History of the ATMA From humble beginnings of a small group of seven people meeting at Paddington on 25 May 1962, to its peak period where 300 people along the Australian Eastern Seaboard come together on a regular basis to discuss items of mutual interest; the history of ATMA is a remarkable story. The following pages document this history and are a tribute to those who have been involved with this organisation over the past 40 years. An idea was generated in Sydney by a visionary man who had ideas which would lead to a sharing of technical information, and be a forum for open discussion between rival companies involved in Flour Milling, Stockfeed Milling and associated industries. This person began the eventual formation of this body of people by telephoning key people in the industry in Sydney, who also showed support by agreeing to come together to discuss this idea. The first recorded meeting was held at Mr Tim Park's home at 83 Glenmore Road, Paddington on the 25th May 1962. Present at that inaugural meeting were: Mr. G McCorquodale At this meeting it was decided to establish a group (name still to be decided) which would comprise of interested people in the technical milling field. It was envisaged that this group would constitute somewhere in the vicinity of twenty to thirty people, and that each member present would consider suggestions as to invitees for a further meeting to be held in the future. Those present agreed to bring together other interested people and hold a further meeting to discuss in more detail the issues for the formation of this group. Fifteen people attended the next recorded meeting held at Mr. Stephen Jedlin's home on Old Northern Road, Castle Hill on the 6th July 1962. All those who attended the first meeting were present as well as: Mr. B Bisbee This meeting discussed several options however no conclusions were reached apart from forming an interim committee (for a period of 6 months) to recommend: a) What name this group should be called, The interim committee comprised: - Mr. McCorquodale (Chairman) Two months elapsed before this interim committee met again. At this next meeting the three objectives handed to this committee to resolve were achieved showing the dedication of these people to further the industry. Major decisions arrived at this meeting were: a) The name of this group would be "The Technical Millers Group" (TMG). b) A guest speaker Mr Stan Hodgson would be approached and invited to speak to the group on "Handling and Segregation of Wheat in New South Wales". A suitable meeting hall in the Burwood area would be sought to convene such a meeting. All items which should be included in a constitution were tabled and Mr P Stephenson then undertook the task of formalising these to a suitable document. He agreed to have this document completed by the next committee meeting. The first function of the TMG was held on 27th October 1962 at ELIM, 83 Shaftesbury Road Burwood. The programme was as follows. 8.00pm - Arrive and register 8.30pm - Meeting, chaired by Mr Tim Park called to order and an outline of the TMG was given together with its origination and future direction. Mr Geoff McCorquodale then introduced the guest speaker Mr Stan Hodgson, Chairman of the Grain Elevators Board of N.S.W. At the conclusion of the address the chairman called on Mr Peter Stephenson to give a vote of thanks. A buffet dinner and drinks followed the meeting. A good time was had by all of those who attended. This was quite an achievement in these early days where skepticism was rife amongst rival companies in the industry, and for key personnel to come and talk openly with one another on common ground was remarkable. It was claimed that this first meeting of the group set up a great deal of trust between members and was so fundamental that the future success owed much to this meeting. The next formal meeting of members was held on 21st February 1963 at the Metropolitan Hotel, Bridge Street Sydney. All members of this meeting were given a copy of the draft constitution (please refer to Appendix 1). Note: Annual membership was 5/-. The Constitution was accepted by the members present and so the T.M.G. was officially formed. The first official committee was then elected as follows. Tim Park - Weston Milling Company - Chairman The active committee enabled the group to grow in strength from year to year by providing members with functions to expand industry knowledge and maintain support for the TMG. The association retained its name until 12 September 1972 when a unanimously carried motion amended the constitution from "The Technical Millers Group" to "The Australian Technical Millers Association". As the strength of this association grew, millers from Victoria and Queensland began to express interest in the association and its benefits. Early 1972 Mr. G. Wise began a campaign to establish a Technical Millers Group in Victoria similar to the ATMA in NSW. First attempts led to a limited response and the project was abandoned. In January 1973 Mr Wise was elected Chairman of the Flour Millers Council of Victoria and some months later he resurrected the idea of forming a Victorian Technical Millers Association. In March 1973 a meeting at the Bourke Country Steak House was arranged and attended by G.Wise, J.Stephenson, A.Laver, D.Willis, B.Gordon, K.Rollason, and H.Hubner. It was decided that those present would form a provisional committee with G.Wise as provisional secretary. It was proposed that the VTMA be based on the ATMA (NSW) and the FMCV be approached for support. On the 15 May 1973, the provisional committee decided that an Inaugural meeting be held on 18 June 1973. However formal elections did not take place until 3 December 1973, where the committee was elected. The elected committee comprised: H Hubner - President At the June 1973 