Before Welding There Was a Steam Powered Generation

Meet the 1917 Farquhar Road Engine

I took these pictures of the 1917 Farquhar Road Engine when it was on display at the Vancouver Island Exhibition in Nanaimo during the summer. I involve students in examining these several photos during class discussion. It demonstrates the design features of an industrial machine that was manufactured using no welding.

This is an article about the group that restored this machine.
http://www.albernivalleynews.com/news/318209991.html

(The lower hinge on the boiler door appears to be repaired by welding.)

Everything is cast parts and plate riveted or bolted together.

It is particularly fascinating to see the wheels which are completely bolted together of hundreds of individual pieces. This factory production power unit was available for sale brand new in 1917. It was high tech riveted lap style construction; before it was challenged by a new process, fusion welding.

This transformation in engineering design would save enormous amounts of labour in assembly. Parts often needed to be hand filed one by one. The amount of material saved, holes made and rivets hammered. The complexity and shear number of parts required to manufacture what is a simple machine, especially compared to an internal combustion powered vehicle.

Students can clearly see that this steam powered machine shares design cues with steam locomotives. This rivet assembly technology was also key to large commercial construction in 1917. We can immediately think of skyscrapers and bridges in New York with iron workers with hot tongs and others with the pails of rivets and the air hammers. This was the pinnacle of riveted design and assembly technology.