Soon after his arrival in Singapore he told a con- ference there that he hoped to see the department which he would now lead become the centre for tro- pical architecture in South East Asia. He said that this could be achieved through the widest possible contacts with other students from all over the world coming to Singapore to exchange ideas.
Mr. Notley is an honours graduate of the School of Architecture, University of Liverpool. His wife is also an architect. She studied in Paris and later joined the Nottingham School of Architecture. They met while they were students at Liverpool University.
HOUSING COMMISSIONER RETIRES
AFTER Six years as Hong Kong's Commissioner for Housing. Mr. J. M. Fraser, CBE, ED. has retired and returned to the United Kingdom.
Mr. Fraser was appointed to the post in 1959 when the Housing Authority was still in its infancy and its estate at North Point was the only one completed. Now, seven estates and five Government low- cost housing estates with a total population of 198,000 are under the management of the Housing Authority.
He has had a long and distin- guished career in public housing. beginning in 1925 when he worked as an architectural assistant for the London County Council. Two years later he joined the Singapore Improvement Trust. He was a prisoner-of-war during the Japanese occupation of Singapore.
J. M. Fraser
After the war he was appointed manager of the Singapore Improvement Trust in 1946 and became chairman of the Trust in 1948.
Mr. Fraser is succeeded as Commissioner for Housing by Mr. J. R. Firth, ARIBA. previously housing architect.
A ROARING AT THE LIONS
FOR forthright views on builders, sub-contractors, archi- tecture in Hong Kong. Government legislation, the value of outsiders' critisism (or for that matter how to publish a trade journal) there is no more trenchant, nor more authoratative voice than that of Mr. Eric Cumine.
The well known architect, addressing members of the Lions Club last month, encompassed several of his best subjects.
Government legislation: "Government's legislative control of works near dangerous buildings played a part in precipitating the recent banking crisis. . . Architects were not consulted on legislation... The result of the Building Ordinance amendment was the sudden stoppage of work on 300 to 400 sites in the renewal of Chinese tenement and shop-type property. . . The situation was
LARGEST HOUSING PROJECT
Wa Fu Estate, the largest pro- ject so far undertaken by the Hong Kong Housing Authority. is shown in this model. Some 50,200 people are to be housed on a sloping site of just over 24 acrés
a housing density of 2,092 to the acre.
The estate will be virtually a new town, with its own three- level shopping centre and car parking facilities. Tower and slab blocks will contain 7,400 flats. Site formation work is in progress and phase 1 of the building work will start this month.
The Housing Authority's Architectural Section has pre- pared plans. Mr. D.P.H. Liao. B. Arch (Hons.) HK, Dip. LD (Dunelm), acting housing architect.
Far East Architect & Builder June, 1965
aggravated by commitments from tenancy tribunals' stop work orders, interest payments and buyers who would not now buy forward... Shorings for adjoining buildings cost from $20,000 to $30,000, and then tenants hold out their hands for compensation and know they have the whip hand to hold the building owners to ransom.'
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Architecture: "It is probably true that there is no real architecture around Hong Kong because the land squeeze and pressure for speed makes them (architects) turn out sausage type production."
Architectural Practice: "There are a number of unregistered architects in the colony who are really 'pak pai' (unlicenced) architects... They have shares in schemes and act as brokers or self-professed negotiators What they do is to subcontract drawings to learner- draftsmen and then get a signing architect to submit the drawings to Government. About half the buildings erected are designed this way. The signing architect gets one per cent of the cost just for signing.
"But architects have performed a feat they can be proud of since 1950 by housing about two million people at times having to provide for a whole new township of people each month.”
VLL
M$2M. CERAMIC WORKS
A CERAMIC sanitary ware industry will soon be in opera- tion in Singapore. Some M$2 million is being spent by Kaolin Ceramics, Ltd. on a new factory which should be completed this month at Jurong.
The factory will manufacture a full range of sanitary ware, including cisterns and wash basins. Initial produc- tion will be $5,000 units a month, increasing to 10,000.
Local ball clay and kaolin will be used, and felspar will be imported from India. German methods of production will be adopted, and two German technicians, Mr. and Mrs. A Liska, previously with the Economic Development Board, have been engaged by the company.
Another factory manufacturing ceramics, as well glazed and unglazed mosaics, is to be set up on a three- acre site at Hill View industrial estate, by Malaysia Tile Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Site formation work is finished and production is scheduled to start in October.
850-ACRE INDUSTRIAL ESTATE
TAIWAN Government plans to create a free trade zone on an 850-acre industrial estate at Kaohsiung Harbour.
It hopes to persuade investors, particularly from Hong Kong, to set up mills and factories for the employ- ment of about 20,000 people. Alternatively the Govern- ment will build plants at investors' specifications for non- profit rentals.
Land is being offered at about HK$1.5 per square foot to buyers. Industries established in the zone will get exemption from income tax and sales tax as well as free exchange control for import of raw materials and machinery. Under new legislation, overseas investors will be permitted to transfer profits abroad.
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