ENG-1984 — Page 100

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INDUSTRY AND TRADE

multi-storey factory buildings which house the bulk of Hong Kong's industries. The first two stages of the Tai Po Industrial Estate now provide 46 hectares of land for allocation to industries; the third stage, now under construction, will produce a further 20 hectares by 1987. A second estate at Yuen Long provides an additional 67 hectares of land.

By the end of 1984, 82 of the 226 applications received by the corporation had been approved and sites were granted to 38 companies in the Tai Po and Yuen Long Industrial Estates. During the first six years of its operation, the corporation has offered land at fixed premium, varied from time to time to take into account the cost of production of the estates and market conditions. In 1984, the corporation adopted a number of new measures, including the amendment of its selection and leasing terms, aimed at increasing the up-take of its land.

Besides offering sites to industrialists for the construction of their own purpose-built factory buildings, the Hong Kong Industrial Estates Corporation also offers pre-built factory premises for purchase or rental by those who wish to commence production with the minimum of delay. The standard factories are fully serviced four-storey buildings with units constructed with maximum flexibility to suit the varied requirements of potential occupiers.

Outside the industrial estates, eight sites with an overall area of 49 863 square metres were sold for industrial use in 1984. The government also continued the construction of flatted factories. These were originally intended for reprovisioning squatter factories affected by clearance, but since January 1984 they had been available for acquisition by industrialists through an open application system. One factory block was completed in 1984, comprising 1 045 units of 25 square metres each.

Industry Development Board

Since its establishment in October 1983, the Industry Development Board, chaired by the Financial Secretary and comprising representatives from trade and industry, tertiary education institutions and civil servants, has been considering various industrial matters that fall within its purview. Three committees have been established to assist the board in its work. The General Development Committee is responsible for the consideration of the needs of industry, for example, through techno-economic studies and market research studies and for the supervision of industrial development projects. The Science and Technology Support Committee provides advice on technical and scientific issues relating to industry including the provision of technical information for industry. The Infrastruc- ture and Support Services Committee considers all other issues relating to the provision, by the government, of a suitable infrastructure within which industry can operate.

Throughout the year, the Industry Development Board and its committees continued to work towards improvements in the provision of industrial support facilities and technical back-up services for industry.

The government's Standards and Calibration Laboratory was officially opened on September 28. The laboratory maintains local reference standards of measurement which are traceable to international standards and also provides a calibration service primarily to meet the needs of the electrical and electronics manufacturing sector of industry.

Substantial ground work was made towards the implementation of the accreditation of laboratory testing services in Hong Kong. At the same time, a study on technology transfer commissioned by the board was completed. The recommendations made in this study had been considered in conjunction with the two other studies on the electronics and light metal engineering industries (both commissioned earlier by the board) and the feasibility of