CHAIRMAN'S REPORT 2008 My earlier Chairman's reports have struggled to find something new and exciting to say about the year just passed and have contented themselves with repeating the details of our operations. During my tenure as Chairman, very little has changed on that front - the basic pattern of recording items, compiling editions, copying and distributing our tapes as remained the same - processes that have now become as streamlined as possible and are now including the increasing use of a laptop computer.
But all that is about to change! For a number of years, the minutes of our committee meetings have recorded interminable discussion about the introduction of CDs, as replacements for our cassette tapes. All that had been for the future but this year, the future has arrived!
From January we have started to roll out some trial copies of the English edition - about 30 in all - and hope to extend the service to all our listeners who would prefer this format. This development has been forced upon us by the phasing out of conventional cassette tapes. However, we will be faced with the challenge of producing both CD and cassette versions of each edition, with all the complications that involves, and at present we are working out how best to achieve this. Early results seem promising.
The first complication has been the need for 3 pieces of new equipment - the Coomber that enables us to transfer the tape to CD, the Tower that produces multiple copies of the CD, and the Synergy machine that both labels and copies the CDs. The use of these machines, however, considerably extends the time required to produce each month's edition.
Complication Two - the difference between the cassette, 90 minutes with 45 on each side, and the CD, 80 minutes straight through. This cannot be solved just by reducing the cassette length to 80 minutes, as the instructions for stopping and reversing the cassette after side one are not needed on the CD, and the track details of the CD are not needed on the cassette.
Complication Three - the logistics of distribution, with each of the formats requiring a different treatment. The new orange CD pouches with their labels need to be returned in the usual way, but the CDs and their paper sleeves can be retained by the listener, as the CDs at present are not rewriteable.
That we are in this position - on the threshold of successful conversion to CD - is due to the efforts and expertise of one man - our Technical Officer, Mr Brian Fenn. Brian has not only researched, costed, purchased and installed all the extra equipment we have needed, he has even built the shelves and trolleys to take them, and guided the editors in their use. All this after writing the computer program for our laptop and designing our website - http://sainclwydsound.org.
So, this year, we owe a huge vote of thanks to Brian, though he would, no doubt, insist that I extend our appreciation to all those, too numerous to name individually - unpaid volunteers one and all - who give so willingly of their time and talent: namely, our contributors, editors, the entire Welsh group, the copiers, the distribution team, our Secretary and Treasurer, and our Committee - not to forget all the people and groups who have given donations, raised money through talks and coffee mornings, or turned out for street collections.
And talking of money,the capital costs of the new equipment and the extra running costs of non-returnable CDs, their paper sleeves and the new pouches, are going to place an additional burden on our finances. Fortunately, we have been building reserves to meet such costs initially but, in future, we will have to appeal for sponsorship. A start has already been made with contributions from Llanarmon Show and, most recently, from Mold Rotary Club, through the sterling efforts of our quiz team in winning at the club's Annual Quiz Night! Such sponsorship will be acknowledged in the CD's content and printed on the CD itself.
This annual 'State of the Union' message - my ninth would you believe! - has focussed, out of necessity, mainly on technical matters but Sain Clwyd Sound has a human face (and voice). Fortunately, as a group over the past few years, we have kept much the same team sheet, but every squad needs strengthening from time to time and I welcome our newest committee members, and every team regrets the loss of those who have given valuable service in the past.
So there you have it!
All these are exciting challenges for Sain Clwyd Sound in 2008, which, if met, will lead to an edition of better sound quality, more visual appeal and greater flexibility of use - and be collectable!
The change has been set in motion and cannot be reversed. Next year's Report, perhaps from the politically correct 'Chair' rather than 'Chairman', will record how far we have progressed in this adventure. There will be teething troubles but ultimately I feel we shall succeed, provided we don't 'rat out' in this Chinese year of the Rat!
Trevor Dennis