Power in Milking Sheds

Northland Age, Volume XVII, Issue 70, 4 June 1948, Page 4

Power in Milking Sheds

Power Board Favours Single Motor Whether one main motor, or individual motors, was the most satisfactory for a milking shed was a question discussed at length at the Bay Power Board meeting on Tuesday. The topic arose over the decision of the Northland College Management Committee in favour of individual motors. • Mr. L. Mandeno, consulting engineer to the Board, was a strong advocate of a single motor and was supported in his opinion by Mr. R. R. Clarkson, assistant engineer. “The greater cost of servicing a separate separator motor was a factor that far outweighed its advantages,” said Mr. Mandeno, who went on to say the smaller and more delicate mechanism in the motor made repairs more frequent and more difficult to execute. Milk splashing about the separator motor caused dirt and corrosion which led- to insulation breakdowns. Mr. Clarkson explained the more practical difficulties. Eighty percent of the faults in cowshed installations were caused by trouble in the separator motor. Often the faults were mechanical, not electrical, but the Power Board was the first to be rungup. “Out of the 870 sheds in th'e Board’s area the 272 with separate separator motors caused more trouble than all the rest,” said Mr. Clarkson. Speaking of the danger aspect at Northland College, with a single motor drive, Mr. Clarkson contended that the cowshed could be designed in such a way as to eliminate hazard from belting.