Electrification
Encyclopedia
Electrification originally referred to the build out of the electrical generating and distribution systems which occurred in the United States, England and other countries from the mid 1880's until around 1940 and is in progress in developing countries. This also included the change over from line shaft
and belt drive using steam engines and water power to electric motors. Electrification was called "the greatest engineering achievement of the 20th Century" by the National Academy of Engineering. (Viewable on line)
An alternate definition refers to the modification of a system so that it operates using electricity
such as the change of railroad locomotives from steam or diesel to electricity.
Development of dynamo
Electric lighting
Electric lighting was the second use of electricity, following the widespread use of the electrical telegraph
in earlier decades. A major difference was that the telegraph network was battery operated whereas electricity for lighting was produced with dynamos or generators.
Electric lighting was highly desirable. The light was much brighter than oil or gas lamps, and there was no soot. Although early electricity was very expensive, electric lighting was more cost effective (operating cost per lumen
) than oil or gas.
Electric lighting was so much safer than oil or gas that some companies were able to pay for the electricity with the insurance savings.
In the 1880s electric arc lamps were installed along streets in some cities in very limited areas, usually near public places.
The electric light bulb was first patented in England by 1878 by Joseph Swan
after having experimented since about 1850. Thomas Edison
in the U.S. was working on improving the bulb patented by Swan and was granted a U.S. patent in 1879.
Development of DC motor
Frank J. Sprague
developed the first successful DC motor (ca. 1886) by solving the problem of varying speed with load. Within a few years DC motors were used in electric street railways.
Alternating current
Technical problems, solutions and a great deal of publicity in the War of Currents
Although the first electric utilities (Edison) generated DC power, the advantages of AC were soon apparent after the development of transformers and AC motors.
The advantages of alternating current are as follows:
Development of AC motor
Nikola Tesla
patented the AC induction motor in 1889. Induction motors do not have brushes, which require maintenance, and run at a relatively constant speed regardless of load. Three phase AC motors, which are standard in commercial and industrial applications, are very energy efficient.
Electrification enabled modern mass production, as with Thomas Edison’s iron ore processing plant (circa 1893) that could process 20,000 tons ore per day with two shifts of five men each. At that time it was still common to handle bulk materials with shovels, wheelbarrows and small narrow gauge rail cars, and for comparison, a canal digger in previous decades typically handled 3-1/2 to 5 cubic yards per 12 hour day.
The biggest impact of early mass production was in manufacturing everyday items, such as at the Ball Brothers Glass Manufacturing Company, which electrified its mason jar plant in Muncie, Ohio, USA around 1900. The new automated process used glass blowing machines to replace 210 craftsman glass blowers and helpers. A small electric truck was used to handle 150 dozen bottles at a time where previously a hand truck would carry 6 dozen. Electric mixers replaced men with shovels handling sand and other ingredients that were fed into the glass furnace. An electric overhead crane replaced 36 day laborers for moving heavy loads across the factory.
According to Henry Ford:
, widespread rural electrification
began with the establishment of the Rural Electric Administration (REA) in 1935 and its associated local Rural Electric Cooperatives.
Electric street railways (trams
One of the first uses of electricity was electric street railways, which became a major transportation infrastructure before being displaced by motor buses and automobiles.
The period of electrification of factories and households in the U. S., from 1900 to 1930, was one of high productivity
and economic growth.
In economics, the efficiency of electrical generation has been shown to correlate with technological progress.
Electric lighting uses far less energy than formerly used gas and oil, and is much safer.
s or steam plants , the majority of which are fossil fuel power stations that burn coal, natural gas, fuel oil or bio-fuels, such as wood waste and black liquor from chemical pulping.
The most efficient thermal system is combined cycle
in which a combustion turbine powers a generator using the high temperature combustion gases and then exhausts the cooler combustion gases to generate low pressure steam for conventional steam cycle generation.
