With Perak’s Heritage Sinking Fast – We Float A New Proposal
Should our government be spending large sums of money on something that will continue to be a drain on resources forever?
by Ian Anderson
Public Knowledge
Just over a month ago it became public knowledge that Perak’s only surviving tin mining bucket dredge was “in danger of flipping over”. In fact the problem is not new as it started a year ago and has become more severe as the months passed. The photograph taken from the rear of the structure, on November 28, 2009, shows how much it has gone over to one side. We would estimate it being 15 to 20 degrees.
So what should be done and by who? That comes down to responsibility and, therefore, it is important to establish ownership. If we understand it correctly, the dredge was originally owned by Osborne and Chappel (Q&C). Rather than dismantling it and selling it, they took the public-spirited approach and, after spending a significant amount on preparing it for display as a tourist attraction, gave it – lock, stock and barrel – to the Perak State Government. The latter spent around half a million Ringgit on preparing the site, constructing buildings, roads and car parks and, after some delays, opened it as a tourist attraction on the January 1, 2008, under the management of O&C and at their cost – a fine example of government and private sector collaboration.
Collaboration
According to Menteri Besar, Dato’ Seri Dr. Zambry Abd Kadir such collaboration is the very lynchpin of tourism development. On November 29, Zambry wrote in his introduction to the Perak Tourism Appreciation Awards 2009 dinner programme:
“Tourism development is a collaborated effort. The success or failure depends on the efforts made by both the government and the private sectors. It has been proven that these joint efforts continue to bear fruit ……………”
So what has happened to the dredge? It meets the requirement of collaboration as defined above, yet it has been gradually sinking for more than 12 months! Just what went wrong and who is at fault? The recent statement by senior executive councillor, Dato’ Hamidah Osman, in an English daily, makes it clear that the State has “handed over” the dredge to Century Mission Sdn Bhd and they “should be responsible for maintenance and upkeep”. She also made the point that “repair costs could run into millions of Ringgit”. A company spokesman is also quoted, as saying that a proposal for repair of the dredge has been passed to the government, which indicates that the company believes the government still bears the responsibility.
Should the state government be spending large sums of money on something that will continue to be a drain on resources? Make no mistake, an all-steel dredge, built 71 years ago, floating in water and subject to Malaysia’s humid climate can only deteriorate unless an adequate maintenance gang can be onsite every day to combat the decay. Take the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Forth Bridge as examples, both have a permanent team of painters who, having painted from end to end, return to the beginning and start again. Maintaining the dredge will be a drain on government resources.
Mining Heritage
But there are those who believe that the Kinta Valley should have a tourism attraction based on our tin mining heritage. However, despite all the nice words written about heritage and tourism in past issues of Ipoh Echo, no one, not our local philanthropists, old tin miners or towkays have come forward to set up the Kinta Valley heritage gallery of mining and pioneer miners, as been suggested (Ipoh Echo Issues 83 and 84). Nor have they, apart from Century Mission Sdn Bhd, put anything substantial into saving the dredge. Consequently, with no other tin mining heritage available to visit, the dredge does have major significance to our state and should draw tourists dollars to help pay for it, if it was properly maintained.
The authors of this article strongly support saving heritage where practical, but the dredge with its major problems is not one of them, as the cost of maintenance and management will almost certainly outweigh any gains from tourism.
Our Proposal
We would, therefore, propose the following. Let Century Mission Sdn Bhd and the government save those pieces of the dredge still suitable for display, scrap the remainder and add the money gained to the amount that would have been spent over the next five years in maintaining this lost cause. Then use this fund to follow up on the statement made by Dato’ Seri DiRaja Tajol Rosli, in February 2006, to set up a new Kinta Valley Heritage Gallery managed, collaboratively, by the public and private sectors. This can have its own sections on tin mining and the pioneer miners and being centrally placed in Ipoh.
No doubt some of the heritage enthusiasts will accuse us of heresy for wanting to scrap Perak’s last dredge. But to them we say “be realistic”. Despite all the headlines in the press nothing has been done to overcome the problems. Furthermore, a recent meeting of the Perak Heritage Society, called to discuss the dredge, was poorly attended and does not seem to have helped the situation at all. So in reality we believe the project is doomed to failure and fighting a losing battle never makes any sense.
