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This work is being carried on in the big 10,000 square foot welding shop at the Staten Island plant; the shop is floored with the usual cast iron slabs of pierced design, so that work of any size or shape may be clamped in position. This floor not only serves the purpose of accurate lay- out but, also, assists in relieving stresses by dissipating the heat of welding. Other Advantages Anticipated The POUGHKEEPSIE SocONY, upon completion of its trial trip on the Hudson, will at once go into the Can- al-Great Lakes service, where its sister ships already are at work. This service offers a severe test for vessels of any construction, especially when so near the limits of allowable clear- ance as in the present instance. The locks of the New York State Barge canal are only 45 feet wide, while these new ships are 41 feet 6 inches over the guards; moreover the length of 260 feet, also, is considered the limit of length for the St. Lawrence canals, Officials believe, however, that the welded vessel, with no rivets or caulked seams to start, will give a good account of itself and they see many other advantages of pe- culiar value to their service. The Socony Vacuum Oil Co. was a pioneer in the New York State 18 MARINE REVIEW ® Cc ENTER line bulkhead, looking aft, April 28. This all-welded bulk- head was fab- ricated in the shop and in- stalled in five sections. Total length 166 feet ® Barge canal with the carrying of oil. It started its service in 1920 with a few small barges of conventional har- bor type, observing results carefully. With the experience gained, the com- pany in 1921 ventured upon the con- struction of five barges, driven by gasoline engines; these barges were 150 feet long by 28 feet 6 inches beam by 12 feet 6 inches deep but, upon com- pletion of the season, they were lengthened by 40 feet, making them 190 feet long and adding two tanks to their cargo capacity. Results of these early experiments © Weer TG Ack side frame and floor assem- Olay fc0 tbe Poug h k eepsie Socony, March 29. Laid out and welded in shop ready for erection ® ULKHEAD No. 65—for all welded tank- er Poughkeep- sie Socony, March 31. As- sembled, clamp- ed down and welded on bend- ing slab floor in fabricating shop ® September, 1934 led, in 1923, to the building of the first ‘‘canal’ type twin screw diesel tanker in the fleet, the Troy Socony, which was 254 feet long by 37 feet 6 inches beam by 14 feet deep. So successful did the company find its ultimate design and so responsive its market that, in 1924, eight more ves- sels of similar type were built, this time to the limit of size: 260 feet long by 40 feet beam by 14 feet deep. The Socony Vacuum flag identifies 241 ships in its world-wide service, 175 of them documented vessels; in addition, there are 6 vessels on long- time charter and 19 operated by for- eign subsidiaries. The compaty’s fleet is first in the American mer- chant marine in number of vessels and ranks third in gross tonnage. Particulars Poughkeepsie Socony The principal characteristics of the POUGHKEEPSIE Socony, which also ap- ply generally to the two riveted sister ships the NEw HAveN Socony and the PLATTSBURGH SOCONY, are: Length overall, 260 feet; length between perpendiculars, 252 feet, beam molded, 40 feet; depth molded, 14 feet, gross tonnage, 1242; cargo capacity, 13,500 barrels on a draft of 12 feet. The vessels are fitted with twin rudders, Propulsion is by twin screws, each connected to a 375 brake horsepower. McIntosh & Seymour 6-cylinder, di- rect reversible, air injection, diesel engine. There are two diesel driven auxiliary generator sets. The en- gines are McIntosh & Seymour, 3- cylinder, 4 cycle, solid injection diesels, developing 95 brake horse- power each at 450 revolutions per minute. The generators, made by Diehl Mfg. Co. are direct current, 120 volts, each developing 60 kilowatts. Included among the auxiliaries are two air compressors of Worthington make driven by electric motors. For fire protection there is a complete Lux carbon-dioxide system supplied by Walter Kidde & Co. There is a special type of lubricating oil filter (Continued on Page 38)