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78 clear of course that the traffic depart- ment with its years of elaborate experi- ence in shipping finished products and parts to every section of the country and all over the world would sense at once the relative quality of service ren- dered by the company’s own fleet as compared with that rendered by outside transportation agencies. Moreover this department is thoroughly familiar with all the routine and the delays and diffi- culties incident to shipping vast quan- tities of goods. In a real sense to give this critical traffic department satisfac- tory service necessarily means efficient operation. The men in charge of operations ap- proached the problem with absolutely unbiased and open minds. Their slate was clean, they had no old traditions or customs to follow. They had but one object and that was to move the com- pany’s products from its plant or the rail terminal to points of destination in the quickest way and at the least pos- sible cost without loss or damage. To this problem they immediately devoted all their thoughts and energy. With complete control of all the factors in their own hands, they were able to try out new methods radically different from usual steamship practice. Of course, it was necessary to have experienced and licensed officers and seamen. The cap- tain, however, was not expected to pass upon the manner of loading or discharg- ing except insofar as his status aS mas- ter of the vessel made it necessary for him to pass upon her seaworthiness at any stage or when completed. New Methods Worked Out Before any cargo was loaded a careful study was made of the proper location and distribution in the vessel of the component parts of such a cargo as would be carried, with due regard for order of discharge at port or ports of destination, and for the proper trim and stability of the vessel. It must be borne in mind that the men responsible knew very little or nothing of loading ships but they did have the very definite aim of studying every condition with the ob- ject of stowing the maximum amount at the least cost per unit of weight or measurement. In a similar way years before they had solved in equally un- orthodox fashion the problem of quick economical and safe loading of box cars. With due regard for the impor- tant differences of the problem they now faced, their objective was the same in loading and discharging the ship. Steam- ship companies accepting cargo from thousands of shippers insist on sturdy and elaborate crating and packing and will not receive goods unless so safe- guarded from loss or damage. Crating and packing is a serious item of expense MARINE REVIEW besides increasing the freight charges. To avoid this unnecessary expense it was decided to do away with all box- ing and crating and to stow all parts bare. All parts with the exception of the PTTTATHVONOVOCUCUUUUUUUUUUUUCUAOOCOUUUUUUUUUUUCUUUUAAOCAUUCUUULULUUULLULLLUUCC CA Three Voyage Reports S. S. ONONDAGA VOYAGE NO. 1 Lakes, St. Lawrence and South America Port Arrived Sailed WDEKOIE sae ee eee 11- 5-24 Montreal aac soc vie iss oie 11-11-24 11-14-24 Rios (dev. JAnelrtO” cicstees aes 12-10-24 12-11-24 Buenos “Aires. oc nte sie vee 12-15-24 12-28-24 IROSATION | Siceeia ce bok ereieinmiezarels 12-29-24 1- 4-25 ING VIOLIS © faeces atsvemtalemieeen 2 -6-25 Detroit to Buenos Aires in nautical miles 7121 Total distance on trip arrival New York 12,992 Total time on trip, days, hours, min- WALES oe ee eee nace s soca eiecee wie eale ae Sele 97 23 40 Average time in ports, days, hours, OTB HOWE ULE Gerrans Pye ure irs opr aR ERS RRR Bee 10, 31 Total tons of cargo carried on trip....4903 Nature of cargo—tractors, auto parts and linseed. Note:—On voyage No. 1 the S. S. ONonDAGA loaded 1447 long tons of auto parts and tractors at Detroit and completed her cargo with 460 long tons at Montreal. On sailing from Montreal bound for Buenos Aires she had on board a full cargo of 100 tractors and parts for 2100 cars. On the return from Buenos Aires the ONONDAGA stopped at Rosario there taking on 2850 tons of linseed for New York. S. S. ONEIDA VOYAGE NO 1 Lakes, St. Lawrence and Atlantic Coastwise Port Arrived Sailed Detroitecsies cs pce ce amie e ret 11-12-24 Mioritrealitccdct sic ae eluents 11-18-24 11-18-24 Norfolle ccc. cpieiaisle occ nee ats 11-26-24 11-28-24 Jacksonville. 0 cc.. cee cie ve os 12- 1-24 12- 2-24 New Orleans ..........00-% 12- 7-24 12- 9-24 ER OUST OM ee ee carey re sce ye a eiels 12-12-24 12-17-24 INOW YOLK ccc ciss ce a crsice vets 12-26-24 Total distance in nautical miles ...... 