York; W. B. Price, Price Fire & Water- 

 proofing Co., Poughkeepsie, New York, and Herbert P. Pear- 

 son, general manager of the Cravenette Co., New York City, 

 who is chairman of the committee. 



SKILLED MECHANICS FOR AIR SERVICE. 



The Air Service Division of the United States Army requires 

 4,000 skilled mechanics, between 18 and 56. Men qualified in the 

 following trades are particularly sought: airplane mechanics, car- 

 penters, coppersmiths, instrument men, motor cyclists, vulcan- 

 izers, blacksmiths, cabinetmakers, chauffeurs, fabric workers, 

 truck masters, welders, propeller makers, motor mechanics, and 

 machinists. Applications may be made any day between 8 a. m. 

 and 5 p. m. to Lieutenant Billker, Room 902, 104 Broad street, 

 Xew York City. 



SALVAGE OF RUBBER AT THE FRONT. 



At the Salvage Depot of American Supply Headquarters in 

 France about 1,000 pairs of rubber boots and arctics are being 

 salvaged daily. Tlie salvage of all kinds of rubber articles was 

 99 per cent, or almost a complete saving of everything received. 

 The value of the rubber salvaged last month was $90,000. This 

 includes the articles abandoned by the retreating enemy and by 

 the Allied troops when hastilj' transferred and forced to leave 

 extra clothing, etc., behind. 



FIXED-PRICE CONTRACTS FOR ARMY SUPPLIES. 



The War Department announces that wherever possible, fi.xed- 

 price contracts will hereafter be the rule in the purchase of 

 army supplies. In exceptional cases, where it is clearly to the 

 advantage of the government, a cost plus fixed compensation 

 contract will be made, subject to the approval of both the board 

 of review of the particular supply bureau concerned and the 

 Superior Board of Review of the General Staff. 



"HYPATIA" TO AID RED CROSS. 



J. H. Stedman of the Monatiquot Rubber Works Co., 

 South Braintree, Massachusetts, has donated the "Hypatia" 

 to the Red Cross, which will sell her and devote the proceeds 

 to war work. Originally she was a full-rigged sloop measur- 

 ing about SO feet, with a 15-foot beam. In recent years a 

 heavy-duty gas-engine was installed. At the beginning of 

 the war, Mr. Stedman oflered her to the Government for 

 patrol purposes and she was temporarily accepted bnt later 

 released as not needed. 



