London: Chapman & Hall, 1911, 330 pages.
The rock drill, perhaps more than any other instrument, except the engineers transit, is the tool that accompanies the vanguard of civilization, and its contribution to the general economy of construction, its effect upon the cost of rock work, and its influence on standard engineering methods, have been enormous. In principle it is unique as a machine, and in practice it offers a class of problems which have long deserved special study and a special treatise. It is a machine of many parts, sizes and shapes, and there are many ways of using it, some of which are better than others, and one of which, for the particular purpose in view, is the best of all. To establish the fundamental facts for determining this best way for any given conditions, and to place these facts at the disposal of engineers and contractors, the Ingersoll-Rand Company have instituted an investigation into the economics of drilling work, the results of which are herewith presented in the hope that this book will mark a step forward in the effort to place the study of rock drilling upon a scientific basis. While much still remains to be done, it is believed that the present work contains the cream of the available information on the subject, most of which has never before appeared in print. Most of the data was gathered by the Construction Service Company, Consulting Engineers, of New York, and some of it by Mr. Gilbert H.Gilbert, Consulting Engineer; and the whole was worked into its present form by the Chief Engineer of the Construction Service Company, in collaboration with Mr. W.L. Saunders, President of the Ingersoll-Rand Company.
