ARRIVAL OF AORANGI

New Zealand Times, Volume LII, Issue 12074, 27 February 1925, Page 11

ARRIVAL OF AORANGI

IN WELLINGTON HARBOUR TO-DAY FASTEST AND MSST LUXURIOUS MOTOR-SHIP WONDERS IF A FLOATING PALACE NO PUBLIC INSPECTION TO-NICHT THROUGH INFANTILE PARALYSIS The public of Wellington is looking forward with no small degree of anticipation to the arrival of the Union Steam Ship Company’s fine new 23»0°0 ton. quadruple screw motor-ship Aorangi,, due in port this morning on her maiden voyage from England, prior to taking up her running in the Canadian-Australian Royal Mail service.

She is expected to berth at Queen’s No. I wharf at 7.30 a.m., as she will not be held up in the stream, having already passed the port doctor at Auckland. An “At Home” will be held this afternoon, but the ship will not be open for public inspection this evening, as passengers have expressed concern at the outbreak of infantile paralysis in New Zealand, aing-room for parties, children on board would be subjected. A fuller statement on the subject is made in another column.

The vessel is most elaborately and luxuriously fitted, having magnificent first-class accommodation on palatial lines, including, a private diningroom for parties, children’s dining-room, nursery, gymnasium, etc.

SHIP OF THE YEAR

DOMINION OWNED SPLENDID BEHAVIOUR ON MAIDEN TRIP. ARRIVING AT. 7.30 A.M. TO-DAY. The Union Steamship Company o New Zealand, though not among the oldest steamship undertakings, is cer tainly one of the most progressive. Ir directorate, right from its very incep tion, have shown such a spirit of consistent enterprise as was hound to wiv for it the proud position it holds to day among the world’s famous shipping concerns. In 1875 when the company, which owned sailing vessels prior to embarking in steam, initiated its career, its total ownery aggregate"' some 4000 tons comprised in sma! craft, which hardly suggested the importance to which the line would attain. From coastal trade to intercolonial was an obvious development, and -from that to South Sea Island and trans-Pacific services was equally possible with men at the head who were determined that the Union Steamship Company should be worthy both of New Zealand and the Empire. TOIDAY’S HUGE tonnage.

To-day the fleet numbers 77 vessels, totalling 282,955 tons, much of whichis comprised in ships of the highest olass. The present culmination of the long years of steady effort which lias been responsible for this ! development is, of course, the Aorangi, which typifies in herself the courage and enterprise of those who control the line. She is a motor-driven vessel of 18.000 tons and 20,000 i.h.p. Prior to her advent the largest passenger ship in the fleet was the Niagara, of 13,415 ton-j and 14,500 h.p., the next biggest units being the Makura, 8075 tons, Tahiti, 7898, and Maunganui, 7527 tons. The Niagara is a triple-screw ship and the other boats are twinscrews, while the Aorangi is driven by four propelleis. But the outstanding evidence of the forward policy of those who control the destinies of the company lies in the fact that the Aorangi is propelled by internal combustion engines and at present is the biggest ship to bo driven bv this type of propulsive machinery. The Aorangi m?rks a distinct advance which should do much to solve the problems incidental to employing enginr-s of this type for the propulsion of big and fast passenger liners. The management, it .is true, have had some little experience of running a Diesel-engined vessel, for they include in their fleet the Hauraki, of 7113 tons and 4000 h.p. She, however, is a cargo-boat.

