LOCAL INDUSTRY.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13607, 29 May 1908, Page 7

LOCAL INDUSTRY.

BRICKS, AND PIPES. At rhe invitation of Mr J. K. Hurdley a small party of builders and othsr busings men paid a visit to Mr H. B. Kirk's brick and tile works yesterday afternoon, to inspect a '* clay-washer"- which Mr Kirk has just added to his plant; and white there they had a good look round over the whole of t lie works under Mr Kirks guidance. Some, who had not visited the. works before, »r not for some yearn, were surprised at the extent of the buildings and the variety of the machinery and other plant employed. The large circular continuous brick kiln was first examined, and its operation explained. The. kiln is a continuous annular cell in? structure, and the only partition in it, that separates tha secti< ns wherein bricks are bring burned from the outer air, is made of brown paper. But between this slender partition and the lire ia a section stacked full of bricks through which hot air from tins further away is escaping through flues to the tall chimney stack, and behind the fires is another stack of bricks that have been burned, through which the draught to the fires passes, becoming heated on the way, and cooling the bricks in its passage. The fires are fed to one "section" at a time, and of these there are fourteen in the circumference of the kiln. Very little fuel seems to lie required, and this "is fed through aperture* in the top only three or four inches in diameter. The kiln is roofed over, and at this time of year the large chamber above it supplies a useful drying space for wet bricks. These are brought up to the- Boor level from the brick pr«es by a belt elevator, and wheeled .about to "the stacking tiers. The brick-press was at work, a ponderous steam-driven machine, who*e principal elements are an archimedtan screw, that pulverises the clay and forces- it into moulds- on the face of a horizontal wheel. ,From this wheel rudely shaped bricks are ejected one after another, and automatically paeced into a powerful prw>s,, which gives them perfect shape and wfirlity, and a lad hands them. over to the elevator belt leading np to the kifn top. The making of 12 inch ;ptpe» «its next shown, the machine consisting of unhthtT screw that forces- tho clay ♦•Venty through an annular die, and the man in charge cuts off the continuous cylinder into lengths with a wire, and two men carry utray each length rooting on a wooden tray. These machines require a good deal" of power to drive them, and thi-* i* supplied by a bis horizontal steam engine, whose two-furnaced boiler suggests a coal bill. The bricks and pipes require drying before going to the kiins, and an «-xtecsivv area of iron roofing provides shelter from rain to long rows upon rows of bricks stacked for drying, the rate of this process 'f course depending on the weather. The pip.* are dried on the lower floor of the twostory manufacturing building. The are- burned in a special kiln, in which fires ar«- burned «»n the outside, thr heat passed through flues t»» the arched tf-p of the kiln, and then downward through the pipes, and through a sfc.-leton brick floor. drawn through in this topsy-turvy course by the strong draught of -a tall "chimney stack. The "glazing" of pipes, etc., is effected by the very simple pmcess of throwing salt on the fins; the salt passes away with the hot ga«fi and combining with the red-hot clay makes a glassy surface.

The chief object. of tlw vi.-it was to s><th»; ww- clay washing plant, and approaching this thy visitors ru>Ud large hwij«> of the- S?ath*rlands clay, whose whtt'-mtti ma*.'! ;r. notabN- contrast with the dark yt.dtow of the 1r»ri»l clay, how damp from th* rain. Thw washing plant con fi*t* of ai sort of chunt. t>U-ant driven, which thrash** and da<dt«:> any !«ort of clay mixed with waUr so that* it is separated into tt» tiiwot particles, and the Sutherland;* clay thu-s treatvd vntrs away from it like a sonie-whitt dirty and thick milk. Home of tlu- courser partid'?* doabtfesw settle in the bottom of thechttrn. and a coarser and a finer yieve through which the tUrne it- passed ivtain what dnm not wttle. The *' churn " ist an ovat brick tank, in which spins a vertical shaft with arnisi hearing s-ted dashers, that k*eps tho emulsion in a state of lively commotion. From the washer the slime k> rim off to a settling and cva-

