" on the Scrapheap " , a Patternmakers lament

[Loonar]

G'day all, Will try not to drag it out...! You may recall the kerfuffle with cmi (industrial) re. Ford last month. A few of us today were laid off at Toowoomba Metal Tech., with, it would seem a gradual wind down over a few weeks, unless a buyer steps in. I know it is everywhere at the moment ( poor buggers at the Hastie group too). Anyhoo, me , mid 50's, Patternmaker, very much a dying art, unlikely to get anything close.. Unfortunately (!), a bit of emotion creeps in, a bit of an iconic place , the dear old T'wba Foundry, goes way back to the 1870's, evolved into the famous "Southern Cross" windmills, irrigation etc. , munitions for the war effort, etc. etc......so there you go...... Manufacturing is almost but not quite (unless you're specializing in mining??) dead in Australia... Goodnight