Notionol Lumber Deolers Flock to Philodelphio to See ond Heqr the Lqtest in Retqil Yord Oplrotion

Reco.rds ,.opil,.9. in quick succession as scores were tallied on closing day of thetg57 fuitaing products -tlxposition in-Philadelphia. Surpassing earlier estimates, the fourth innual "Products in Actlon" show sponsored by National Retail Lumber Dealers Association counted a total registered attend-ance of i,iO+ for the fou.r-day period, l2'/. 3bovg la!!year'q.attenda.nce figure. Over 200,001 square feet of exhibit'and demonstratron space were utilized by 202 exhibitors.displaying the largest array of ne* building products and equipmentever assembled in a national dealer show.

1958 Sales-Builder Store Standout Success

The :rction l)rog'rams \\.erc success-starrecl attractions throughout the four clays of the shou,. \Iore than 1500 interestecl, inquiring clealers each rla1. r'isited the 1958 SalesI3uilder Store l'here the unusual nrethtrd of clisplaying luml>er and hardrvare in correlation \\'ers the biggest trallic stopper.'l'he Sales-Builclcr Storc rvas a liie-size-ciuolication of :i nel' and highl-y srrcccssful suburbarr lumlrerya-rcl store in the midrvest.

Items in the store were for exhibit only, but so faith- fully were ,the sales-engineered displays reproduced that many dealers' wives touring the-store on- the first da-y began taking selections of hardware and do-it-your- self patterns to the cashier counter, so that it betame n€cessary to post signs in the store advising would-be shoppers that store items were not for sale. -

Cornplete stock ancl fixtures of the store \vere sold on thc first day of the Exposition to N{arvin Orlcans clf Cottr-n:Ln Builrlers Supl,lv in l'hilaclelphia. AIter rertror.al of stocli and fixtures ftillou'ing closing.of thc shon., the outsidc shell of the structure n'as rlonatecl to a chzrritablc institution in I'hiladelphia as a camp for urrderprivilegecl chilrlrcrr.

Outdoor Demonstrations to Capacity

Nlaterials-FIancllir.rg <iutdoor den.ronstraiiorrs, u,ith iour days of fine auturrrn r,r,eather, perfornrccl to zittentivc ca- pacity :rudiences u,hich shou'crl- incrclrsing interest in the offer of special recluest demt,rnstrations rr"ntl ()l)r)ortrlllities to "clrive-it-r'ourself ."

A total of 47.-picces of rolling ecluipnrer-rt. lrnging irr ctrp:Lcity from 4000-lb. fork truriks 1o -a 20,000-lir. itra<klle truck, u'ere er.nployed rlrrrir-rg the four days. LIscs of all typcs of materilrls-l'ranclling ecluipmcrrt r.erc sfi1;11.11gravity -ancl porvcrecl cont'eyors. han<l pallet trrrclis lLrr<1, for the first time in an NIil-Dr\ shou-, elcctricrLllv lrorvcrcrl fork trucks atrd palle t trucks.

-\lso for the first time, tu.o-u'ay raclio n'as usctl to liccrr detttonstration tr;rlJic m,,r.ing snr,,,,thl\.. "H:rnrlr.-Talkicl' units carriecl b1- erluilrment drir-ers peririttecl thcm to receive orclers from the control torver rlirecting the operations and to talk rvith each other t.ithout interntlttir.rg the mastcr of cerernonics.

Another innor,ation in ther outcloor demonstrlrtior-rs this

NoCql Deqlers qf Exposition:

San Francisco.-Tl"re Northern California retail lumber dealers r,r,ho attended the NRI_DA Exposition at Philadelphia last month includecl NIr. ancl Mrs. Russ S-tevens, A. li. Stevens Lumber Co., Healdsburg;Joe $irk, Kirk Lumber & IJuilding Nlaterials, 3"-"tu Xfaria; Edward Metcalf and the la'te Walter peterson, {i."S t-r.ber Cornpany, I3akersfield; Jack Gibsonj Gibson Lumber Company, Merced, and J?an and Jack Pomeroy of the fecleiated LNIANC.

