234
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.
[No. 10

supervision of details, see that all orders as to inspections and arrangements for the custody and care of Ordnance premises and stores as laid down in these regulations are strictly carried out, and that stores are received, issued, and accounted for in strict accordance with the regulations of the service and with a due regard to economy.

16. He will exercise a check over the estimates for the payment of labour for all descriptions of work to be executed in or on account of the Ordnance Department; he will ascertain whether it is necessary to expend the proposed amount of money and stores.

17. He will inquire into all appeals against disallowances made on the cash or stores accounts of his department before transmitting them for decision.

18. He will cause all bills, pay-lists, and other documents for the payment or receipt of money for the service of his department to be prepared and completed in every particular before being presented to the command Paymaster.

19. He is responsible for administering the establishments under his charge in an efficient and economical manner, and the absence or existence of a definite regulation will not absolve him from responsibility in this respect.

20. Upon an officer in charge of stores being relieved he will prepare the documents detailed in Appendices I and II in duplicate. One copy will be transmitted by the D. of E. & O.S. to the superior authority and the other retained at the station.

II. ORDNANCE OFFICERS.

21. The Ordnance Officers and other accounting officers will be responsible to the D. of E. & O.S. for the efficient working of the storehouses, workshops, and outdoor duties generally.

22. The Ordnance Officer and other accounting officers will by personal supervision see that the storeholders, foreman, artificers, and labourers give the prescribed attendance; and they will be responsible that the men are employed to the best advantage and in strict conformity with the rules of the service.

23. The Ordnance Officer and other accounting officers will, when necessary, report to the D. of E. & O.S. any irregularity of attendance or other misconduct on the part of any of the subordinates of the department.

24. The Ordnance Officer will daily visit and inspect all storehouses and workshops in his charge.

25. Officers and other persons belonging to the department are not to carry on, nor be concerned in, any trade whatever, nor to be employed in any agency. They are not, either directly or indirectly, to derive the smallest advantage from their positions in the service beyond their authorized pay and allowances.

26. All officers will acquire a full and practical knowledge not only of the various descriptions and proportions of Ordnance stores and munitions of war required for the several services, but also, as far as possible, of the nature and qualities of the materials of which such stores and munitions are composed. They will also pay particular attention to correctly accounting for all stores committed to their charge.

27. A list of all approved changes of pattern in artillery material, small-arms, accoutrements, and other military stores is issued from time to time. Every officer of the department is expected to make himself thoroughly acquainted with the changes contained therein.

III. ESTABLISHMENTS AND CIVILIAN SUBORDINATES

28. In selecting subordinates from outside the department to fill any vacancy, preference will be given to men who have served with credit in the Army or Navy; civilians should only be appointed if the D. of E. & O.S. is satisfied that suitable men who have so served cannot be obtained.

29. No man will be charged for in one capacity and employed in another, but labourers may be employed, when necessary, as watchmen and warders at Ordnance establishments.

30. Men who go on watch for the first part of a night will not remain longer than midnight, when they will be relieved by an equal number of other men, who will watch during the remainder of the night and receive the regulated allowance.

31. The employment of men on overtime will be avoided as much as possible, and will only be resorted to upon occasions such as discharging or loading vessels, or in dealing with special issues and receipts of stores in urgent cases.

32. All cases of serious injury sustained by subordinates in the execution of their duty will be investigated by a departmental Court of Inquiry, or by the officer in charge of the station; and a copy of the proceedings of the Court of Inquiry, or a statement of the result of the investigation, will be retained at the station for permanent record.

IV. CORRESPONDENCE, RECORDS, REPORTS, AND RETURNS.

33. In the case of an officer of the department being relieved or ordered on other service, all books and documents connected with his official proceedings, either in correspondence with his own or any other department, and all other books, circulars, and papers likely to furnish useful information regarding the business of the department, are to be left with his successor.

V. AUTHORIZATION OF EXPENDITURE.

34. The purchase of stores provided under a vote for warlike and other stores is dealt with by the D. of E. & O.S. under the orders of the superior authority.

35. While every attention is to be given to purchasing at the lowest possible price, full consideration is to be given to the record and character of the firms tendering, and of the probability of their executing the order satisfactorily and punctually.

36. All contracts will be entered into and all important purchases made under the orders of the D. of E. & O.S.

Section II.—Charge of Storehouses, Magazines, and Workshops.

I. STOREHOUSES.

37. A copy of the Official Secrets Act will be posted in a conspicuous place in every Ordnance establishment.

38. Ordnance establishments are in charge of the D. of E. & O.S., and no officer or other person has any right of entrance therein unless with the permission of the D. of E. & O.S. or as provided for by regulations.

39. Visitors will not be allowed to go round the establishments and storehouses without the permission of the officer in charge, nor will they be allowed to go independently about the premises; they will remain with the person who may be directed to attend them.

At stations where the buildings are in Ordnance charge the furniture will be provided by the Ordnance Department under the conditions and in accordance with the scales governing the issue to similar buildings elsewhere, and accounted for as “articles in use” (see also the “Regulations for the Administration and Equipment of Camps and Barracks”).

40. Proper storehouses and places of deposit will be provided for the stores committed to the charge of the department. The essential points to be attended to are that they are easy of access for wagons, and that they afford facilities for the shipment and general issue of stores. No storehouses will be lent or disposed of without sanction of the superior authority, nor will any storehouse, magazine, or other public building be used for any private purpose.

II. WORKSHOPS.

41. The officer in charge will be responsible that these workshops are in an efficient state, that no more workmen are engaged in them than can be fully employed, that the conversion and repair of stores are effected in the most economical manner consistent with efficiency, that no repairs are executed except for the public service, that no foreman, artificer, or labourer is on any account employed for private purposes during working-hours. When the artificers of the R.N.Z.A. are not required for artificers’ work in the forts they will, if required, be employed in the Ordnance workshops as laid down in the King’s Regulations.

42. Indents for repairs or conversion of stores will be rendered in duplicate on form G. 34, and will be approved by the officer in charge before being passed for execution in the workshops. He will exercise his discretion as to whether the stores shall be repaired or brought forward for condemnation.

43. In the case of repairs to stores for other corps or departments, the workshop indents on form G. 34 will be sent in by officer commanding concerned, showing number of articles to be repaired and defects to be made good. In the case of repairs for the department the indent will be prepared by the foreman of section concerned.

44. If the condition of any article sent in by a unit for repair is found on examination not due to fair wear the matter will be referred to officer commanding, and action will be taken as laid down in the King’s Regulations with regard to damaged equipment, if it is necessary to decide on whom the cost of repair may fall.

45. Copies of indents received at the workshops will be filed loose: they will be removed to a separate pad when the work on them has been completed. When any necessary materials for the service have been drawn, the number and date of the expense voucher on which the materials are written off charge will be inserted on the indent, on which will also be shown the dates of the commencement and completion of the service.

46. Any balance of material drawn for repair of stores remaining unexpended after completion of the service for which it was drawn will be collected weekly from the various shops, and kept under lock and key in charge of the workshop foreman. Under no circumstances will it be retained in the shop. Such material will be utilized for any work which may be in hand. Once a month this material will be reviewed by the officer in charge of station in consultation with the shops foreman, and any considerable accumulation not required for use will be brought on charge by certificate voucher.

47. In painters’ workshops suitable conveniences for washing, including nail-brushes and towels, will be provided for the use of those employed therein, and measures will be taken to ensure every man washing his hands and face before leaving work. Overall suits will be worn by men engaged in grinding or mixing paints.