REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR I916 249 



CEMENT 



BY ROBERT W. JONES 



With the great increase in building construction which opened 

 with the year 191 6 there came a steady demand for the output of 

 the portland cement plants in the State. Nine plants were in 

 operation during the year as compared with 7 in 191 5. One plant 

 was temporarily out of commission due to destruction of a portion 

 of the plant by fire. One new company began to produce. This 

 plant is operated by the Acme Cement Corporation, in the Catskill 

 district, having taken over the property of the Seaboard Portland 

 Cement Company. The old plant of the Cayuga Cement Com- 

 pany, Portland Point, Tompkins county, after being extensively 

 reconstructed is again in operation under the management of the 

 Cayuga Cement Corporation. Properties at Phelps, Ontario county, 

 were under examination for the production of portland cement. 



There was during 1916 a total of 5195 feet of rotary cement 

 kilns in operation as compared with 4019 feet in 191 5 and 4499 

 feet in 1914. Of the total number of feet in operation during 

 1 91 6, only 1750 feet were operating under the wet system. The 

 total number of feet represents the combined length of 37 kilns 

 varying in diameter from 5 feet to 12 feet and with a combined 

 daily available output under normal conditions of 26,000 barrels. 



After allowing 7^ cents a bag and four bags to a barrel, the 

 price of portland cement f. o. b. New York, opened in January 

 at $1.37 and continued at this figure until May when it rose to 

 $1.42, where it remained until December, the year closing at $1.62. 

 This was a considerable increase over the selling price of the 

 preceding year, when a maximum and minimum were $1.32 and 

 92 cents respectively. 



The factory shipments of portland cement in the State amounted 

 to 5,603,477 barrels with a value of $5,752,809 as compared with 

 a production of 5,219,460 barrels and a value of $4,175,528 for 191 5. 

 There were on hand at the mills on January 1, 1916, a total of 

 729,436 barrels, and at the end of the season on December 31, 191 6 

 a total of 776,856 barrels. A little trouble occurred during the 

 summer months in securing barge capacity for the Hudson River 

 plants. 



The Alpha Portland Cement Company has entered upon the 

 production of potash for agricultural purposes, making a product 

 in the form of a calcium salt carrying a minimum of 2/4 per cent 

 soluble potash. This country before the war imported annually 

 potash-bearing materials which if reduced to pure potassium oxide 