To Dato’ Seri Dr. Zambry, we wish to say this:
“Now is the time to bite the bullet and make that difficult decision. You will not be popular in some quarters, but even the doubters will see the sanity of your action when they are able to visit the Kinta Valley Heritage Gallery. ”
We look forward to his statement of intent.
Ian Anderson is Director of Ipoh World and established its database and website: www.ipohworld.org.
Category: Commentary, Headlines, Latest News, Thinking Aloud
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The existing dredge is an old working dredge, retired and no longer usable. Perhaps this dredge should be scrapped and replaced by a replica.
The replica would not have engines and moving parts (the bucket-scoop system would be static), just the shell of a dredge. People are not going to see a dredge in action so a replica shell should suffice to ease their curiosity.
Building a new replica would probably be cheaper than dismantling, transporting and rebuilding the existing dredge. The replica would be very much lighter without the engines and moving parts, making it easier to float on water or placed on land.
Hi, can anyone please help me find a cheap piece of agricultural land/chines village land (about 1 acre)for my retirement. TQ
Nice idea, but unfortunately I am not in the position to forward your suggestion at the moment. Let us hope that they read this blog or that someone else who reads it will pass it on.
Commander, I did notice the poll. I am neither for nor against, so that’s why I did not participate. I would like to see the thing presevrsed but I know to preserve the thing is not free nor would it be cheap.
I case it is to be preserved, 1st urgent step is to raise the hull, if not it will rot away and sink permanently.
I don’t know the century people, so would you please pass the message that they need to close the covers (plus any other openings) if they ever hope to raise the hull.
2nd step is for the state government to allocate a piece of land right in front of the dredge, for example as a petrol station. Let Century manage and earn from the petrol station. The petrol station will make motorists stop and draw them towards visiting the dredge. Both the earnings from the petrol station and the tickets sold can be used to maintain and if we’re lucky, to preserve the dredge.
Sorry, but only the hardworking gentlemen from Century who have been running the pump can answer that.
Have you noted the poll with a large percentage in favour of saving the dredge (albeit a small sample). Does that mean they are in favour of our government spending the money?
One thing that saddens me is that we have not had more comments on this problem. To me that does not show enthusiasm to save or scrap the dredge, just very little interest.
Commander,
I recently paid a visit to the dredge. I note a pump of recent vintage which I presume is used to arrest the sinking.
I also note a number of entryways to get belowdeck. These were on the unsubmerged port side. I believe the entryways were replicated on the submerged starboard side as well. Near the waterline n the submerged side, at least 2 hatches were freely lying on the deck.
Question:
1. When the pumping started, were the hatches over the submerged entryways closed and dogged tightly?
2. Were there any other openings on the submerged deck?
Clue: A watertight hull is critical if one is to attempt to raise the hull.
“… back to the question, “Who pays?”. …”
Engineering is my field but that, Commander, is something beyond my comment.
If the dredge is to be scrapped, at least save the boom and the buckets and mount them, say at Perak Museum.
Thanks very much for that Aaron. It is the first time that anyone has put anything like that down for the public to take in. Knowing the state of the dredge as I do, I think that now I can see where the talk of millions come in if this is to be made a real tourist attraction for the long term.
I do hope that others are reading this, not just the three of us as this is an important part of Perak’s heritage and I wonder why we have not heard from any of the heritage experts, or indeed Century Mission.
But we are still back to the question, “Who pays?”. A few baskets of fruit cannot cover that sort of costs unless someone can repeat the miracle of seven loaves and seven fishes.
“…but unfortunately for us talkers there is no cost given for repair and renovation to tourist safety levels…”
Ian, no one single person can give an accurate cost for the above without proper survey.
I’m an engineering guy & understand engineeirng stuff. I am able to carry out inspection works on the dredge and to recommend for repairs/upgrade/renovation as necessary to upgrade it to tourist standard.
But these kind of inspection works cannot be carried out in 1 day but in multiple visits or daily over several weeks, if this job is to be thorough & well done. A site container may even be necessary to act as an office/store/accomodation.