Hydroelectricity uses a water turbine
to generate power. Between 1880 and 1895, hydropower
was beginning to be used for generating electricity; these first hydroelectric plants produced direct current (DC) used mostly to power nearby arc and incandescent lighting.
Advances in recent decades greatly lowered the cost of wind power making it one of the most competitive alternate energies and competitive with higher priced natural gas (before shale gas). Wind energy's main problem is that it is too intermittent and there is no practical storage infrastructure.
Geothermal requires very hot underground temperatures near the surface to generate steam which is used in a low temperature steam plant. Geothermal power is only used in a few areas. Italy supplies all of the electrified rail network with geothermal power.
grid, substation
s and shorter distribution lines to the specific structure of daily life views & power interact of these sub - co -ordination point of energy.
for safe switching on and off of lines and equipment. Switchgear includes manual knife type switches and solenoid controlled switches such as in motor starters and also fuses and and circuit breakers. See also: Motor controller
Codes are mainly for safety and fro the protection of equipment and structures. They cover just about all aspects of designing electrical systems. Some of the areas covered include overload protection, such as fuses and breakers, selection of proper insulation type of wiring, proper sizing (ampacity) of wiring, use of conduit, motor starter sizes and standard motor frame dimension and a variety of other topics that apply to applications ranging from industrial to commercial and residential.
, adopted in 1920 and fulfilled in 1931 in the USSR.
and all-electric vehicles instead of all-petroleum
vehicles.
Electrification, in a railway context, describes the process of converting a railway system from steam-
or diesel-
powered propulsion, to electric traction
, and covers the modification of the infrastructure and the provision of suitable rolling stock
.
Electrification of transport (electromobility) figures prominently in the Green Car
Initiative, included in the European Economic Recovery Plan presented November 2008. DG TREN is supporting a large European "electromobility" project on electric vehicle
s and related infrastructure with a total budget of around € 50million as part of the Green Car Initiative.
As a result, it gives the greatest degree of energy resilience and the energy system is going to electrification.
Line shaft
A line shaft is a power transmission system used extensively during the Industrial Revolution. Prior to the widespread use of electric motors small enough to be connected directly to each piece of machinery, line shafting was used to distribute power from a large central power source to machinery...
and belt drive using steam engines and water power to electric motors. Electrification was called "the greatest engineering achievement of the 20th Century" by the National Academy of Engineering. (Viewable on line)
An alternate definition refers to the modification of a system so that it operates using electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
such as the change of railroad locomotives from steam or diesel to electricity.
History of electrification
Note: Until this section is constructed a good history of electrification may be viewed at the active link on this reference. Development of dynamoDynamo- Engineering :* Dynamo, a magnetic device originally used as an electric generator* Dynamo theory, a theory relating to magnetic fields of celestial bodies* Solar dynamo, the physical process that generates the Sun's magnetic field- Software :...
s and generatorsElectrical generatorIn electricity generation, an electric generator is a device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy. A generator forces electric charge to flow through an external electrical circuit. It is analogous to a water pump, which causes water to flow...
-
- Dynamos produce direct currentDirect currentDirect current is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by such sources as batteries, thermocouples, solar cells, and commutator-type electric machines of the dynamo type. Direct current may flow in a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through...
- Dynamos produce direct current
-
- A generator may be either an alternating currentAlternating currentIn alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. In direct current , the flow of electric charge is only in one direction....
or direct currentDirect currentDirect current is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by such sources as batteries, thermocouples, solar cells, and commutator-type electric machines of the dynamo type. Direct current may flow in a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through...
device
- A generator may be either an alternating current
-
- Alternators may produce either single phase or poly-phasePolyphase systemA polyphase system is a means of distributing alternating current electrical power. Polyphase systems have three or more energized electrical conductors carrying alternating currents with a definite time offset between the voltage waves in each conductor. Polyphase systems are particularly useful...
power. Electric utilities usually generate three phase power.
