ROLLING INGOTS INTO RAILS
In the manufacture of railroad rails the ingots are placed on a traveling “table” consisting of a series of rapidly turning rollers. These carry the ingot to a pair of large steel rolls between which it passes. The rolls compress the ingot slightly and it is automatically turned over and passed through a second pair of rolls. After passing through four “stands” of rolls, turning over between each stand, it is considerably reduced in cross-sectional area and correspondingly lengthened. It is now termed a “bloom.” The bloom goes through a series of rollers which gradually reduce its section until it is some forty feet long. Then it is cut in two and each section passes through other rolls, until finally it is reduced to the required rail section. Each section is then about a hundred and twenty feet long and the glowing writhing rail passes on to the saws where it is cut into ten-yard lengths. A similar process is employed in rolling other forms of rails and in making steel plates and sheets.