Great Waste in lJnnecessary Grades and Sizes, Says Expert

That 40 per cent of the money expended. by the lumber industry every year is wasted-yes, sir, actually dissipated and thrown away-was the declaration of W. A. Durgin, special assistant to Secretary Herbert Iloover of the Department of Commerce, at the recent convention of lumber manufacturers in Portland.

Simplified practices, including standardization of grades and sizes would eliminate most of this waste, asserted Mr. Durgin, and save at least a billion dollars a year to the lumbermen of the nation. The chief source of industrial waste in this country, not only in the lumber industry but in scores of other industries, he pointed out, is "the universal prevalence of enormously excessive varieties of goods. " of his business, varieties, sizes, brands and finishes, presenting axes to the careful buyer in the number of 6,964. t'f wonder,t' continued Mr. Durgin, "if you realize how far this cult diversification has gone-the cult whose creed seems to be 'give the buyer rvhat he rv6nf,s'-(shange the style every three months'-(szvs the freight through und.ersize'-'alter the dimensions, but don't improve the product.' t'As a further example, in American flags there are twelve standard sizes worked out by Government departments. Analyzing a catalogue of a large flag manufacturer the other day, we found 289 varieties, not one agreeing with any of the twelve standards.

"fn boots and. shoes, though the survey figures are not yet available, the best authorities agree that the kinds, styles and sizes now offered the discriminating man, and more partieularly the discriminating damsel, runs well over a millibn.

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"As an example, take shot-gun shells. Some six months ago the National Ilardware Association found that there were being merchandised in this land of the free initiative 7,362 varieties of shells.

"An ax manufacturer carries through all his card records, his shop accounts, his salesmen's equipment and every detail

" Compared with such totals, you may feel that lumber is beyond criticism in its simplicity, but if you wiII extend lumber to its applications, you too, may be in the million variety class. The combined efforts of state and municipal engineers have succeeded in developing 260 different building codes.. The sizes of sash and doors are probably well into the thousands and in furniture varieties have run riot. Even for a tree you gentlemen have, I understand, thirty odd names for the same old pine and at least fifteen sets of dimensions for a 2x4, while when it comes to the grade of a board, you all agree at least, that opinions differ.

"Simpliffed practice in any ffeld, will, we believe, secure some, or all, of the following ad.vantages; it will decrease production costs, stocks, selling expense, misunderstandings and all costs to the user; simultaneously, Simplified Practice will increase turn-over, stability of employment, promptness of delivery, foreign commerce, quality of product and sweetest of all, profit to producer, distributor and user.

"In lumber, we feel certain that the standardizations and simplifications you have under consideration will secure these ad.vantages, and in addition, so elevate you in public conffdence as to remove any present criticisms and firmly establish you on the highest ethical plane."