Al Bell Elected NAWLA President

]\7f()RE THA\ IUU atl,.rrrlerl the \ationalrv l- Ameri, urr Wlrolesalt' Lrrmber Asso.i' ation's 7rtrth annual at Phoenir. to make this the second best-attended rneeting of the asso<:iatiotr.

Alfred D. Bell. Jr.. publisht'r' ol California Lumlrer Mercharrt and chairman of the

The National-American members passed a resolr.rtion urging the plywood industrv to aclopt reinspet'tion procedures similar to those oI the lumber industry which rvould permit a pl_vwood buver to obtain an olrjectivt' report on tht' quality of plywood directlv from the American Plywood Asso-

Catifornia Tumber Merchant

ciation in c'ase of disputes on grade-s. rather tharr requiring that the manufacturer requt'st the inspectiort from thc association.

The board approved the wholesalers' participation in the Executive Re-.ene. a grollP of busirress and industrv leatlers held in reserve to adlise the federal governmelrt on how to proceed with controls in thtevent d rrational emergen('\' requires controls on productiorr. distributiorr and materials. The NAWLA board will submit a list of nominees to serve in the Rest'rve.

Other action taken at the April 113-16 rnt'etins included a directive to the staiT to support the activites oI thc Committee on Adequate Transportation which is presentlv exploring all rneatrs of relieving the lroxcar shortage.

Kevnote speaker at the whole-qalers' con' vention was Ilenton R. Cancell. president' Potlach Forests lnc.. Lewiston. Idaho. who -said that "The wholesaler and distrilrutor fills a vital role in our economic system. 'fhe direct selling route which some manu' facturt'rs are taking is not alwavs r alitl."

Pressure On Whotesaters

Bruce l'. Harris. Sanfortl Harris Lttrnber Co., Pittsburgh, immediate past pr('sident oI NAWLA, said. "Therc is a delinite continuing pressur{r for the wholesaler to become a marketing ('xpert, not mt'rely an order taker. We c'atr and we have to have more [,'t',1-ltack to ottr ('ustomers reqttirements to the mills. antl rve should t'onsult more with our prodttt't't's in both short and long range planning."

Don Andrews, western board of Hobbs Wall l,umber Co. irt San l-rancisco, was electcd presidelrt. Other official-" elccted rvere C. Il. Klumb. J.., C. l-. Klumb l-umber (.o., 0rystal Springs. Miss., first vice president; David A. Mittell. l)avenport, Pctcrs Co.. Boston. ,.ecott<l vice president, and \\t. Barry Everett, .LvercttHoban, Inc.. Brooklyn, N.\'., treasurer.

(Left

NAWLA board members gave authoritv to new presidt:nt Al Bell to appoint a committt'e to study simplifiecl specification of lumlrer Lry code designation rather than nominal size and to investigate implications o[ changing from a system of boardfect mcasure to orle o{ linear mcasure lor the industrl-.

Other action taken by the r,vholesaler board included authorizing a survcv to tletermint: l)rospects ful a neu' form of sales training program to updatc the associatiorr's fir'e lear ulrl slles training program. The board urged individual wholesalcrs to express thc viervs of their own ('ustomers to manufacturers o{ lumber on thc change of lumber sizes. NAWLA members reiterated their position ath.ocating gradc stamping of all lumber.

\/IEWED IN various stages of unY dress around the pool at the Arizona Biltnlore, were Flank Bader antl Ed Fountain, Los Angeles. Union was replesented by Sherm Bishop, Johnny Borden, Johnny Jones, and Joe Watt. Pacific's Bob Hoover, Tom Malarkey and Kent Merrill were in evidence. Simpson's LeRoy McCormick and Jack Behmens, and Ford Conger and Jock Wouri from G-P u'ere there.

Plus a large group of v"'holesalers including Saclamento's Earl Bleile, Jerry and Ben Bonnington from Oakland, Frank Blown, Rockport, Cloverdale, Jim Fair and Roger Mackin, Hallinan-Mackin, San Francisco, Denny Gilchlist, Pacific Fir Sales, Los Angeles, Arcata's Lloyd Hecathorne, Willits Redwood, Stan Hulett, Ray Uthe, Fruit Growers, Los Angeles, Bob Wells, TW ct J, and Sterling Wolfe, Marquart Wolfe, Long Beach. And let us not forget Bob and Jerry Reid and Bob and Jane Wright from Fresno as well as Hobbs Wall's contingent Al and Marje Bell, Lew and Bertie Godald, Mike & Butry Coonan.

Thcodort: J. Kreps. Emeritus Pro{cssor of llusiness l-t'onomit's at Stanford ['niver' sit\-. told the rvholesalers that "We are liv' ing in the most unusual t:conomic ptrriod oI our country's history. We are in the (rlJrd nronth of an t't:onomit' lroom. and the hig' gest hazard is that rte mav become comnlact'nt and t'r'en recklt'ss and not ttote iraflic signs whit:h we'd otherwise hccd."

'Ihc importantt' of measrtring the lumber wholt'saler's r('turrl oll investment was stressed by another speaker. Richard ll. Petcrst'n. -senior partner, A. I. Kearne.v & Co., rnanagem('nt t'onsultants. Chicago. Petcrsen pointed out that the trcnd is to {erver n'hole,.alers irt all lines oI business trnd that. rvhile thcre are 20"(XX) mcrchant wholesalers now, by 1975 it is esti' rnated that 80c,b oI all 'rvholesalt'r lntsiness rvill be done by 8,000 firms. If the wholesaler's return on invested capital is less Lhan 6lb, Petersen said, he should look for another busines-".

Al-"o apt.ot'ed l'as an expandetl and combined progrcss report and membership directory which will soon be published and distributed throughout the country. Over 100 golfers participated in the \AWLA qolf tournamertt.

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Mother Nature puts her best into it. But Palco improves it with a series of manufacturing processes to produce a superior product-"palco Architectural Quality Redwood." One is "taper sawing." Logs are sawn parallel to the bark, producing straight-grained lumber-stronger, more stable, and capable of the finest machining. Many other steps are taken, too, to give you important "extras" in every shipment of "Palco Architectural Quality Redwood." And at competitive prices. Why settle for less?