Statement Termed ‘Nonsense’

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30499, 22 July 1964, Page 9

Statement Termed ‘Nonsense’

The suggestion that timber dressed on the West Coast would have to be dressed again in Christchurch was described as sheer nonsense by Mr H. P. Piesse, managing-director of H. P. Piesse, Ltd., which is transferring its operations from Christchurch to Stillwater.

Commenting on remarks in “The Press” on July 15 by Mr D. W Thomas, Mr Piesse said that with correct bundling and packaging dressed timber from the West Coast would arrive in Christchurch in good condition and would not require a second dressing. “Mr Thomas says that joiners and furniture makers would try to buy timber from areas other than the West Coast and indicates that beech, rough sawn, would be brought from Southland if it were available.

“It is well that he qualified his statement by saying try to buy’ and ‘if it were available.’ Mr Thomas has always been free to purchase Southland beech and may continue to do so as long as be pleases. Of course, there is the difference in price to be considered. Canterbury timber mer- | chants have an approved sell-

ing price for Southland silver beech at 23s a 100 ft super additional to the selling price of Westland silver beech,” Mr Piesse said.

“When he includes joiners in his statement, he omits the fact that joiners use very little silver beech and require mainly rimu heart dressing A and rimu dressing A. “Mr M. D. P. Turner says that the 80 per cent share of timber to be processed on the West Coast must surely at one time have been processed in Canterbury. He overlooks the fact that Canterbury never had and never will have a monopoly of the supply of timber from the West Coast “In 1963, members of the West Coast Sawmillers’ Association produced 44m feet super of rimu, of which only 25.6 m ft came to North Canterbury. Further, the 80 per cent processing applies to those sawmills that are granted long-term cutting rights. Tenders so far involve only eight existing sawmills which consigned only 4.4 m ft of rimu to North Canterbury last year.

“Mr Turner complains that dressed timber lying around curls, twists, splits, and will not stay flat,” Mr Piesse said. “This is proof that the timber was not properly dried. Any movement in timber takes place only in the process of drying, and once properly dried will not curl, twist, or split, and will stay flat”