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DCA conventioneers here are Billy Bishop, Midcon- tinent Pipe Line Equipment Co.; Carl Stringer, Linde Co i and John Brand, CRC-Crose International. Smiling folks Here are Mr. and Mrs. Lee Darby, Albert & Harlow; Jack Royston, Royston Laboratories; Mrs. Jim Upton; and Bob Burkhardt, Burkhardt Pipeline Construction Co. Administrative Committee Is Ex- panded: George Franz (Midwestern Contr., Inc.) was appointed Admin- istrative Committee Chairman, and committee members already an- nounced are: Bob Cooley (Distribu- tion Construction Co.) ; Bill Pfeiffer (Miller Pipeline Corp.); Ted Koenigs (Michels Pipeline Construction Co.) ; Verne Lawrence (Mid-Mountain Con- tractors, Inc.) and Fay Story (R. E. Reutzel Co.). This committee form- erly consisted of three members, and has conducted informative panel round-tables at the past two conven- tions. Associate Member Chair m a n : Dick Cline, Midwestern Engine & Equipment Co., was elected to suc- ceed Phil Davidson, Leland Equip- ment Co., as Associate Member Chair- man through the 1969 convention. As usual, the DCA Associate Mem- bers made a major contribution to the overall enjoyment and productiv- ity of the Las Vegas Convention. Address by Buell Duncan Buell G. Duncan, president of the American Gas Association and Pied- mont Natural Gas Co., speaking at a luncheon at the convention told con- tractors that nearly half of the $2 bil- lion to be spent on new construction by the gas industry this year would be used for new distribution facilities. ?╟úThis year,?╟Ñ he declared, ?╟úthe gas industry will spend $2,383,000,000 on all types of construction, according to our slide rule boys. They are notori- ous, incidentally, for their conserv- atism. I won?╟╓t go into the-^complete breakdown of this figure, but our Bu- reau of Statistics estimates that almost $969 million will be spent on dis- tribution construction. ?╟úThe projected expenditures for each year from 1969 through 1975 run like this: $839; $889; $876; $899; $922; $951; and $972 millions of dollars. In 1976, the estimate is $1,071,000,000 and in 1978, estimat- ed expenditures are $1,195,000,000.?╟Ñ Continued Growth Seen The A.G.A. president said that the projections give strong indication of the continued growth and stability of the gas industry. Other projections indicate, he added, that by 1980 the industrty will be selling almost 276 billion therms of natural gas?╟÷almost twice the 1967 sales. Turning to the need for greater emphasis of public relations by indus- try in its marketing efforts, Duncan said that too many companies have ignored or failed to take advantage of day-to-day public relations practices. ?╟úPlanned public relations pro- grams,?╟Ñ Duncan said, ?╟úare just as im- portant as a planned marketing pro- gram. In fact, public relations prac- tices go hand-in-hand with market- ing. It is difficult to tell where one ends and the other begins?╟÷in fact, they are so closely meshed as to con- stitute one entity. '.'?╟úWe in the American Gas Associa- tion have instituted a program called Equipment delegates here are Mr. and Mrs. John Timberlake, Leland Equipment Co. and John Schearer, Cleveland Trencher Co. Featured speaker at DCA luncheon Buell Duncan, president of AGA shown here with Mrs. Duncan and Oliver Klinger, Jr., publisher of Pipeline Construction.