To inspect a derelict (if I may use this word) is highly risky work. Many areas in a dredge can be properly classified as hazardous confined space and thus safety regulations need to be adhered to. We’re talking helmets/boots/harnesses/rescue gear here. This cannot be done by 1 person by but a small team equipped with proper safety gear.
Inspection of hull, and urgent correction of list
Inspection of boom, winches, hoists and rigging and where needed propose to repair or replace
Inspection and proposal for sandblasting for all areas affected by corrosion and repaint
Inspection and proposal for correction of structural defects.
Inspection and proposal for delineation of safety areas for public access.
Inpection and proposal for air supply and exhaust systems if & where needed.
Inspection and prosal for upgrading of electrical work & installation of additional lighting and electrical, water utilities, where needed
Inspection and proposal for installation of safety devices such as fire alarms/sprinklers/smkoe ejectors/handrails/personal floatation devices/floats/emergency lighting/signage etc.
Etc. (Have I missed out anything?)
A lot of work has to be done and each piece of work (especially safety and structural works) has to be supported by engineering drawings stamped by a Professional Engineer. (Which reminds me, can the current owner/maintainer supply the original technical drawing for the dredge?). These sorta things unfortunately does not come free, as much as I would like it to.
As an experienced engineering guy, just the consultancy works above will run into tens of thousands of ringgit, if not over. And this is just costs for the consultancy only with little or no profit.
I mean, engineers and draftsmen have to be paid. Travelling and time has to be accounted for. The PE’s time and costs have to be reimbursed, Then there is the printing of drawings and miscellaneous, which will add up. I would expect proper work for the consultancy only will take up to 4 – 8 weeks, maybe more, non-stop, assuming there are no major glitches. We’re talking tens of thousands at bare minimum, assuming original drawings still exist and assuming everything else goes smoothly and all is hunky dory.
The result from all these work?
A thick report with a fixed quotation (or best estimate) with a fixed and limited validity, backed by PE endorsed drawings/ diagrams as well as photos for the repair and upgrading work to tourist safety standard. Anything less and it would not be proper.
Assuming funds are immediately found and flowing, only THEN, the real work begins for the repair and upgrading. Any delay, and the quotation will no longer be valid due to volatile market forces.
So THERE is the summary of how costs for the repair works are derived from. A lotta work. Makes me sweat just thinking about it.
Have a look at one of today’s English language papers and you will see that the hardworking men of Century are going it alone while others like us talk about it. They have planted custard apples to supplement the income for the dredge and plan further eco friendly agricultural/fisheries projects as well. Well done.
The report also says that to maintain the dredge only costs RM5,000 a month, a mere pittance, but unfortunately for us talkers there is no cost given for repair and renovation to tourist safety levels.
RM5,000 per month at RM5 per head entrance fee again makes the sums easy – 1000 tourists in 40 seat buses equals only 6 to 7 buses a week. So once the dredge is repaired and made safe all could be well, prawns or no prawns, but the question remains. Who will bear the cost of the remedial work?
“…I reckon at least 4 pumps are required to correct the list….” DPJ
It’s not a matter of how many pumps but that the total capacity for pumps must be more than sufficient to pump out the water and to correct the list.
The capacity needed can be easily calculated by the displacement of the hull in the water.
Anyone know anyone in Fire Department? Drainage and Irrigation Department? or maybe PWD? I believe they have petrol operated standby pumps in case of flooding. If they loan I don’t think they can loan for long. So get the water out and the workers in to patch up the hull as fast as they can before it floods again.
I know a retired guy in DID, lemme give him a tinkle and see what it takes to put some of their standby pumps to good use.
Say Commander, I think the money has disappeared as usual, the same thing happened to the 1.3 Million promised to save Greenridge. Since the dredge is I believe is as heavy as a WW2 light cruiser, I reckon at least 4 pumps are required to correct the list. 3 in use 24/7 and 1 as a just-in-case pump.
The money can be raised by lets say a DREDGE-A-TON, I remember when I was a kid, we had to contribute money for Perak to build its cycling Velodrome. Now, the velodrome is not something that we learn about in the history books, but the history of tin we do…go figure! If there are any real patriots in the Education department who are reading our comments, they should sit up and take action after all it is the state’s history that we are talking here and not about Hang Tuah or Parameswara(n)!