A HANDSOME VESSEL. She is a very handsome vessel with a cruiser stern and a graceful yaehtlika appearance, which has long been the ball-mark of the productions of the famous Fairfield (Glasgow) yaTd, where she has been built. With her raking masts and funnels her suggestion of strength and tpeed, she is not altogether unr>minis>:ent of those erstwhile record-holders the Campania and Lu cania. The funnels, although not actually essential, add to the appearance of the vessel. HeT principal dimensions are: length 600 ft, beam 72ft. and 42ft 6in in depth to the lowesv weather deck, below which there arc four other decks and above two, with numerous fuperstvuctures, as are to be expected on a passenger ship arranged to accommodate 440 first, 300 second, and 230 third-class passengers. Hot officers and crew, despite the elimination of nearly all firemen and trimmer ratings due to her oil engines, will number 330, so that when a full ship she will carry 1300 souls. A NEW ZEALAND NAME. Her name is Maori for Mount Cook, so that wherever she goes she Will perpetuate the name of that famous mountain and the historic navigator after whom it is designated. The service in which she will be engaged is an Empire one, her route being Sydney, New South Wales, to Auckland, New Zealand, and thence to Suva (Fiji), Honolulu, Victoria, 8.C., and Vancouver, a distance of 7631 miles This “All Red 1 Route” provides a very useful link in the chain of commum. cation between the Mother Cbuntry and Australasia, the traveller crossing the Atlantic to Halifax, Quebec, or Montreal according to the season, and then proceeding by rail to Vancouver to link up with the vessels of the Union Steamship Company. An examination of the general arrangement of the passenger accommodation of the Aorangi makes it quite obvious that her internal combustion engines allow of a far more generous allocation of space to public and private rooms than would he the case were she steam-driven. FINEST SHIP AFLOAT.

It has been fittingly said that this vessel 3s the finest of her type afloat. Those interested in furnishing would be particularly attracted by the number of saloons and cabins with historical period decoration, and in particular we might mention the eight special cabines de luxe, every one of which represents a certain period in its fur-

nishing. Each suit© has a marblelined bathroom, and they are all situated on the main. promenade deck. The various periods, are. respectively, the Jacobean, Sheraton, Regence, Queen Anne; Elizabethan, Louis XVI, Adam, and Empire. Apart from the dining saloons, most of the public rooms, first and second class, are located on the promenade decks, and the promenade space to port and starboard for the first-class passengers is some 275 ft long, special provision having been made for dancing. The first-class lounge is of particular beauty and dignity, with its Georgian scheme of decoration, being 43ft 6in wide and 64ft long, with exceptional height.. A very handsome open staircase leads from tne after-end to the gallery above, where are arranged recessed settees, the balustrading being of wrought iron. ! CINEMA SHOWS, j The floor of the lounge is rubber 'tiled, and the centre" laid in polished parquetry. Incorporated in tne panelling at the half-landing of the staircase is an oil painting of Mount Cook (“Aorangi”), and when not used for dancing, handsome rugs are spread on the parquet centre of the lounge. At the after-end of' the lounge, in the centre, a screen can be lowered and cinematograph representations given, the operator being located in the gymnasium in the boat deck above. Over , the centre of the lounge is a large , dome. At the forward "end of the promen- , ade deck; with entrance-way from the 1 alleyways leading ’from the cabines de i luxe, is the music or ladies’ room, 42ft by 21ft, decorated in Louis XVI peri- ' od, the furniture being of French walI nut. The floor is heavily carpeted, and over the room is an ornamental dome, whilst a number of French prints are arranged on the walls. This room has an almost unobstructed view forward, and should prove extremely attractive. THE SMOKE-ROOM. Aft of the.first-class lounge and separated from it by the engine hatches, is the smoking-room, 34ft by 2Stt. Here again, a separate style has been employed, the furnishing being after the Jacobean period. Above is a skylight, having curved roof trusses with heraldio shields, whilst the stone fireplace with an electric fire is arranged in an inglenoOk at the forward end of the room. The furniture is in antique oak, whilst the walls are finished .in grey-toned oak, and the floor is of English tiled rubber. The room is hung with pieces of" armour, and the bar adjoins. There is direct access from the smoking-room to the verandah cafe, a specially desirable adjunct hi view of the hot weather that is always encountered on part of the voyage across the Pacific. Trellis work is arranged on the Walls and the roof, and the usual, garden cane chairs, fables and other fittings, serve to make this section of the deck a very welcome retreat.

