This paper describes how one American steel producer has been able to provide value which has benefitted the automotive industry in the past and how it is striving to provide value now and intends to do so for many decades into the future. As an alloy steel bar and tube manufacturer serving the automotive industry since its infancy, the Company has had to conquer many serious problems and challenges over the years. The current challenge is doing business as an American company in today's growing global society. In addition to overcoming the obstacles created by today's business environment, it will take continued innovativeness to provide value to the customer.
THE THOUGHT OF MAKING STEEL probably never entered the mind of Henry Timken, the Company's founder, who spent most of his career producing carriages, buggies, and wagons. He was more concerned with friction in the axle bearings and what he could do to reduce it. When other men his age were thinking about retiring, he was busy designing and testing bearings. The patented tapered roller bearing that the Company makes today proudly carries his name [1]. The fruits of his experimental efforts have inspired the aggressive research and development activities that are a trademark of the Company (Figure 1),
The authors intend to point out the results of these research and development activities, many of which were aimed toward improving the state of the art of tapered roller bearings. Timely decisions relative to investments in people and facilities have doubly benefitted the automotive industry, which not only purchases tapered roller bearings, but is one of the Company's major steel customers.
The initial application of the bearing to wheeled vehicles was so successful that the carriage business, which was located in St. Louis, was sold, and in 1901, the tapered roller bearing axle business was launched in Canton, Ohio, This location was chosen because of its proximity to the area where fledgling automobile companies were springing up as well as its proximity to the supply of steel.
Stover, J. and Kolarik, R., "An American Steel Producer's Continuing Efforts to Provide Value to the Automobile Industry," SAE Technical Paper 930959, 1993, https://doi.org/10.4271/930959.
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References
“Roller Bearing For Vehicles,” U.S. Patent No. 606,635 Timken H. Heinzelman R. June 28 1898
“Timken Roller Bearings, Short Series,” Dimension Sheet 14 The Timken Roller Bearing Company Canton, Ohio October 1909
Lothrop M.T. Stedman E. G. Ehn E. W. Electric Steel for Timken Bearings and Its Heat Treatment , Copyright 1923 The Timken Roller Bearing Company
Burrier H. I. Jr. “Bearing Steels: ASM Metals Handbook 1 10th Properties & Selection
McQuaid H. W. Ehn E. W. “Effect of Quality of Steel on Case-Carburizing Results,” AIME Transactions 67 1922 341 391
Gable L. D. Rowland E. S. “Commercial Gas Carburizing,” Transactions of ASM September 1938 706 742
Rowland E. S. Lyle S. R. “Measurement of Case Depths by Martensite Formation,” Metals Progress , American Society of Metals 47 November 5 1945 907
Rider E. S. “Continuous Cooling of Three Grades of Steel Off the Number 2 Piercing Mill Using the Slow Cool Furnace” March 19 1956
“Seamless Steel Tubing Handbook,” Copyright 1992 The Timken Company
Thompson D. N. ”New Continuous Thermal Treating Facility - An Overview,” Mechanical Working and Processing Conference XXIII 179 183 A Publication of the Iron and Steel Society
Arnold Samuar “Fifty Years of Progress in Electric-Arc Furnaces” 3 rd Electric Furnace Steel Conference, Copyright 1956 The American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers, Inc
Ressler E. G. “Determination of McQuaid-Ehn Grain Size by Spectrochemical Analysis of Ladle Samples,” Electric Furnace Steel Conference, Copyright 1953 American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers, Inc
Jatczak C. F. “Graphitic Cold Work Tool Steels,” ASM Report System, C72-25.2
Fleischmann M. “The Development of 16-25-6 Alloy for Gas Turbine and Turbosupercharger Applications,” Iron Age January 17 1946
Jatczak C. F. “Specialty Carburizing Steels for Elevated Temperature Service,” ASM Metal Progress April 1978
Burrier H. I. Jr. “Alloy Substitution in Bearing Steels for Flexibility and Performance,” Presented to U.S. Bureau of Mines Workshop on Conservation and Substitution Technology for Critical Materials Vanderbilt University March 1984
Preston J. K. Musat J. B. Walz H. “The Design and Startup of Timken's New Faircrest Electric Arc Furnace Shop,” Iron and Steelmaker July 1986
Stover J. D. Kolarik R. V. II “Air-Melted Steel With Ultra-Low Inclusion Stringer Content Further Improves Bearing Fatigue Life,” The Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Automotive Engineering , SAE 871208
Burnett M. E. “Laboratory Simulation of TMS-80 Microalloy Steel in Heavy Forgings,” 1989 Mechanical Working and Steel Processing Proceedings 219 225
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