The History and Legacy of George Westinghouse - Essay Example

GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE: HISTORY AND LEGACY 2008 GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE: HISTORY AND LEGACY Introduction The figure of George Westinghouse, a prolific inventor, outstanding businessman and charismatic personality stands apart among the rest of innovators who influenced the development of modern civilization. Inventor of the railroad brake, founder of more than sixty companies, and one of the founding fathers of the electrical industry Westinghouse contributed immensely to the resolution of the problem of transportation and power the country was facing after the Civil War. Largely due to his efforts the last three decades of the 19th century was an epoch of fast development in transportation and power: Westinghouse contributed to almost every pioneering effort that enabled the enormous progress (ASME, 1937). Probably the most unique thing about Westinghouse, his life, work and legacy is that his exceptional talent of shrewd and determined businessman benefited not only him and his family but worked effectively toward the betterment of humankind. Although his influence on the modern civilization may be unnoticed by many the achievements and inventions associated with Westinghouse's name in some or other way surround us every day. The influence of George Westinghouse was decisive in improving the safety of the US railroad system, stimulation of the transportation industry growth, development of the modern electric distribution system and many other landmark inventions (Jonnes, 2003). The son of a machine shop owner, Westinghouse was the eighth of ten children. His father's machine shop manufactured a variety of industrial and agricultural machinery while Westinghouse Sr. himself was a talented inventor who registered at least seven patents. In 1860, at the age of fourteen Westinghouse Jr. started to work for his father at 50 cents an hour and got the first insights into machinery and metalworking. The Civil War interrupted the early start of his career as an inventor: George Westinghouse joined the Union army at the 15 and although his father forced him back in 1863 George finally received the consent of Westinghouse Sr. to be enlisted in the infantry. After several months Westinghouse Jr. became an engineer in the Union Navy (Dietrich, 2006). The Civil War was over when Westinghouse was only 19 and already at that age he created and patented his first invention, the rotary steam engine (Jones 2003a). After spending three months at tiny Union College, Westinghouse finished his formal education, returned to the machinery of his father's shop, and immediately produced a series of important inventions and engineering innovations. Thus, at age of twenty one Westinghouse invented the famous 'car replacer', a mechanical device to rerail derailed cars back onto the tracks and a mechanical 'frog' to switch trains onto of two tracks (ASME 1937). Although practical success of both these inventions Westinghouse did not gain much in terms of commercial success: his patent protection was not strong enough to prevent the railroads that adopted the replacer and frog from sidestepping his rights. However, Westinghouse considered the bitter experience and did not make the same mistake in the future. Prior to turning his attention to the new and exceptionally promising fields of activity Westinghouse had already become widely known as a successful mechanical engineer, inventor and entrepreneur. The number of patents issued to him during only five years between 1869 and 1873 exceeded 20, and one of them was for one of the most essential inventions of that epoch, namely the air brake (Jonnes 2003). During the next decade, the air brake gained overwhelming acceptance among the railroads but Westinghouse became interested in finding and exploiting natural gas. Although that part of Westinghouse's life is scarcely known and relatively insignificant considering his achievement in mechanical engineering and electricity, during only two years from 1884 to 1885 he applied for 28 patents. His gas inventions included the proportional gas meter, the automatic cutoff regulator, pressure regulator valve and long-distance gas transmission through a series of increasing diameter lines in lieu of lines of uniform dimension, etc (Dietrich, 2006). In 1880, George Westinghouse, a renowned inventor and successful businessman already at that time witnessed Thomas Edison's demonstration of electric lighting at the famous laboratory in Menlo Park, N.J. That event produced great impression on Westinghouse who immediately understood all the advantages of using the new technology for industrial purposes, railroads, etc. Particularly, his interest in electricity manifested during the development of air brake and railway signaling systems in the middle of 1880s (Jones 2003). In 1886, Thomas Edison, reasonably considered one of the greatest all-time inventors produced a revolution in electricity. A series of essential improvements to the telephone, telegraph, the invention of the phonograph, and finally invention of the incandescent light bulb led to a breakthrough in the practical application of electrical power. The revealed potential of electricity made Edison strive for creation of a universal generating and transmission system to bring light to every place on the continent. The success of his initial plan to light up lower Manhattan suggested his strive was absolutely feasible (Jonnes, 2003). Given Edison's success, coupled with his universal importance as an inventor, there were only few people in the world who would dare to question his ideas. Westinghouse who pointed at the apparent disadvantages of Edison's system of direct current was one of such persons. Instead, Westinghouse suggested the technology of alternating current. The direct current generator had one essential disadvantage: the low voltage incandescent bulb limited the DC service area to only 500 yards. By contrast, the AC technology operated high voltage that enabled to transmit electrical power to incomparably greater distances. At the same time, implementation of the AC system also involved one serious difficulty: it required a specific transformer Westinghouse did not have. However, with his usual quickness and wit he found the solution. He turned his attention to Europe where several outstanding scientists worked in the field of Westinghouse interest. A power transformer designed by Lucien Gaulard and John Dixon Gibbs fit the purposes of Westinghouse, and he immediately bought the patent to use it in the U.S. (Dietrich 2006). In 1885, Westinghouse brought a number of Gaulard-Gibbs transformers together with a Siemens AC generator to the U.S. and launched a series of experiments in Pittsburgh. After less than one year of improvements and partial redesign Westinghouse assisted by the outstanding American physicist William Stanley built the first multiple-voltage AC power network in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The system relied on by a hydropower generator that generated 500 volts of alternating current with the voltage being increased to 3,000 volts for transmission, and then decreased to 100 volts to feed the lights (Jonnes, 2006). In 1886, Westinghouse founded the Westinghouse Electric Company to manufacture and promote the use of AC equipment. Despite the inevitable difficulties accompanying implementation of the new technology the company developed rapidly establishing several more AC networks during only a couple of years. In 1888, Westinghouse in cooperation with one of his engineers, Oliver Shallenger, designed a basic power meter using his previous experience of involvement in the gas extraction and distribution industry: design of his power meter mimicked that of a gas meter. The same basic power meter design invented by Westinghouse is effectively used up to date (Dietrich, 2006). The invention removed one of the key factors that negatively affected practical application of the company and stimulated its further growth. The success of the Westinghouse Electric Company, coupled with the rapid proliferation of the AC technology could not but lead George Westinghouse into serious competition with the DC technology promoted by Edison. The competition widely known as the War of Currents further stimulated development of the electricity in the U.S.: the amount of inventions and technological improvement made over that period was impressive and many of them were linked - in some or other way - to George Westinghouse. The potential of implementing the AC technology industrially was difficult to imaging, but an AC motor was required for that potential to materialize. Once again Westinghouse demonstrated his entrepreneurship genius and engineering foresight by picking up and upgrading the existing technology instead of attempts to spend years inventing something new. The principle of a polyphase electric motor suggested by the outstanding Serbian scientist Nikola Tesla fully fit the needs of Westinghouse, and in 1988 he purchased the exclusive rights to Tesla's patent for the polyphase system. Furthermore, Westinghouse convinced Tesla to join his company and work on further improvement of the AC motor (Dietrich, 2006). Westinghouse's decision to hire Tesla paid off immediately with the polyphase AC motor winning the market. In the long-term perspective, that decision resulted in the power-distribution system used up to date (Jones, 2003). The competition between General Electric Company founded by Edison and the Morgan and Westinghouse for the lighting contract at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair became another important milestone in the War of Currents. Westinghouse was absolutely - and reasonably - confident that a complete AC system will be sufficient to power the amount of lights needed to illuminate the World's Fair. However, several weeks prior to the Fair's opening, Westinghouse lost a patent case with General Electric and was denied the use of incandescent bulbs manufactured by GE. Westinghouse did not use the GE bulbs but delivered a new bulb under the name "stopper lamp". Although the lamp was not as good and powerful as the GE lamp, it sufficed to light the fair according to the contract (Dietrich, 2006). The case had immense impact on the growing popularity of the AC technology and further success of Westinghouse's projects. The Niagara Falls project became another step in the same direction. The potential of Niagara Falls to generate electricity was difficult to imaging, but the project also requires very serious efforts both technically and financially. However, Westinghouse did not succumb to the difficulties: despite huge resistance of the competitors and serious undercarpet games initiated by them Westinghouse again won the contract. Eventually, the Westinghouse power station at Niagara Falls was reasonably named as "nothing less than the model used to electrify the world" (Jones, 2003: 18). The Niagara Falls