POWER CHARGES.

Shannon News, 18 February 1927, Page 3

POWER CHARGES.

PERPLEXITY OF A DAIRY COMPANY. INDIVIDUAL MOTORS PROVE EXPENSIVE. The Shannon Dairy Company is rather concerned about the cost of its electric power, according to Mr. W. E. Barber, who stated at the Power Board meeting on Tuesday that he had asked the Board's engineer (Mr JA. Smith) to see the factory manager about it. Mr. Smith stated that he had not so far been able to visit the factory. Mr. Barber: Members of the company think that the power is costing them too much. The chairman: Do you want Mr. Smith to go with you? Mr. Barber: I Avould like to know whether there is any fault at the factory. The chairman: We could not say.

Mr. Barber wanted to know if there was any fault in the installation, or if extra pulleys had absorbed _ the power. Their charges were considerably above those which the Levin factory had to pay. . The chairman: I should like Mr. Vincent to go with Mr. Smith and Mr. Barber. Mr. Vincent has made a study Of the matter.

Mr. Vincent said he did not think he could do anything there—he was not an engineer. The chairman: But you have a fairly intimate knowledge of the running of the local factory.

Mr. Vincent: I only know what it cost us; I don't know how it is done. Mr. Barber stated that Levin only used 40 k.v.a. while Shannon used 70. In answer to a question by Mr. Seifert, the engineer stated that the meter at the Shannon factory was all right ; he had put in a check meter. Mr. Barber: I understood from some of the directors that our installation was recommended by our late engineer, so it is under his system. As to whether we have too many motors, I should not like to say. Mr. Seifert stated that, before installing electric power at the Mirai'.ui flavmi 1 ! his company found that the mill with the greatest number of motors took by far the most current; and in consequence they decided not to have many motors ac this mill, which nevertheless was reckoned by electrical engineers to be the finest installation in New Zealand.

Mr. Barber: I take it that in most of the dairy companies they did not know a great deal about the action of motors, and have gone on the recommendation of the engineer of the Board. We may want less motors, and I think Mr. Smith.should come along. The chairman: Mr. Seifert's observation is to me most interesting after the evidence we have had previously." It is quite :ikely a mistake has been made in installing a motor on each churn. •■ There was an object in that, which was that you could run one churn with less power, whereas with one big motor you might have perhaps only one churn running at a time I know a small factory which did the same thing, and I think they will make arrangements to take out two small motors and put in one large one. Mr. Seifert stated that the mill was running four strippers from one large motor and three others from single motors. They were using no more current for the large motor, though there •was a big line of shafting to drive. Mr. Barber: . Ordinarily one would think that the unit churn would be the cheapest. The chairman: The experience of various users points to the fact that it is not the most economical. Mr. Barber: The Levin factory is driving three churns to Shannon's two. Mr. Vincant stated that before the freezer and can-washer were connected up at the Lavin factory, .the power required was 23 k.v.a.; it was now 40 k.v.a.

Mr. Ross stated that in America rmall installations were being discarded in favour of large ones.

The engineer stated that hi some ftox mills using single strippers the con sumption of current was fairly low. Mr. Ross. If you divide the three up, then your unit charges go up. Mr. Seifert stated that they had had a 25 h.p. motor driving an automatic scutcher. They put in a 40 h.p. motor, to provide for certain things, and were not using any more units than with the 25 h.p., while they had the satisfaction of never being "kicked out." Mr. Barber said he thought the Board should mako full investigation after what Mr. Seifeit had said. It seemed that if they were putting in single units fox churns, etc., they were doing wrong. He had been hoping to get some figures from the Wanganui Power Board relating to one of the factories in that district, for comparison with Shannon. There was a vast difference in their, charges. j The chairman: You could not compare the rates, as they depend on the load, the class of load, and the class of I country Wanganui has essentially a \ town load They want, all the country load they can get We have a day load, and we want all the night load we can get. Any comparison in ManawatuOroua would be fairer than in liangi-

t-ikei. It was decided to make an inspection at the Shannon dairy factoiy after the - meeting..