Tenaga Nasional should supply power for free to keep the pumps working, its the least they can do since they owe us Perakians for their wealth! Remember Perak Hydro and the dam! The restored dredge can also become a floating hotel of sorts, there will be many WESTERN tourist who will pay good money to experience life aboard a dredge, well the ASIANS will only sit back and fume on how expensive it is.
Now, if nothing else works, just scrap the poor lady like what the British government did to their battleships and just exhibit the dredge’s boom and its buckets and certain machinery. Let it be a monument of failure of this state, in preserving its history.
If I understand it correctly Century say they have applied to the government for money to repair the leak, but according to the December report in the Star, the government said that at that stage they had not received it.
That was why I wrote the original article above asking the question “Should our government be spending large sums of money on something that will continue to be a drain on resources forever?”
It seems we are no further on, but of course I am not privy to such sensitive information and for all we know a decision of one sort or another may have been made.
Well, I guess in hindsight you’re right, 1 measly million cannot be enough to move the dredge over to Ipoh & to reconstruct it piece by piece.
It looks easy, sounds easy but is anything but easy.
Money is 1 thing but to attempt to disassemble the old thing would also risk collapse and destruction.
So has Century decided to scrap her or will they let her rust away?
Aaron, I did discuss moving the dredge to Ipoh with the two Directors of Century Mission Sdn Bhd, on site, and on behalf of my senior sponsor for ipohWorld. I would guess that was about mid 2008. All of these gentlemen have been in the mining industry for years and the Century Mission view was that such an evolution was ‘out of the question’.
The reason for the discussion was related to sponsorship for the dredge and in some way tying ipohWorld into the dredge, but only if it was in Ipoh.
Incidentally, from what I remember from my earlier researches into things mining, your cool million is nowhere near enough for the job. But I may be wrong – I often am!
Oh forgot to add:
To dismantle her piece by piece, and transport her over to Ipoh and reassemble, say, at Perak Museum or anywhere where there’s empty land, we’re talking a cool million, maybe more here.
Reassembly won’t be easy, what with rusted & broken parts etc.
Ahhhh… I see…. there is a pump. And its still listing? Then you need a bigger pump, or a second/third pump. The volume of water pumped out must be more than the water coming in. If the list has only gotten worse, then I’m afraid the pump capacity is not enough.
The pumps need not be bought but can also be rented. Then when the list is reversed the workers can go in, string up some lights and patch up the holes. With the right pump the list can be neutralised in as a little as a couple of days.
With money at 1,800 a month x 12 months already spent, once could’ve got a pump with respectable capacity and the problem would have already been solved. This is salvage operations at its simplest. Pump out the water, string up some lights, locate the holes and patch. As simple as that. There may be obstacles such as confined space, jammed doors or bulkheads, fallen struts etc but these can be overcome. Set the pumps and then get the hell out of dodge!
Of course all I’ve said so far assumes that the dredge is to be saved and to do that, tying the dredge to the prawn industry is the best way.
Another way: Dismantle her piece by piece, and transport her over to Ipoh and reassemble, say, at Perak Museum or anywhere where there’s empty land.
If not then do as per original article. Save a few buckets for display, scrap the rest, shed a few tears over history lost and let’s be done with it.
If its is to be scrapped, lemme know and I’ll rush over to take a long last look at the monster (cartoonist Lat thought it was a monster) that raised Ipoh from an obscure village into a city.
They have been running a pump for 12 months in an effort to keep the dredge afloat. They report that it has cost RM1,800 per month. The tilt has got worse!
The RM300,000 came from loose talk between various interested parties and may well be far from accurate, but as the government advised (via The Star newspaper interview) they need an expert to complete a survey.
3 buses a day or 7 buses a day? Both are still big numbers for Perak tourism and many of the exisiting prawn eaters will not wish to savour their favourite dish at the cost of a dredge entry ticket or at an increased cost to cover the restaurant taxes as Aaron suggests. Furthermore a dredge however painted and repaired will not be of interest to everone.
I fear the dredge is as good as lost.
