50th Anniversary

Message delivered by AAQTIC’s President, Licentiate Jorge Vergara, on the occasion of its Fiftieth Anniversary 1959-2009

25 years of AAQTIC

On May 15th 1959, the Organisation Meeting was held with the presence of the initial 21 members. Among them was Doctor Ernesto Mezei, main inspirer for the creation of the Association and then its first president.

The institution rapidly set to work and, within a few years, it achieved several of its major goals. In this way, the first round table took place at the end of that same year. By 1960, AAQTIC had already become a member of the IULTCS (International Union of Leather Technologists and Chemists Societies). In July 1960, the first issue of this magazine was published. In December 1963, the Association’s library was inaugurated. In August 1964, the first course was started. And in December 1966, the 1st Latin American Congress was held and legal personality was obtained. It is worth to mention that, during that period, about 38 lectures, round tables or technical meetings were conducted, that the Technology course famous “folder” was published, that Dr. Mezei represented the Association at the IULTCS’s congresses, and that membership grew from the original 21 to 291 active members, 62 patron members and 38 foreign members.

The list is short but it entails a fruitful work–the result of persevering and altruistic efforts by many association members through their participation in the Executive Committee, in subcommittees or as mere collaborators. It also implies having capitalised on, or appropriately channelled, the enormous assistance that, in different ways, it has received from institutions, companies or friend individuals, to whom the Association makes permanent acknowledgement.

Besides purely administrative work, the most important and most frequent activities have always been those related to courses, lectures, and the Magazine.

The 42 courses given over these 25 years have filled a gap by imparting knowledge for the acquisition of which there is no specific educational institution. Apart from being a significant source of income, they have provided many young technicians an opportunity to approach the Association and become its members.

Lectures and round tables are an update means and they also generate a useful exchange of opinions and information. In addition, they play an important social role by bringing members together. 83 such meetings scheduled in the last five five-year periods show a permanent concern for this aspect of the institutional action.

The Magazine won its reputation from its very start both in our and in other Latin American countries where it made friends and recruited new members for the Association, while aiding in its dissemination. It has always been quite costly, but its continuity was ensured by advertisement income from friend companies that, in many cases, publish their ads as a way of cooperation.

AAQTIC’s presence in the IULTCS has not always been equally outstanding. It reached a peak when its representative, Dr. Dofía, served as a vocal member, vicepresident and president of the committee during a period of far-reaching changes in the Union. Aside from this conspicuous presence in the Executive Committee, the attendance and appropriate performance of relatively numerous Argentine delegations in the congresses held in 1975, 1977 and 1979 also contributed to make it possible to organise the 1981 Congress in Argentina.

The AAQTIC (its directors, members, friend organisations, companies and individuals) accepted the challenge that this congress represented, as it had previously taken up those posed by the 1st, 2nd and 6th Latin American Congresses, which had given the Association a valuable experience. The result was the high regard and prestige earned by our institution, which in turn bring along further obligations and responsibilities.

The Association’s library began operation thanks to the contribution of several companies. Its holdings were increased with purchases, donations and legacies from deceased members, as well as with a number of magazine collections acquired by exchange with our publication.

Other activities and steps taken over this time period have included some technical meetings concerning matters of common interest with the CICA (Chamber of the Argentine Tanning Industry) and the CIC (Chamber of the Footwear Industry), the attendance to Latin American congresses and other events held abroad, the grant of OAS (Organisation of American States) Scholarships, the arrangement of pleasant social gatherings, the response to enquiries or contacts with governmental bodies regarding technical issues, the encouragement of a Tanning School, and the housing of the Association’s offices in a building of its own.

In several occasions, AAQTIC supported or accompanied CICA in its struggle for quality or for the availability of raw hides.