SECOND-CLASS ROOMS. The second-class public (rooms on the promenade deck are at the after-end and comprise a lounge forward, with ti ladies’ sitting-rooril and » smoking room aft, separated by the main entrance. The second-class promenade space is about 100 ft in length, whilst right at the forward end on this same deck is the third-class promenade space and public rooms, and right aft, a crew’s airing space, around the laundry. Accommodation for eight laundresses is provided here. “GYM.” AND HOSPITAL. On the -boat deck above, adjoining the entrance, is a gymnasium, and forward are the captain’s and deck officers’ quarters. The gymnasium has a rubber tiled floor, is panelled in teak, and included in its equipment is a large number of mechanical gymnastic appliances, which are intended not only for the-general use of passengers anxious to keep ht, but also for professional sportsmen. At the after-end of the deckhouses is the emergency dynamo room, and right aft, op the boat deck, is the hospital with separate “infectious” Wards.

The shelter deck is given over mainly to first and secona-class passenger cabins, with a third-class promenade forward, and accommodation for part of the crew. A large proportion of the cabins throughout the ship, both first, and second-class, are of the single and two-berth type, 11 per cent, of the first-class passengers being in singleberth, and 76 per cent, in two-berth cabins, whilst the remainder are accommodated in three-berth cabins.

In ©very cabin is a fan, and heating is by steam radiator under the control of the passenger. Steam heating is, of course, also supplied in the main public rooms and in the corridors, whilst in certain parts of The ship electric heaters arc installed. There are many two-berth cabins in the third-class, and none accommodating more than four people except in one or two cases. There' is no cpeira sleeping accommodation for emigrants pn the ship.

DINING SALOONS AND GALLEYS. The dining saloons are all on the upper deck, the first-class being amidships, the second-class aft, and separated by the galley, and the third-

class forward. On this deck is the main first-class entrance, which has a very commodious appearance, the office 'being on the port side, and a large day nursery on the starboard side. Adjoining the latter is a separate room which may be used as a private dining saloon or as a dining-room for children in the daytime. The first-class dining saloon seats 213, the secondclass 180, and the third-class 144, small tables being the prominent feature in the two former. The first-class saloon is finished in Trianon grey, and is decorated in Louis XVI style. The large sideboard is of veneered walnut with a mirror above, whilst the well opening is surrounded by gilded wrought-non balustrading with a decorated tapestry panel after the manner of Boucher. Wall mirrors are arranged around, and the floor is rubber tiled. The entrance to the first-class accommodation on this deck is arranged with a. vide staircase giving communication to all decks, and is enclosed bv a nicely shaped walnut screen of clear glass, bevelled, through which a view of the first-class saloon can he obtained. COOKING AND SERVING.

The first and second-class kitchen, pantries, bakeries, butcher’s shop, etc., divide the first from the secona-clase dining saloon. The galley has a main range, I4ft 6in by 6ft wide, with three furnaces and four ovens -oil each side whicb is equipped with the gravity system of oil burning, while electricity is utilised for a large number of purposes. There is a set of 16 ovens in two tiers, a 60-gallon steam jacketed stock pot, and all the other necessary equipment. There are special pantries for the private dining-room, the lounges, the smoking-rooms and hospital, and these are equipped with electric grills, hot-plates and coffee apparatus etc. There is quite a large shop for the sale of newspapers, magazines, tobacco, etc. The barber’s shop is on the shelter deck for first- and secondclass passengers, a separate shop being provided for third-class passengers. A dark room is available for the passengers, and an electrically operated Furnival printing plant is installed. . An prohestra. wall usually be carried. One accessory w.biob is not usually found on a British liner is an American sod'e-water fountain. Broadcasting programmes from shore sta-

