Dear Editor,
I note, with some confusion, a letter from Mr Elton McRae, in the January 6 edition of KN, referring to an extrusion process developed by the IAST in 2007-2008. Mr McRae, in 2008, raised a number of questions via letters submitted to KN and SN, regarding the originality of the process we developed, and was invited to come in to IAST and observe the process. I could, at the time, fathom no utility in participating in a dialogue via the newspapers on what is essentially a technical matter. I still do not. Unfortunately, Mr McRae did not accept my invitation to visit and discuss the process.
Indeed, I am only addressing this latest publication because I have received a number of telephone calls from people to ask about the nature and reason for this letter, which seems to challenge the veracity of statements attributed to me. Unfortunately, this can have an impact on the reputation of the institute, and therefore I cannot avoid commenting on the issue.
On publication of the most recent letter, Mr McRae called my office to explain that it seems KN had published a letter he submitted in 2008! Mr McRae and I had a cordial conversation – the first time we have ever spoken or directly communicated – and he was informed of the essential aspects of the process developed at the IAST. It seems that his objections to our initial news item in 2008 stemmed from two sources – one was a misreporting by the Stabroek News, and the other, an erroneous assumption of the process that was being reported on. The process designed by IAST relates to the use of extruded clay aggregates for sub-surface structures in road-building, whilst Mr McRae incorrectly assumed it was related to paving material. Like in all technical matters reported in the press, there is always a level of ambiguity, and it is easy to see how this assumption may have been made. This is exactly why Mr McRae was invited to come and discuss the process, in the first instance.
Mr McRae has accepted my invitation to come to IAST and tour not only our clay works projects, but all of our projects. I note, also in today’s (January 9) edition of SN, a letter from Mr McRae, which seeks to explain that the January 6 KN letter was one he had written in 2008. Unfortunately, although Mr McRae submitted this letter to KN as well as SN, KN did not publish his latest letter. Mr McRae’s letter in the January 9 edition of SN did not go into some of the more salient details that I have chosen to provide above, so I made the decision to submit this letter to both editors of SN and KN. I remain confused as to why a 2008 letter would be published in KN in 2012, but mistakes do occur.
I take this opportunity to encourage members of the public – if you have a technical question, please contact our office at 592 222 4214 or email us at csec_iast@yahoo.com. We lack the inclination and capacity to address your concerns via the letters column in the dailies, but would welcome the opportunity to dialogue with you on any of our current or future projects.
Yours faithfully,
Suresh S Narine
Director
IAST
