Cyclopedia of Commerce, Accountancy, Business Administration, v. 02 (of 10)

by American School of Correspondence

PUNCH-CARDS

The manner in which the time-keeper takes his notes in a notebook has been shown, and the impracticability of many of its phases pointed out. Two punch-cards for use on such work as that mentioned—namely, rock excavation with steam shovels and dump trains—are shown in Figs. 4 and 5. They are the Steam-Shovel Card and the Train Record. The shovel card is kept by the shovel runner or the fireman, and the train record is kept by the dinkey runner. Each keeps his own record separately; and, at the end of the day's work, the records must check each other.

The steam-shovel card shows the date, the number of cars loaded per hour, and the total number loaded per day. It also shows the time of starting and stopping the shovel for any reason, the stops for moving up being indicated in a different way from other stops; and thus a record of moves is kept automatically. The time of the shovel crew and the exact number of hours worked by the pit crew, are also shown, together with the cubic feet of coal consumed by the shovel. The causes of delays and the condition of the shovel are written in the blank spaces under their proper heading at the bottom of the card; but with this exception, the entire record is made with the use of an ordinary conductor's punch.

The train card shows the number of trips made by a train each day, the time of leaving the shovel on any trip being shown to the nearest 5 minutes. The number of cars hauled by all the trains during any hour must check with the number of cars loaded, as shown on the shovel card. The train card, besides showing the date, shows the total number of cars hauled (the total of all cards must check the total cars as shown by the steam-shovel record), the cubic feet of coal consumed, the average yardage per car, the haul in stations of 100 feet, the number of the dinkey engine, and a report of its condition, whether it be good, fair, or bad. This card is signed with the dinkey runner's name.

It will be seen that the record is very much more complete than that taken by the time-keeper, and is more reliable as to methods, being made while the work is going on; and the greater part of it is checked by having two records made separately, instead of taking a verbal report from the shovel runner the following day as in the example previously shown.

Fig. 4. Punch-Card for Recording Work of Excavation with Steam Shovel.

Fig. 5. Punch-Card for Recording Work of Dump Trains in Excavation Work.

Neither the train record nor shovel card, however, show any distribution of time, but are really performance records. The pipe and steamfitter's card reproduced in Fig. 6 gives an excellent example of how the time is taken and the distribution automatically made all at one time.

The classifications of labor are: Shovel, Channeller, Drills, Dinkey, and Trains, Pump, Tank, General Water System, and Blacksmith, being lettered, it will be noticed, from A to H at the head of the column. Each card provides space for the record of the foreman and 14 men. These eight classifications will probably cover all the work that the pipe and steamfitters are called upon to do; but if not, there are two extra lines on which can be written any classifications out of the ordinary.

There will be certain men assigned to certain regular work, as in the case previously quoted under the head of the Time-Keeper's Notebook, where there were two pipemen for each drill outfit. If these men spend their entire day of eight hours doing nothing but looking after the water supply for the drills, a punch mark would be made above the number of each of them on the card and opposite the figure 8, which represents the hours worked. To the left of the eight, and in the same line, and also in the vertical column opposite the word Drills, another punch mark will be made. Again, opposite the letter C, which is the key for the classification of drills, and in the column assigned to each man, and below his name, another punch mark will be made. This gives the workman full time, showing that he worked eight hours on drill water supply and nothing else. Suppose the foreman worked three hours on the general water system, three hours on the pumping station, and two hours directing the repair of the water tank. There would then be on the record a punch mark in his column opposite 3, 6, and 8; at the left of 3 in the column headed G, another punch will appear; at the left of 6 in the column E, another punch will be found, and still another at the left of 8 in the column F. In the column under the foreman's name, punch marks would be made opposite E, F, and G, showing that he worked on these three classifications.

In the same way, the time and occupation of each man under this foreman can be indicated, no matter how many changes he may make in his work during the day. The time, however, is recorded only to the nearest hour.

.

Fig. 6. Pipe and Steamfitter's Card, Showing Method of Taking Time, and of Simultaneous Automatic Distribution.

Provision is made in the lower left-hand corner, for the punching of the date; and along the lower edge is the place for the recording of the number of hours used in thawing the pipes, etc., and in providing protection for them. This latter record was found necessary, because the work on which these cards were used was done in an extremely cold locality and continued throughout the entire year.

When the records are made in the field and are sent in to the office to be transferred to permanent records, it is not necessary for the man who made the record to be at hand to interpret his notes, as there is absolutely no opportunity given him to allow his note taking to vary in the least from day to day, the record being absolutely automatic.