tions will be. received on the skip, the wireless installation including both continuous wave and spark instruments. The installation includes a li kw. transmitter, having a range of 800 miles, a continuous wave transmitter with a range of 2COO miles, and a wireless telephony apparatus from ship to shore, communicating up to 50 miles; 17 loud speakers, are fitted. SHIP’S POST OFFICE. The Aorangi is a mail ship, amd large mail rooms are provided for letters and parcels with the necessary arrangements for sorting, since post office officials will be carried during the voyage. In the baggage room are sorting tables, allowing convenient access of passengers to their baggage during the course of the voyage. Two electric passenger lilts give communication between all decks right up to the boat deck. Each lift is designed for a load of 9cwt and has a speed of 120 ft per minute. It ha# switch control,* i.e., with a hand switch ih the cage. Special service staircases aire provided for the stewards, so that they do not use the main staircase. Throughout the ship, electrically operated clocks are fitted, and some of these are provided in the special cabins. The medical consulting room is on the shelter deck close to the purser’s office, and in addition there is a dispensary a-ntll a waitingroom. Brine-cooled larders and ice boxes are ii» all the kitchens, pantries and bars, and iced water is available. The quantity of fresh-water that can be carried is 1000 tons. The ship can carry general cargo to the extent of 225,000 cubic feet, in addition to about 90,000 cubic feet of refrigerated cargo including fruit, meat and dairy produce. ELECTRICAL SYSTEM. The switchboard is at the after end of the auxiliary engine-room, and arrangements are made so that all the four generators may be operated in parallel, but if desired one can be used for supplying the current for lighting and for the steering gear independent of the other three. The reason for this is that when the vessel is entering or leaving port considerable variation in the electrical load may arise. There are 26 power and nine lighting circuits connected to the switchboard, and, contrary to the system adopted in many ships, the

lighting is at the full line voltage of 220. A battery of accumulators is provided near the switchboard, tfeo that in the event of all the dynamos being accidentally shut down a certain number of essential lights in the engineroom would automatically change over to the battery. A broadcasting system has been provided, so that music, speeches, etc., can be transmitted to all parts of the boat. A complete telephone system is also installed. NEW TYPE OF BOAT DAVITS. On the boat deck, each boat 'is controlled by a separate set of davits which are of the interesting new Maclachlan automatic design, and are able to place all the lifeboats in the water in a few minutes. There are sixteen of these gravity davits, 14 of which operate large 6ingle lifeboats, with a capacity of 86 persons, one handles a motor-boat carrying 50 people, the remaining one being a 28ft emergency lifeboat capable of carrying 56 people. The advantage claimed with this installation is that the total complement of passengers is accommodated in single lifeboats directly attached to davits. In the oase of an extreme emergency, when sufficient members of the crew may not be available, the ship’s officers alone can lower all the boats on both sides of the ship, irrespective of list. When the passengers have embarked, the brake lever is again lifted; and the lifeboat continues to the water at a speed controlled by the brake. FOR SAFETY. Other aids to safe navigation are a directional wireless. equipment and a Sperry gyro compass, in addition to the usual magnetic compasses, whilst the subdivision of the hull is such as would permit of the ship remaining afloat even if two compartments were holed. At the bridge is an electric indicator, which, when a bulkhead door is closed, registers by means of a coloured disc with the number of the door, which is illuminated when the door closes. All the doors can be controlled from the navigating bridge or locally. There are in all 22 water-tight doors, of which one is vertical and 21 horizontal.

Automatic steering is provided. The navigation equipment includes a Sperry gyro compass and gyro pilot. r The

