Show CLAY INDUSTRY utah fire C lay plant I its salt 11 1 ie I 1 lav ry 7 1 A P f I 1 brick ml salt lale city by LESLIE SQUIRES general manager utah fire clay company developments of the AMAZING clay industry in utah will be witnessed it the advances of the last 80 years continue at anywhere near the same rate the pioneer dug his clay from the hillside trampled it in layers cut it while wet into blocks and let the sun do the rest houses built of 0 adobe brick still stand tn in towns and on farms proving not only the skill ot of the early brick makers but the virtues ot of the clay they used from brick to tile was a short step and as facilities improved clay products wei were e multiplied utah Is fortunate in having many kinds of clay it the tight right sort Is not available in an one local ity it Is pretty pretty t sure to tobe q paw pr ts flent aut six plants devoted exclusively to the manufacture ot of clay goods and silica refract ories are now operating in utah not to speak of small local brick plants scattered throughout the state the major plants are located in salt lake city ogden provo murray and smithfield their ever growing list ot of products includes vitrified fied salt glazed sewer pipe and fittings farm arm drain tile silica brick fire brick assayers clay crucibles cruci bles and fire clay shapes tor for boilers locomotives locomotive steel mills and foundries paving brick high grade shale and fire clay face brick common brick hollow building and partition blocks clay shingles wall coping flue lining and many special designs manufacture and sale ot of the products give employment to an aver age of 0 men the year around with an annual payroll ot of about the processes call for the yearly production ot of about tons ol of clay to burn bum which fuel to the value ot of Is consumed for supplies power freight taxes and such expenses not less than Is disbursed though salt lake valley smelt ers and widespread building construction st constitute a steady market sales of 0 specialties beyond the tha borders of 0 the state indicate the possibilities ol of expansion silica brick is shipped to surrounding states aud and orders tor for crucibles cruci bles and aie ai e received from all over the world production facilities are ample tor for a growing business it la Is estimated that with all plants operating a daily hour S 8 shift at full capacity there would be manufactured each day enough facing and backing brick to construct 30 five r room om cottages pipe tor for aa miles ot of sewer and tile for 4 miles of drains hollow blocks lor for smokestacks smoke stacks hundreds of 0 feet tall and tile for silos are made from clay underground wiring Is facilitated by clay conduits and the use ot of finer clays in the making of porcelain Is beginning to be recognized in utah so tar far utah county is the best known source of ceramic material clay banks of alluvial and glacial origin are found in cache weber Bl morgan organ salt lake and utah counties to date the production of fire clay has been confined to utah county where the basic material Is carboniferous to make silica brick the manufacturer goes to the cambrian formation la in juab county in 1927 1937 presents an astonishing contrast to the almost primitive methods of 1857 describing a typical 0 operation pe ration of 0 today the he manager of a large brick company says starting at clay beds averaging 15 feet in thickness ten teams scrape up the clay and lay it on platforms thence it is hauled by electric trains to mixing and pulverizing ver izing sheds from there it is conveyed by endless belts to the bins where the tight right amount of moisture is added the next step is working the clay through the pug mills these are heavy cast iron mixing machines which knead the clay to the proper cc consistency mals tency for molding into what are called green brick attached t to the end of the pug mills are forms or dies out of which come bricks of the correct length and height to make pressed brick the clay Is handled in much the same manner except as it comes out of the mixing bins it is fed into massive presses from the presses the brick is conveyed to the kilns kalns tor for burning A fire of powdered coal Is started at one end and carried the entire length by forced draft when heated to 2200 degrees the brick are allowed to cool wagons are lowered into the kiln by an electric crane loaded and set outside to be hauled by teams to their destination ever since the day of the humble adobe utah has been a brick state few parts of the union have a higher percentage of brick structures steel mills and sugar factories need refractory brick tor for their furnaces municipalities pipe for their sanitary sewers drainage districts tile to reclaim their lands thus one industry fosters many others an investment of about it Is estimated is represented by the plants in utah devoted exclusively to the manu facture of clay goods and silica frac tories |