Statistics On Fibrous Plaster Firms Doubted

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30562, 3 October 1964, Page 7

Statistics On Fibrous Plaster Firms Doubted

A suggestion that the fibrous plaster manufacturing industry was under-rated ij statistics prepared by the De,t partment of Labour was made by the president of the New Zealand Fibrous Plaster Manufacturers’ Association y (Mr T. M. Wilkins) at the anti nual meeting of the associae tion held at Shirley Lodge t yesterday. - Mr Wilkins said that some of the firms represented at the annual meeting were engaged in various kinds of contracting works in addition to the manufacture of fibrous plaster, and had not been included in the statistics. In his annual report Mr Wilkins said production showed a decline in the year ending March 31, 1963. Production of fibrous plaster sheet fell to 2,301,563 sq. yd. from 2,395,099 sq. yd. in the previous year. However, this decline was arrested during the last financial year, in which production rose to 2,428,816 sq. yd.—the highest recorded. The industry’s total value of output, at more than £1 million a year, showed that it was an important section of the manufacturing industry, Mr Wilkins said.

An international conference of the Fibrous Piaster Federation of Australia and New Zealand will be held in Christchurch on Monday. Officers Elected Mr T. M. Wilkins, of Christchurch, was elected national president of the association. He is also vice-president and president-elect of the federation. Other officers elected were:—Senior vice-president, Mr P. J. Page (Frankton Junction); junior vice-presi-dent, Mr S. T. W. Anderson (Auckland); executive, Messrs T. Skelsey (Wanganui), F. Cameron (Auckland), T. Teirney( Rotorua), H. J. Tyrie (Dunedin), K. C. Pickering (Wellington), A. Young (Christchurch) and W. Forman (Dunedin).