LESS COSTS

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 67, Issue 40, 27 November 1946, Page 4

LESS COSTS

GROUPING OF DRAG-LINES SAVING OF £7OO IN TWO YEARS (Own Reporter) If four drag-lines at present hired from Burnetts Motors, Ltd., by the South Canterbury Catchment Board are. all kept within an area of about 20 square miles the owners are willing to reduce the hire charges by Is per hour per machine, while if the machines can be so grouped that one servicing truck can take all personnel, fuel, etc., to the machines the reduction would be Is 6d an hour, stated Mr G. R. Milward (engineer) reporting to his board yesterday on the grouping of drag-lines used in the Ashburton-Hinds drainage scheme. “In order to keep the four machines as close together as possible for the duration of the scheme I suggest that two be worked on each drain at a time —one commencing at the mouth •; and the other at a point about halfway, so calculated that the two machines will finish about the same time. Similarly the other two machines would work on the next adjacent drain in the same manner. “In order to keep such a system in step it would be necessary to start on those drains nearest the Ashburton River and work the area by taking drain by drain across to the Hinds, or start at the Hinds and work across to the Ashburton. “The starting of a drag-line halfway up a drain means that about four chains would be worked over twice if the drain was being deepened by one foot. The extra-expense is not-very great, ,say £lO for. each lap over,” continued Mr Milward:

“Assuming that the hire charges were reduced by Is per hour on four machines, the weekly saving would be £B. If the scheme takes two years to complete then the total saving would be about £BOO, less about £IOO for lap-over work. “The board’s would be grouped in a similar way, either by doing the Lowcliffe area or by commencing at the Hinds and working, towards the Ashburton. If the Lowcliffe area is selected then the operators and attendant labour should be camped on the job to lessen travelling costs?’ The objections to the scheme were that certain ratepayers not in the areas to be worked over in the near future would object, and that it would take some weeks with a staff smaller than ever to survey groups of drains instead of on a basis of prior urgency, as had been done, pointed out Mr Milward. In conclusion the engineer pointed out that a grouping system would lessen the total cost slightly and appeared to be worth a trial. It was referred to the AshburtonHinds drainage committee for consideration.