Bessemer process is the method for making high quality steel quickly and cheaply by blowing air into molten iron to remove impurities. Steel’s uses are numerous and widespread, and it is used in industries from agriculture to technology. “… [Henry Bessemer] invented the Bessemer converter and the so called Bessemer process, from which molten iron could be transformed into high-quality steel quickly and in large quantities” (Finnigan 114). The Bessemer process for creating steel has had a massive effect on our culture, economy, and geography.
The Bessemer process has had one of its largest effects on our culture. When talking about what buildings steel helps to build, it is mentioned that “Steel framing when building arenas and stadiums provides
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There are many jobs that relate directly to steel production in the United States. “…there appear to be some 130,000 to 153,000 jobs in total in that entire US steel industry” (Worstall). The amount of jobs in the US made by steel production are significant to our economy. Without them, these people would be unemployed. In an article about the changes steel made on society, it is mentioned how the steel industry has changed “American steel production peaked in 1969, when 141 million tons were produced, but the trend of lower labor costs overseas and inexpensive transportation options to bring the steel back to America has pushed production outside of the U.S.” (The Steel Revolution). The United States was in a period of great economic growth in the 1969, and this development was powered by steel and steel giants like Andrew Carnegie, who helped expand the United States “…by endowing educational, cultural, scientific, and technological institutions” (Andrew Carnegie). Beyond just the steel industry, steel produced is used in a multitude of different industries, as mentioned in the previously mentioned article talking about the changes that steel has made on society. “Today, steel is a regular part of many different industries, including transportation, agriculture, healthcare, food service, energy, construction, packaging, automotive, consumer goods, and technology” (The Steel Revolution). Steel is a crucial part of all of these industries, and without the affordable and reliable steel made from the Bessemer process, these industries could not be what they are
In Studs Terkel’s book Working, Terkel begins a description of a steelworker named Mike LeFevre say that he is “a dying breed”, a laborer who’s the one who has to “build something”, doesn’t have a college degree and is a part of a “union”. Mike LeFevre, as history shows is a dying breed; during the 1980s, businesses chose to cut labor costs through globalization and providing non-union manufacturing jobs, who were paid “30% less than union workers”. Similarly, as Levinson writes in The Box, globalization and the lean corporation model was supported by the development of the shipping container, which alleviated the significant costs (“around 12% of US exports” and “10% of US imports”) and functioned as a “trading barrier” before the innovation
Steel Corporations Forge Tyranny The 1960s marked a time of great change, turmoil, and innovation in American history. President John F. Kennedy worked hard to ensure the best for the citizens of the United States and that is why, when steel corporations raised their prices 3.5 percent in a time of economic distress, Kennedy responded with outrage. In his speech to the American people on April 11, 1962, President John F. Kennedy used a plethora of rhetorical strategies to persuade the American public to join his crusade against the greed of large steel companies. President Kennedy begins his address by immediately stating his opinion on the issue; that the actions of steel corporations “constitute a wholly unjustifiable and irresponsible defiance of public interest.”
Andrew Carnegie in September 1875 production cost was pretty high but his selling price was way higher, in January 1877 he lowered his production cost by a lot and the selling price went down as well but it was still fairly higher than what he was making the steel for,and in November 1977 Carnegie was able to lower his production costs even more as well as his selling price which was a bit more than what he spent making the steel. (Doc D). The main idea of this chart is to show that over the period of September to November Carnegie was able to drop his prices and costs significantly but that doesn't make him heroic. That just means he found new methods, material, or cut the cost of labor, this is just Carnegie being a good businessman. Steel production in the United States was very small compared the Great Britain in 1870, ten years later in 1880 the US’s production launched and was just right under Great Britain, another ten years later in 1890 the US finally passed GB in production but but by very much, ten years after that in 1900 Andrew Carnegie’s mills was making one-third of all the steel in the US making the steel production to skyrocket still in the lead at #1 with Germany and Luxembourg no where near and then in 3rd was Great Britain a little bit close to GL (Doc E). This chart is just to show the production of steel in the United States comparing with other countries over the span of 1870-1900 and to see how Carnegie’s mills effected the US production. This chart does not show Carnegie as a hero just how well his factory productions was going. Overall Andrew Carnegie was very good at being a businessman because he had a lot of financial success with lowering his production costs but that's not very heroic of him, it’s really only doing him good because he's saving
The late 1800's saw the beginning of the industrial revolution. Railroads were sweeping across our country and it took steel to make it run. The steel industry became very much in demand.
He went to London in 1872, saw the new Bessemer method of producing steel, and returned to the United States to build a million-dollar steel plant. Foreign competition was kept out by a high tariff conveniently set by Congress, and by 1880 Carnegie was producing 10,000 tons of steel a month, making $1 1/2 million a year in profit. By 1900 he was making $40 million a year, and that year, at a dinner party, he agreed to sell his steel company to J. P. Morgan. He scribbled the price on a note: $492,000,000.”
