DAY BY DAY

Waikato Times, Volume 89, Issue 13888, 14 October 1918, Page 4

DAY BY DAY

The South African Mining and Engineering Record says: "Efforts to practise economy in the use of steel and iron have developed, and are now resulting in a satisfactory substitute for corrugated iron and sheets. It is an asbestoscement roofing material. During the last year n large plant has been built in England for manufacturing this product. The method of making it is as follows:—After being finely giound and free from extraneous matter, the asbestos, which acts as the reinforcing agent, is mixed with Portland cement in the propoition of about one to six, and made into a paste with water. This paste is then taken to a machine of the paper-m.'king type, where, in a large revolving drum, it is fonned into sheets or felts. After the sheets have been trimmed to size, they have the corrugations impressed on them. The important condition of this operation is to ensure that the tops of the corrugations are as strong as the other parts of the sheets. Finally the sheets are subjected to a 'seasoning' process. The corrugations are made to the 3in pitch, which is usual with corrugated iron sheeting, not to the 2iin foreign pitch, and they can, therefore, readily be used to repair roofs' of corrugated iron. One of the chief advantages claimed is their durability and resistance to climatic conditions, especially to an acid-laden atmosphere, which rapidly destroys corrugated iron. The sheets are also fireproof, and are poor conductors of heat."

A Substitute for Corrugated Iron.