GLEN AFTON COLLIERY.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXIV, Issue 4590, 25 July 1923, Page 4

GLEN AFTON COLLIERY.

OFFICIAL OPENING TO-DAY. PARTICULARS OF THE WORKINGS. The' official opening of the New Zealand Co-operative Dairy Company’s Glen Afton Colliery took place to-day. The ceremony was performed by Mr J. A. Young, M.P. for Hamilton, and there was a very large gathering of shareholders from all parts of the district over which the company operates. The following particulars will give some idea of the extent of the ppera--tions on the field and the proposed means of working. The mine consists of 1200 acres of freehold property bought at £2O an acre, but in addition an adjoining property of 2000 acres has been secured under a mining lease. At P re " sent only the freehold property has been developed, but when the leasehold land is mined a royalty will be paid on the coal won. Reliable computations based upon extensive boring operations enable the extent of the field owned by the company to be based at 15,000,000 tons. The seam underlying the properties varies in thickness from 7ft up to the neighbourhood of 20ft. The drive through which coal will be first won opens up a face of 14ft. The planning and supervision of the development work has been in the hands of Mr N. D. Cochrane,, mining engineer, and Mr Ashley Hunter, civil engineer. These gentlemen have taken every advantage ( of the natural contour of the country in laying out the mine'on the most up-to-date principles, so as to employ gravitation to the best purpose. Very careful planning and oversight has put the company in the position of being able to produce coal upon the most economical basis.

Very creditable work has been done to facilitate the opening of the mine by the undertaking of the contract for a cutting to permit the Government railway to reach the pithead. At. the start last spring it was computed that approximately 18 months would be required to do this work. This meant the loss of a season, and consequently a contract was taken from the Public Works Department and vigorous methods used to push through the work. By means of night and day shifts and two steam shovels just over 30,000 cubic yards of earth were shifted in six months, and as a result the rails reached the pithead a year ahead of the earlier estimate and thus saved a season to the company, The actual coal won from the mine has a splendid, appearance, being bright and hard. An analysis made by the Dominion Laboratory shows that it is equal in quality to any coal previously mined in the Waikato coal area. In the development of the mine some patches of stone have been touched, but in every case it required only the driving of a few feet to clear out, these faults. Such patches of stone must be expected in any colliery with the geological nature of the district, but on the whole the seam so far as it has been developed is remarkably clear of stone. The mine is to be worked on the panel system. That is, drives or tunnels are taken in from a side lead, a wall of coal being left between the tunnels. When all the coal is exhausted by the tunnel the intervening walls of coal are mined, commencing at the most, distant point. When the intervening and supporting walls of one section are all taken away, the entrance to the : section is filled up, so that whatever bad gases may arise cannot get into any other part of the mine. Very great care has been taken in preparing the plans for development to work upon the most 'economical basis, and it is definitely assured that the engineers have in every in- , stance taken advantage of the natural facilities for reducing handling costs to the lowest minimum by employing gravitation wherever possible. The machinery installed is in every case the best procurable, and the permanent buildings have erected upon a very substantial basis indeed. The whole of the plant :.o operate the mine is driven by electricity, the power being generated at a central station and transmitted by aerial wiring to the various points required from two sets of Bellis and Morcom veritcal compound engines direct coupled to three phase 400 volt 50 cycle Metropolitan Vickers Generators. These engines are supplied with steam from two modern Babcock and Wilcox boilers, each capable of generating 150' h.p„ The system of ventilation is excellent, the air being quite fresh even at the most distant working points. Each section of the mine is ventilated independent of any other section. The ventilation is provided for by the installation 'of a 70-inch double inlet, reversible Sirroco Fan, capable of displacing 80,000 cubic feet of air per minute, on a water gauge of 2% in. The fan is driven by a 50 h.p. BTH squirrel cage motor. The whole of this plant is enclosed in a brick building, thus obviating the danger of fire.

The haulage system adopted Is that provided by meanfj of an endless rope. This has been installed to a distance of 40 chains un-derground. The sise of the rope used is %in. in diameter and is controlled by a 50 h.p. BTH squirrel cage motor, reduced by a Coventry chain reduction gear to a speed of 1% miles per hour on the driving wheel. The clips used for connecting the. trucks to the rope are of the wedge land screw type, used for j the first time in New Zealand. i The plant fc>r weighing,, tipping and screening is particularly efficient and modern, and is; regarded as being second to none in the Dominion. When the mine tubu have been disconnected from tihe haulage rope they gravitate over a Pooler weighbridge, where the weight is recorded. They then travel into the circular power driven tippler. The tippler describes ' a circle, the whole truck being carried round bodily, and the coal is emptied on to the screens of the shaker type. Here the coal gravij tates downwards, dividing; itself

through the screens into four classes, namely, kitchen coal, steam coal,, and slack coaL The coal is emptied straight into trucks waiting below on the railway lines, of which there are three. This system enables very rapid and economical despatch to be given to the company’s output.

To enable repairs to be carried out economically a model workshop '*s provided, consisting of three departments. In the blacksmiths’ department there are two smithy hearths-, the necessary draught being provided by a 10in sirroep fan. In the engineers’ department there is an Bin screw-cutting Ideal lathe, a Super Rego drilling machine, a Heaps pipe and bolt screwing machine, and emery wheels, and a punching and shearing machine. In the same building there is also provided a wellequipped ambulance room to take care of any possible accidents, that may happen.

Every care is being taken to provide for the comfort of the employee. A special bathroom is available, and consists of a building containing 30 shower-baths in cubicles, with a steam drying arrangement for the men to dry their clothes. Tjiese baths are built on the continental system. Special attention has been given to the housing of the employees, three types of houses being provided, namely, three, tour, and five-roomed structures. These houses have been well built, and contain all modern conveniences, such as baths, hot and cold water supply, etc. Each house is built on a quarter-acre section,, and as the land is .of excellent quality, there is no reason why the employees should not have good gardens.. Indeed, quite a number have already made very creditable improvements, and there is no doubt that in time the little community will develop an atmosphere of comfont and solidity not usually associated with a mining township. A large modern boardinghouse has been built and a post, telegraph, and moneyjorder office established. A school has been authorised and will shortly be erected. Roads have been made and are now in process of being metalled from a quarry situated nearby, and on the whole Glen Afton —which is the name given to the property—is rapidly developing into a modern township. In order to provide timber for future use the unoccupied land on the area is being planted with. suitable trees. Already there is growing on the property enough timber to supply pit props for three or four years, and planting is now going on to provide for future requirements. These will be ready in from six to eight years’ time. By this means a valuable additional asset is being built up which will still further conduce to .the economical working of the property. The cost of developing the mine is being provided by share capital deductions on the basis of %d per lb butter-fat spread over three seasons. These deductions spread over the past two seasons and the current season complete payments in the majority of cases, and such suppliers will now have the satisfaction of knowing that in future no further calls will be made upon them for the development of the coal property, but that on the contrary it will constitute one of the most definite assets of the company towards the reduction of working and manufacturing costs. To place new suppliers on the same, basis as old suppliers the same principle of a contribution for three years upon, the butter-fat supplied will be adopted, such money being used as a reserve to strengthen the finances of the venture and permit in all probability of the resumption of shares as old shareholders retire from dairying.

For the incoming season the whole of the company’s factories will be supplied with Glen Afton coal, thus materially reducing fuel charges and also building up a reserve to guard against any possible period of interrupted or disturbed supply. The certajfnty of supply in such a business as the dairying industry is a very important factor. ' Thus the possession of its own mine places the N.Z. Co.-op. Dairy Co., Ltd., in a unique position in this respect.