The Evolution of Technical Communication at Lukens Steel, 1810-1925

This was my first presentation about my recently completed book (of the above title). The abstract is:

Using Lukens Steel (a rolling mill that fulfilled naval contracts) as an example, this paper will analyze the changes in technical communication between 1810 to 1925. Lukens Steel was family-owned and operated for 188 years and their papers are archived at the Hagley Library in Delaware. This paper will summarize the highlights: until 1870 there was very little technical communication; after 1870 a complex system of record keeping about materials, production and defects began; by 1905 the foremen and managers were literate and communicated technical information in hand-written notes across the plant; and by 1912 the company hired stenographer-typists and used carbon paper for the first time, exponentially increasing the amount of technical communication. After 1925, the sheer amount of written technical communication in the form of letters, articles, meeting minutes, manuals, testing reports, data collection, notes to and from workers, consultants reports, advertising, etc., is nearly overwhelming. The first explosion of technical communication occurred when the company acquired their open hearth steel furnaces, which were complex to operate. Part of this explosion was in the development of testing documents: they tested their own equipment, the steel before shipment, they worked with national organizations to create standards; and they developed their own scientific experimentation as well. The second explosion of technical communication occurred when the stenographer-typists increased the ability of the managers to communicate and letters went from four-to-six paragraphs to four-to-six pages.

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