Chelsea Sugar Refinery
Chelsea Sugar Refinery The designated, in Auckland colloquially as "Chelsea" or "sugar works", is a sugar refinery in Birkenhead, a suburb of North Shore City, New Zealand. It lies on the north shore of the Waitemata Harbour. The company, founded in 1884 is still the most important source of New Zealand for sugar and sugar products. The old factory buildings are national monuments. The refinery has a deep-water harbors in the Auckland metropolitan area.
- 2.1 Development of Birkenhead
- 2.2 port on the Waitemata Harbour
- 2.3 Influence on Architecture and Culture
History
By the end of the 19th century, all sugar products were imported to New Zealand. In order to improve New Zealand's self-sufficiency, the New Zealand government praised in 1882 a prize for the first company that would produce the sugar found in New Zealand. The already interested in expanding the business to Australia Australian companies Colonial Sugar Refining Company examined several potential sites in New Zealand and eventually bought 60 acres (0.65 km ²) of farmland in Birkenhead. The area was later extended to 1.8 km ².
The location was ideal for a sugar refinery: The Waitemata Harbour offered coast near deep water for a port, there was plenty of fresh water from the Duck Creek, which ran through the property and there was plenty of land and timber.
The name Chelsea was the place from the first customs officials of the refinery after his hometown of Chelsea in England.
Foundation of New Zealand Sugar Company
The " New Zealand Sugar Company " was established in June 1883 by the Colonial Sugar Refining Company, the Victorian Sugar Company and a number of prominent business people from Auckland, among them Sir Frederick Whitaker, Allan Kerr Taylor, LD Nathan Lion Nathan and A. G. Horton and J. L. Founded Wilson of Wilson & Horton. The collapse of the world market for sugar in the 1880s led to the New Zealand Sugar Company was again taken over by his co-founder Colonial Sugar 1888.
1959 was the present, autonomous New Zealand Sugar Company. CSR Limited ( the present name of Colonial Sugar) holds a 75 % stake.
Construction of the refinery
1883 began work on the construction of the refinery. 150 workers paved the ground, poured a lagoon and built with the help of blasting docks and built dams. For this, two -thirds of the 1.5 million bricks used for the construction of the plant were needed, the remaining third of the building. 1884 was the refinery in operation and has since been operated day and night.
100 of the 150 workers were working in a factory on site. Most moved from Auckland to Birkenhead over.
A part of the machinery and equipment was imported from Greenock in Scotland. A large part of the historic art is preserved and protected as an industrial heritage.
Model village
When work began on the refinery, managers and executives fit existing farm houses on the property as residences. However, the majority of the workers lived in tents and makeshift buildings near the site. This shantytown was replaced by the existing 35 houses built by the company on the company premises Chelsea Village. It was at some distance from the existing village of Birkenhead. It was created as a planned model village and, besides houses gardens, a church, a reading room, a school and a shop.
However, this village was only a few years. The deeper the houses were damp and uninhabited since the 1890s. In 1900 the houses were known as " barracks " and were inhabited mainly by single men. 1905, the village was declared by health authorities for dilapidated and the worst houses demolished then, the rest was sold and moved to other places. Some of the relocated houses you see in the older streets around Birkenhead. The church, now St. Peters, was transferred to the suburb Verrans Corner.
Since the company wanted its management team in the event of an emergency on site, built it in 1909 built four brick semi-detached houses on the site of the old Chelsea Village. These houses are still Chelsea, but now leased to private individuals. For other workers, the company offered cheap loans to the construction, financed with the help of over a third of 1910 to 1926 in Birkenhead newly built houses. These homes are located mainly in the streets around the refinery, including named after the founding companies Colonial Road and Huka Road (after the name of the Maori for sugar).
Sugar workers
The poet James K. Baxter 1969 worked briefly as a cleaner in the company: this job had him the poet Hone Tuwhare worried. After three weeks, he was released and wrote his satirical poem " Ballad of the Stonegut Sugar Works" that expressed his dissatisfaction with working conditions. Baxter's impression of the factory was not shared by all workers. Despite the hard work, there was a sense of community and the Company granted to employees numerous benefits, including loans for construction of houses and employment security. This resulted in a low turnover. Often, whole generations of a family working in the refinery.
Control of the Company
Development of Birkenhead
Before the opening of the Auckland Harbour Bridge in 1959, the access to the North Shore of Auckland was possible without major detours only by ferry. While some residents work as commuters in the city, the development in Birkenhead was mainly determined by local employers. Such was the largest employer, Chelsea, a determining factor for the development of the place. Birkenhead was viewed by many as ' factory town ' oF Chelsea. 1900, the population of the Borough reached the 1,000 mark. Two thirds of the men were working at the refinery. Even the farmers and fruit growers of the area relied on casual labor in the factory outside the agricultural season.
Before the construction of the refinery, the region of farms and orchards was coined. A small village was close to Birkenhead Wharf. Within four years of the operation recording the refinery Birkenhead was a Borough. The booming new town grew up the hill towards Chelsea Village, some shops were built in Highbury, between the two villages. Most shops were supported by Chelsea and his workers. The workers engaged in community affairs and were also mayors and city councils. The siren for shift change could be heard throughout Birkenhead and served as a timer for all.
Port on the Waitemata Harbour
The location of the refinery was chosen partly because of the deep-water access. A harbor was built in 1884. The raw sugar came from Fiji, Cuba, Australia, Indonesia and Peru. After processing, the finished products were shipped to the construction of the Auckland Harbour Bridge over the harbor. All other goods such as coal, food and mail came by ship.
The port made today from handysize bulk carriers that transport up to 30,000 tonnes of raw sugar. The port is privately owned, the ship arrivals only be registered by Ports of Auckland. and is subject to regulation by the New Zealand Customs and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. Since the ships usually 500 gross register tons (GRT ) exceed, they must take a pilot on board. The pilot service is managed by the Harbour Master, Auckland.
Nine acres of land in Chelsea included Ports of Auckland, this was leased to Chelsea. In 1997, the area was sold to Chelsea.
The port is located inland from the Auckland Harbour Bridge, so had to get this a great wingspan and height of the central segment.
Influence on architecture and culture
The enterprise archive was the Birkenhead Public Library passed. This Chelsea Archives contain company records, legal records, wage books and Anteilsverzeichisse from the company's history.
The original factory building, Direktorenvilla and brick houses were classified as cultural heritage of Category II by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust, the entire plant as an industrial monument.
Chelsea has given in his history of public access to its extensive wetland areas, lakes, open spaces and bushland. To keep the space open to the public and to ensure the maintenance of the land, large areas were in 2005 transferred to a public foundation.
The company today
Chelsea still works around the clock and is New Zealand's market leader for sugar products. Chelsea buys the raw sugar from various Pacific Islands and Australia. About 200,000 tonnes of sugar annually sold to resellers and industrial sales offices and warehouses across the country.
About 20% of total production is exported, mainly to Australia and the Pacific.
Chelsea supports and sponsors a variety of local organizations and projects in the community. The company also finances the Sugar Research Advisory Service, an organization dedicated to the Zuckerfosrchung.