MR. BUTTERS' REPORT

Auckland Star, Volume LIII, Issue 227, 25 September 1922, Page 7

MR. BUTTERS' REPORT

lON AUCKLAND'S ELECTRICITY. i VALUABLE SUGGESTIONS. AN EFFICIENT SYSTEM. A most comprehensive report on the J affairs of the Auckland Power Board | prepared by Mr. J. H. Butters, the head ol the lasmanian Hydro-electric Depart. -. ni,-nt. was laid before the members of the board to-day at their usual meeting Owing to its length and importance the report will be considered at a special meeting. It will lie remembered that when the board took over from the City Council, it was thought advisable that an outside expert should be called in 'I to report fully on the* present system and plant, particularly in view of the *: change-over which will take place when • hydro power is available from Arapuni. •' , The report generally speaks highly of the way things are run in Auckland. In 1 a covering letter to Mr. W. J. HoldsB worth (chairman of the board) Mr. But- - ter.- records the fact that he formed a ' very high opinion of Mr. Alex. Wyllie, • i the board's engineer. "I formed the opinion that in him the boa-rd has an oflicer who is thorough, painstaking and single-minded in all his work, a gentleman who may he implicitly relied upon and one who has a record twhind him of having built up the Auckland business from practically nothing to its present stage, with all the knowledge a.nd experience that this means," writes Mr. Butters. "I am strongly of opinion that you may search quite a long way and then probably not find a man who will be so gencrallv satisfactory to the board - as Mr. Wyllie'.** STAFF TOO SMALL. The report expresses satisfaction with the general engineering and business organisation of the department, except on the point of strength of staff. Mr. Butters thinks that two additional ofli- ! eers should be appointed: (1) a right hand man for Mr. Wyllie on the engineering, design and construction side; and (2) a -first-cla?-s organising engineersalesman to take charge, under Mr. [ Wyllie, of many of the business details. i Such appointments would give Mr. Wyllie time and leisure to get a broad i view of the board's development, and - organising and overseeing the work. At - present he had too much detail to attend to. Mr. Butters suggested that r the title of the board's chief executive \ oflicer should be changed to chief engi- ! necr and manager, or managing director. . I TLANT EFFICIENT. | Mr. Butters says the scheme in hand to combine the whole electric supply in- \ eluding- that for the trams is undoubtedly good; the present steam station at King's wharf is efficient, and the cost of production is reasonable, taking into consideration the cost and quality of the coal. Regarding day work and contracting in reticulatioui Mr. Butters advises laying out a programme for general distribution for iseven years, and the organisation of a permanent labour force to cope with that work by full day time. Tenders should be called for all special long • routes of mains and feeders. > The reticulation already carried out i and projected was reasonably sufficient I to allow the free use of domestic and cooking apparatus in the home, but Mr. Butters said he would contemplate having to strengthen it when the board's rates for domestic power were reduced as he thought it would be wise to reduce them as soon as the financial situation permitted. On the matter of wiring houses the report is against the board going into ' that business as long as contractors rea--1 sonably copedt.witti- .the business, wiring | contractors b__ng\extremely valuable as j canvassers and. salesman and costing the 1 board / Regarding Jthe -*'.-_stian of direct current and altißrTlating current areas the report urges circumstances should the Dt&SKea be extended; it should be steadily reduced further by a small amount each year. , UNTIL ARAPUNI COMES. Asked will the present extension meet the needs of the area until Arapuni power arrives Mr. Butters answers: "In my opinion it will meet normal development, but it may be necessary to supplement power available from the present extem'ons, unless power is available from Hora Hora in the meantime, if power from Arapuni is not delivered before the winter of 1928, or if any abnormal development takes place." Speaking of the general financial . position of the board, Mr. Butters urged , the greatest care in limiting the capital I expenditure to what was essential to , the proper conduct of the board's busi- , ness. In the past Auckland had had ' | the luxury of underground mains, but reasonably cheap electricity would not |be saleable unless all future extensions [were overhead. . Tine hydro agreement between tlie board and the Government was generally satisfactory to both parties, but the report suggested that the board • should approach the Minister with a j view to receiving an assurance that the : power from Arapuni, upon which it was > counting, would certainly he delivered Iby April 1, 1928. Mr" Butters said • he did not think that the board could '.afford to lay underarou'nd mains beI tween Penrose and King's wharf; the I connection should be overhead, along the railway line. | A sub-station would be' necessary at King's wharf with Arapuni power, but • | less ground space would meet the board's requirements. OFFICE MUST BE IN CITY. On the moot point of erecting the 1 board's office on the power house site : I at King's wharf (the present intention), j i Mr. Butters is strongly against the pro- . . posal.and urges the board to secure an : ! office site in the business area of the , j city, and to re-cast its general and coal ' I storage arrangements on the waterfront •i SO a* to reduce the amount of new land ' 'to be leaded at a high figure from the 1 | Harbour Board to a minimum. He says 1 [ the office building should also be used ' I for showroom purposes. • • Present charges for current were rea- ; j sonnhlp. but in the near future it would -j he necessary to reduce somewhat the • < rates for domestic use. 1 I The offer of power from Horahora was 1 ! approved, and the boaTd was advised to • 1 wait for Horahora power before begin--1 ! ning to feed the rural districts beyond ' j Penrose. The board was advised to offer '| a lower schedule for power sold outside " the I).'.'. area, as an inducement to con-j ' ' sumcr* to establish their works outside tlie area fed from King's wharf. " j The report is a long one of 21 type- ' i written page., and contains much valu- | able information.based on Mr. Butters' own wide experience. Consideration of ' the report by the board will be given ;,'. fit a meeting* to be specially called for I the purpose. .__,_■._,.. ■