6629 Average distance miles per day ........ 204 Total time on trip, days, hours, min. .48-22-10 Average time in ports, days hours, min. 2- 3- 5 Total tons of cargo carried on trip.. 4408% Nature of cargo—auto parts, sugar and miscel- laneous. Note:—On volage No. 1 the S. S. Onxrpa loaded 1629 short tons auto parts at Detroit and com- pleted the cargo with 766 short tons at Norfolk. On sailing from Norfolk she had on board all the major parts for 5000 cars. On the return trip from Houston to New York she had a cargo of 1650 long tons of sugar. S. S. ONEIDA VOYAGE NO 2 Atlantic Coastwise Port Arrived Sailed INGWee SON oe ss eens 15-25 Jacksonville: 5c os ses eee 1- 8-25 1- 9-25. New Orleans ........-+.. 1-14-25 1-16-25 FN OUSTON 6 niis amen kaise ces 1-19-25 1-22-25 Macksonwville 2.5; cise seers o's 1-28-25 1-30-25 INiewWite Wotlk 06 gea i ct abacte 2 -3-25 Total distance in nautical miles.......... 4445 Average distance, miles per day ...... 141.5 Total time on trip, days, hours, min...31 Average time in ports, days, hours MMIAPIE@S cs cherainrclant erpucne tae ereusie win. ec ynce 6 Qo 25.253 Total tons of cargo carried on trip...... 4712 Nature of cargo—auto parts, lumber, railroad ties and general. \Note:—On voyage No. 2 the S. S. Onna had a full cubic cargo of 2454 short tons out of New York. This cargo consisted of the motors and other parts for 5000 cars. She took on 130 sedan bodies at New Orleans for Hous- ton. On the return trip 1700 tons of lumber and general cargo were loaded at Houston for Jacksonville and New York. Of this cargo 600 tons were discharged at Jacksonville where she in turn completed loading full cargo with rail- road ties for New York. AUTUUVTETUTUUSTETUTVUUEHLLUUTHTELLLOEHAULUGGGHULLLLCOGEAULLLOOLALUULUOGELLLOCUOLLUOG EEE motors were stowed and placed in posi- tion loose with lumber separation for certain parts, the whole when complete- ly loaded clinging together like nails in a keg. Vertical separation and bracing was also applied as necessary. The ac- March, 1925 © companying views of the different hatches show how neatly and compactly these parts were stowed. From _ the views taken on arrival at Norfolk after the trip through the St. Lawrence and down the coast in heavy weather it will be seen that no shifting or disarrange- ment occurred and this with only a par- tial cargo, due to limits of draft, a severer condition than with a full cargo. How Bare Motors Are Stowed The proper stowage of the bare mo- tors was successfully accomplished by building up racks of timber made up of vertical and cross bars spaced to al- low the motors to hang from the string- ers just as they are suspended between the two longitudinal frame members of a finished car except that in this case nails took the place of the usual holding down bolts. One of the accompanying views shows these racks under construc- tion with motors being fitted in posi- tion while another view shows the racks completed with all the motors in place. In order to shift the motors in a longi- tudinal direction from the _ position reached by the ships gear a number of fore and aft H-beams running parallel to each other were permanently sus- pended from two hatch strong backs which had been left in place and from deck beams beyond the limits of the hatch. These H-beams serve as tracks for rolling small hand hoists by which the motors are ‘shifted to any desired po- sition. This equipment is used both for loading and discharging. In unload- ing the motors are lifted bodily off the cross supports, the nails holding them down being pulled out automatically in lifting each individual motor. The large substantial square steel-plate pans shown in the illustrations are used for both loading and unloading all miscel- laneous parts. Properly fitted bridles for them are also furnished so that the ships gear or shore gear can be used without the delay of special rigging up. Another important phase of Ford’s methods of loading and unloading these vessels is in the type of labor employed. At the Rouge plant the labor for load- ing the ships was chosen from different departments without any reference to previous experience, the only qualifica- tion being that of physical fitness. Among others, some office men, it is understood were invited to lend a hand. At all ports of call where there is a Ford branch all work of loading and un- loading is done by the men of the plant at that port. Cargo is worked right through the 24 hours in three shifts. The exception to tthis rule is in the hand- ling of return cargoes of a commercial nature not connected with the com- pany’s enterprises. These are handled 3 if : ‘