was not a mere lighting station: it was a powerful power plant that generated much power. The bulk of that power had to be transmitted to Buffalo and further. In order to achieve that goal the power was first increased and then decreased to 440 volts and transmitted to Buffalo streetcars and then distributed across the whole city. The system proved in practice that transmission of AC power over long distances conceived and proven by Tesla and Westinghouse became an actual proven reality. The triumphs at the World's Fair and Niagara Falls brilliantly illustrated the technological versatility, manufacturing capability, entrepreneur skills, perfect intuition, and the force of personality of Westinghouse (Dietrich, 2006). The expansion of AC networks forced Westinghouse turn his attention to the production of electrical power to satisfy the increasing demand. The traditional sources of electricity at that time were hydroturbines using the power of falling water as well as reciprocating steam engines where such water was not available. However, the reciprocating steam engines had poor efficiency and Westinghouse felt they had to be replaced with something else more efficient and less clumsy. Rotating engine - a modification of the rotary steam engine invented by Westinghouse in the beginning of his career - was one of the options considered. In his usual manner Westinghouse bought rights for the steam turbine invented by a British engineer Charles Algernon Parsons. After less then three years of improvements and modifications, in 1898, Westinghouse demonstrated a 300 kilowatt unit that was supposed to replace the inefficient reciprocating engines installed in his air-brake plant. Efficiency of the new unit immediately drew attention of many potential consumers, and already in 1899 Westinghouse produced a huge 1.5 megawatt, 1,200 rpm unit for the Hartford Electric Light Company (Prout, 2003). The steam turbines based on the new principles also became popular in marine transportation. In 1905, Westinghouse introduced the first AC locomotive. The first railway to use alternating current was the Manhattan Elevated railways and the New York subway while the first AC locomotive was demonstrated in the East Pittsburgh railway. After that the Westinghouse Company launched another project of scale to fully electrify the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad using the single-phase system between Woodlawn, NY, and Stamford, CT (AMLC, 2008). The fame and role of Westinghouse as the major inventory of his epoch might probably be second only to his long-time rival Edison. Over a period of almost 50 years, Westinghouse produced approximately one invention every seven weeks that corresponds to 361 overall. His talent of an entrepreneur is bright illustrated by the fact that he was the founder of 60 major companies, and this list included two Fortune 500 companies: the Westinghouse Air Brake Company ranked 185th in 1957 and Westinghouse Electric ranked the 13th largest industrial corporation in America in 1955, 1959 and 1971 (Dietrich, 2006). At the turn of the century, the companies founded by Westinghouse were worth almost $120 million with more than 50 thousand of employees with nine manufacturing companies operating in the U.S., one in Canada, and five in Europe (AMLC, 2008). Although the financial panic of 1907 led to Westinghouse's loss of control of the companies he had founded including the electric company, the estate he left after his death approached $50 million which was the equivalent of $1 billion these days (AMLC, 2006). The exceptional balance of numerous talents is often mentioned as the key element in the overwhelming story of life and work of Westinghouse: "In this respect he is almost unique in the annals of American economic history. Despite doing everything possible to leave no footprints and thus diminish his reputation, proper due diligence fast brings us to the conclusion that he was Pittsburgh's preeminent industrial figure" (Dietrich, 2006: 124). Spending much of his later life in public service, Westinghouse showed signs of a heart ailment by 1913 and was ordered to rest by doctors. After deteriorating health and illness confined him to a wheelchair, he died on March 12, 1914. He was 19 when his first patent for a rotary steam engine was issued in 1865. His last patent was issued 53 years later in 1918, four years after his death. With a total of 361 patents to his credit, his last patent was received in 1918, four years after his death (Prout, 2003). Works Cited American Memory from the Library of Congress (AMLC). About George Westinghouse. Retrieved April 24, 2008 from http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/papr/west/westgorg.html American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). Presenting the Career and Achievements of George Westinghouse on the 90th Anniversary of His Birth. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 1937. Dietrich, William S. "The Mystery of George Westinghouse", Pittsburg Quarterly, Summer 2006, pp.102-126. Jones, Kevin. "Battle of the currents: How dead dogs and botched executions helped pave the way to the power system we enjoy today". Electrical Apparatus: The Magazine of Electrical & Electronic Application & Maintenance, October 2003, Vol. 56, No. 10, pp. 6-23. Jonnes, Jill. Empires of Light: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the Race to Electrify the World. Random House, 2003 Prout, Henry. Life of George Westinghouse. Barnes & Noble, 2003. Read More