Grant For Agricultural Engineering Institute

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30529, 26 August 1964, Page 18

Grant For Agricultural Engineering Institute

The principal of Lincoln College (Dr. M. M. Burns) told the college council yesterday that the Minister of Agriculture (Mr Taiboys) had written saying that £15,000 had been approved for the establishment and first year's expense* of a New Zealand Institute of Agricultural Engineering. He also said the Minister had approved the council’s proposals that the institute’s management committee should be a committee of the Lincoln College Council. The committee will consist of one member appointed by the Minister of Science, the Director-General of Agriculture, one member appointed by the Lincoln College Council, one member appointed by Federated Farmers, the principal of Lincoln College, the dean of the Canterbury University engineering faculty, and two others whom the committee itself will appoint, one of whom will have a special knowledge of agricultural machinery. Dr. Buras said the initial work and planning for th* building were already under way and that the college maintenance staff would carry out the main part of the building required. He wanted it made quit* clear that th* institute would take some time to start, equip and undertake the initial, studies, said Dr. Burns in reply to Mr H. J. Walker, M.P., who had asked Dr. Burns to elaborate because of criticism throughout New Zealand on the lack of initiative in undertaking tractor safety studies.

Dr. Burns said that results could not be expected to begin flowing from the institute immediately after it had begun.

He considered that no additional time could have been saved if the project had been undertaken in a different manner and in fact the initial building stages had been commenced before the finance had arrived. New Teaching Block

Dr. Burns also said that the over all estimate for the new college teaching block of £42,000 had been submitted to the Ministry of Works on August 10. The figure of £42,000 was £5OOO greater than the orig-

inal estimate of £37,000, but the estimate itself was satisfactory and there should be no undue delay in obtaining approval to go to tender. The 18 residential places lost in the fire in a wooden building on August 5 would be serious for 1965, he said. Officers of the Police and Fire Board had been unable to pinpoint the seat of the fire nor its origin. Serious consideration was being given to the alternatives of restoring the building, replacing part of the building in mor* permanent materials, or th* addition of 20 extra living places to th* proposed Colombo Plan Hall, he said. Th* University Grants Committee had approved the erection of an £lB,OOO biology block and work was under way, said Dr. Burns.