From its origins until 1976, AAQTIC’s activities were carried out in premises lent by the former Tanner’s Union Chamber (forerunner of today’s CICA). As any other organisation that grows and aims at autonomous development, AAQTIC needed to have its own house, and the Executive Committee then in office faced the issue with courage and determination. This meant another great mobilisation of its members and their society spirit. The response was wide and enthusiastic and, through numerous contributions, the purchase could be made. We think that there are very few associations that own such an important office building as ours.

The Association’s actions have led to contacts with many private and government entities. The closest relations are those it maintains with tanning, footwear and fur trade Chambers; the CITEC; the AQA (Argentine Chemical Association); peer Latin American associations and the Federation that gathers them; the IULTCS; and the Leather Inter-American System.

An active relationship has also been established with the various tanning and supply companies which, as patron members or advertisers in the Magazine, or through other contributions, have been a great support and have cooperated a lot to back the Institution.

Many foreign personalities visited the AAQTIC or took its lecture stand. We could mention more than 16, among them Drs. Gratacos, Kanagy, Nagski, Nayudamma, Pauckner Plapper, and Dr. Paniker when she was the IULTCS’s President. And let us add to this list Mr. Koppany who, though Argentine, occupied, and still occupies, top positions at the ICT (International Council of Tanners).

In the social aspect, the Association has, from its beginnings, fully performed an integrating function among its members, at the same time achieving the objective of bringing their families together. Festivity events and technical meetings of any kind have contributed to that purpose by promoting mutual knowledge and personal exchange which, apart from having technological consequences, are beneficial from the human and institutional viewpoints.

This was just a brief account of what has been done or achieved. It may be suitable to conclude these lines by pointing out ideas or goals, suggested or stated once, which have been only partially or not fulfilled at all, either because their fulfilment was not compulsory or because the circumstances were not the appropriate ones. It will be the task of current authorities and of successive executive committees to determine which initiatives out of those brought forward twenty-five years ago are still in force, what new demands have added to the previous ones, which of them should be given priority, and where the maximum efforts should be placed in order to meet them.

Therefore, there is still a lot of work to be done.

We can assure that a lot of new and valuable ideas will be realised during the next 25 years, and that the future members of AAQTIC will reach the fiftieth anniversary with the satisfaction of having accomplished a great mission.

Up to here, the full transcript of the editorial published in Volume 25, No 1 (May 1st 1984) of the Magazine of the Leather Industry Chemists and Technicians Association on the occasion of AAQTIC’s 25th anniversary.
It is not my intention to draw a comparative balance of the following 25 years, as the Executive Committee presided by the unforgettable Rubén de Bonis did. Instead, let us be carried away by nostalgia for having reached 50 years and by tenderness towards so many people who have pulled together all this time, doing things on their own just for altruistic purposes.
As a matter of fact, this is essence of non-profit civil associations–the type of organisation that AAQTIC adopted since its foundation. However, some issues have changed over the past 25 years, among them:

· The tannery technician’s profile (due to structural changes in the tanning industry).
· The increase in the number of tannery technicians within the supply industry.
· The emergence in society of a more efficiency-focused and less romantic concept of professional activity.

These factors have modified the profile of AAQTIC’s members as regards their time availability to attend events or to assume functions and responsibilities within the organisation structure. The special attention devoted to the production and manufacture of different types of articles during the first 25 years, later became shared with concerns such as environment, quality certification, new test methods, and so on.
In order to conduct their activities, some colleague associations have chosen a way that involves the creation of an important infrastructure and the hiring of paid staff. This is not the case with AAQTIC, which still relies mainly on volunteering. However, the performance of certain tasks that need to be done within a short time frame or the presence of prominent personalities in technical events, to give just two examples, lead us to think there is a need for some change of mentality on the part of our Association.
In any case, I do not know if we have fulfilled what Rubén prophesized with much conviction in the final paragraph of his editorial. But what I am absolutely sure of is that we have kept alive the flame that the founders lighted 50 years ago, and I hope it will keep on burning for many years, if only as an obstinate homage to them and to their followers.