Ian, I don’t know how the 300k came about but I reckon that for a small and simple leak, my gut feelings says that a few 10′s of a K will suffice nicely. Unless you’re talking about compound leaks and fractures the pontoon would’ve done a Titanic already. I might be able to persuade a PE or CE to advise for free but his travelling costs will have to be borne.
Still assuming that it is a simple leak (I believe caused by corrosion) perhaps a pump can be rented or cheaply bought for a few K, or the existing bilge pump can be made operable again (ask the guy who once operated the dredge). That’ll ease the list and once the hull comes out of the water, the leaks can be easily seen and tackled. Perhaps a diver may not be needed at all.
And I don’t know how 1m p.a. for maintenance is arrived at but I think for a museum with static and simple dynamic displays, maybe a few hundred Ks will suffice, probably much less than 500K p.a., not including the capital. This is of course far from being a disneyland but then again, lets be more realistic.
Using the Navy for the salvage works is a great idea, for they have all the experts. Perhaps this can also be some sort of a training for the Navy divers and salvagers. Used to know a professional diver many years ago but have since lost contact.
Assume for a bottom preliminary figure of 30K a month budget and a entrance fee of RM10 per pax, 3000 tourists will have to visit per month. That’ll be about 100 buses of tourists (each bus say 30 pax) per month or only 3 buses per day. Awww, c’mon…. I think Tg Tualang gets more visitors than that.
Obviously not everyone will want pay RM10 to enter, perhaps the RM10 can come from the taxes that the restaurateurs will have to pay, OR already included for in their tourist packages, which is not uncommon. The key word is, let the dredge and the restaurants generate their own economy.
Let the state government use the machinery and media to promote the site to full hilt and persuade the tour operators to come for the best prawns in the peninsular. The tourism industry is already there, its just a matter of upgrading it.
Gentlemen,
I do not wish to decry your ideas as the reason I wrote the article in the first place was to promote discussion, Aaron feels that tourist dollars will be able to keep the dredge going once it has been stabilised. Now none of us know how much that will cost, but RM300,000 has been mentioned to stop it sinking and millions have been loosely spoken about for repair and restoration although as he says we shall not know until proper surveys have been done. However if I may, let’s get hypothetical for a moment.
Let’s imagine that to run the dredge as a safe and fun tourist venue we need to bring in RM1,000,000 each year. Of course it will not all be spent on the dredge, there will be overheads – staff salaries and EPF, taxes (including the new GST), all the normal services, insurance, quit rents etc and of course maintenance of the dredge and its surrounds. Let’s also double the admission fees (currently RM5) to RM10 per person. The sums are easy we need 100,000 tourists a year – roughly twice the number that Kellie’s Castle gets to raise our target and entrance there is only RM5.
If buses seat 45 passengers that means we need to draw in 2,222 full buses each year or between 42 and 43 every week of the year. Who are we kidding? Ourselves?
I like all your ideas, but I just do not see them working. Sorry.
The Dredge Must be Saved! It is the history of this state and our country that we are talking about here.
If we the rakyat jointly petition the government it may make them sit up and listen. Do you all remember the BOK HOUSE, how it was torn down so greedy men can have their fill? Salvaging the dredge can be done as a community project by the TENTERA LAUT DIRAJA MALAYSIA! The Malaysian Armed Forces has taken a beating in the eyes of many Malaysians, this is the time when MINDEF can say, lets help the people of Perak.
Our Navy I believe has the capabilities necessary to undertake a major task like this. It would also enable them to practise their skills in a real life situation, I do not mean to say that they can sacrifice their lives here, but once an initial assesment of the situation aboard the dredge is conducted measures can be planned out by our men in white. Safe steps that is!
Pumping out water and the sealing of leaks using canvas and wood would not pose much of a problem, concrete can also be used in this type of salvage operations. Lumut has been Perak’s pride for such a long time, its about time our navy the TENTERA LAUT DIRAJA MALAYSIA embark on a glorious undertaking on salvaging a part of Perak’s history. The Navy should consider the interest it would generate to the glory of the fleet and to they themselves and their families where one day these brave men who were involved in this SAVE THE DREDGE mission would be able to proudly point out to their granchildren the last remaining tin mining dredge in Malaysia and say (am rephrasing Sir Winston Spenser Churchill here)..IT WAS OUR FINEST HOUR!