master gyro compass consist® primarily ; of_a bronze W|heel weighing 591 b and driven at a speed of 6000 r.p.m., being situated aft of the officers’ smoke-* room. For protection against fire Clayton sulphur-type fire-extinguishers are installed, together with steam fireextinguishing appliances and hand chemical extinguishers. j RECORD SHIP LAUNDRY. It is claimed that the laundry is one of the largest, if nob'the largest, that has ever been fitted on a ship. It is intended to deal with the passengers’ linen as well as the usual ship work. A machine records the total number of garments of each classification sent by each passenger. All the plant is eloctrically operated, and the washing machines, extractors, and drying tumbler are controlled from a central panel. j EXHAUSTIVE TRIALS BEHAVED SPLENDIDLY. The protracted and exhaustive trials, extended over a full week, and included every possible test of the ship and her machinery. On the series of, runs over the measured mile the engines developed 15,500 i.h.p. and 12.000 b.h.p., at a propeller speed of 125.4 r.p.m., and. a speed on the part of the ship of 18.237 knots. On the 60 hours' endurance trial the average i.h.p. was 15,300, the average b.h.p. 12,300, the average r.p.m. 123. and' the average speed of the ves sel 17.91 knots; the fuel consumption of the main engines was .3951 b per b.h.p. per hour and' that of the auxiliary Diesel engines ,0361 b per b.h.p. per hour. The endurance trial consisted of a run down the Irish Sea and St. George’s Channel, and along the south coast of Ireland to Fastnet. All through t-he four propeller®, running at a moderate. speed, gave a very high overall efficiency, the propulsive coefficient exceeding .58, so that the fourscrew arrangement was justified on the score of economy. It was also justified on that of comfort. During part of the sea trial there was a half gale of wind, with high head seas, which tested the ship and machinery thoroughly. Both behaved splendidly, and

there was a very remarkable lack of vibration, especially at the stern, where vibration is felt most severely in the great majority of vessels. At the stern of the Aorangi it was sometimes difficult to say whether the engines were at rest or running. PRIMARY PRODUCE REFRIGERATED SPACE. As the Aorangi will carry a certain amount of refrigerated cargo, and provision has to be made for the ship’6 Btores, the refrigerating machinery, which is located at the after-end of the main engine-room well above floor level, is on a somewhat substantial scale. It provides for the maintenance in the first place of the insulated cargo spaces occupying the whole of the lower and orlop ’tween decks aft at freezing or chilling temperatures, as may be desired; secondly, for the duty required in maintaining suitable temperatures in provision rooms, comprising separate compartments for meat, bacon and ham, vegetables, fish, cheese, fruit (cooled by means of air circulation) and milk; finally, for icemaking, drinking-water cooling, and the duty demanded of a very complete set of cold cupboards and dressers throughout the vessel. The machinery, which is wholly steam-driven, consists of two units operating on a brine system common tc both. The intention is that the smaller of the two machines should deai with the domestic requirements on occasions when the cargo spaces are not in use. When the entire duty is required at one time, this would devolve on the larger machine, which, with an ice-making capacity of 30 tons per 24 hours, is capable or carrying it out under all conditions, and the other machine will he shut down altogether. The larger of the two is of the horizontal twin compressor type, driven by a compound surface condensing steam engine, the smaller being of the single compressor vertical pattern. COMPRESSED AIR SUPPLY. No risk can be taken in the mattei of compressed air supply on a passenger ship of this size, and a sufficiency is ensured in all circumstances. Eaci of the two air compressors on the individual engines is large enough tc

provide the injection air needed in operating at full power for this particular engine, so that there is always a surplus for charging the storage bottles. In addition, tne injection-air compressors on the auxiliary engines can charge these reservoirs, and in the event of a very large number of manoeuvres being carried out and any possibility of shortage arising, the idle generator pi the auxiliary room, can be started up and can charge one of the 10 storage reservoirs to a pressure of 10001 b per square inch within about a quarter of an hour. ; ENGINES. Her engines comprise four 3250 B.H.P. Fanfield Sulzer-Diesel engines, the fuel oil being carried in tanks between the two engine-rooms and also in the double bottom below the main and auxiliary engine rooms. FACTS OF INTEREST. It is of interest to examine the ad-, vantages which may be anticipated from the adoption of internal-combus-tion engines. First and foremost lies the reduction in the fuel bill. It is roughly estimated that the daily fuel consumption will prove to be not more than one half that of a corresponding geared turbine liner. Assuming that 50 tons of fuel will be used on the Aorangi for the propelling plant, and that 100 of oil would be required on a corresponding steamer, and basing the costs on tne present quotations at the West Coast of America for fuel and Diesel oil respectively, the economy to be expected from the motor vessel is approximately £125 daily. Almost equally important is the increased accommodation available on the Aorangi, in comparison with a similar vessel driven by steam machinery. The difference is stated to be about 18 per cent., and the accommodation is equal to that possible on a steamer 30ft longer. LABOUR SAVING. Practically all the firemen and the trimmers are eliminated, as there are only two comparatively Bmall oil-iired auxiliary boilers, and this will be reflected in the wages bill, not to speak of the avoidance of labour difficulties. Owing to her low consumption, the Aorangi will be able to bunker sufficient fuel at he: home port for a complete round voyage, and, if necessary, carry some as cargo for discharging at Australian ports for the use of the

