Salt Lake Tribune | 1919-12-28 | Page 40 | Plant Operates on Gas Engines

PIT OPEHTES Ofl ESSEIfflES Passenger Car Motors Provide Pro-vide Power While Coal Ban Is On. Operation of its plant by means of pas-fenycr pas-fenycr car motors ' was an emergency method adopted by the Paige-Detroit ifotor Car company during the recent coal orlslH, which mado it possible to obviate a complete, shutdown, according to word received by the yladsen'-Farrar Motor company, Salt Lake Paige distributor. ' The Paige was the first of comparatively compara-tively few bs Detroit plants that continued con-tinued to turn out cars and keep a large force of men at work throughout this period. When it became known that the Paige plant could operate only to the extent of two-fifths of its normal current consumption, con-sumption, plans were hastily made to , e-iuio a number of "Six" motors and transmissions with the necessary attach- ir.ents to connect with the various machinery ma-chinery unity. Within twenty-four hours the battery of motors was fitted with pulleys, placed in position, belted to the overhead shaft-ini; shaft-ini; and ready to go. On the day that government restriction on soft coal went into effect, the emergency power plant was put into operation, and for the entire en-tire period kept the Paige factory in operation. tn spite of pulling a' capacity load at a speed of SOO revolutions, day after day, the "t-if" motors performed 100 per cent efficiently, making- it possible for the company to keep at work. " Lhuloubtedly the use of passenger, car and other gasoline motors as emergency emer-gency power units throughout the country coun-try was ihe means of saving many millions mill-ions of dollars to wage workers," says Y A. V heeler, factory manager of the Paige company. "Mt is a splendid tribute trib-ute to American ingenuity and resourcefulness resource-fulness that thousands of factories wer : h 1 e to s w i t c 1 1 o v e r o ga so 1 i c o p o w e r almost over night. It means that If it lecomes necessary at some future time to meet a similar emergency the vxprTier.co of the recent situation will be invaluable :o industrial America in planning for such eventualities.''