LLL

asbestos

how we sell it

To keep the mine going someone has to
sell the product the mine produces.

Selling the asbestos means beating the
bushes in many parts of the world to lo-
cate markets for the fibre — and sell it.
This continuing sales effort is largely out of
sight. It’s hard to put a handle on it when
we are away up here in Cassiar because
our selling and customer service programs
are taking place, in many cases, thousands
of miles from here. We never see this side
of the business in action.

Yet, day in and day out, the asbestos rolls
out of Cassiar in what appears to be an
automatic operation. But it isn’t. The as-
bestos has to be sold before we can ship it.
And we can store only so much unsold
fibre. Within a matter of days the system
would become glutted with fibre and that
would be it!

Selling is a highly competitive business.
There are lots of asbestos mines. In fact
asbestos is present in a variety of forms in
many parts of the world. This means that
we are selling against other producing
mines that are, in many cases, located
closer to the purchaser’s manufacturing
plant. This gives some competing mines an
advantage because less distance means
lower transportation costs.

Quality is also a factor. Fortunately, some
of the best quality fibre in the world is
produced at Cassiar. But high quality fibre
alone is not enough. It must be clean high
quality fibre. That is why we are so sticky
about cleanliness during the mining and
milling process. Cigarette butts and other
foreign matter mixed in with the fibre will
not endear us to our customers. Our pro-
duct is clean. It has a reputation for being
clean. And that is a big plus for Cassiar in
the competitive fibre market.

Also, we offer some 10 basic grades plus a
number of specialty grades of asbestos
fibre to world manufacturers.’ Because
‘grade’ depends on the length of fiber, it is
most important that our milling procedures

— and our laboratory testing techniques —
ensure that each grade meets the meticul-
ous criteria set by the industry. At Cassiar
we take a back seat to no one when it
comes to producing clean grades of fibre
to undeviating standards.

This is what our customers want and need.
It is our job to see that they get it. If we
don’t someone else will.

The asbestos we produce is transported by
trucks, trains, and ships to Vancouver
where it is stored in huge warehouses lo-
cated on the North Vancouver waterfront.
From there it is transported to the markets
of the world.

Who does the selling for the company?
Most of it is done by the senior executives
of the company who know and understand
the world-wide asbestos picture. That is
one of their jobs. You produce it and they
sell it.

The fact of the matter is that neither the
producers nor the sellers can make it
alone. They are part of the same team,
and neither can do their job without the
support of the other. So, part of the job of
selling asbestos fibre rests with us here at
the mine. No one will buy a poor product
— and that’s a fact. The answer is to pro-
duce a good product — and we do.

That is how we sell it.

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