170 ELECTRIC AUXILIARIES ON MERCHANT SHIPS. 



It will be evident that any means which will reduce the time a ship has to lie at the 

 wharf loading or unloading cargo should lessen the two items, wharfage and stevedoring. 

 The writer has been informed of specific cases where ships have been delayed at docks due 

 to freezing of steam-deck machinery. He has also been informed of a specific case where 

 with two similar ships loading and unloading the same kind of cargo at the same dock and 

 with the same stevedore foreman, the electrically equipped ship loaded in very much less time. 

 Another specific case was where a number of ships fitted with steam-deck machinery had to 

 await the derrick to assist in loading heavy cargo, while a ship fitted with electric machin- 

 ery was able to handle its own cargo and saved a number of days delay. 



Delays have been experienced with steam machinery due to low steam pressure. This 

 may not be due to drop in boiler pressure but to loss in piping. With electric equipment there 

 is always ample power available for the winches. 



By the use of the most suitable electric machinery, it should be possible to reduce the 

 item of port charges 10 per cent. In the estimate given above this would mean approximately 

 $30,000 per year saving. 



3. Salaries. — In all probability the salaries would not be directly affected. In the larger 

 ships and in those where there is a very large amount of auxiliary power it might be foimd 

 desirable to increase the salary slightly for one of the positions, in order to secure a man 

 with electrical experience. 



4 and 5. Upkeep and Repairs. — Both of these items should be reduced. With prop- 

 erly designed electric machinery, the charges for repairs and maintenance would be less than 

 with steam machinery. If compared with many existing ships, a 20 per cent reduction would 

 in all probability be a conservative estimate. If we only allow 10 per cent, however, this 

 would mean a saving of approximately $3,000 per year on the above estimate. 



6. Supplies. — This item would not be appreciably affected in the deck department, but 

 for the engine department there should be a material reduction. A saving of 10 per cent 

 might be expected, which would amount to $2,000 per year. 



7. Insurance. — The assured reliability of proper electrical machinery in the engine room, 

 along with the elimination of a large amount of piping carrying high-pressure steam, 

 should have a direct bearing on the insurance rate. Indirectly, by reducing the loss of steam 

 it should be possible to maintain the water in the boilers in almost perfect condition. This 

 should still further add to the safety of a ship. It would seem to be justifiable to expect 

 that the insurance premiums can be decreased about 5 per cent; this would mean a saving 

 of approximately $3,000 per year. 



8. Loss and Damage. — This item in all probability would not be affected. 



The sum of the different gains mentioned above totals $55,190 per year. The amount 

 of saving that can be shown by other estimates will naturally vary with conditions. In any 

 estimates the possibility of making a substantial gain in the earning capacity in a ship is a 

 real one. Having in mind certain ships, there is every reason to believe that the figures men- 

 tioned above might be increased. 



One of the latest British combined cargo and passenger ships is equipped electrically 

 and is fitted with over 100 motors driving auxiliary apparatus. Needless to say, the owners 

 of new foreign ships are fitting them with electrically driven machinery only because they 

 have satisfied themselves that it is profitable to do so. We engineers in this country should 

 combine our efforts and avail ourselves of every opportunity to improve the efficiency of 

 our merchant ships to the end that they may be able to successfully compete with the modern 

 ships being placed in service by the other countries. 



