Mint

Purpose

The purpose of the Mint is to produce coins, of the currency, New Sovereigns. The Mint is found in 3 5

Layout

Mint Floor Plan by James Woodwright

Apart from the security and delivery areas, the mint has one long continuous room ^{[Image Left]}. From the entrance is the start of the process and at the far end the finishing of the process where the coins have been Minted. There is a backwards “r” shape that conjoins the Minting room which allows for transportation of one thing to the other without having to be carried to the entrance part of the Minting room ^{[Image Left]}. For example at the end where the coins are completed there is a hatch that leads to the backwards “r” shape where the coins can be weighed and checked to see if all of the coins are there in the batch and their weight. This room allows for the accepted coins to be taken back to the start where they will be transported to their onward journey as coins without the coins being taken through the processing area. The room that this is done in is called the checking room. In the backwards “r” shape are stairs that lead to the die making process. As the dies are replaced frequently.

Entries

There is one entrance to the Mint then further places a worker could go they can go to the delivery area to the left, the Security and the coin checking area to the right, or the main processing room straight ahead ^{[Image Left]}. If there are any windows in the original building, these are boarded up and secured to the walls. It is the Mint’s electric lights that allow for illumination of the rooms.

Process

The Mint gets nickel from the Warehouses which starts its life as an Ingot. It is rolled out in the correct thickness at the Metal Mill in 3 8 and delivered to the Warehouses.

Stamping

The sheets of nickel are then put through a stamping machine which stamps out disks of metal, which are slightly bigger than the finished diameter ^[1]. The waste metal is taken back to the Metal Mill to be melted down into ingots ^[1][2].

Rimming

Each of the disks is loaded into a Rimming Machine that raises the edges of the coin to the correct diameter ^[1][2], it also makes the coins more likely to be able to be stacked ^[1]. This process also allows the future coin to hold its shape over the next process ^[1].

Blanking

The blanking machine hammers each blank between two dies. This machine can create 375 coins per minute or 225,000 per hour. The blanking machine only stamps the blank once as it is a circulation coin ^[2]. For historic collectors, coins would require a defunct machine that punches the blank twice horizontally rather than vertically ^[1].

Inspection

The coins are inspected ^[1] every 2 hours. A random coin is taken off and inspected if it has not deformed. If it is not deformed, the batch passes. If however, the coin falls, the coin is destroyed as to not allow the coin to be a collector’s item. The machine is stopped and inspected to ensure that the die itself is not damaged. Once it has been inspected and fixed the machine resumes. Collector’s coins are worth more than the coins worth and would also decrease the reputation of the Mint, which is something that is not good if they want to be seen as a relievable Mint producing coins for circulation.

Dies

The dies are the thing that makes the design on both sides of the coin. As there is a design on both sides with one strike there are two dies. Dies can take up to a million strikes ^[3]. If the coins look like they have not got a good impression the coins are destroyed and the dies are replaced and the blanking machine restarts. This happens about every 4 hours. New dies are made and maintained on the upper floor of the mint.