pumting tank. The one tank as: yet made is over 20ft square, and the vshihe Jit* in it about 18 inches in depth, so •'that it holds about 30 cubic yards. The tank is rooted over to exclude rain, but at thi.« time of year evaporation proceeds but slowly, and it will be sonic tunc belore the nrst churning, run in lust Meek, will be dry enough to use. The apparatus was- intended chieily for the treatment of the white Kutherlanus clay, but it will also enable the Timaru clay to be used for finer purposes, and it offers a firstrate means of mixing the two clavs in 'any desired proportions. Mr Kirk intends to make, more evaporation pits, to make up for the slowness ot the drying proctcs. A sample of the slime, artificially dried, was shown to the visitors-, and ako several small articles that had been made from it. J lie damp sample was perfectly smoMh in texture; "like putty," every "one said; and a number of small moulded ornaments, a thin hollow one turned on a potters wheel showed that the washed clay is tradable and takes a sharp mould well; and its evenness of grain promised a good "biscuit" when baked. Mr Kirk anticipates that the washed clay will make a denser pipe than the merely crushed clay. The various moulds used for traps, sinks, .'.plions, cbimn«y top!., ventilation bricks, ornamental string courses, garden tiles, lawn vases, and stocks of these articles were shown, and the latter were voted good sound articles; and the traps and glazed pipes were declared quite suitable for the underground drainage work. Beside these samples was a stack of pale coloured fire-bricks, made from Sutherland's clay, some of which have been successfully used in setting boilers and fining -bakers '-ovens, and have stood tha fire> well.

Tbo party after their inspection partook of Mr Kirk's hospitality at his house, and some remarks were made about the business. | Mr Hurdley mentioned that lie had invited several of the leading citizens who had been unable to come, and he regretted that everybody could not see these works, ior not, many pcopie iiad any conception of tho extent of the plant tliat Mr Kirk had got together, or of the variety of articles he had been successfully making. Mr J. Hole said that Mr Kirk had made great additions to the plant since he purchased it, and he was much pleased to see what excellent things were being turned out of the clay. He had no doubt Mr Kirk would be successful in its manufacture, and put an end to the importation of some lines of articles from the Old Country and elsewhere. As for the proposed company, he had 110 doubt, it would be successful, if it were formed. Mr Grandi described two further additions to the plant that lie had in hand for Mr Kirk, one a lift with an air brake for letting down bricks from above the kiln, and returning empty barrows; the other, a pair of crushing rollers to pulverise the clay before it entered the screw cylinder of the brick machine. He also suggested that the waste steam from the engine could be utilised for heatng purposes with economical result. It did not matter much he thought, whether the proposed company was formed- or not, as Mr Kirk had done well, and he hoped would continue to do well if the proposal fell through. Mr F. Palh'ser spoke highly of the quality of the output of the yards* in bricks and pipes; and Mr F. Raymond did not see why the local pipes should not be used in the drainage works. He congratulated Mr Kirk on the enterprise he had shown in building up such an industry. Others having expressed their interest in thf- works and uie output. Mr KiiK replied. He had. he said, been well supported in Timaru, and all that he had made out of the business he had ]>ut back into it. He looked for similar support, in future, and hoped to deserve it the more by heing able now to produce a, better article, and one that no one could cavill at. He believed the Sutherlands clay was good enough for anything in tho way of coarso pottery or stoneware. He did not think fineware could be made anywhere in the Dominion to compete with importations. At all events it had never been dime y»t. One of tin- latiot. to give in was a Wellington company, after hjninding many thousands in trying to establish a business in light sanitary ware. Such articles as his visitors had seen, ho expected to be able to improve upon, and \w hoped to add several useful lines of which Mr Hurdley had brought samples from the Old Country, in roofiing and ridging tiles, and some others. He did not much care whether the company was formed or not. If it was not, he would go on as hvfor*\ doing his best, and improving tho works as he found himself abl« to do it. A vote of (hunks w;is passed t<> Mr Hurdley for organising tho visit., ;md for his interest in local industries, and I In* Press was paid a similar compliment on the latter ground.