Alas, this venture can only be done if men, real men cast their monetary greeds aside (those that figure, how can I charge RM 600.00 for a screw) and buckle up to save a part of us…Malaysians! So what say you folks?
To save the dredge, if not too late, the government will have to use public money for limited maintenance. By limited I mean, to arrest and recover the list and to make the hull waterfast. That is a priortiy. If this is not done, the dredge will list past its centre of gravity and will totally collapse. How much is needed I have no idea, and it depends on a detailed hull examination by a competent engineer, and may even require the services of a professional diver, welder from a salvage company. If the leak is localised and not too serious, a ballpark figure maybe in the region of 10′s of thousands, perhaps.
Like what I said in my previous post, get the government to allocate the piece of land to a developer FREE or at very low cost to a developer on condition that the building and infrastructure be completed, in say, 2 years time. It costs the government NOTHING to give away the land and which developer wouldn’t be interested in free land to develop as a prawn based tourist attraction & sell at profit?
All the government has to do at this stage is just to announce in the media that the land will be given FREE (say) to any developer which can and will develop the land in 2 years as a prawn based tourist industry c/w petrol station and shops. Pretty soon the developers would BEAT their way to the government’s door and asking for the FREE land. Why the need to ask and beg from people? Then its just a matter of separating the wheat from the chaff. The area will be developed and the shops will be sold or rented to anyone who is willing to set up shop serving the famous Tg. Tualang prawns.
The existing restaurateurs can use the new place as a branch outlet OR even totally shift their business operations altogether to the new site. If not, new restaurateurs will come in to act as competitors to them.
The area will be heavily promoted and tourists will come in busloads and the money from the tourists can be used to save the dredge.
Kill two birds with a single stone. Develop tourism (people will be happy) and save the dredge (Ian will be happy).
After all, Zambry is on a friendship mission with the rakyat now, so strike while the iron is hot.
Habis cerita.
Nice one Aaron. Good constructive argument if I may say so and your proposal gets better and better. Perhaps you should form a project company to lead on this as so far as you will note, you are the only one to comment either for or against my proposal.
Seriously though, it is a good idea and if it can be achieved then that would be great, but, and it is a big BUT, it does need a far-sighted developer to come in with several million to put up, up front. Meanwhile the dredge will still be costing the taxpayer, or someone, however many millions it will take to bring it up to an acceptable tourist level in terms of maintenace, repair and safety.
Now of course, such a huge development is distinctly possible, take the Lost World of Tambun as an example, but there was a man with vision who actually originates from Ipoh but made a great success of Sunway Lagoon etc. first. Also you refer to the Mines which is another great development, but neither of them threw their money into heritage, nor started with the sort of liability the dredge has become.
However, do we have more such far-sighted rich people from or still in Ipoh? Yes of course we do, but at the moment their interests seem to lead them to other sorts of commercial activities where money is to be made from almost day one. How are we, as you put it, a couple of nuts, going to persuade one of them to back your idea? I certainly have no idea where to start and incidentally have been trying, since 2005, to raise just RM1,000,000 to start an Ipoh heritage gallery without success. That was the driving force that led me to producing the ipohWorld database, having collected artifacts, videos, photographs etc to put on display.
So there you are, in summary I completely support your proposal, but doubt whether it is actually ever going to get off the ground while every day the dredge deteriorates further.
Yes Ian I agree. It’s kinda of a touchy issue. Public money vs private money. Where is the justification to use public money? As taxpayer I certainly will not agree that huge sums of public money be solely spent on repairing what people may consider a derelict. I would agree that public money be spent to jumpstart it but in the long run, the dredge has GOT to support itself by staying afloat , physically and financially, by using little or no public money.
“…That has to be the dredge as the centre of attraction…”
But in here I humbly beg to differ. The dredge by itself and on itself will never be a centre of attraction. No one would drive miles along empty roads to visit a dredge no matter how nicely dressed up. But the dredge could be a Co-Centre of Attraction with the existing & local prawn based tourism.
When I was a kid I had no money and my dad would give pocket money for stuff that I need as a kid. When I grew up I have to get a job and generate my own money, not only to support myself but my parents as well.
