Turns out this mystery tool of mine is a Valve Compressor used by among others auto mechanics, probably made between 1920-1929 at the HD Smith Company in Plantsville.
http://ctinventor.wordpress.com/2011/02/09/grandpas-old-tools/ 11 May 2011
The demand for engineers also was strong at factories. Manufacturing at the time was completing a shift from the industrial craftsmanship that characterized earlier decades, to a capital-intensive enterprise focused on churning out products to the marketplace. The owners of the manufacturing shops cared little about the aesthetics of a sewing machine or vacuum cleaner; their primary focus was on developing economies of scale and the best means of generating high volume and low unit costs.
And so these factory owners hired engineers to design machine systems ensuring the efficient production of components and products. A machine-tool boom ensued during the early years of the 20th century, as mechanical engineers brought their inventive skills to bear on precision machinery that cut and ground metal, pressed steel, and automated assembly tasks.
Soon, the German mechanic Herman Doehler and others introduced die-casting to the American factory, which accelerated the production of parts. Die-casting was embraced by the automobile pioneer Henry Ford, who took manufacturing efficiency to an even higher level through the application of rapid assembly techniques, sequencing, and quality control. By 1906, Ford began high-volume automobile manufacturing, expanding his Detroit factory and bringing in machinists and technical experts knowledgeable in special-purpose tooling, interchangeable parts, and other areas supporting his vision of a rational, organized, and structured production operation.
http://www.memagazine.org/backissues/membersonly/mar05/features/greaterg/greaterg.html 11 May 2011
ebook avail online through library system -
Design in the USA
Jeffrey L. Meikle 1949- ebrary, Inc.
Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2005.
FINE ARTS LIBRARY 745.2 M512
From the American system to mass production, 1800-1932 the development of manufacturing technology in the United States
David A. Hounshell American Council of Learned Societies.
History e-book project.Baltimore : Johns Hopkins University Press, c1985. John Hopkins Paperbacks edition, 1985.
GENERAL LIBRARY 338.650973 H83
Men, machines and history : the story of tools and machines in relation to social progress.
Sam Lilley
London : Lawrence & Wishart, 1965. [Rev. and enlarged ed.]..
Available at GENERAL LIBRARY (609 L72 1965 )
No comments:
Post a Comment