info on the "out of business" rumor

[eljay]

dennis, a member of HOC, and proprietor of "big orange guitars" in florida sent me this info in response to my querying him about H:

 

Hi Larry,

 

I thought I would share a little more info with you. A few weeks back Heritage had electrical transformers burn out that provided their 3 phase electric that they use on almost all of their machinery. These were ancient transformers which sit inside a courtyard sort of behind the plant. They had to work with their landlord as they lease the building and finally got new transformers that had to be set with a crane lifting them over the entire building to get them in the courtyard. They in effect laid off the employees because they couldn't do any work. Once the new transformers were set the 3 phase motors on the machinery wouldn't work and they all had to be rewired. Since orders are slow they let the employees stay home on unemployment. They were off for a total of 6 weeks but everyone is supposed to be back to work on Monday morning. While I new about the electric problems I did not know that the employees had been home all of this time. This info came from Rendal in a conversation that I had with him yesterday.

 

Thank You,

Dennis

 

i post this with dennis' permission. regards, eljay

[FredZepp]

Hey , that's interesting...

 

I wouldn't have thought of those pesky transformers causing so much grief...

[FrankV]

Hey , that's interesting...

 

I wouldn't have thought of those pesky transformers causing so much grief...

 

Transformers can cause all kinds of trouble, apparently. A nuclear power plant near me just went off line due to a transformer explosion; and a few years ago a big transformer went haywire and turned night to some kind of weird electric daylight for a minute or two. Freaked out a lot of people, I can tell you.

 

Glad the folks at Heritage are getting back to work.

[pegleg32]

Very interesting info and I take him at his word. But I have to wonder if something was confused in the passage of info. I worked for the local electric utility for the last 25 years of my working life, and I have never heard of having to rewire motors becuase the utility transformers were changed. Transformers are totally interchangeable, assuming they are the same voltage etc., and are changed out all the time. The utility always puts in the transformers the customer needs because that's how they make their living. So I think something was missed in the translation. It seems more plausable that one three phase motor was burnt out and just needed rewiring, or more likely replacement. Certainly not all of them.

[TalismanRich]

A good surge through the electrical lines can do a number. I remember years back, losing one of the 3 transformers at work. It lit up like a roman candle from the oil inside. Along the way, some of the 3 phase motors went 2 phase and a couple went out. We also lost a computer and some lab equipment that were on that line.

 

Those electricicals are tricky things!

[Kuz]

Bottom line is this is not new info. We knew the plant was down for a couple weeks (some HOC member reported this, it might have even been Mark) due to electrical/mechanical issues. We might not have known that it was actually 6 weeks.

 

But for a dealer to extrapolate that "Heritage is closing, going out of business", or even "Heritage is taking an extended leave" without knowing the facts is inexcusable. It is inappropriate to start those rumors without the facts.

[mark555]

I always wondered what happened after McLoud packed his horse away and retired from the police...