He had also acquired the first conveyor belt brick making machine in Sarawak for himself . He was always delighted with machinery of any sort and with this special brick making machinery he was over the moon. He was a very skilled engineer even though he did not have much formal education.
He had asked his sons to consider all factors before he made a final decision to buy the machinery. Even the British government officers came by to visit. The Brickyard also received many visitors from 1958.
The bricks were put out in the sun to dry. Young ladies from the nearby longhouses were employed to stamp the bricks with the moulding machine. The letters K.A. B. were "printed" on the bricks and laid out in the sun to dry. After three or four days, the bricks were then put in the kilns . There were three kilns in the brickyard.
The output was fairly good because the demand for brick houses went up due to rural urban migration.
The employees were mainly Ibans from Aup and some Kayans from Kapit. Coolie houses were built for them.
But my grandfather was particularly caring because he built a special house for the manager who was our Third Uncle and later my Fifth Uncle.
Another row of workers' hostel was built for the supervisor. My granduncle Kung Pik was my grandfather's right hand man for a long time.
When the workers had an off day, they would go hunting and fishing. Whatever wild boar they obtained they would kindly share with their co workers and my uncles would also buy from them. Fishing was a daily past time and many of them would bring home good fish from the nearby Igan River.
It was a good working environment.
Sources : photo from http://larryinindia2011.blogspot.com.au/
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