Dear Editor,
On Friday 14th, you carried an article in your daily that made pleasant reading to me and I am sure several others also in the Canje/New Amsterdam area. The article was captioned “Rose Hall Estate Steam Trials was a Success – Manager”. Steam trials in factory operations language is an indication that the factory is in a state of readiness. Sometimes dependent on the mechanical soundness of the factory, you can grind the same day. However, because Rose Hall was down for some time it is prudent not to do so. Rose Hall Factory was one of the four factories that was closed in 2017 and a subsequent promise was made that it would be re-opened. However, it is not the closure and what happened subsequently, nor the re-opening that I want to comment on; rather it’s the romantic relationship that I had with the location, once known as the flag ship of the sugar industry. It is or was the only Factory that was honoured with a Medal of Service Award because of its consistent high performance.
This relationship had its genesis on the 2nd June, 1959 when I was one of two young men selected to be among the 3rd batch of apprentices at the Port Mourant Training School and for the next forty four (44) years, we had something going on. On four different occasions I was transferred and on four occasions I returned. Finally, the romance was over when I retired in 2002. Upon graduation in June 1964, I returned to Rose Hall, but at the end of 1967, I applied for enrolment to do a Technical Course at the Government Technical Institute in Georgetown. In order to facilitate my studies, I left Rose Hall and went to work at Wales Estate, whilst there I was seconded to the Bahamas Agricultural Industries LTD which was a State-of-the-Art Sugar Factory being commissioned. I spent three years there and on my return in 1971, 1 went to Rose Hall Estate and a year later I was appointed Assistant to the Engineer; a position now known as Shift Manager in 1972. After being an Assistant Engineer until 1984 I was promoted Assistant Factory Manager Engineering and transferred to Uitvlugt Estate. This was the third time I left Rose Hall.
However after spending two and half years (2 ½) with Uitvlugt Factory Operations, I was seconded to the newly constituted Project Team which was responsible for the dismantling of the Leonora Factory and dispatching parts to other factories, sometimes as I did at Rose Hall, assembling and commissioning their 720 KW set in the Power House. In 1989, I returned to Rose Hall as their Engineering Manager but once again was transferred to Albion where a massive remodelling programme was on. The year was 1995 and I remained there until 2002 when I retired, ending my relationship with Rose Hall. However, as the factory is on the threshold of being re-opened, I must take this opportunity to wish the new management team well. I know that their task would not be an easy one, and much is expected of them not only from GuySuCo’s perspective, but from the community and by extension the nation as a whole.
Sincerely,
Percy Munroe
Retired Engineering Manager
GuySuCo