Floor Plans for Small Manual Offices. As was pointed out, there are several plans of disposing of the main and intermediate distributing frames and the line and cut-off relay racks. The one most practiced is to mount the relay rack alongside the main and intermediate distributing frame in the terminal room. A typical floor plan of such an arrangement for a small office, employing as a maximum five sections of multiple switchboards, is shown in Fig. 418. This is an ideal arrangement well adapted for a rectangular floor space and on that account may often be put into effect. It should be noted that the switchboard grows from left to right, and that alternative arrangements are shown for disposing of those sections beyond the second. The cable turning section through which the multiple and answering jacks are led to the terminal frames is placed as close as possible to the terminal frames. This results in a considerable saving in cable. An interesting feature of this floor plan is the arrangement of unitary sections of main and intermediate frames and relay racks, representing recent practice of the Western Electric Company. The iron work of the three racks is built in sections and these are structurally connected across so that the first section of the main frame, the intermediate frame, and the relay rack form one unit, the structural iron work which ties them together forming the runway for the cables between them. But two of these units, including two sections of each frame, are shown installed, the provision for growth being indicated by dotted lines.

The battery room in this case provides for the disposal of the battery cells in two tiers. This room is merely partitioned off from the distributing or terminal room. Where this is done the partition walls should be plastered on both sides so as to prevent, as far as possible, the entrance of any battery fumes into the apparatus rooms.

The wire chief's desk, as will be noted, is located in such a position as to give easy access from it not only to the distributing frames and relay rack, but to the power apparatus as well.

Combined Main and Intermediate Frames. For use in small exchanges, the Western Electric Company has recently put on the market a combined main and intermediate distributing frame. This is constructed about the same as an ordinary main frame, the protectors being on one side and the line and intermediate frame terminals on the other. The lower half of the terminals on each vertical bay is devoted to the outside line terminals and the upper half is devoted to intermediate frame terminals. This arrangement is indicated in the elevation in Fig. 419. With the use of this combined main and intermediate frame, the floor plan of Fig. 418 may be modified, as shown in Fig. 420.

Fig. 419. Combined Main and Intermediate Frames
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Fig. 420. Small Office Floor Plan
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Fig. 421. Terminal Apparatus—Small Office
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