Cape Breton's Magazine

(Well, let's talk about its good years first.) The point you raised is a good one, about coal companies do not usually design their own machines. As a result of that, they (Dosco) had quite a long period of re? designing. Something would break, they'd make it twice as big, and this sort of thing. Normally, the manufacturer of a ma? chine will go through that period--like with a new car, you know--he'11 test the thing out, and replace the parts that break and what-not, before he unloads it on somebody. I'll tell you what our people (Joy Manufacturing Company) used to do. And I think this is what other companies do. They make a prototype, and then they go and they get hold of a coal mine opera? tor and say, "What do you think of this ma? chine?" "It looks pretty good, but I don't see why I should put my money in." They say, "Oh, that's all rTght. We'll put it to work for you, and it won't cost you a thing. And if anything breaks, we'll take it back to the factory and fix it." And they get most of the bug3 out. (Instead, Dosco brought the Miner into the mine, and would it work?) Well, it goes so far, and then it breaks down. Then you have to do something about it. (I guess this happened a lot at first.) Yes, it did. (I just wonder what this did for the early reputation.) Well, I think a lot of people said that it was broken down all the time. This is not what the company people would tell you. (I'm not contesting the fact that it broke down. But I think the point that you make, and I want you to hammer home, is that most products get a private time to work out their bugs.) They do, righto (This one worked it out publicly, in the mine.) That's right. And also, the coal company being, as you pointed out, a coal company and not an equipment manufac? turer, was not really organized from the point of view of experimenting with some? thing. But in the meantime, they were oper? ating their longwalls and they were get? ting their coal out, and sure there was some down time--but it was working, and it was eliminating explosives on the face. It was safer. And it was making cheaper coal. (In its 10-year reign, did the Dosco Miner become the state of the art? Did it become an efficient and effective machine?) Yes. As far as we were concerned, that is, the Dominion Coal Company here. (There's no question that there is misun? derstanding as to why you mechanize a mine. One of the reasons you mechanize it is safety.) As an engineer, I am like a doc? tor- -my job is to do things better. That's what an engineer is for, see. I am like a doctor, only I'm concerned with equipment, things like this. (And another concern, of course, is profitability.) Yes. Well, usu? ally the companies will not buy things from you unless they can turn out their product cheaper. They're not crazy. But in actual practice, any time we brought in something more efficient, it was safer. (There's no question but that mechaniza? tion changes the job structures, and in some cases--in many cases--eliminates some jobs.) Yes. (You were saying to me that this is the only view that a lot of people have about mechanization.) That's right. I also say that--I can say this on the out? side now--but I think there has been a lot of misunderstanding. At one time, we in? stalled some Joy loaders and chain convey? ors, way back in 19--oh, '38, I think it was. This was at No. 20 colliery in Glace Bay. And we had to take them out. And this was because the newspapers carried stories about the big machines from the States that would displace 30 men. And it was not explained to the miners that this was not so. Also, I think in general, the coal com? pany has worked on a principle of never letting a man go. If they got in a machine 24-HOUR SERVICE Owned and Operated by Syl MacDonald Baddeck Ambulance Ltd. 295-2200 Fully Trained, Experienced Personnel WE HAVE INFORMATION ON YOUR PROPERTY - AND YOU SHOULD KNOW WHAT IT IS! We have over 20 pieces of information on eyery number you see on this map, and we have a number on every property in Cape Breton, Richmond, Victoria, and Inverness Counties. That means we have a number on every property in Cape Breton Island. - A SERVICE WORTH INVESTIGATING - 1 ESPLANADE j FALMOUTH 1506533? 5065352 1506,5329 r50653ll'~-" I5Q • 5303 J ";l5065l95_ 15065''87: 15065253 j I50$5360 15065'(2' '., 1'655410 15565963 130654144 15065469 15065477 15065493 15134406 TOWNSEND 1 * CHARLOTTE * | Land Registration / and Information Service /Property Mapping and Records Division 66 Wentworth Street, Sydney, N. S. BIP 6T4 CONTKOL SYSTEM of concrete monuments for surveying BASE MAPS: Orthophoto for rural areas. Line Maps for cities, town, villages PROPERTY MAPS with boundary information and ownership information REGISTRY ASSISTANCE for government and private users Your Property Is Our Business • Ask Us About It TELEPHONE (902) 539-2011 or (902) 539-2622 An Agency of the Council of Maritime Premiers (22)