- Alternators may produce either single phase or poly-phase
Electric lightingElectric lightElectric lights are a convenient and economic form of artificial lighting which provide increased comfort, safety and efficiency. Most electric lighting is powered by centrally-generated electric power, but lighting may also be powered by mobile or standby electric generators or battery systems...
and the long-lasting filament for the light bulb
Electric lighting was the second use of electricity, following the widespread use of the electrical telegraphElectrical telegraph
An electrical telegraph is a telegraph that uses electrical signals, usually conveyed via telecommunication lines or radio. The electromagnetic telegraph is a device for human-to-human transmission of coded text messages....
in earlier decades. A major difference was that the telegraph network was battery operated whereas electricity for lighting was produced with dynamos or generators.
Electric lighting was highly desirable. The light was much brighter than oil or gas lamps, and there was no soot. Although early electricity was very expensive, electric lighting was more cost effective (operating cost per lumen
Lumen
Lumen can mean:* Lumen , the SI unit of luminous flux* Lumen , the cavity or channel within a tubular structure* Thylakoid lumen, the inner membrane space of the chloroplast* Phenobarbital...
) than oil or gas.
Electric lighting was so much safer than oil or gas that some companies were able to pay for the electricity with the insurance savings.
In the 1880s electric arc lamps were installed along streets in some cities in very limited areas, usually near public places.
The electric light bulb was first patented in England by 1878 by Joseph Swan
Joseph Swan
Sir Joseph Wilson Swan was a British physicist and chemist, most famous for the invention of the incandescent light bulb for which he received the first patent in 1878...
after having experimented since about 1850. Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. In addition, he created the world’s first industrial...
in the U.S. was working on improving the bulb patented by Swan and was granted a U.S. patent in 1879.
Development of DC motorDC motorA DC motor is an electric motor that runs on direct current electricity.-Brush:The brushed DC electric motor generates torque directly from DC power supplied to the motor by using internal commutation, stationary magnets , and rotating electrical magnets.Like all electric motors or generators,...
s
Frank J. SpragueFrank J. Sprague
Frank Julian Sprague was an American naval officer and inventor who contributed to the development of the electric motor, electric railways, and electric elevators...
developed the first successful DC motor (ca. 1886) by solving the problem of varying speed with load. Within a few years DC motors were used in electric street railways.
Alternating currentAlternating currentIn alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. In direct current , the flow of electric charge is only in one direction....
versus direct currentDirect currentDirect current is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by such sources as batteries, thermocouples, solar cells, and commutator-type electric machines of the dynamo type. Direct current may flow in a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through...
War of Currents
In the "War of Currents" era in the late 1880s, George Westinghouse and Thomas Edison became adversaries due to Edison's promotion of direct current for electric power distribution over alternating current advocated by several European companies and Westinghouse Electric based out of Pittsburgh,...
Although the first electric utilities (Edison) generated DC power, the advantages of AC were soon apparent after the development of transformers and AC motors.
The advantages of alternating current are as follows:
- Lower transmission losses - alternating current can be generated at high voltage and sent over transmission lines with lower losses, then the current can be stepped down with a transformer near the point of use. A transformer can also be used to step up voltage.
- Motor speed is easy to control with alternating current because the motor locks in to the frequency, although there is some slippage with non-synchronous motors. The operating speed is related to the number of motor poles and the frequency.
- AC generators and constant speed AC motors do not use brushes, instead relying on induction.
Development of AC motorAC motorAn AC motor is an electric motor driven by an alternating current.It commonly consists of two basic parts, an outside stationary stator having coils supplied with alternating current to produce a rotating magnetic field, and an inside rotor attached to the output shaft that is given a torque by the...
s
Nikola TeslaNikola Tesla
Nikola Tesla was a Serbian-American inventor, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer...
patented the AC induction motor in 1889. Induction motors do not have brushes, which require maintenance, and run at a relatively constant speed regardless of load. Three phase AC motors, which are standard in commercial and industrial applications, are very energy efficient.
