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INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH

PLANS FOR THE FUTURE DISCUSSION BY MANUFACTURERS A special meeting of tho Dunedin Manufacturers’ Association was held yesterday afternoon to hear and discuss an address given by Mr N. L. Wright, a representative of the Industrial Research Department, who is at present in Dunedin. Mr T. Somerville occupied the chair. Mr J. Sutherland Ross, in explaining the business on hand, read extracts from the various centres of New Z°aland, which had gone into the matter of grouping industries for research purposes.

Mr Wright said ho was not able to voice the direct opinion of the department as to how it could assist in any particular line or department, but he would point out the direction in which the department was working, and on his return to Wellington he would put before the department the ideas of the Dunedin manufacturers. The department in New Zealand was based on the lines of a similar department in the Old Country, where there wore to-day thirty different associations ..cting in tire interests of industries. These associations were always expanding, and were of great assistance to the industries they represented. The Government subsidised most of the associations for five years, alter which they were supposed to be self-supporting, as many of them wore to-day. There were two classes of associations. There were those subsidised by the Government and run by a particular industry, which contributed £ for £ to flic extent of the subsidy given by the Government, such ns leather, wool, and cotton associations, and there were those run purely by the Government on national lines, such ns fuel research, building research, and so on. Associations or the first kind were autonomous, and associations of that kind which might be formed in New Zealand would be run by the particular industry concerned, while, the committee directing its operations would be composed of representatives from the industry and experts nominated by the Government.

The association would have not only the information it acquired locally, but would bo able to draw from the fund of information obtained in other parts of the world. This was very important, us the work carried out at Home and elsewhere was on a scale that could not be attempted hero. It would be possible to undertake the work in New Zealand, but it would be very expensive to bring a highly-qualified chemist hero to make investigations and set up a properly equipped laboratory. Chemists of high standing are already working at Home in proper laboratories, and the results of their investigations would be available to the associations in New Zealand on payment of the contributory fee of the members in the Old Country. The cost of any investigation to any industry would therefore be _ comparatively small. It was not possible in every case to see, as the result of an inquiry, or an experiment, a dividend in pounds, • shillings, and pence, but at the same time it must be recognised that the benefits of research were in many cases incalculable. He was pleased that the New Zealand Government was prepared to assist associations by way of subsidy. The question was, How was research to be applied to the different industries ? He had found it difficult sometimes to convince people that by the expenditure of £SO or so they would secure definite benefits. He hoped lie would not find that difficulty in Dunedin. Benefits were certain"to come as the result of science properly applied tp industry. •

He would like to suggest that one industry after another should he taken in hand. If an officer of the department were invited to visit Dunedin it would not be advisable for him to investigate half u dozen industries at the same time. Let him take one industry at a time and prepare a definite report upon it, showing in what direction assistance might be given by the department. It would then be for the firms engaged in that industry to say whether they would form an association to carry out further investigations and to apply to the industry the suggestions of the expert. As an instance of the manner in which the department worked, ho mentioned the canning industry. Recently a new process was discovered which the department brought to the notice of those engaged in the industry. That process had been put into operation by two firms, and eventually it would result in a saving to them of £20,000 a year. It was a process that dealt with the by-products, which had in the past been going into the drain. Then, in the bacon-curing industry there had been considerable trouble owing to preservatives being disallowed. As a result some of the manufacturers found it difficult to make their bacon keep. To meet the difficulty the department was carrying out a number of researches, and he had no doubt the results would he valuable to the industry. Tn tho flax industry quite a number of researches had been made, of which reports had appeared in the papers, and tho industry had benefited considerably. The department had also been working on tallow, hides, fertilisers, margerine, and in other directions. He suggested to the association that it should lose no time in beginning its efforts to work in with the Research Department. The Sccictary (Mr W. E. C. Reid) asked in respect to the obtaining of an expert preliminary report on one' particular group of industries whether or not the scheme should be a dominion one.

The Chairman suggested that they would probably confer witli other centres after their own results had been obtained. The thing was to endeavor to como to a conclusion as to how they should approach the department. Mr AV right: Wo could make a report on the largest industry, which would form the basis of a preliminary report, or we might take two industries. Ihc Chairman; It almost seems to me that a dominion organisation should see into it. Mr Ross said that if they had the support of a dominion body they could move with more strength. Mr Stark considered that at present they were boating the air, and they could not take advantage of Mr Wright’s offer unless they had a preliminary report. They could not get drugs physiologically tested in New Zealand at the present time. Mr Wright: You could put that problem to the department and ask what it could do in the matter. If we bad people along and presenting their difficulties we could either assist them ourselves or refer them to some-: body else who could; The idea, he said, was to have one central laboratory for a whole group of industries. Mr Smellie said the department might bo of service to a number of firms_ in the way of analysing steel and in the smelting and rolling of iron. Mr Wright said there wore large research works in England, and that they would admit dominion representatives to membership. It was Imped to establish a leather research association out here, and they could draw upon a large fund of information from England, where there were thirty 'other associations. The department had an English physicist. Mr Reid stated that Mr Wright’s procedure was sound, but the idea locally was even more fundamental, if

tho department could send an agent along as a scout it would give them some indication where to look for groups. At present they could not get the members of the association to make a move, for they were hopelessly in the dark. The Chairman: “A hurried visit could be made to all the factories. After an inspection an effort could bo made to form groups.” Ho added that he would be in Wellington next week and would endeavor to sec I>r Marsden. Finally, it was decided that the association should write to i)r Marsden asking that an officer of the department visit Dunedin to address local manufacturers, visit the factories in order to indicate the lines of groups that might be formed, and suggest a rota of the industries in which scientific research might be made. In thanking Mr Wright for his address the Chairman remarked that the department could help secondary industries not only in Dunedin but throughout the whole dominion.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/ESD19280211.2.26

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Evening Star, Issue 19788, 11 February 1928, Page 4

Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,370

INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH Evening Star, Issue 19788, 11 February 1928, Page 4

INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH Evening Star, Issue 19788, 11 February 1928, Page 4

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