80 BULLETIN" 440, U. S. DEPAKTMEISTT OF AGEICULTTJEE. 



and each piece of machinery in the mill is driven by a separate motor. 

 The intricate machinery located on the lower floor of a mill for the 

 transmission of power is ehminated, and one portion of the mill may 

 be shut down for brief repairs without interfering with the rest. The 

 installation of an electric drive makes a considerable increase in the 

 initial cost of a mill. 



The majority of the mills in the region utihze a considerable portion 

 of the waste in slabs and edgings by making laths. A lath room is 

 located in an addition on the side of the mill building near the slasher. 

 At a representative double-band mill where both laths and car strips 

 are manufactured, 2 men are required to sort material out of the 

 conveyor at the rear of the slasher. The remainder of the crew con- 

 sists of 2 men at the bolter, 2 at the saw, and 2 men bundhng 

 and jointing. The mill is equipped with separate bolters, saws, and 

 jointers for both laths and strips. Only one product is manufac- 

 tured at a time. From 180 to 200 bundles are produced daily. The 

 demand is limited and the profit small. 



Many mills have a market for fuel wood cut from slabs. Various 

 devices, such as gang cut-offs, are used to saw the slabs and slashings 

 into stove lengths. One progressive concern takes advantage of a 

 chance for close utilization by resawing slabs. The larger slabs are 

 cut in 4 and 6 foot lengths with a cut-off saw and transported by a 

 conveyor to a resaw in the nearby planing mill. This resaw is a 

 small horizontal band. The slab sections are res awed and edged, 

 thus making excellent box and factory material. 



The grading and sorting of the lumber is done on a sorting table 

 which commonly extends at right angles from the mill, opposite the 

 trimmer. This sorting table is 18 or 20 feet wide and from 120 to 

 160 feet in length. The lumber is carried slowly toward the outer 

 end by means of conveyor chains or cables. The grader stands at 

 the end near the mill and marks the grade symbol on each board with 

 a crayon. As the boards are carried along the sorting chains they 

 are picked up by the sorters and loaded on the proper cars. The 

 cost of grading and sorting is about 25 cents per 1,000. At a mill 

 producing 160,000 daily the crew consists of 1 grader and 14 

 sorters. The daily labor cost is $38, or 24 cents per 1,000. At a 

 mill producing 120,000 daily the crew consists of one grader and 

 nine sorters, at a daily labor cost of S26, or 22 cents per 1,000. The 

 total cost of sawing, grading, and sorting at double-band mills is 

 normally between $1.85 and $1.95 per 1,000. 



SAWMILL LUMBER YARDS 



Under "sawmill lumber yards" is included all handling and treat- 

 ment of lumber from the time it is sorted until it is loaded on cars 

 ready for shipment to market. 