SoCql Deqlers qt Exposition:

Los Angeles.-Among the 7,000 lirmber dealers and industry m9mlers at -t!e big NITLDA builcling matc_ rials slrou, in I'hiladelphia, Nov. 4-7, were these fronr the Southern California Retail Lumber Ass<.rcizrtion: Aileen ancl Carvel Brown, C)rban Lumber Co., pasa_ clena; F-rances and Frank Doepker, NIullin Lr.rmber Co., North Hollyrvood yard; C;rtherine and Tom Fox and Bob _Sievers, John W. Fisher Lun.rbcr Co., Santa \l,,nica; Jtleanor and John Sullivan, \\''estern l_umber C,,., San Diego, and, of corlrse, Louise ancl Orrie W. Hamilton ,'i the S('RLA, ln this nlanner, lir-e trucks an<l tu.o b.-xcars.f lumber ancl rnzrterials *'ere unlraclecl, 'rovecl, han<llccl, stacked, pi";;;i irr storage and thcn rel.arled .rto the trrrcks and ca'rs foi Iaterunl,ading der'ronstr:rtio.s. Lu''rbcr ur1'aded. fr.m tnlclis \\'a.s strapped ancl coverccl rvith various types of *'aterproof .ccrverings f,r outckrrr storage. other' steei stral)ped unrts n.ere.placcd in a nen tylte of stcirage r:rck in the 28'x'{0' umbrelia p.le shecr. Iluilcting materia'is such as aslrestr.rs and gvltsum proclucts, asplrzilt roofing, tile,

.\'eAr \\.s ,the ".3-r.ing circ's" technique *-hich kePt action :rt a ral)td pacc throughout cach 2_l"r'ur shr>rr.. Instcad .f rlcmunstnrtinfl :lnly one piece of equiliment at a tirne, sev- cral preces of rlifierent sizes an-cl types *'ere i' oPeration c.ntinu',sly, *,,rking cr.per.tively-;rs thcv *',.,ulcl in ac- tual lumlteryard olterations.

THE 1958 OFFICERS of rhe NAT|ONAI RETAtt TUMBER DEAI.ERS ASSOCIATION (lefr ro righr)-H. R. NORIHUP, who con_ linues ds tha executive vice-president; poul V. DE VIU,E, the second vice-presidenr; J. C. O,MAttEy, heqd of rhe O,Molley Arizono retqil yords ond offiliofed componies in phoenix, who succeeds Nebrosko's Poul Ely os president of the deoler body;

H. W. BTACKSTOCK of Seottle,s well-known retoil lumber con_ cern, first vice-president; Leslie G. EVERITT, heqd of the retoil lumberyord division of rhe Long-Bell Lumber Co. Division, Internotionol Poper Co., Konsos City, who continues os treosurer of rhe NRIDA, cnd Edword H. libbey, who remoins the Associolion's secreiqry

Retoil Lumberyord Model Store Moved From Show to Yqrd

We've hardly reached the stage in supermarket merchandising wh6re it is standard operating procedure -for a businesi man to go shopping'and come home with a complete store-buf that is just what happened at the 1957 Exposition when there was sold-lock, stock, and barrel ofi the exhibit floor-a complete modern retail lumbervard store-fullv stocked with merchandise from carpet iacks to dimeniion lumber and the latest power tools for the home workshop.

Purchaser of the Model Store was Marvin Orleans of Cottman Builders Supply, well known in the homebuilding and modernization field in Philadelphia fot 32 Years,

-

Combining supermarket easy-shopping features_, rela' tively new to the lumber and building materials-indust-ry, with- conventional lumberyard services of information and assistance, the store presented a new concept of consumer retailing in its field. Covering 6000 sq. ft. of se_lling space, the moilel store was built inside Conventio! Hall, fitted with fixtures and completely stocked, as a feature demonstration of modern merchandising techniques.

Lumber in self-service sizes, including cabinet hardwoods, was feat-ured along with complete home planning, remodeling and kitchen modernization services. Do-ityourself books and patterns were displayed and sold like greeting cards, and classes in woodworking, decorating and home maintenance were conducted along with demonstrations of power tools.

This will be the first store ofits kind to open in Philadelphia, although the type is popular og the west coast and in the midwest, said Joseph Guillozet, Cleveland merchandising authority and designer of the home-handyman stores. Mr. Guillozet says that women make up over half of the transactions in this type of store, exploding the popular belief that lumbei and building materials are exclusively the province of the man of the house.

