Chamber To Discuss Pillaging

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30958, 14 January 1966, Page 1

Chamber To Discuss Pillaging

Hundreds of firms in Christchurch were being badly hit all the time by pillaging, yet the city had failed to set up any group to investigate the subject thoroughly, said the chairman of the importers’ committee of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce (Mr E. J. Parry) yesterday.

No matter what anyone else thought, he said, it was ultimately the consumer and the Christchurch retailer who paid. The chamber would discuss pillaging at its next meeting on February 2, with the idea of getting all interested parties to make a survey of all pillaging affecting the Cani terbury community. Insuri ance companies, shipping

companies, and the Railways Department should assist in the investigation.

Mr Parry said the chamber should publish in its next news-letter a notice asking all members to report pillaging. When the chamber knew the magnitude of the problem it could do something to reduce it by concerted effort.

Mr Parry said that his own company, Mason, Struthers, and Company, Ltd., had frequently suffered losses from pillaging. So had most other firms in Christchurch. His company had at present a reinforced birch-ply case, sealed round the edges with aluminium and riveted, that had been chopped open in transit.

“It had a 6in by 4in hole in it,” said Mr Parry. “The contents have obviously been inspected, and some of the wood-wool packing pulled out.”

i Mr Parry said that two years ago, through the chamber, he had unsuccessfully sought to interest shipping companies, insurance companies, and the Railways Department in the investigating of pillage losses. The report and photograph in “The Press" [yesterday of pillaging might (arouse the interest of many [other companies in Christchurch which had suffered similar losses and make the time more opportune to seek to halt them.

“Pillaging is a very, very costly business,” said Mr Parry. Three damaged cartons, also off the Shaw Savill and Albion Company’s Arabic, consigned to Ackroyd Bros, and Meadowcroft Ltd., are beling held for investigation. The cartons, believed to contain dressmaking pins, appear to have been broken {open in an effort to ascertain j the contents. t

The president of the Canterbury Manufacturers’ Association (Mr C. W. Mace) yesterday said that examples of pillaging such as that reported in “The Press” yesterday were a sound argument for more extensive use of the container system.

The handling of cargoes in containers, he said, made for much greater security. “Once something is locked in a container, it is not so easy to pilfer,” said Mr Mace. “A wider use of containers is well worth having a look at This applies to internal transport of goods as well as those from overseas.”

Pillaging added to a manufacturer’s costs and could also greatly inconvenience him in losses of production when raw materials or vitally needed equipment were stolen, in some cases, pillaging could hold up production or disorganise it. I