Electric Power Board

Ellesmere Guardian, Volume XLI, Issue 5157, 23 March 1921, Page 3

Electric Power Board

i MONTHLY MEETING. The Springs-Ellesmere Electric Power Board met in the A: ; and P. Room, Leeston, on Monday. There were present: Messrs J. Cunningham (chairman), C Wolfe, H. Neave, J. C. Free. The consulting engineer (Mr J. R. Templin) and acting clerk (Mr Alex Webster) were also in attendance. r The consutling engineer, in a letter to the board, advised ordering transformers from Carrick, Wedderspoon and Co.—These had since been ordered. Mr Templin further wrote covering copy of a letter he had sent to the Electrical Engineer, Public Works Department, Christchurch, asking for permission for the board to use the Department's poles on which to carry the board's electric ''lines at Springston and Motukarara. Mr Templin advised the board to order meters from the.British General Electric. Co-, Ltd. The order had been placed. The electrical engineer to the borough of Gore offered, a lorry" with pole derrick for £40. Mr Templin had seen the lorry and derrick and knew what condition they were in. Mr Templin said a derrick would be needed if the board intended to have the poles erected by day labour. It was decided to inspect a derrick in the district before deciding definitely. The District Engineer N-Z. Railways applied for a supply of electric current at Motukarara for water pumping. It was decided to reply that the board would be pleased to supply the current at 400 volts for threephase motor, on the understanding that th§ motor must not be run during milking hours. The Banks Peninsula Electric Power Board asked what the board'g proposals were in regard to the joint transformer station at Motukarara. On the motion of Mr Wolfe it was agreed to bear half share of the cost and maintenance of the transformer station at Motukarara. . .."''' The Public Trustee formally advised ,the board by letter that £20,000 of the board's loan would . be available on or about May 1. The Hon. Sir Heaton Rhodes wrote on the same matterThe chairman reported having written Sir Heaton Rhodes, thanking hiini for his valuable assistance.. •' ■' , The State Advances to Settlers Office advised that the board's resolution striking an annually recurring special rate Of 21-64ths of a penny in the £ (as security ,for interest and sinking fund on the loan of £60,000) had been gazetted on page 521 of the N.Z. Gazette. The engineer stated that Mr Scott, his representative, would finish the measuring up and pegging out the places for poles in about a fortnight. He expected to receive some of the poles by the end of April. The question of whether the poles should be erected by day labour or contract was discussedThe engineer said he would not like to have the work done by con tract unless he knew the contractor. If they had a bad contractor there would be no end of trouble. There would be 3,500 poles to erect. The pole fitting would have to be done by day labour, so as to have it done well. Two pole fitters and two boys would be needed. Mr Free said he was inclined to favour contract work-in order to get through quickly. ,It would be advisable to provide a whare for the men so that they could camp on the job The chairman said that the board .might try to get,.a good contractor. It would be advfsabie to have a cook for the gang of men. The engineer said that a gang of six to eight men would be,needed for the erection of poles. On the motion of Mr Wolfe it was decided to call tenders for cartage and erection of poles, returnable at next meeting. The engineer said he was anxious to have as much of the work as possible done by men living in the district. In that way they would keep the money in the district. __ Another important question discussed was the fixing of milking (hours- The engineer said that Jthere would be about 90 to 100 milking plants to be run by electricity. These motors would not leave any surplus for big , power users, such as Hour mills, during milking hours. The board must keep its maximum demand down as low as possible. It was suggested that it would be most convenient if the time of starting the evening milking could be fixed at 5 o'clock. Milking could be started in the morning as early as dairymen wished, but they must be finished by 8 o 'clock. One member said it would suit dairy farmers if they could start in the evening at 4.30The matter was left over for further consideration at next meeting It was reported that the works committee had accepted tenders as follows: Hardwood poles, Messrs Redpath and Son, Ltd., approxi mate value £7.267 10s; 1000 plug $ cut-outs, National Electrical and Engineering Co., Ltd, £637 10s; -fc- house_|e£vice meters, .British-.G en-

eral Electric Co.* Ltd, approximate* value £1090 2s 7d; hard-drawn copper wire and cable, total of 335 miles, prices ll|d to llfd per lb, Carrick, Wedderspoon and Co., approximate value of order £7027 10s; insulators, several thousand of pattern required, Redpath and Son, Ltd., approximate value of order £250; transformers, Carrick,. Wedderspoon and Co- approximate value of order £2489" 12s 6d. ' The engineer said the wire was the cheapest he had yet bought. The prices for practically all materials were lower than he had anticipated. The total cost of materials ordered was £18.-752 5s 2d. It was agreed that farmer consumers should have the right to furnish and erect the poles leading from the road to their homesteads under the supervision of the board which would do the pole fitting and erecting of wire and charge the consumer with the cost. At a special meeting the board passed by-laws dealing with (1) installation work; (2) applications for supply. The by-laws were passeel on the motion of the chairman antl Mr Free and will be confirmed at a special meeting on April 18Accounts amounting to £409 lis lid Avere passed for payment". It was agreed that the works committee should go into the question of'lay-out of buildings to be erected on the section acquired by the board adjoining the Leeston Town Hall (west side). The buildings required were a large storeroom, an office and board room and a residence for the permanent engineer in charge of the scheme.