21 September 1995 New Wool Science Professor At Lincoln

An Ashburton-born, internationally-known wool scientist, Dr Errol Wood, aged 48, of Lincoln, has been appointed Professor of Wool Science and Technology at Lincoln University.

Dr Wood, who is currently head of the Physics and Measurement Division of the Wool Research Organisation of New Zealand, takes up the Lincoln University chair on a joint basis with his WRONZ employment.

The Lincoln professorship is funded by Wools of New Zealand - formerly the NZ Wool Board - and the University's Vice-Chancellor, Professor Bruce Ross, sees "immense value" in a shared position such as this. Dr Wood's predecessor also filled the post on a joint basis with WRONZ.

The retention of links with WRONZ is a "real strength" of the appointment, says Lincoln University's Vice-Chancellor, Professor Bruce Ross.

"An appointment of this nature will provide all sorts of opportunities for our students and postgraduates to be involved in 'real ' applications of their learning and to enjoy direct contact with the wool industry.

"Lincoln University is delighted to have such a well-qualified scientist take up the professorship," he says.

"For the University, Dr Wood brings strong and potentially fruitful contacts with the wool industry and a wide range of links with overseas universities and institutions."

Professor Ross points out that the word "Technology" has been added to the title of the Chair to reflect existing expertise and activities, for example the teaching of a Diploma in Wool Technology, and to provide for future teaching and research developments in the technology area.

The Managing Director of WRONZ, Dr Garth Carnaby, sees the joint appointment as "unlocking new and exciting synergies" between the scientific and research staff at WRONZ and the academic staff and resources at Lincoln University. (WRONZ and Lincoln University stand side by side at Lincoln, 20 kilometres south of Christchurch).

"Between us we have the scope to develop a major research teaching facility at postgraduate level in wool science and technology," says Dr Camaby.

"We look forward to strengthening our linkage both within Lincoln University and with our other neighbour, AgResearch, to create a real national focus on wool at Lincoln.

"Dr Wood is a world renowned wool scientist and will bring a wide range of professional and personal qualities to the position."

In taking up the post, Dr Wood sees great growth potential for Lincoln's Department of Wool Science through marketing the combined facilities of the University and WRONZ as a centre of excellence in wool and textile education and research.

"As the production, marketing and processing pipeline for New Zealand wool becomes increasingly sophisticated and 'high-tech', the requirements for advanced training for managers, technologists and other personnel in the wool industry will increase," he says.

"Through the linkage expressed in this shared appointment, Lincoln University and WRONZ will be well placed to meet the diverse future educational and research requirements of a major New Zealand export industry and its clients.

"And for the students of the future there will be exciting opportunities for enhanced undergraduate courses in wool science and technology and for postgraduate projects which are closely linked to WRONZ research and development programmes."

A graduate of the University of Canterbury, Dr Wood holds a B.Sc with First Class Honours in Physics and a Ph.D in Physics (Solid State Spectroscopy). He also trained as a secondary school teacher and taught mathematics and physics at Christchurch's Cashmere High School, early in his career.

In 1979 he joined the Wool Research Organisation of New Zealand as a scientist with the Textile Physics Group. He was subsequently promoted to Senior Scientist and Research Leader and had a key role in the development of the Length After Carding test for scoured wool, from its inception to the completion of the New Zealand Standard in 1992. He also had responsibility for progressing the Core Bulk Test through to a New Zealand Standard in 1994.

Dr Wood pioneered the application of digital image analysis techniques to the problem of objectively measuring the appearance characteristics of carpets and similar textile structures.

This involved defining a new "language" for describing textural features of carpet piles, and the tasks of hardware integration and software development.

This work has made WRONZ pre-eminent in this field and has led to the production of the WRONZ Lookmeter, a commercially available dedicated imaging system for objectively measuring the appearance characteristics of carpets. This is a unique development, not available anywhere else in the world.

Dr Wood has also been the co-developer of two New Zealand patents - a pressure control system for loose-stock dyeing of wool and a spear-head device for the sampling of scoured wool. These technologies are now in commercial use.

In 1992 Dr Wood was promoted to Head of the Physics and Measurement Division at WRONZ and appointed to the organisation's Management Committee. Since then he has had increasing responsibility for managing research and development in wool measurement and marketing systems and carpet performance.

Over the years Dr Wood has received a number of awards - including a British Council Travel Award - which have taken him internationally to many wool and textile conferences and research and teaching institutions.

He is the author and co-author of over 60 research reports, conference papers and journal articles on wool measurement and marketing technologies, wool processing and product performance.

Dr Wood is married with three children.

Ian Collins, Journalist, Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand.