BRIEF REVIEW OF ACTIVITIES CARRIED ON BY THE BOROUGH

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LII, Issue 8616, 13 June 1924, Page 3 (Supplement)

BRIEF REVIEW OF ACTIVITIES CARRIED ON BY THE BOROUGH

their plane by cutting out a’l chimneys said substituting a complete electncal service, including water heaters, worked on the lines which are now general. It may be of interest to state that the present owners cf these i retail at ions remain hearty advocates of the in© of electricity in the kitchen alter eight years' service. Hero it may also he stated that the development cf electric cooking has been entirely on its own merits, and it lias not been artiflcally forced ly any means;. The contribution to the revenue by heating and ©coking in successive years is shown by the following table of annual receipts:— RECEIPTS FROM SALE OF (TRRENT. Vs- erdg. .-SI-ir.3l a. b <-, ri. ' 1917 209 949 211 £5.5 UTS 337 1193 4 72 29.4 1919 293 1453 612 4 2.2 1920 435 2274 916 41.5 1921 643 2519 1268 50 2 1922 1817 3483 1719 49.5 1923 4223* 3376 2114 57.5 revenue from bulk supply a. Power, b. Private lighting; x Heating; d. Balia cf Heating to Fighting per cent. It will be seen that the portion of revenue derived from heating has shown a. fairly steady increase and there is at present ©very indication that tho heating revenue will ultimately exceed that derived from lighting.

XYTTIEN tlx- r:h:-nK- for the ereclien rf a town liali was first mooted by (he then Mayor, Mr B. C. Bobbins, it w-a-s felt by many that (he idea v.sa-s the ambitions and that tlitre wa-s nc pressing damand far such a building. However, a loan psepes-al for £7500 was place J before trk: ratepayers. The lean was aut-hsrised, competitive designs were: invited from architects throughout the Dominkn, that of Mr C. J. Kirk— (bow employed with the Wairarapa Fewer Beard at Master ten) smiling (lie award. Ten ders were; immediately called, that of Messrs Ashton and Crump, a local firm cf builders, being accepted. In addition to the £8250 (£7500 plus 10 per cent) then expended on thq building, the sum cf approximately £I7OO h as since; been spent in improving and adding to. the conveniences of the ball, until tc-day Tauranga stanch? possessed of one of the most attractive and Commodious halls to be found ouside the larger cities of the Dominion. It will be readily recognised that to secure a

building sealing 700 people, auc providing accommodation fer Hr berough staff with an exceptionally fine council chamber, at a cost cf less than £IO,OOO has l:;n a most commendable achievement. Since it was built the hall has been selfsupporting. At the outset the Oenucil ran picture -entertainments as a municipal enterprise for a. short time. Subsequently the hall was leased for that purpose, but in April last the Council decided not to leas?; Hid hall, and to-day the pictfure entertainments are again under th-e> control of the council. With the surplus revenue—after payment cf interest and sinking fund and ordinary maintenance charges—and the addition of a small rate cn cue or two occasions, the Council has, as stated, been able to expend scan© £I7OO cn the improvement of the hall since it was, built, and at 31st March, 1924, had a credit balance! of some £2OO ijn the hall account. The ball is available, by arrangement, for dances and local entertainments, and for travelling companies.

Tt should bo stated, however, that the Government figures of costs do not, in the case of Tauranga at any rate, include full provision for depreciation. After making this allowance tho Tauranga costs are ,99d per unit, which is still lowest. Tho column in The table showing th© pel- capita consumption of electricity in the various towns is instructive and it will ho seen that the development in Tauranga far surpasses that in other New Zealand centres. Air Lloyd Mandeno, the Borough electrical engineer, dealt very exhaustively with the experience gained in connection with the Tauranga installation, in a paper read before the annual conference of the Now Zealand Society of Civil Engineers in Dunedin in February, 1924. Mr Maud cno has had charge of

sistent demand for th© electric service. The meeting of this demand introduces numerous problems which are at present interesting many engineers in this country where investment in electricity supply is proceeding at a. rate which brings homo to engineers the importance of seeing that the expenditure is wisely made, and, at the same time, with due provision for probable future developments “Die extensive use of the current for heating and cooking purposes is at present mainly confined to tbe Borough area itself, and therefore the following remarks will he confined to operations within that area, “The town itself has an area of 870 acres and the population in 1922 was 2,101.

addition there is about 25 k.w. of cooking appliances and 30 k.w. cf radiators in commission in tho hotels, shops and offices.

An installation suitable for five jKjrsons comprises:—One oven (2,0002,500 watts), three boiling rings (3,000 watts), one water heater continuous heat ('3OO-500 watts), an auxiliary l“50 watts)'.

This, it appeai-s, is th© condition already obtaining in some Canadian towns, and, although high fuel costs may in some measure account for tho striking developments over there, tho writer believes that similar developments will shortly occur in New Zealand

Electric lifeless cookers have not found favour in the Taurauga district a.s those who have tried them do not teem prepared to permanently alter their methods in the kitchen, which is necessary for this type of cooker. Monthly Consumption.—This is a very variable quantity depending more oir the amount of care exercised in. using the equipment economically rather than on the number of persons to ho catered for. Statistics show that the household consumption, excluding lighting and water heating, approximates:— 14C0 units with 2 persons resident 2000 units with 4 persons resident 2800 units with 7 persons resident The above figures will also cover the use of radiators to a limited extent.

electrical equipment that fa-.-iiities bo provided for its economical and expeditious repair when this is necessary. As all this work in Tauranga is done '■by the Municipality at the expense of tbe consumer the cost of maintenance is easily available. Figures have been taken out covering £9 complete home installations taken at random. The range's in. these cases vary from one to six years’ service.

methods may be a dot pod. The change ever switch, between the cooking and water heating circuits may be used, lane switches nr© available which in s .me eras would require to bo set to operate twice or three times daily. Another method which has been proposed is the actuating of relays controlling tho individual water heaters by means of a superimposed higher frequency alternating current.

“Consumers’ Installations. Some reference to consumers installations may he of interest. Tea Rooms. Each of the tea. rooms depends on the electric service for eooking, etc. and it is nowhere more popular. The equipment in a tea room where light luncheon: is also provided, and having seating accommodation for 50 persons, includes the following;—

watts 2 ovens each of 2400 I Grill of 2000 1 Water heater 800 I Water boiler 1500 5 Boiling rings 0300 I Radiator 2000

Tlie total cost for nine months of the current year 1P23 is £•!£>, equal to 13/1 per range which is equivalent to 1/G per month “Water Heating.—The figures above quoted relating to total consumption apparently show that the quantity of energy sold for water heating is out of all proportion to that for cooking. This is due to the fact that there are over twice as many residences fitted with electric water heating services as with cookers, the total of the former being 161. “Seeing that the water heater was originally introduced ;1s an auxiliary to the cooker, in order to fill the place of tiie ordinary coal heated high pressure hot water system, the above result appears paradoxical. It is at any rate evident proof that at the rate charged for this service (equivalent to l-3d pei- 1 unit) the electric water heating service is popular, and it is now in fact a standard feature in local house design.

An average monthly account for such a consumer who is not using radiators is then as follows;

Excluding the continuous water heater the monthly consumption for such an installation in summer amounts to approximately 1,000 units. The water boiler is of a specially developed type which, within its capacity, provijd«s boiling water at tho taip contiiiuohsly, as required for tea making.

Lighting 15 units at 7d 8/9. Cooking and ironing 190 units at d-4d plus fixed charge on 6J k.w. hut in the latter two cases individual households - miay-.easily var 7 OO per oeaufc.

“The continuous avail»biUty of a. hot water supply without any other thought for ito provision than the payment of a moderate monthly account makes a strong appeal.

of heating equipment at 1/6 22/6. Water heating say, 400 watts at £l2 per k.w. year- 8/.

Private Houses. —There are 65 houses using electric cookers, 52 of them being entirely dependent upon it. Of these seven are entirely dependent on electric radiators for ligating, 21 use radiators to a fair extent, but have also other means of heating. In

It is unnecessary to draw attention to the increase in revenue to the supply authority which must follow the general adoption of electric cooking. Maintenance of Equipment.—-It is a first essential for the success of the

“As above stated the water is supplied on an unmetered circuit winch in Tauranga is continuously energised. In districts where it is specially desirable to keep these circuits off at times of pronounced peak loads various

the installation since its inception, and is therefore able to speak with 1 considerable authority on the subject, as it is mainly duo to his energy and foresight that Tauranga, in so far as electricity development is concerned, stands in such a faovurable position. The following extracts from the paper in question are therefore of special interest and value: —

“For mot ire power the chief users of current are n Dairy Factory in which the installed motor capacity is 61 h.p. and a Bacon Factory and Cool Store using 2d h.p. There are also several joinery shops with installed motor capacities up to 25 h.p. “The Borough water and sewage services are gravitational throughout and it will therefor© be seen that the deinfaml for current for motive power in the town area is small.

“It is therefore suggested that the problem of supply to this area is very similar to that to be met with in the residential areas surrounding the chief cities, there being but little demand to 'bo catered for except the residential consumption. “Statistics. —There are 718 consumers within the Borough and the properties taking current may be classified as follows: Residential ... ... ... <3C3 Shops, offices, and manufactories 141 Public buildings ... ... 15 718

“Tariff,—lt was recognised when initiating tlxe supply that all prospective sources of revenue would requre to he exploited in order to meet all costs including capital charges on a comparatively high expenditure (for that time) erf £20,000. A tariff was therefore arranged with a view to making the use. of current for heating purposes feasible, the following net charges being adopted— current for lighting Sd; power 2d, and 3 Jd; heating IJd, continuous water heatem 20s per k.w. per month . “These charges have remained in vogue ever since except that the lighting and motive power rates were amended in November, 1922, lighting then being reduced to 7d per unit. An alternative heating charge has also been made available to consumers of beating current. This is at consumers’ option and is charged at the rate of IjG per month per k.w. of installed heating capacity plus 3-4 d per unit metered.

must ultimately handsomely repay the borough. The object of the development now in hand is to cope with the over-increasing demand, ami to ensure sufficient current to supply the demands of the Tauranga County at least for many years.

No more convincing proof of the value of Tauranga’s hydro-electric installation, and the fortunate position in which the district stands in being possessed of such a plant, can be found than the statistics of the Government. From these it is found that Tauranga has the lowest average generating cost in the Dominion per unit of current delivered to consumers .This excellent performance is. however, partly due to the fact that the municipality is at present operating art efficient power plant very near the limit of its capacity. The following table showing the quantity of electricity consumed, also the cost of generating and distributing the current' in New Zealand' towns has beetr compiled from published Government returns, while figures for certain industrial centres in Great Britain have been added:

How the demand has increased may be gathered from the fact that the original installation at Omanawa provided a maximum supply of UOOh.p. Now the falls are developed up to their full capacity of UOOh.p. M ith tins development, however, it soon became evident that the capacity of these falls would not meet the needs of the whole district-, and the borough electrical engineer, Mr Lloyd Mandeno, placed before the Council a scheme for developing the available power on the UVairoa River —the largest river in the district., The scheme was approved,

‘'The method of cooking by electrically produced heat has several advantages over other available methods.

For household use the advantage tliat appeals most to the cook is the effectiveness of the electric oven, any good make of which can Ire relied on to turn out its work perfectly done, and with uniform regularity. ‘•The improved condition in the kitchen. owing to the absence of fumes and dirt, and to the ease with which the electric cooker can Ik? kept clean and tidy are other features, while another one is the fact that the adoption of the electric service simplies the design of a comfortable and roomy house.

“Town gas is availale through most of the area and was sold for heating up to 1917 at 7/G per 1,000 c. ft, but this charge has latterly risen to 10,'net. ....

“ Development of Cooking Load. — Some interest in electric cooking was early displayed by consumers, and the original canvass for consumers, which was carried out in 1915, met with a fair response in tins direction. The owners of two houses, who vere commencing erection, changed

“These facts are of course well known to electrical men and it is the writer’s opinion that, as they become generally realised, there will be an in-

j T ° Wn HaH P ‘ ayS Imp ° rtant Part in Civic Life of Community. Electrical Installation Valuable Asset to Town and District and destined to play important part in Industrial Development I . .................. . | |

“Another method which the writer has considered is the provision of a special low tension water heating main, fed from tho usual distribution tranr - formers but controlled by automatic switches operating in cascade, the first one lieing controlled from the main substation manually, or by time switch. Tho slight additional expenditure which would l>e incurred in the erecttion of tliis main on a new system in a suburban area would be easily justified.

In the development of the water heater various troubles have been met with; one difficulty dealt with lias been tho vulnerability of the ordinary immersion element to damage by lightning and another met with in some districts is the scaling up of the element.

Those have eventually been dealt with by winding an dement with a much higher are over and with a greatly reduced intensity of heat on tho heating surface.”

This then is the record of Taurattga's achievement in electrical development, on© we venture to remark, that will be found worthy of study, and of careful oonaideratioo bu anyone who c-onteimplates making Tauranga Eis liome, or may be lead to consider its possibilities—shaving in view its climate, (situation, port facilities, and electric power—as a place in which to establish a business or an industry.

Town Population Total Unas rold Cost Permit sold Units sold per head Auckland 1-15,870 13,599,195 2,74 93 Devonport 0,301 -131,211 6.22 47 Feildiug 5.000 390,401 5.87 73 Gisborne 10,930 939,085 4.20 80 Hamilton 13,500 810,825 3.93 00 Hastings 10, CO ) 9:2.02 ; 3.51 93 Hiv.vcva 5,750 078,091 -1.49 ns Inclrwood i /no 191,150 3.57 117 New Plymouth ... 2,1.003 2,593,7:0 2,17 100 Ohakuna 1,1570 77,99 1 5.07 -K) Opotiki 1.100 71.£32 9.35 05 Pukokolio 1 201 77,490 8.95 01 T’otoma 3.8S0 430.953 4.13 120 Stratford 0,000 209,531 0.92 30 Taihapo 2,009 351 /.2S 1.97 109 Ta urnuga •1,053 2,303.113 .79 495 To Aroha 2.110 217,753 4.53 103 Thames 5,COO 312,819 1.1 J 63 Wellington 9.5,000 7,68-3,318 3.79 79 C'hristchnreh 91,000 15,791.810 1.39 108 Dunedin 7-3,000 20,092,301 1.10 267 Birmingham 930,000 139,500,000 1.00 119 Glasgow Manchester 1,032,000 850.000 111.919.000 185.038.000 1.53 1.03 137 218