As President of International MacGregor I am deeply indebted to the authors of this excellent book for the very considerable amount of work and scholarship it contains. It is the first authoritative work on cargo access equipment to be pubbshed and I am sure that it will be greatly welcomed by the Marine Industries. You will see from the authors' preface that the book was commissioned by the Henri Kummerman Foundation which was established in 1976 to assist and promote internationally research and development in the field of marine transportation and cargo handling. The Foundation has already made a number of grants to universities and to students but this book is its first major contribution to the furthering of education in the Marine Industries. For me, it is a rewarding fruition of a long involvement in maritime affairs. However, much requires to be done in the future and the Foundation can only succeed if it is encouraged and assisted by people who are forward thinking. I should be pleased therefore to hear from any readers of this book if they feel that they can help or be helped within the aims and objectives of the Foundation. 28 Chemin du Pommier, HENRI KUMMERMAN 1218 Geneva, Switzerland.