Mr. Orleans, purchaser of the store, discovered this fact for himself at the show when conventioning dealers' wives began taking their selections of hardware, pattern's and do-it-yourself books to the cashier's counter. It broke the merchandising hearts of the store's enthusiastic planning committee to post the necessary signs advising would-be shoppers that store items were for display only' brick, drain pipe, flooring and doors were handled in the demonstrations. lJses for several types of special attachmenls were shown, including swing shifts, two types of quick-coupling en4loaders, polished and tapered forks, side roll-offs and pushpull devices.

Following the closing of the Exposition, Nov. 7, the store was installed en toto at its new and permanent address in the Lynnwood Gardens Shopping Center, and scheduled for formal opening on November 72. \t will be the first of a series of neighborhood locations of serveyourself, home-handyman centers in Philadelphia.

Hydraulic hi-lift bed trucks simulated roof-top delivery of asphalt roofing, second floor delivery of gypsum lath, and delivery of bricks to a scaffold. Other demonstrations of special truck types included a contractor dump truck convertible from flat bed to sand and gravel use, and conventional hydraulic dump flat bed trucks.

Groundlevel methods were used in unloading 1& lengths of unitized lumber from box cars with a 15' opening' A' 15,000-pound fork truck equipped with swing shift removed the first unit at the door, then lifted a 6000-pound truck into the car. The small truck brought other units into positiort at the door for unloading fromlhe ground. Although larger trucks were used in the-demonstrations, it was emphasized that even a 40001pound lift truck could handle the entire unloading operation adequ{ie$ and' e€onornically within two hours.

* In-addition to the umbrella pole shed used in"the demon-.:lttlg-"s, a -new type of clear-span warehouse, measuring 5()/.x8{, with corrugated asbestbs roofing and aluminuri siding, was erected on the outdoor demo-nstration site bv Pruden Products' warehouse Exhibit

Inside the exhibit hall, the demonstration warehouse displayed all commonly used building materials in manufacturers' standard shipping units. Aisles were set up in grad- uated widths from 7' to 16, to permit demonstiatiois of various sizes of mechanical handling equipment. 4o00lb. to 7000-lb. lift trucks were used in thJr,r'areitouse, along dith electric and hand-pallet trucks and lift trucks design"ed es- pecially for narrow aisle operation. Demonstratio-ns were carried on continuously at dealers' requests.

M-H Clinics Well-Attended

Materials-handling cli4ic sessions in the afternoon were well-attended, with ipecial interest focused on the report of progress made in the test program of unitized lumber shioments in which 500 dealeri, rianufacturers and jobbers aie cooperating.

Special Rail Cars Attract Dealers

Much interest was shown in latest types of rail cars, SygnClyhic^h yele the Union Pacific plug-door boxcar, the Union Pacific bulkhead flat car design-ed dspeciallv for ium[er, !he. Seaboard 2U "dream" ca-r, and 'a penlnsylvania TrucTrain piggy-lqck flat car with van-type flat bed-traitrer. A scale _model of Joe Wardein's sliding-door boxcar was also on display.

Field Trip a "Sell-Out" Success

The field trip to the Delaware River dock was a,,sell-out" 'success both days on which it was.eonducted. Nearlv 1000 dealers toured the 100-acre area which holds one tf tn" largest concentrations of lumber, millwork and timber in the east, watched the unloading of a lumber freighter, and witness.ed handling and s.torage-activities carried on daity in tndustrral lumber operations.

Merchandising Lu-Re-Co

A. spe-cial display of exhibitors' house components was set up in the component clinic area and the first dav of the show was left open for dealer tours of the special exhibits. Panel sessions covered techniques of merchandising com- ponent methods, requirements in personnel, tools, and fa_ cilities, financing of homes built wjth components, and the potentials for profit through tl.re use of the component system of construction.

Question-and Answer sessions following the clinics were exceptionally active, usually lasting almo"st as long as the panel presentations. The query mosl often presentJd to the panel was whether garages could be buiit from compo- nents. Another frequent question was whethe. co-porrent, can be used in custom building of homes.

Answers to both questions riere in the affirmative and it lvas_ pointed out that two of the panel members who have used the Lu-Re-Co system for several years have never used a complete component house plan aJ originally pt"pi*d, but have rn every case adapted it to the needs and preferences ot the customer.

Raymond C. Tylander of West Palm Beach, Fla.. chairman of the Component clinic, expressed his feeling that the sesslons were particularly productive among deaiers who have considered using the Lu-Re-Co system but have hesitated for one reason or another. "We ieel that through the informative programs of this clinic," Chairman Tylander said, "hundreds of dealerb rvho have never before ielt the need for.going in-to_the program have now recognized the cost-cutting, profit-building potential in component construction methods."