There is a similarity here to the dredge situation. No one philanthropist or towkay would dump in millions to save what they might see as a derelict. Don’t bother trying. If I’m one, I’d be offended if you ask me. I’d rather on my deathbed give millions to my favourite charities.
Let’s see if we can do this as cheaply as possible. Start with this:
1. Allocate a piece of land of reasonable size for the construction of a large petrol station with attached (say) fast food joint plus a row of shophouses, just next to the dredge.
2. Let a creative architect & developer design and build the shophouses & petrol station etc.
3. Entice the local folk to set up shop for their famous freshwater prawns in the shophouses in clean and hygienic surroundings, with lots of open air for alfresco dining & ample parking; and using state machinery & media to promote this as a tourist spot.
Voila! An economy has been created to draw tourist folk right up to the dregde.
Sure this will take at the fastest a coupla years so in the meantime some public money will have to be used for maintenance. But after this, the public money will be withdrawn and the owner/maintainer has to think of ways how to make the tourists appreciate the dredge so that the dredge will be self supporting.
I (and I believe together with Mr. Joe Public) will certainly agree to the use of limited public money for maintenance of the dredge for the 1st 2 years ON CONDITION THAT an economy be developed to boost & upgrade the existing prawn based tourism for the benefit of the local folk:
I mean who wouldn’t be happy? For sure these people will be happy:
The local developer, construction people and businessmen, cos he gets to make money from a project.
The restaurateurs, because they get to buy/rent the shops at low to reasonable prices for their prawn business.
The local folk, cos they get to see some form of action & development rarely found in their sleepy hollow.
The tourists, both local and foreign, because they get to enjoy the famous and oh-so-scrumptious prawns in clean and hygienic surroundings, without having to worry about parking, and right after their meal to visit a nearby interactive museum, literally dragged by their children.
The motorists, because they get a new modern petrol station with great facilities, where they can rest while on the way to Pangkor or Lumut.
The government, because they can be assured that they will only spend limited public money for a very limited time, and thus this will not be a hot potato during election time.
The owner & maintainer, cos half the battle to draw in the visitors has been won. Visitors mean money, and money means sustenance for the dredge.
And last but not least, the history buffs like Mr Ian Anderson and engineering nuts like yours truly, who only appreciate history and engineering for what it purely is.
Many years ago, there was a former tin mine that has long since closed down. All the machinery was sold off and scrapped. What was left is nothing but a huge empty lake. Yessiree, no machinery, not a single measly pump or artifact was left and certainly NO dredge. Today that former mine has a name, called quite fittingly but unimaginatively: The Mines
Aaron, Thank you for your detailed thoughts on the future of the dredge and how it could be saved.
I have to say that, like the great team fron Century Mission Sdn Bhd who try to keep the dredge afloat (pun intended) for Perak’s future tourism potential, your ideas are splendid and align very closely with those of Century Mission themselves. However, as we know there is only one real problem and that is MONEY.
For a start, with the site so far away from a good transport hub, there needs to be something special to draw the public to the site and keep them there for a few hours. That has to be the dredge as the centre of attraction and which we know will cost a small fortune to bring up to the tourism levels of safety etc that you mention. Then the dredge will need to be maintained at a loss until the other facilities you mention are available, say at least two years.
These facilities will also need significant investment and I am aware that efforts to encourage investment from the private sector in this site have not been very successful so far.
So with insufficient private money only public money can foot the bill, which brings us back to the original question. Should our government be spending this money and that can only be answered by the people in conjunction with the government. I look forward to more views from the Echo readers.
To conclude, it has been brought to my attention that this dredge never belonged to O&C and I apologise to all concerned for my inaccurate statements. I should have said:
“T.T. No 5 was built in 1938 by W.F. Payne & Sons for Pernas Chartered Management Sdn Bhd. Once belonging to Southern Malayan Tin Dredging (M) Sdn Bhd, the dredge had scoured for tin ore in the Kinta Valley for 44 years until operations stopped in 1983 due to the collapse of the tin mining industry. ”
Should anyone find any similar inaccuracies in http://www.ipohworld.org we shall be pleased to hear from you and then put them right.