In the mid-nineteenth century, industrial America witnessed an evolving struggle between labor and big business. Although fiercely opposed by industrialists, rising labor movements in the steel and iron industries, which had become increasingly critical to the U.S.’ modernization and emergence as a world power, experienced initial success for decades up until the early 1890s. The strongest union in the industries, the Amalgamated of Iron and Steel Workers (AAIS) was able to garner support from an increasing membership and national recognition from other labor organizations as well as from the press, and in 1892, rose to meet the challenge of the powerful Carnegie Steel Company.
For decades, the steel industry has been one of the toughest markets on a global scale with most steel corporations ending up in bankruptcy. Foreign and domestic competitors, management issues, environmental issues, political agenda’s and technology have had much to do with the demise and more so of the success of the steel industry. The issues that this case focus on Nucor Corporation was of:
output of steel exceeded that of the UK, and Carnegie owned a large part of it. Carnegie's empire grew to include the J. Edgar Thomson Steel Works,, Pittsburgh Bessemer Steel Works, the Lucy Furnaces, the Union Iron Mills, the Union Mill, the Keystone Bridge Works, the Hartman Steel Works, the Frick Coke Company, and the Scotia ore mines. Carnegie, through Keystone, supplied the steel for and owned shares in the landmark Eads Bridge project across the Mississippi River at St. Louis, Missouri . This project was an important proof-of-concept for steel technology, which marked the opening of a new steel
-Developed and implemented strip casting overseas to eliminate a step in the steel making process
Walton, Joe.? ?The Bessemer Steel Process.?? Forging a Future:? Pittsburgh and the Question of Progress.? The Steel Industry.? (2000):? n. pag.? Online.? Internet.? 1 Dec. 2000.? Available http://webpub.alleg.edu/employee/m/mmaniate/pittprogress/walton.html.
In the early 1870s Andrew Carnegie became the largest steel producer in the nation and one of the richest men in America. According to lecture 3, Andrew Carnegie had few regulations, which made him a wealthy and dominant force in the U.S. Carnegie’s steel mill was located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Carnegie’s steel worker made to work in a dangerous and a poor work environment. The working conditions at the steel mill were so dangerous that it was likely they would lose their life. Carnegie forces his worker to work a twelve-hour workday. The steel workers wanted to work in a better work environment; they organized a steel worker’s union.
Carnegie visited Britain often and took note of the rise of the iron industry. He was impressed by Henry Bessem...
At the end of chapter two in, Steel Town U.S.A., the authors, Sherry Lee Linkon and John Russo, define the importance of steelmaking in Youngstown, Ohio “as an important element of community life, a source of identity and solidarity, an activity that brought pride and fulfillment to individuals and the community (129).” The author’s proclaim, “… steelwork as almost synonymous with Youngstown,” defining itself by organized labor and steelmaking” (68). Linkon and Russo, convey ideas about hard physical labor, with a glimpse of insight into the steelworkers anguish using words like virtue, pride and a sense of belonging, which for a typical situation would convey positive representations. Though most would think of these words, virtue, pride, and belonging as associations of working-class solidarity, clear identity and value, the author’s instead use these words to allow for the reader to better understand the misery that steelworkers faced. Making the connection between the workers lack of control to that of social conflict in their own community, the authors want the readers to understand both sides, allowing to bridge the gap of struggle by mending Youngstow...
This paper will first discuss the development of the steel industry. Next, it will examine steel, and in the impact it had on the transportation industry. Finally, it will discuss systematic management practices of this time and how they gave birth to the scientific approach that is still in use today.
The industrial revolution began in Europe in the 18th century. The revolution prompted significant changes, such as technological improvements in global trade, which led to a sustained increase in development between the 18th and 19th century. These improvements included mastering the art of harnessing energy from abundant carbon-based natural resources such as coal. The revolution was economically motivated and gave rise to innovations in the manufacturing industry that permanently transformed human life. It altered perceptions of productivity and understandings of mass production which allowed specialization and provided industries with economies of scale. The iron industry in particular became a major source of economic growth for the United States during this period, providing much needed employment, which allowed an abundant population of white people as well as minorities to contribute and benefit from the flourishing economy. Steel production boomed in the U.S. in the mid 1900s. The U.S. became a global economic giant due to the size of its steel industry, taking advantage of earlier innovations such as the steam engine and the locomotive railroad. The U.S. was responsible for 65 percent of steel production worldwide by the end of the 2nd World War (Reutter 1). In Sparrows Point: Making Steel: the Rise and Ruin of American Industrial Might, Mark Reutter reports that “Four out of every five manufacturing items contained steel and 40 percent of all wage earners owed their livelihood directly or indirectly to the industry.” This steel industry was the central employer during this era.