Overflow Audiences at Management Sessions

. Most heavily attended manageme-nt clinic session of the Dusy tour-day program rvas the Estimating clinic at noon on Monday,_c_onducted by Russell W. NowC-ls of Rochester, Michigan. With an one.flow crowd in attendance, extra

How fhe Form Deolers Houl More Puyloads Awo-

The rural community lumber dealer held the spot- light at a _breakfast ,clinic session of the Exposition. "Gettin-g More Farm Business" outlined ways in which lumber and building materials dealers sdrving rural areas can increase their services to farmer customers, thereby building more sales and profit for. themselves.

-Maurice \. Large, president of Farmville (Virginia)' Manufacturing Company, opened the session, eirpha- srzlng that aggressive merchandising will solve many of the problems of the rural community lumber dealei. He pointed out that the alert dealer ian increase his farm business by .enlarging his territory, by adding related lines of building materials, by employing tra"veling salesmen, and by consistently-advertidingf over a wide area.

A. B. Russell of Russell Fuel and Supply Company, Wolcott, New York, told visiting lumbermen thit his firm concentrates its merchandisi-ng efforts on the farm home, has found that a successful and.profitable policy is to rvork with and through local farm organizalioni, such as the Farm Bureau and Granges, anil to cooper- ate with churches, schools, civiC and community groups.

Homer F. Prakel of the Georse H. Worch Lumber Company, Versailles, Ohio, coinmented on the op- portunities for sales in the field of pole farm strultures and other farm service buildings. His company has boosted its farm,.sales by estab-lishing a desigil service for farm buitdings and a farm hode modeii. ization service with emphasis on kitchens. He stressed the importance of following closely the constantly changing farm market.

Arthur J. Henry of Nefis, Pa., told the lumber dealers that the addition of a service salesman to his staff has helped him increase farm sales. His service salesman specializes in helping the farmer customer get started with do-it-yourself building and remodeling of tarm structures.

seating was arranged for some 250 to 300 dealers who had to be turned away earlier but returned for the clinic session which followed the luncheon. Additional seating space also had to be provided for capacity audiences at the Clinics on remodeling, housing site development, and kitchen modernization. Question-and-answer periods follorving each panel program were live-wire sessions, indicating the-high qtiality of audience at these discussions.

Address by HHFA Administrator

A new feature introduced this year, "Building Industry Duy:'focused the attention of the entire industry-on the Eiposition on Thursday, November 7. Architecis, builders, realtors, mortgage .bankers and others lvith allied industry interests were invited to visit the show onthat dav a! guests of dealers and to attend a special luncheon progiam. Busloads_of ,guests arrived frorr nearby points'in-Nerv Jersey, M-aryland, qq{ Pgnnsylvania to j6in-the many who attended from the Philadelphia area.

Climax of_the Exppsition program was the Building Industry Luncheon on Thursday, when HHFA Administiator Albert M. Cole addressed dealers and guests. Mr. Cole s.tressed the industry's role in the continubus upgrading of American housing standards through its leadership in offer- ing "sound guidance and economic services in this field.,,

Displays Draw Dealer Comment

The colorful and unusually attractive exhibits through- out the huge exhibit hall brought many favorable commeits from visiting dealers from coast to coast. Many of the exhibits_ were entirely 1ew and were prepared ei-pecially for introduction at the NRLDA Exposition.

Exhibitors commented on the exceptional interest which visiting.lumber_dealers evidenced in the products and equip- ment displayed. It \\'as expressed by -one exhibitor -thls way: "We're delighted u-ith-the high quality of attendance. The advance screening done by"I:.xposition registration brings in only those u'ho make tire decisions. Thii permits us to concentrate our efforts on key men n'ho are interested, prospective buyers, ratl'rer tl.ran on a heavy burden of the just-looking' traf6c."

The concensus of the thousands of rlealers visiting the shorv lvas expre,ssed c.oncisely by one in the brief but sftnificant comlltent that "these four days have been highly piofit- able for me."

Press Coverage Sets Record

-Record co\-erage by the press also characterizecl the 1952 E_xpositi-on, rvitl.r (r4 rnembers of the u'orking press from the United States :rnd Canada in registered att&dance. Alrnost cvery major publication in the lrrrilding materials fiekl in America \\,a,s represented, as l.ell as a-number of general interest publications arrd neu'spapers.

