THE HIKUTAIA QUARRY.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVII, Issue 4998, 9 July 1926, Page 3

THE HIKUTAIA QUARRY.

METAL CHIP PRODUCTION. ESTIMATED COSTS. As it appeared to the .ne,w county chairman- (Cr. E. L. Walton) that it might be advisable to utilise the council’s qwairry at Hikutaia for the production of metal chips for the maintonanefe of metal roads instead of purchasing red metal for the purpose, the council instructed the engineer to report on the subject. Mr Basham submitted his report at yes-, te.rday’s meeting as follows : — “To adapt the present crushing plant to the production of chips it will be necessa.ry to instal a special machine designed for that purpose, and the following is l my reepmmendation and estimate of cost ot installing : One Hadfield 18in disc chipper, £480; freight, etc., to quarry, £2O ; erection of sha.fting and bolting, £100; 151:.p. motor,‘£9s ; housing and erecting, £5O ; erection of elevator from Puriri, new, belting, etc., £75; total, £B2O.

“With this addition to the present plant a weekly output df 250 yards is easily obtainable, and the. output can be either unscreened metal, screened metal and chips, or all chips. The “production ai’e as under : “To produce 1000 yards in four weeks would cost in wages and material, -overhead costs, etc., £293 15s 6d. In addition costs on Waihi River 6s, punting on Pia,ko River 6s, making landed cost at Kerepeehi 14s 6d or a flat rate over the whole county of 13s per yard. “As Keheley-’s contract will be completed in a few days I should like to know what arrangements to make regarding future supplies. If it is decided to' carry on by day labour the question of housing the men must bb considered at once. . Certain expenditure will- be necessary, but it could be recovered in the 'form of rent.-. “The appearance of the quarry at present leaves no room for doubt as to its future, and justifies the necessary fexpenditure to give effect to the foregoing proposal.”

Cr. Walton said in regard to the future arrangements Ifor quarrying he was of opinion .that an experiment should be ma.de by working on day wages to ascertain the cost of production. / 1 Cr. Parfitt supported.

In reply to a, question as to the state of the plant, the engineer said that the crusher was still working well. * t Eleiven hundred yards had been crushed during the past month. Cr. Parfitt moved that the quarry be run on day wages for six months /from tlie da.te of the! completion of the present contract in a few days’ time. i - ■ i ■ i J This was seconded by Cr. Miller and ca,rriecL Cr. Miller, asked the position in re"gard to the punting. The engineer said that he had received an offer of 3s pea- y.ard to the Waihou River and 6s per yard for the, Piako River. • The contractor had proved very satisfactory, a,nd since he had taken charge.the punts had not cost the. council a penny for maintenance, as he did his own repairs. He had not lost a yard 8® ■metal or given any cause for complaint. . '.

The matter was left to the Works Committee for attention, with instructions to report on the chipi crushing proposal.