Electric motors in industry
Electrification of factories began very gradually in the 1890s after the introduction of a practical D.C. motor by Frank J. Sprague and accelerated around 1900 after AC motors were developed by Nikola Tesla (Westinghouse) and others. Electric motors were several times more efficient than small steam engines because central station generation were more efficient than small steam engines and because line shafts and belts had high friction losses.Electrification enabled modern mass production, as with Thomas Edison’s iron ore processing plant (circa 1893) that could process 20,000 tons ore per day with two shifts of five men each. At that time it was still common to handle bulk materials with shovels, wheelbarrows and small narrow gauge rail cars, and for comparison, a canal digger in previous decades typically handled 3-1/2 to 5 cubic yards per 12 hour day.
The biggest impact of early mass production was in manufacturing everyday items, such as at the Ball Brothers Glass Manufacturing Company, which electrified its mason jar plant in Muncie, Ohio, USA around 1900. The new automated process used glass blowing machines to replace 210 craftsman glass blowers and helpers. A small electric truck was used to handle 150 dozen bottles at a time where previously a hand truck would carry 6 dozen. Electric mixers replaced men with shovels handling sand and other ingredients that were fed into the glass furnace. An electric overhead crane replaced 36 day laborers for moving heavy loads across the factory.
According to Henry Ford:
- ”The provision of a whole new system of electric generation emancipated industry from the leather belt and line shaft, for it eventually became possible to provide each tool with its own electric motor. This may seem only a detail of minor importance. In fact, modern industry could not be carried out with the belt and line shaft for a number of reasons. The motor enabled machinery to be arranged in the order of the work, and that alone has probably doubled the efficiency of industry, for it has cut out a tremendous amount of useless handling and hauling. The belt and line shaft were also tremendously wasteful – so wasteful indeed that no factory could be really large, for even the longest line shaft was small according to modern requirements. Also high speed tools were impossible under the old conditions-neither the pulleys nor the belts could stand modern speeds. Without high speed tools and the finer steels which they brought about, there could be nothing of what we call modern industry.”
Household electrification
The electrification of households in the U.S. began around 1905 in major cities and in areas served by electric railways and increased rapidly until about 1930 when 70% of households were electrified. Many of he remaining mostly rural households were electrified before 1950 by the Rural Electrification Administration.Rural electrification
In the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, widespread rural electrification
Rural electrification
Rural electrification is the process of bringing electrical power to rural and remote areas. Electricity is used not only for lighting and household purposes, but it also allows for mechanization of many farming operations, such as threshing, milking, and hoisting grain for storage; in areas...
began with the establishment of the Rural Electric Administration (REA) in 1935 and its associated local Rural Electric Cooperatives.
Electric utilities
Electric utilities in the U.S., U.K. and a few other countries began their rapid growth in the early 1900s. The efficient generation of electricity using steam turbines beginning in 1903 and increasing economies of scale led to dramatic reductions in the cost of electricity and corresponding exponential growth in usage. Electric street railways (tramsTramA tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
or trolleys)
One of the first uses of electricity was electric street railways, which became a major transportation infrastructure before being displaced by motor buses and automobiles.Cost and benefits of electrification
"One of the inventions most important to a class of highly skilled workers (engineers) would be a small motive power - ranging perhaps from the force of from half a man to that of two horses, which might commence as well as cease its action at a moment's notice, require no expense of time for its management and be of modest cost both in original cost and in daily expense." Charles Babbage, 1851
The period of electrification of factories and households in the U. S., from 1900 to 1930, was one of high productivity
Productivity
Productivity is a measure of the efficiency of production. Productivity is a ratio of what is produced to what is required to produce it. Usually this ratio is in the form of an average, expressing the total output divided by the total input...
and economic growth.
