Page 46 - C.M. (Clem) Anson and Steel

ISSUE : Issue 28

Published by Ronald Caplan on 1981/6/1

er put to them was about 10 million for a year's spending on capital expenditures-- though 10 million those days was a lot more than 10 million today. We would look at the whole plant and say, what is the most important thing to do, what should be done first?--because a lot of things would pay off if you did them. What's the best? Should we do something at the blast fur? nace this year? May do something at the open hearth next year. Or may do something at both one year. Rolling mills. Blooming, billet mill, rail mills, bar mills, rod mi11--and then the wire and nail mill, that's the coldest operation. You would have to assess the situation as to how much money might be available from profits you'd make--have to be mostly profits-- wasn't anybody investing money in the plant in those days. One year after anoth? er, you'd improve the plant, whatever mon? ey was available. As long as I was over there we did that. And we built it up to a damned efficient little steel plant. (Was it in good shape before the Second World War? Did you have it built up by then?) No, it wasn't. For instance, we hadn't got the mill electrified in the Second World War. We were still using those bloody old 50-ton furnaces down on the ground in the open hearth--they oper? ated all through the Second War. And going into the war, we still had only the same two raw materials and the size of the plant first--it was only a 500,000-ton plant. And we kept it busy all the time. But the type of plant it was, and those raw materials, didn't stop us making good steel. Nobody made better than we did, as a matter of fact. And as for rails, we made the best rails in the world--no ques? tion about that. And all rails made in the world today are made according to the pro? cess we developed right here: the Mackie Retarded Cooling Process--either that or something that came out of it. We had a tremendous reputation on rails. We shipped them all over. India, South Africa, sever? al countries in South America. And of course, CN and CP, (Would rails alone be e- nough to carry that plant and make it pro? fitable?) No, we couldn't get enough rail business. I think about the highest produc? tion in rail we ever got to in my time was about, well, we might have hit '00,000 tons in a year, but I don't think quite-- but that wouldn't be enough. You needed twice that much. But we were shipping to England steel in various forms. Billets, for instance, went out of here by the cargo load--10,000- 12,000 tons at a time--send them over. Rods. Thousands and thousands of tons of those we shipped to England. All kind of qualities. Make high-grade wire or soft wire or anything--whatever they wanted, we made it. We had an awfully good reputation in England for the quality of our steel. And we made money then. I think the first steel we shipped over to England would be in 1932--not long after we came out of re? ceivership . (In other words, the whole world goes into Depression, and the steel plant at Sydney is able to come out of receivership?) We were out of the Depression long before the rest of the steel industry in this contin? ent was out of it--because we went into ex? port. That's one reason why. And the other big thing, we developed the Mackie Retar? ded Cooling Process. When we came out of receivership, a new company was formed-- Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation (DOS-- CO). It owned this plant and it owned the plants in Trenton and the Halifax Ship? yards, plus a small nail-making plant in Saint John, New Brunswick, and a small rol? ling mill in Montreal, the Peck Rolling Mill--that was the extent--and, of course, they owned the coal company. When these people formed DOSCO, they put in a retired Blacksmithing & Ironwork For trained horseshoeing by N.S.A.C. graduate, call 929-2396 - JOHN MACDONALD - Tarbot Vale Custom Ironwork a Specialty 'The Glendale Fiddlers' Festival THE WHOLE WORLD WELCOME: JULY 10, 11, 12, 1981 Fashion with Quality at Terry Rof ihe Ladies' Wear Charade Third Dimension Loriann College Town Co-ordinates Algo and Other Excellent Designs Port Hawkesbury - New Glasgow A Neighbourhood Store in a Beautiful Village Neil's Harbour Phone (902) 794-7251 Cable BRENNANS Telex 019-35149 Night & Holiday 736-8479 794-3178 The Skye Motel 77 Rooms with Cable T.V. 9-Hole Mini-Golf Licensed Seafood Dining Room VISIT OUR GIFT SHOP AND THE CAPE BRETON WAX MUSEUM Located on Cape Breton Island at the Canso Causeway PORT HASTINGS. N.S. (902) 625-1300 Brennans Travel Agency 158 QUEEN STREET, NORTH SIDNEY STEAMSHIP -- AIRLINE -- RAIL AND HOTEL ACCOMMODATIONS (46)

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