steam-driven liners of the owners’ fleet. The fuel is thus obtained at the cheapest bunkering port, and the bunkering process, with its attendant charges. and delays, is reduced by 50 per cent, in point of time.. The fuel i consumption of the Aorangi should be no greater after it has been in operation a dozen years than on the trial trip—a claim that can scarcely be made with any type ot steam machinery. A GREAT JUBILEE SIR JAMES ALLEN’S SPEECH A WORK OF HAND AND BRAINS. Speaking after the farewell 1 uncheon in England, Sir James Allen said 1920 was the jubilee year of the Union Steam Ship Company. He regretted that Sir James Mills was unable to be present, but be was sure that all New Zealanders present and others would wish that a telegram should be sent to Sir James conveying good wishes for the New Year, and the greatest success for the company which he founded. Ho hoped that Sir Jameo would have a very pleasant voyage to the land which, owed so much to rum. The Union Steam Ship. Company was the first company to build a stool ship at all, the first to build a turbine, and 1 now it had the distinction of building the first motor liner. It was a credit not only to Sir James Mills, but to Mr Holdsworth, the managing director ot the company, who had Tjeen able to centralise his resources % and,, up-to-date scientific knowledge into this vast experiment. A ship like this was the work of hands sand: brains. But, after all, it was only a machine. Whatever the machine might 'be, it depended upon the organising power of its captain, his initiative, his reliance, and his ability to take advantage of nature and all its possibilities, to make it a successful machine. The man who was to take charge of this great machine was a New Zealander. It was evident that New Zealand could produce men ot intellect, men of resource arid power. If we, as Britishers, had to roly upon cur own initiative and. brains, and on %e initiative i land brains of the younger partners of

the Empire, then ho had’ no fear for the future of the race. Mr Holdsworth, m replying, said they had not regarded the ship as an experiment. Before they entered into tile contract they were beyond the region of experiment. They were doing nothing new in the matter of the size of cylinders. What they had done, however, was to utilise four engines wheije only two had been introduced in oilier vessels. Up to the present time they were* justified in what they had done. No ship had been subjected to more thorough tiials than this one hsd, and she had emerged from them a great success. Mr EVa, previously of the Union Company, but now London manager of the Commonwealth Line of steamers, proposed the liealrh of Captain Robert Crawford, the new commander. He predicted that Captain Crawford would handle the ship to his own credit and to the credit of the company. THE OFFICERS. The officers of ’ the Aoraugi are: Chief officer, Robert M. Scott; second, Robert B. Denniston; junior second, Douglas Rollo; ihird, R. Blamfieid; purser, A. F. Neale; surgeon, Dr. C. G. Learoyd; chief engineer, H. Lockhart; chief steward, H. . Read; wireless operator, A. Dewsbury: assistant wireless operators, W. 8. Whitehead and J. Bogie. Mr Scott and Mr Denniston both are from tho Niagara. Mr Rollo is new to the company. Mr Read is a steward well known to trnvelisrs. He was previously on the Niagara. Mr Lockhart was second ergineer on the Niagara. During the two years which the ship lias been building, Mr Lockhart has been closely in touch with operations, so he takes over the new machinery with a very intimate knowledge of the mechanism.

INTEREBT IN SYDNEY INSPECTION BY ENGINEERS. Bv Telegraph —Press Assn.—Copvrieh*. SYDNEY, February 26. Great interest is being displayed in the arrival sheitly of the notov ship Aorangi. A large number of engineers from all parts of Australia will inspect her on her arrival in Sydney.