1958 Exposition in Chicago

The fifth annual I3uilding Products Exposition u.iil be held. irr Chicago. November-2225. l95i{. rvi'th heacl<luarrers at the Conracl Hilton hotel ; exhibits ernd meetings'.rvill be at the International Ar-ntrhitheatre.

Arnid predictions that-business should be at least mocler. ately better next year, the board of directors of the National Retail Lumber Dealers Association elected I. C. O'Mallev. of _Phoenix, Arizona, as the organization'i president foi 1958 at the Philadelphia nreeting and hearcl^ encouraging reports about continued advancement in store rnerchancliiing and exl,ansion of corrsumcr services.

H. W. lllackstock, of Seattle, Wash., u,as elected first vice-president, and Paul V. De\rille. of Canton, Ohio. was named second vice-president. l-eslie G. Everitt, Kansas City, Mo., u'as re-electecl as treasrlrer of the association. H. R. Northup u'as again nanred executive vice-president. and Edrvard H. Libbey was re-elected secretary.

, Paul R. Ely, 1957 president, praised the nation's lumber dealers for their foresight in improving their physi-

Deoler's Ploce in Remodeling

Housing Adn.rinistrator Albert M. Cole told the National Association of Retail Lumber Dealers tl-rat rve are facing a grou,ing demancl for block-by-block restoration of rvhole neighborhoods. Cole said that there exists "a new clitnate and a multi-miilior-r dollar op- portunity" for the n'holesale rchabilitation of older homes. "More than 100,000 run-dou'n dr,vellings havc alreadl' been earmarked for rehabilitation by more than [J0 tou'ns ancl cities in reDlanncd urban ienelr.ai areas." he said.

Local retail lumber dealers, Cole said, with their background as materials suppliers and their experience as dealer-participants in financing home imp-rovements under FHA's Title I repiir and modernization loans, have a strategic service to perform in this bigger job of neighborhood improvement, cal plants, cashing in on the economies of mechanical handling, and adding new lines of merchandise to help draw more customers to the industry's modern retail stores.

He said that, to continue the progress the industry has rlade in tl.re last fs11: y€ars, and to gain a larger share of the consumer.dollar, better employec training and imaginatir.e merchandising u'ill be needed.

He also pointed out that the industrv needs additional information on day-to-day trends in brrsirress and on subjects such as horv to invest advertising expenclitures more wisely, and horv to insure the maximum profitability of new and rernodeled stores.

He also stressed the need for increasing the membership of NRLDA's federated associations and recommended strongly that the industry continue to cooper- ate withbuilding products manufacturers in seeliing the solutions to common problems.

Mr. Northup reportecl that, rvhile sorne dealers had reportecl a drop in sales during 1957, more tharr half said business had been either goo<l or fair, indicating that the decline in honre l,rrilding had not uflccled the iurlrrsiry too seriousl y. As for the future, he saicl :

The PowerTool Boofh wos g3 populor os ever ond sttroclad crowds qll doy, every doy

New

"It seems reasonable to expect that 1951i cun be another million-house year. Neecl expressed in temrs of marriages, population grorvth, demolitions, and an extremely lorvlacancy rate, all seern to point to agrol.ing demand. The ability of people to buy is indicated by the Federal lleserve statistics u'hich shou' that in 1956 u'e had some 23,000,000 families in the $5,000 and over salary range, and 9,500,000 in the $7,500 salary range.

"The quggtion mark is mortgage money. Despite actions taken in 1957, mortgage money rernains iignt. A lcssening in tl-re demand for funds for industrial and'iommercial con"struction, hou.ever, may put some of this money in the mortgage market. In acldition, FHA can be expected to make. moves designed to take up the slacli causid by the practical demise of the VA program, particularly if ii can get some effective help from fhe ner.' C,,ngress .,vhich would elrallle the FH.\ insurctl tnortgage to contlrclc in thc mollc)' market.

"There will be a continued industry-wide push to cultivate -the great modernization and repair markets.

That- this market proved to be one of the bright spots for the retail lumber dealer in 1957 is indicatJd bythe response by members to our Business Conditions survey.

"Dealers are expancling their constlmcr services as a means of stimulating more home-improvenrent business, t'itl-r more and more yards hclping to arrange financing and seeing to it that tl-reir customers are providecl rvith thd necessary c()ntractor ser\rlces.

