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THERE have been official links for the past twelve years between the Institute of Incorporated Work Study Technologists and Time and Motion Study. Many of its members have been valued contributors to our pages and the Institute has had editorial space for its news.

THE possibility of Work Study practitioners investigating lost industrial time through gambling is not to be ruled out in the future. This possibility arises from the question of the Secretary of the Churches' Committee on Gambling, who recently asked in effect: “Can lost production and efficiency through gambling be measured?” Presumably, no‐one has ever informed the Reverend Secretary that every form of industrial inefficiency can be measured. Let us hasten to inform the Committee, therefore, that, if the necessity should arise, the tools are ready to be applied.

IN A RECENT issue of New Scientist a letter was from a graduate (or should it be graduette, for she was a girl) who said she was writing on behalf of many unemployed graduates; and she posed a ‘Catch 22’ query. What she wanted to know how anyone could obtain the experience needed to gain a job if no one will give such a person a job to get the experience?

WE desire to draw special attention to an article appearing in this issue, entitled “Materials Handling and Work Study”—it is of special significance to production engineers. And the reason for this special significance is, not only that production engineers tend to neglect this most important field of industrial activity, but also that they show an appalling lack of “know‐how” in the attainment of efficient materials handling procedures.

FOR the tenth time our American counterpart, the Industrial Management Society, is holding a contest for methods improvement. The brochure giving the rules shows how thoroughly such a project is undertaken. Its main purpose is to stimulate interest in cost reduction through improved ways of doing something, although the mere replacement of obsolete equipment by new plant which is commercially available is not considered to fall within the ambit of the competition.

BECAUSE productivity means profitability it is the aim of any manufacturing organization. Too often productivity is thought to be the same thing as increased production. In reality it is very different. The way to increase production is fairly obvious. More machinery is obtained, larger quantities of raw materials are purchased and more workers are engaged. If, for example, these three essentials are doubled production should be twice as much. Production has increased, but if it has not succeeded in lowering the price of whatever is being manufactured what has been gained?

The primary purpose of this paper is to compare time availability and its allocation amongst Arts students. In addition it aims to match time availability and use with informants' resource preferences and the variables of language background and residential status.

A sample of 109 students completed quantitatively‐based electronic and paper‐copy surveys. Empirical data from primary informants form the basis of analysis.

The paper finds that over 90 per cent of informants have non‐study commitments and over half have commitments of six or more hours per week. The largest single group (35 per cent) has obligations of six to 14 hours per week. There is only a weak correlation between a higher number of commitments a lower amount of “out‐of‐class” time to engage with study obligations. Conversely, fewer extra‐curricular obligations does not automatically lead to a higher number of hours devoted to study. Differences in resource use are small: paper copy resources are universally popular, regardless of time commitments and allocations. Non‐English‐speaking background and international students tend to have fewer non‐study commitments and devote more time to study in general than English‐speaking background and local informants.

Research covers one of full‐time student informants' four units and does not elicit responses from all units studied by informants.

While employment has been examined as a factor affecting student performance and time availability, few studies have matched time availability and declared time allocations to study. Further, time availability as a key feature of academic study is matched against variables highly relevant to today's student populations: resource mode use; language background; and residential status.

THE Electronic Computer Exhibition and the B.I.M. conference have provided material for serious contemplation. Sir Harold Gillett, Lord Mayor of London, opening the Exhibition suggested that we are living in the age of the second industrial revolution. There are some who share the Lord Mayor's view and others who take the whole matter in their stride. One thing is certain, we shall be able to do more—and do it more efficiently.