dimensions are 6 ft. wide, 5 ft. 2 in. high and 201⁄2 ft. long, having a capacity of 60 barrels, and covering a floor space of 123 sq. ft., while the 60 barrels standing on end would take up 252 sq. ft. of floor space. Thus there is a saving of 129 sq. ft., or, in other words, 60 barrels stored standing on end can be stored in one-half the space by means of a rack. The rack in our storeroom contains three tiers, each tier having two sets of rails, making six sets of rails, thereby making it possible to store a number of different grades of oil, and any barrel can be reached without interfering with the others.

The rack installed in our storeroom is constructed as follows: 5 frames consisting of 3 vertical posts and 3 cross numbers, one at the bottom, one through the center and one on top. These cross numbers serve as supports for the rails, of which there are six, one on each side of the center post, on each tier of which there are three. The frames are 5 feet apart and are held in place by the rails, the two on each end being held together with tie rods on each side. The entire rack is made up of channel iron 2 x 2 x 4 in. thick. The barrels are placed in the upper racks by means of a portable elevator.

To sum up, the advantages of the rack method of storing barrels are as follows:

Saves labor.

Increases storage capacity.

Gives accessibility to all barrels.

Prevents damage to the lower barrels on account of

having to carry the weight of those above, quite
often causing a leakage.

Facilitates the grouping of various kinds of oil.
Neatness.

And last of all, "SAFETY FIRST."

Some new developments in apparatus for handling junk metals and transportation equipment have been made by the Detroit Edison Company as shown in the following descriptions by Mr. K. C. Campbell, general storekeeper.

HOIST ATTACHMENT FOR TRUCKS

For those who have occasion to send trucks to pick up heavy material at points where there are no loading facilities, the hoist shown in this illustration can be put to very good use. This hoist is of one-ton capacity and with it one man can pick up heavy castings, transformers, etc., and swing

them to the floor of the truck quickly and with very little trouble.

DROP FRAME SEMI-TRAILER FOR HEAVY MACHINERY To move station transformers from one point to another quickly and economically is a problem that con

fronts almost every electric light corporation. This illustration shows how one company has worked it out satisfactorily. The transformer shown weighs fifteen tons, and by using the trailer, which can be attached to a standard truck in a short time, there was a great saving both in time and money over the former method of turning it over to a cartage concern. One reason for using the drop frame construction was to provide sufficient head room for clearing wires and other obstructions when hauling some of the new type transformers.

BALING MACHINE FOR COPPER WIRE AND CABLE

For taking care of copper from wire and cable after the insulation has been burnt off, there has been developed a machine for baling the copper into convenient bundles, which is a great improvement over leaving it in a tangled mass that is very inconvenient to handle. The illustration shows the construction of the baling machine. In operation, the scrap copper is thrown into the opening at the top; a slight pull on the rope tightens it on the drum and causes the weight to be lifted; when the rope is released, the weight falls and compresses the copper, which is later taken out of the bottom of the machine and tied up. These bundles weigh about 250 lbs.

CABLE STRIPPING MACHINE

Mr. C. E. Marden, general storekeeper of the Commonwealth Edison Company, Chicago, has prepared the following explanation of a machine which his company has designed for stripping the lead sheath from junk cable:

In order to facilitate the stripping of cable, our engineers have designed a machine for that purpose.

Under the old method of stripping by hand it took fully 15 minutes to remove the lead and paper from a piece of cable 6 feet long, while the machine strips a piece of cable of similar length in 20 seconds.

This machine consists of two cutters 434 inches in diameter, one above the other, each keyed to a shaft which is

operated from the main shaft by means of gears, the gear on the upper shaft being intermediate so as to allow for the movement of the cutters.

On the feed end there are two guides which open and close to accommodate the various sizes of cable.

The cutters and guides are adjusted simultaneously by means of a hand wheel located at the top of the machine.