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| Hello, my name is Eric Johnson, former Assembly Department supervisor at L&F Industries in Huntington Park California. After reflecting on some of my career experiences with regard to the more exciting and challenging aspects of it, this one ranks as one of the most memorable to date and probably will for a long time to come. When I first began working for L&F Industries in 1993, there was a sense of renewal and growth with new learning opportunities waiting for me there. Little did I know that my previous career path in the Industrial Hydraulics field would fill just a small portion of my responsibilities here. Then one day, I was handed a drawing package containing a mass of mechanical assemblies for an Opticle Telescope. A telescope! What do I know about telescopes. Well, thanks to so many people at L&F Industries, one being Mr. Terry King our resident senior engineer, and some very skilled technicians my future in the Precision Mechanical world has been most educational and rewarding. Enter the GIANT Magellan II Telescope: I am still in awe as to the size and scope of this project. I believe if you were to ask anybody at L&F Industries and the folks that attended our Magellan Open House day what they thought about this fantastic instrument they would probably reflect the same sense of awe as I have. This is the second of two Telescope Mounts we have produced along with Magellan I, and is considered L&F's greatest achievement. I've tried to explain to my family, friends and colegues the size of this project but have seemed to miss the mark in giving them an accurate picture of it. So, I thought it would be neat to give you an employee's perspective of this project on the floor with a few images that Mr. Dave Chivens, President of L&F Industries has so graciously allowed me to post here. |
| Below are some picture links of the various stages of the project. Unfortunately I didn't own a digital camera two years ago when we began the assembly process, so these images are of the disassembly stage. Nonetheless, I think you will find them impressive. Enjoy the tour......... |
| Week ending, 20 May, 2000....... |
| Week ending, 16 June, 2000....... |
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| Week ending, 21 July, 2000....... |
| Week ending, 02 June, 2000....... |
| Week ending, 04 August, 2000....... |
| Week ending, 09 June, 2000....... |
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| For in depth, up to date information of the Las Campanas jobsite and overall project progress, click HERE, & HERE |
| To see a listing and pictures of the Worlds Largest Telescopes, click HERE thanks to Mr. Bill Arnett. |
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| Some people in the shops need to be recognized: |
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| From left: Martin Diaz (electrician), An Ngo, Johnny Brown (welder-assy), Ramiro Diaz (hydraulics-painter), Larry Carr (hydraulics), Clyde Taylor (assembler), and Me. In front: Danny Mergell (hydraulics), and Abdom Juarez (painter-helper). All these employee's worked thousands of hours with many, many challenges and with much expertise. I am proud of this project and these employee's. Thanks! Others: Rudy Ramirez (steel plate burner), this employee performed a great job as always. He's the one that took every fabrication drawing, and cut all the metal shapes of plate that became the superstructure. Chuck Davis, The BOSS, Lee Wright, the man with the PLAN, and finally, Bill Carroll, (traffic). He's the one that put the whole project together in a nice, well planned package and on board the ship that will carry the project to South America. Job well done Bill! |
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| On September 15, 2000, Magellan I saw it's First Light. I wish to thank all of you who have been able to visit and follow me along on this Fantastic Project. Please feel free to share this place with others as it's not often that a instrument of this size is ever seen by the public. Thanks, Eric Johnson. |
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| L&F Industries is an original equipment manufacturer specializing in the design and manufacture of custom Heavy Machinery Telescopes since 1935. |
| This web-page designed and maintained by Eric Johnson, 2000-2007. Any use of these images must be with permission |
| GIANT Magellan II 6.5m Telescope For The Observatories of the Carnegie Institute of Washington (OCIW) |
| Week ending, 11 August, 2000....... |
| Some interesting Facts: 65ea.,wooden crates containing all subassemblies. 6 ea., 40' open top seagoing containers @ 243,000 lbs cargo. 1 ea., 40' flat rack seagoing open trailer @ 40,000 lbs cargo. 7 ea., over-dimensional loads consisting of: 2ea., Altitude Disc assembly @ 33,500 lbs ea. 1 ea., Pintle assembly @ 26,300 lbs. 1 ea., Center Section assembly @ 21,700 lbs. 1 ea., North-South Azimuth disc assembly @ 27,300 lbs. 1 ea., East-West Azimuth disc assembly @ 90,000 lbs. 1 ea., Mirror Cell assembly @ 33,000 lbs. The 6.5 meter mirror that is supported by the Mirror Cell weighs 18,000 lbs! Imagine your reflection on that MONSTER! These 2 combined pieces above weigh approxamently 52,000 lbs! Total combined weight, OSS. Stationary..................82,000 lbs Rotating...................300,000 lbs Total combined cargo weight...........520,000 lbs! To concieve, design and produce such an instrument, the effort of many man hours were expended over many years. MAGELLAN I...................Total labor: 90,000 man hours (approximately 50 man years) over a 4 year period! This includes a Mirror Cart assembly and Vacuum Chamber assembly. MAGELLAN II................. Total labor: 50,000 man hours (approximately 28 man years) over a 2-1/2 year period! |
| Aboard the COLUMBUS-MEXICO, Long Beach, Calif: 14 Aug, 2000 I had the opportunity today to accompany our customer, Carnegie (OCIW) Mr. Matt Johns and his wife Virginia, Charlie Hull, and Judy Rosenau for the loading of the Magellan II instrument. Also Mr. Peter Skerlan of Transcontainer Intl., and Mr. Charlie DeMarias of Packers LTD., were present. We were escorted by Mr. Jim Dow of Columbus Lines and were able to have a birds eye view of the whole operation from the captain's bridge. Below are a few pics of our day ............ |
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