Engineering News | Columnist | Terry Mackenzie-Hoy

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Terry Mackenzie-Hoy

Mackenzie-Hoy is a consulting acoustics and electrical engineer – machoy@iafrica.com

Electrically Speaking - Terry Mackenzie-Hoy

The CSIR blunders on

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In last week's instalment of this column, I made mistake.

By: Terry Mackenzie-hoy

03 Feb 12

Electrically Speaking - Terry Mackenzie-Hoy

The CSIR is stumbling boldly where angels fear to tread

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The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) was established in 1945.

By: Terry Mackenzie-hoy

27 Jan 12

Electrically Speaking - Terry Mackenzie-Hoy

If my staff work overtime I have to pay. When I was working on sites in the 1980s, engineers received no overtime pay – as in none. As a result, it was convenient to have shutdowns and send us all off to site over the Easter weekend or on...

By: Terry Mackenzie-hoy

20 Jan 12

Electrically Speaking - Terry Mackenzie-Hoy

Minister too busy to worry about shacks

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The title of Minister of Housing changed to Minister of Human Settlements and the present incumbent is Tokyo Sexwale.

By: Terry Mackenzie-hoy

16 Dec 11

Electrically Speaking - Terry Mackenzie-Hoy

Germans may be stamped as being stiff, but have a good work ethic

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Germans come in for a lot of stick. Whoops! I nearly wrote "a lot of Flak”, which would have acknowledged the word 'Flak' as coming from 'Flieger Abwehr Kanone' (aircraft defence cannon). Whatever, they are subject to a lot of humourless...

By: Terry Mackenzie-hoy

09 Dec 11

Electrically Speaking - Terry Mackenzie-Hoy

What to do when everything else fails

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About 25 years, ago I was working for a firm of consulting engineers. We had a client who was part of a Bantustan government.

By: Terry Mackenzie-hoy

02 Dec 11

Electrically Speaking - Terry Mackenzie-Hoy

Pushing back the night

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I have jus read Charles Dickens' Great Expectations. It is an interesting story which can be summarised as follows: Orphan boy Pip is brought up by sister and husband. Sister bullies him mercilessly and invites others to do the same. He is asked...

By: Terry Mackenzie-hoy

25 Nov 11

Electrically Speaking - Terry Mackenzie-Hoy

Ignorant people working on 11 000 V switchgear

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In the film The Great Escape (1963), the chief tunneller starts construction of a shaft that will go down through a concrete foundation and then turn into a tunnel. He goes down on his knees and takes a piece of blue chalk and draws the outline of...

By: Terry Mackenzie-hoy

18 Nov 11

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Cape Town DURBAN Johannesburg Pretoria Natal	China South Africa United States Finland Germany	Chevon Refinery Carlton Centre Kraalkop Hotel	Steel Electricity Supply Gas-turbine Stations Maximum Electricity Demand Wind Energy Farms Sound Systems Food
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Mossel Bay Weastern Cape Western Cape	Eskom Renewable Energy Siemens	Energize Magazine	Christmas Christmas Day Easter
Person	Technology	Entertainment Award Event	Movie
Eddie Otto I. Eddie John Pamela V Julius Malema Lindile Sisulu Charles Dickens Charlie Dickens Charlotte Bronte Estella Jane Austen Pip	Microwave Word Processors	The Great Escape	The Great Escape