Ooooops!!! The following long winded comment I wrote was meant for this article but was mis-entered in “Ipoh – When Tin was King”. I reproduce in full here for your digestion.
As a Perakian, I read with sadness the article by Ian Anderson of the last one and only ailing tin dredge, located just a few kilometers from Tg Tualang, middle Perak. Possibly it might even be the last example of its kind in the world.
I have visited the dredge about 2 years back though I did not board the dredge nor could I have or want. As an engineer I appreciate and admire the mechanical complexity of the dredge. All the winches and conveyors certainly do stimulate the brain’s processes. How does it work? How does it get so large? How did it get on the water in the first place?
Although in general I agree with Ian’s assessment that we are fighting a losing battle and that the dredge is not worth saving, I would like to offer my 2 sen’s perspective that the tin dredge can still be saved as a part of Perak history. It won’t be free and certainly it won’t be cheap but I think with a little bit of luck and effort it might be workable.
First and foremost the dredge would have to be thoroughly repaired to display condition. All the riggings and the winches have to be inspected and made fast so nothing loose can come crashing down on the heads of visitors. Paint up the sides in bright beautiful colours like what they did to the Penang ferries, and give it a fancy name instead of just “the old dredge”. Sponsors anyone? Next fix it up with beautiful lights inside and outside. This is the easy part, relatively speaking.
Now lets get to the hard part, the sustenance for the dredge. If this is not done, all the money and effort spent on the repair would have gone down the drain and the dredge would rot faster and I’d rather it not be repaired in the first place.
Any Perakian worth his salt knows that the most freshest prawns come from Tg Tualang, only a few minutes drive away from the dredge. People from as far as Singapore, Hongkong, China, even Canada come to Tg Tualang only for 1 reason, the prawns. If we can accept Maine lobsters why not Tualang prawns? It does not take a genius to figure out how and why. One only need to enter into one of the restaurants serving the famous prawns and look on the walls decorated with photos of famous stars and singers sampling the local delicacy. Simply put, prawns are to Tg Tualang what groundnuts are to Menglembu and chicken bean sprouts and white coffee are to Ipoh. Ipoh and its surroundings are already famous for food. Why not capitalize on this advantage?
Now can we not somehow mix these two together? Perhaps set up a Tg Tualang Fresh Prawn center just next to or around the dredge and rent it out to the local restaurateurs on costs basis? Or can we convince them to set up shop themselves? How about a restaurant or coffee house right in the dredge itself? Old Town White Coffee anyone? This will certainly attract patrons and visitors from all over the world. Imagine this: dining on world famous fresh prawns and seafood gazing out over a piece of Perak history and after dinner, board the dredge and visit the museum within the vessel. Children can play and learn safely in a playground inside the dredge, all hazardous and high areas cordoned off. All can view a working scale model of the dredge perhaps built using Meccano or Lego parts. Let me build the model. Children press buttons and hey the model conveyor rumbles into life, the tiny buckets carrying dry sand into the belly of the mechanical monster. Another crane model requires children to turn the winches by hand, hauling up model stuff and the likes. In short, a mechanical science museum for kids and adults alike.
Could we not have a small hotel built nearby? Or even inside the dredge. In the daytime tourists can go fishing for the equally famous toman (giant snakehead) in the numerous ponds. A friend from Germany had the time of her life fishing for the elusive snakehead when she was here. How about a caravan or camping park? 4WD adventure on the sands? Lets see who gets stuck. Extreme sports anyone? How about rope access training on the boom or rock climbing on the sides? Certainly not for the faint hearted.
Could we not promote the dredge as a fine example of heavy mechanical engineering to visiting university students from near and far? Don’t we have a university each in nearby Kampar and Tronoh? Can’t the universities arrange field trips for the students to study the inner workings of the monster? Can we not have a prawn fishing competition around the pond where the dredge is moored? Is it true that there is a crocodile farm nearby? Can’t they set up shop selling crocodile skin handbags etc.
I have been to Germany & Europe and have seen how ships & buildings far older than this dredge have been saved and preserved for future unborn generations so that our rich history is not lost to time.
I certainly hope other readers can contribute more ideas on how to save this piece of history. Lastly I thank Ian for his gallant efforts in archiving and maintaining Perak’s history for us.