"Without a doubt the increased productivity of the manufacturers whose products we iell, and a-foresee- able expansion for building materials in the years to come, point toward an ever-changing and rnore competitivC distribution system for the products we handle, lnd to the vital need for joint effort by the organized retail lumber industry to solve the pressing problems we face together."

T. H. Else, the association's National Affairs counsel, reviiwed the legislation passed by Congress this year and analyzed. probable Congressional action for 1958. He said the threat of extending the wage-hour law to retail and service establishments is still r'vith us and predicted that the pressure will be even greater in 1958 thin in previous years.

"In the field of housing," he said, "there probably r,vill be little major legislation passed next year, although strong efforts will be made to authorize more public housing. Those efforts are expected to fail becattse existing attthorizations haven't been fully used.

"We undoubtedly rvill see legislation introduced to repeal the provisions of the 1957 larv recluiring discount control for FHA and VA mortgages. Such controls have proven unworkable in the past and are tending to drive lenders :rn'ay from these programs.

"The VA-guaranty program for World War II veterans expires nextyear unless extended. It runs to 1965 for Korean veterans but, unless Congress increases the VA interest rate, this entire program will remain dead.

"There undoubtedly will be attempts to continue the VA direct loan program next year but the President vetoed this legislation this year and probably rvill next year."

NRLDA's treasurer, Mr. Everitt, said that the association's finances r\rere in sound condition and the board approved his report.

Norman P. Mason, FHA commissioner ancl past president of NRLDA, urged dealers to make broader use of Title I loans for home improvements in order to get accounts off their books. With iespect to the outlook for horrsing, he said:

"There is no question about there being a market for houses today. Never was there a time when more people had incomes that make home ownersh'ip possible. They sell themselves when the quality is good and the financing is sound.

"\Mith more and rnore families u'anting to buy their own homes, the industry is faced rvith the cl-rallenge of providing a large volume of good housing that is priced within the range of the average American family's income and financed 'ivith long-range safety features."

Reporting as chairman of the Exposition committee, Mr. DeVille said the Philadelphia shorv would surpass its predecessors in every respect and praised the hard, thoughtful rvork that had been done by the top-flight committee chairmen and members in planning the clinics, demonstrations, and other details. He said that dealers attending the Exposition rvould find a rn''ealth of ideas for increasing sales, cutting expenses, and building profits.

Martin C. Dwyer, Exposition director, said dealers'rvould find more and better exhibits, more and better clinics, and a larger dealer attendance than ever before. He praised participating manufacturers for the high qualityof their exhibits and said a new high mark in Exposition quality u'ould be set.

Dealers will find profit nuggets awaiting them next year if they "prospect" for them, according to Walter E. Hoadley, treasurer and economist of the Armstrong Cork Co. He said the days of automatic profits have passed because the upsurge of business had halted at least temporarily and competition is expanding, but that consumer incomes remain high and that consumers will spend when they see good values. He said he anticipated between 1,000,000 and 1,100,000 new housing starts in 1958.

Mr. O'Malley, as chairman of NRLDA's Committee on l\{aterials Handling, expressed appreciation for the excel- fhc GcorgicPocific Corporolion booth ot Exporition showcd product devclopment, with potcnted clip system for opplying prcfinished, pockoged plywood pcneling feolured on lcft; somples of the other plywood ponelings on right Anolher Powor-fool exhibir showed how to cul up plorticfcced plywood

Looding cnd worehouse demonslrqtiens dt Deolers' Convenlion used o Hyster lift ond pockoges of G-P's new gucronleed Premium Sheorhing in stael-taped 25" bundles lent cooperation the committee has been receiving from lumber manufacturers and said much good would come from it. He explained that the Committee has four objectives : to originate materials-handling techniques, stimulate activity to develop nelv ideas by manufacturers, shippers, suppliers, and railroads, act as a clearinghouse for helpful new ideas, and educate dealers in utilizing materialshandling techniques for purposes of cost reduction.

He emphasized that the committee's efforts will pay dividends to virtually all yards, regardless of size, as has been demonstrated by actual experience of his own company and others.

Watson Malone III, chairman of the Committee on Education and Merchandising, reported that considerable progress had been made in the development of a new type of sales-training program and that a survey among dealers had revealed broad interest in such a plan. The board approved a motion to continue development of the program, u'ith the help of building-products manufacturers.

Phil Runion, secretary of the Nebraska Lumber Mer(Continued on Page 121)