meeting papers were presented by D Willis entitled "So you want to be a miller" and Mr R Cracknell of the AWB spoke on "Wheat Storage, Handling and Segregation". April 1974 saw the initial proceedings of the Biennial Conference. R Dalton, R Gough and L Steves from the ATMA (NSW) visited the VTMA and began to programme a seminar to be held in Melbourne. This was held on 12th to 14th September 1974 in which 110 members attended and the conference was a great success. Mr. A. Peate commenced talking to flour millers and members from associated industries of Queensland in early 1975 regarding the establishment of the QTMA. It wasn't until 4 September 1975 that Queensland formed the QTMA. In 2005 the Queensland Division of the ATMA celebrated 30 years of activity. Mr. A Peate was deceased by that time however his efforts in establishing the Queensland branch should not be forgotten as the association progresses. The QTMA used the existing constitutions of ATMA and VTMA to form their own constitution and elected 6 members to its first committee. A Peate - President The original membership fee in 1975 was $10.00 which entitled members to attend the first technical conference with invited speakers Mr. L Price, Chairman of Queensland Grain Growers Association, and Mr E Bond, Director of The Bread Research Institute of Australia. Nearly 6 years passed before members from all 3 associations met to discuss aligning the associations as the ATMA with respective state divisions. On 4 August 1981 the States amended respective constitutions and the ATMA name was recognised in all states. An objective within the constitution is to bring together members of the cereal milling and allied industries, and to encourage technical interest and knowledge for the betterment of the industry. The ATMA has achieved this commitment through establishment of the successful Biennial Conference. Since those days in September 1974 conferences have been held throughout the country and alternate from one division to another. 1976 Melbourne VTMA These biennial conferences have provided an international flavour with overseas speakers joining local presenters to provide topical information of direct interest to member industries. The conference subsequently developed to include displays by suppliers to the industry especially the milling engineering companies. The biennial conference has grown in status with each subsequent conference and is now identified as the major industry event every two years. The success of this initiative has meant that ATMA is unable to organize the event singularly and joins with The Stockfeed Manufacturers Council of Australia and The Flour Millers Council of Australia to maintain this important event on the milling industry calendar. Each state division meets the requirements of the constitution to satisfy the needs of its members through a combination of speaker meetings, conferences, seminars and site visits. Typical of subject areas addressed by the various activities are; technical information on engineering development and new practices, nutrition, baking, workplace health and safety, microprocessor and computer technology, equipment advances and new designs, amongst many other matters of member interest. Site tours include bulk wheat storages, bakeries, biscuit and cake manufacturers, retail distributors, packaging manufacturers and many other associated industry plants. The ATMA has a strong commitment towards its younger members and in support the "Young Achiever Award" was established as another major project. In 1992 the first "Young Achiever Awards" was made at the Biennial Conference held in Melbourne. By rotation each state division appoints a committee to select the Young Achiever who is presented with his award at the Biennial Conference conducted by the joint organising committee. The prize is a significant cash grant to enable the recipient to undertake an approved funded overseas study tour. . Melbourne 1992 Peter Hartley QCMA (Qld) * From 2000 the Stock Feed Industry had maintained its own Development Award. Life Memberships: Queensland: Rod Dalton - QCMA Jack Brose (d) Geoffrey Wise (d) - FMCV Although challenged by a reduction in milling companies and personnel employed in the industry the ATMA state divisions continue to strive to provide members with technical support and networking through seminars, meetings and the Biennial Conference. We hope that industry personnel will continue to find value in ATMA activities and will support the state committees in their endeavour to organize member activities. APPENDIX No. 1 That the name shall be Technical Millers' Group of N.S.W. The object of the Group shall be to bring together members of the flour milling and allied industries, and to encourage technical interest and knowledge, to the betterment of the industry. The annual subscription shall be 5/- or such amount as may be determined at an Annual General Meeting. Annual subscriptions shall become due at the beginning of each calendar year. Meetings shall be held about three times per year at a time and place to be decided by the Committee. Ten members shall form a quorum. The Committee shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting and shall consist of eight members. The committee shall elect from among its members, a Chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer. The Secretary shall keep a correct record of the minutes of the meetings on a book provided for the purpose, and place before the meeting all correspondence. In the absence of the Secretary, a minute Secretary shall be elected for the meeting. The Treasurer shall receive all monies, issue receipts for the same and pay all accounts authorised by the "Committee", and keep proper records. A financial statement shall be presented at the Annual General Meeting. |
