ENGINEERING TRADE

Hokitika Guardian, 15 June 1926, Page 4

ENGINEERING TRADE

A SLACK PERIOD. W EI,LI NOTON. June 11. “ The position in the engineering trades in New Zealand is not good. There are too many jobbing firms which do anything from repairs to manufacture,” Saida well-known engineer to-day. “Tu Wellington things have not been good for a long time. In Dunedin, from my observations, they are at their worst. One would •think that the bigger and well-estah-lish firms would he doing pretty well, hut actually they are not. It was obvious, a year ago, that work was becoming pretty short, and now there are quite a number of men out of employment. “ To give reason for this T must give you a little history. When the war ended the Britsih engineering firms were absolutely inundated with orders, and quite a lot of things which New Zealand had always imported from the Mother Country become unobtainable, to supply these things a good number of New Zealand enterprises sprouted up. 1 will not say that they invested too heavily in expensive plant. 1 know that they did not. But it was just that too many of them came into being. Now things have turned round, and the Mother Couutrv is in a position to meet orders again and often more cheaply. Consequently our engineering works are not nearly so well off as they were before the war. Things are worse in Dunedin, because many years ago. when the gold dredging was at its busiest, many firms took root there. They did general work, hut their mainstay was the construction and repair of these dredges. Now they are feeling the pinch.

“In the last few years also, buyers have been realising what thoroughly up-to-date design will do for them. Engineering firms which have had the most success are those which have got into lines which can lie made well in New Zealand. Lavatory fittings, for instance, have proved a very good thing for one firm, and have been made in accordance with the varying ideas of insepetors in different districts. Ideas about these matters change, and often it would he impossible to import, but with a good number of firms work lias been very intermittent. “ I will say. too, that much of the present position is due to the fact that our- works have not been progressive. While there are some concerns with no more machinery than they need, and