guALrTY RED\ilOOD FENCE BOARDS

Lasc Conference

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Material Association president Dean Leaman on the activities of the Washington, D.C. based group. LASC is one of the 26 associations nationwide that belong to "National."

Focusing on the future, Weyerhaeuser's Herb Winward described Southern California as the biggest wood market in the world. He said more edge-glued products, flat core trusses and l-beams were likely in the future as well as advances in grading to reduce and hence simplify inventory, lowering its cost. Repair and remodeling will grow, he said, as the 5.8 million existing homes in Southern California age. The future will also include small structural lumber and squares composed of chips and chemicals.

As is custom at LASC's Palm Springs annual, its under-35 age goupThe Second Growthpresented a panel discussion on competitive methods.

JimTaft, Ganahl Lumber, described sales education and customer relations as key points. He noted that

"people do things for their own reasons." Education, Taft observed, must be consistent with existing corporate values, be backed by management, perceived by employees as being important and, lastly, show employees that there is something in it for them.

John Newquist, Newquist & Bergstrom, said change was essential to survival, noting that California now had 90 sawmills where it once had 900. He suggested that a firm had to build on its reputation, providing credit, transportation, customer and supplier knowledge. "We focus on certain items as we compete," he said, "so that we can be different from our competition."

Bill Jones, Far West Fir Sales, related the steps in computerizing an office. "Avoid automating a manual system, it won't work," he said. Jones counseled a company to decide what it needed, then seek it from vendors. He added that top management didn't require computer expertise, but did need to have a working knowledge of the system selected to gain value from it.

Drew Sasser, Buena Park Lumber, offered that a firm should do what it does best to stay competitive in its market. His firm had remodeled for better efficiency, more end caps and cross merchandising. Various promotions had also been successful for his company. He noted some of these as more advertising, a parking lot sale, tool sales in cooperation with vendors, a free pancake breakfast to demo tools for contractors and a 2590-off-everything-night for invited customers.

Next day, Friday, Nov. 15 (daY three of the four day gathering), a presentation on time management by Craig Stearn, Armstrong World Industries, told how to manage work time and motivate employees. Among the various suggestions, listing goals and setting priorities were prominent. Management should find out, he said, what employees "want" from work and seek, within realistic bounds, to provide it.

"Focus on Washington" was presented by Congresswoman Bobbi Fiedler, currently a leading candidate to run against Senator Alan Cranston in the next senatorial election. The daughter of a local area builder, she charmed her audience with an e:uygo-

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