Historical cost of electricity
Central station electric power generating can provide power more efficiently and at lower cost than small generators. The capital and operating cost per unit of power is also cheaper with central stations. The cost of electricity fell dramatically in the first decades of the twentieth century due to the introduction of steam turbines in 1904 and the spread of electric utilities after WW I. For a cost curve see Ayres-Warr (2002) Fig. 3In economics, the efficiency of electrical generation has been shown to correlate with technological progress.
Electric lighting uses far less energy than formerly used gas and oil, and is much safer.
Generation of electricity
Most electricity is generated by thermal power stationThermal power station
A thermal power station is a power plant in which the prime mover is steam driven. Water is heated, turns into steam and spins a steam turbine which drives an electrical generator. After it passes through the turbine, the steam is condensed in a condenser and recycled to where it was heated; this...
s or steam plants , the majority of which are fossil fuel power stations that burn coal, natural gas, fuel oil or bio-fuels, such as wood waste and black liquor from chemical pulping.
The most efficient thermal system is combined cycle
Combined cycle
In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...
in which a combustion turbine powers a generator using the high temperature combustion gases and then exhausts the cooler combustion gases to generate low pressure steam for conventional steam cycle generation.
- HydroelectricityHydroelectricityHydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...
Hydroelectricity uses a water turbine
Water turbine
A water turbine is a rotary engine that takes energy from moving water.Water turbines were developed in the 19th century and were widely used for industrial power prior to electrical grids. Now they are mostly used for electric power generation. They harness a clean and renewable energy...
to generate power. Between 1880 and 1895, hydropower
Hydropower
Hydropower, hydraulic power, hydrokinetic power or water power is power that is derived from the force or energy of falling water, which may be harnessed for useful purposes. Since ancient times, hydropower has been used for irrigation and the operation of various mechanical devices, such as...
was beginning to be used for generating electricity; these first hydroelectric plants produced direct current (DC) used mostly to power nearby arc and incandescent lighting.
- Wind turbineWind turbineA wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...
s
Advances in recent decades greatly lowered the cost of wind power making it one of the most competitive alternate energies and competitive with higher priced natural gas (before shale gas). Wind energy's main problem is that it is too intermittent and there is no practical storage infrastructure.
- Geothermal
Geothermal requires very hot underground temperatures near the surface to generate steam which is used in a low temperature steam plant. Geothermal power is only used in a few areas. Italy supplies all of the electrified rail network with geothermal power.
- Diesel-electric transmission
Transmission of electricity and the electric grid
The infrastructure required for electrification includes power plants, an electric power transmissionElectric power transmission
Electric-power transmission is the bulk transfer of electrical energy, from generating power plants to Electrical substations located near demand centers...
grid, substation
Electrical substation
A substation is a part of an electrical generation, transmission, and distribution system. Substations transform voltage from high to low, or the reverse, or perform any of several other important functions...
s and shorter distribution lines to the specific structure of daily life views & power interact of these sub - co -ordination point of energy.
Switchgear
Transmission of electricity depends on switchgearSwitchgear
The term switchgear, used in association with the electric power system, or grid, refers to the combination of electrical disconnects, fuses and/or circuit breakers used to isolate electrical equipment. Switchgear is used both to de-energize equipment to allow work to be done and to clear faults...
for safe switching on and off of lines and equipment. Switchgear includes manual knife type switches and solenoid controlled switches such as in motor starters and also fuses and and circuit breakers. See also: Motor controller
Motor controller
A motor controller is a device or group of devices that serves to govern in some predetermined manner the performance of an electric motor. A motor controller might include a manual or automatic means for starting and stopping the motor, selecting forward or reverse rotation, selecting and...
