Welding Plant Improves as Application Widens
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How Fabricated Construction is Spreading in Manufacture. Recent Developments in Lincoln Electric-welding Equipment
WAR production and welding are closely VY allied. The economiei that can be effected in time and material by applying welding to the manufacture and repair of countless products are indeed substantial. Almost daily, the process, in one form or another, is becoming More widely employed.
We heard of a base recently which is worth recounting to illustrate this growth. A manufacturing concern purchased its first arc welder several years ago to perform one specific simple operation. This led to its being used for other comparable,. • jobs until, while working to capacity, it could not meet the demand on its services.
Accordingly, another was acquired, then a third, and a fourth.
, Clearly this works personnel were becoming welding-minded, and evidence of this appeared in the fact that the drawing office was beginning to design minor assemblies for fabricated construction. Fewer castings were used, and more parts were built up by weldingfrom plate, etc. Gradually it was realized that strength, pactness, speed of production and lower cost were all more easily achieved, as a general rule, by constructional methods involving welding to the maximum practicable extent. So the works were re-organized appropriately.
As an instance of a product that Was'actually redesigned as a result of this reorganization, may be quoted a works truck, an illustration of tile main frame of which appears on this page. This part comprises 26 items, all made from standard rolled sheet and sections. Formerly, the corresponding unit was composed of 94 pieces, including bolts and rivets. The beam strength of the welded frame is stated to be 50 per cent, greater, the rigidity and resistance to distortion 200 per cent, more, and the cost per lb. in labour and material 22 per cent. less.
Thus it follows that the demands put upon electric welding equipment become more exacting, whilst persons of less experience than formerly are being called upon to operate the plants. Makers of such apparatus, in many cases, have been quick to react, andAhring the past few months a number of improvements, to take a specific example, have been effected to the well-known electric welding machines produced by the Lincoln Electric Co., Ltd., Welwyn Garden City, Herts. Amongst these is the provision of a new protective control devised to prevent the possibility of burning out when plants are operated at maximum capacity for long periods without intermission.
The device consists of two current
recently introduced item of the transformers, of which the primary circuits range of welding appliances mach by are connected in .series with the motor the Lincoln Electric Co., Ltd. It is ern leads, whilst the secondaries operate two electrode holder that is proving highly snap-action thermostats mounted direct on efficient in use, particularly by girl the motor laminations. This arrangement
A
welders, causes the thermostats to be responsive to
lightness cornthe heat imparted to them, both from outside and by the current passing through.
As a result, they will trip open (a) if the welding plant gets too' hot through local atmospheric conditions; (b) if excessive currents are passed, even when the apparatus has not reached too high a temperature; (c) if the machine becomes too hot through being ,inadvertently started on Angle-phase lines; (d) :f, while running, one fuse blows and the motor operates on single-phase, and the load is sufficient to overheat the motor; (e) if the current becomes too high while nqrmally operating; (f) if both current and temperature combine through a heavy load for a long period to operate the thermostats. It is of note that when• conditions return to those desirable for safe operation, the thermostats reset themselves automatically.
, Anotheit, improvement consists of a new box for housing
the arc-welder control, which prevents accidental contact with live parts, whilst increasing accessibility and permit ting wiring with flexible or rigid conduits. There is a separate compartment for all ac. circuits, including the push button, and another for the d.c. terminals. The doors of both compartments have snap catches, whilst the ac. compartment door also has screws for securing it, A further notable feature of this control box is the improved lifting hook. This -is so designed that all rine of its being unintentionally unscrewed is eliminated. In addition, there are several modifications of a detail nature designed to enhance efficiency and safe working.
Turning now from the welding machine itself, we may mention a new Lincoln Electric electrode holder. An outstanding feature is that it enables the electrode to be used right down to the end of the coating, thus reducing the size of the stub ends to the minimum and saving metal.
The holder incorporates a spring clamp so that the operator does not have to grip a lever all the time the device is in use. The jaws are copper-tipped and permit of several positions of the electrode to facilitate working on vertical, overhead or flat welding Jobs. The device weighs only 14 oz., in its smaller form, and there is a bigger model for heavy duty.