RALPH SLADE 1908 - 1965

Ralph Slade, who is commemorated in the Slade Memorial Lecture held annually by the New Zealand Electronics Institute, was not only one of New Zealands radio pioneers, but one who played a major role in the growth of thiscountrys electronics industry.

While still at school in Timaru in 1921, Ralph Slade was the first New Zealander to log the reception in this country of American radio amateurs. This was on 150 metres.

He started as a cadet in the Dunedin Post Office in 1922.

In 1924 he was the first to hear signals from a first-year student, Cecil Goyder 2SZ, in London. He alerted Frank Bell 4AA of the possibility of communication with England. Frank Bell, who had a better antenna, made the firsttwo-way contact on 92 metres 24 hours before Ralph Slade 4AG. Later Ralph Slade became the first to establish two way phone contact with England, previous communication having used Morse.

In 1929, Ralph Slade joined the emerging New Zealand branch of the world wide electronics firm of Philips, whose developing activities in the engineering field suited his enterprising spirit.

In Wellington in 1931, at the time of the Napier earthquake, he maintained a round-the-clock contact both sending and receiving, with Mr W.M. Dawson at the scene.

At the beginning of World War II, everything electronic for the armed services in New Zealand was imported. Lack of supplies from overseas meant local production so the Government set up a committee with all localmanufacturers represented.

Combining the best features of several prototypes resulted in New Zealands famous ZC1 set. As the Ministry of Supply now needed a Controller of Radio Production, Ralph Slade was seconded for the job. The controllers dutieswere of the highest importance in the countrys war effort in radio and Ralph Slades energetic approach to the problems of organising resources and finding components for ZC1s and other productions played a large part in the industrys successful response to the demands of war.

Ralph Slade returned to Philips in 1946 to grapple with the problems of post-war reconstruction. In 1954 EDAC (Electronic Development and Applications Company) was formed with Ralph Slade as Managing Director, a position heheld until his premature death in 1965.

Ralph Slade was a Foundation Member of the New Zealand Electronics Institute and one of the fifteen signatories to the original application for its incorporation in 1949. To pay honour to this pioneer in electronics in NewZealand, the Institute inaugurated the annual Slade Memorial Lecture to perpetuate the memory of his contribution to the industry. Each year a speaker of established reputation was invited to address the profession on some topic of the speaker's own choice related to developments inelectronics.

NZEI RALPH SLADE MEMORIAL LECTURES