FACTORIES FOR HIRE

Press, Volume C, Issue 29466, 18 March 1961, Page 9

FACTORIES FOR HIRE

Hornby Area Planned Work has begun on an area of land in Hornby in preparation for the erection of factories which will be leased to manufacturers who wish to save the capital costs of a building and land. The 23-acre area near the glassworks has been bought by a family concern, of which Mr G. O’Donnell is managingdirector. Mr O’Donnell is an Englishman who lived in Australia for some years before coming to New Zealand to settle recently. He tried to buy an engineering-manu-facturing business in Christchurch, and his difficulties led him to the new scheme of establishing rental factories. Many persons who wished to establish industries were unable to face the capital costs because of the taxation and the fact that they could not put the money from the business back into the capitalisation. he said. Land has been cleared for 10 factories, each .of 10,000 square feet, on the area, and work has begun on the first of the factories. While there has been no firm booking for the first factory, Mr O'Donnell said yesterday that there had been encouraging inquiries. and it was possible that one enterprise would take the first three factories provided a rail siding could be provided. The factories would be built with tubular steel frames, asbestos and fibrolite, Mr O'Donnell explained. They would comply with the requirements of the Factories Act, with staff amenities and office accommodation being provided. Firms renting the factories would be asked to enter into agreements for periods ranging from five to 12 years. Industrial estates had been established successfully in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Australia, he said. Some factories built in the United Kingdom in the 1920's for rental were still operating today. The Labour Government 'proposed building rental factories, but Mr O’Donnell said its plan was to build factories in areas where there was a need for employment avenues —the British Government had built factories in “depressed” areas—and it was unlikely that it would include factories for an established industrial centre such as Christchurch.