Standards and codes
Electrified countries have adopted various codes, nationally and locally. One such code followed in the U.S. is that of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association also known as NEMA.Codes are mainly for safety and fro the protection of equipment and structures. They cover just about all aspects of designing electrical systems. Some of the areas covered include overload protection, such as fuses and breakers, selection of proper insulation type of wiring, proper sizing (ampacity) of wiring, use of conduit, motor starter sizes and standard motor frame dimension and a variety of other topics that apply to applications ranging from industrial to commercial and residential.
Countries
One of the largest electrification projects was the GOELRO planGOELRO plan
GOELRO plan was the first-ever Soviet plan for national economic recovery and development. It became the prototype for subsequent Five-Year Plans drafted by Gosplan...
, adopted in 1920 and fulfilled in 1931 in the USSR.
Electrification pioneers
- Sidney McMath
- Thomas EdisonThomas EdisonThomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. In addition, he created the world’s first industrial...
- Nikola TeslaNikola TeslaNikola Tesla was a Serbian-American inventor, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer...
- Samuel InsullSamuel InsullSamuel Insull was an Anglo-American innovator and investor based in Chicago who greatly contributed to creating an integrated electrical infrastructure in the United States. Insull was notable for purchasing utilities and railroads using holding companies, as well as the abuse of them...
- General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
- Tennessee Valley AuthorityTennessee Valley AuthorityThe Tennessee Valley Authority is a federally owned corporation in the United States created by congressional charter in May 1933 to provide navigation, flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing, and economic development in the Tennessee Valley, a region particularly affected...
Mobile electrification
Electrification of transportation (electromobility) is the use of hybrid electricHybrid electric vehicle
A hybrid electric vehicle is a type of hybrid vehicle and electric vehicle which combines a conventional internal combustion engine propulsion system with an electric propulsion system. The presence of the electric powertrain is intended to achieve either better fuel economy than a conventional...
and all-electric vehicles instead of all-petroleum
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
vehicles.
Electrification, in a railway context, describes the process of converting a railway system from steam-
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
or diesel-
Diesel locomotive
A diesel locomotive is a type of railroad locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine, a reciprocating engine operating on the Diesel cycle as invented by Dr. Rudolf Diesel...
powered propulsion, to electric traction
Electric locomotive
An electric locomotive is a locomotive powered by electricity from overhead lines, a third rail or an on-board energy storage device...
, and covers the modification of the infrastructure and the provision of suitable rolling stock
Rolling stock
Rolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move on a railway. It usually includes both powered and unpowered vehicles, for example locomotives, railroad cars, coaches and wagons...
.
Electrification of transport (electromobility) figures prominently in the Green Car
Green Car
Green Car can refer to:*Green vehicle*First class travel accommodations on many Japanese train lines...
Initiative, included in the European Economic Recovery Plan presented November 2008. DG TREN is supporting a large European "electromobility" project on electric vehicle
Electric vehicle
An electric vehicle , also referred to as an electric drive vehicle, uses one or more electric motors or traction motors for propulsion...
s and related infrastructure with a total budget of around € 50million as part of the Green Car Initiative.
Energy resilience
Electricity is:- the ‘stickiest’ form of energy: it stays in the continent where it is produced.
- multi-sourced. If one source suffers a shortage, we can produce electricity from another, including renewable sources.
As a result, it gives the greatest degree of energy resilience and the energy system is going to electrification.
See also
- Renewable energy development
- Mains electricity by country Plugs, voltages and frequencies
- Electric vehicleElectric vehicleAn electric vehicle , also referred to as an electric drive vehicle, uses one or more electric motors or traction motors for propulsion...
- Railway electrification systemRailway electrification systemA railway electrification system supplies electrical energy to railway locomotives and multiple units as well as trams so that they can operate without having an on-board prime mover. There are several different electrification systems in use throughout the world...
- Renewable electricity
- Rural electrificationRural electrificationRural electrification is the process of bringing electrical power to rural and remote areas. Electricity is used not only for lighting and household purposes, but it also allows for mechanization of many farming operations, such as threshing, milking, and hoisting grain for storage; in areas...