Gray Robertson

Gray Robertson (also known as John Graham Robertson) with his partner Peter Binnie ran a highly successful, and very lucrative air-testing operation for the tobacco industry, known as ACVA Atlantic, which spawned many imitators.

Later Robertson took over and restructured the company, creating Healthy Buildings International (HBI), becoming its sole owner, although he franchised some regional operations and brought his brother, Joe Robertson (now deceased), in to manage an Australian operation out of Sydney. The business expanded internationally. Robertson hired Reginald B. Simmons in 1986 as a field technician and project team supervisor, when the company was still known as ACVA Atlantic.

Biography
Gray Robertson was born and raised in Liverpool, England. He graduated from London University in 1964 with a bachelor of science degree in chemistry and botany, including extensive study of mycology (fungi). Robertson spent three years working as a bacteriologist with Evans Medical Company, Ltd., in Liverpool. He subsequently joined the Johnson Matthey Company, working for various subsidiaries in England and the United States as a chemist. He headed the chemicals division of the subsidiary, Matthey Bishop Inc., including supervision of its analytical laboratories. Robertson began focusing on the problem of indoor pollution in 1980. He worked with his associate, microbiologist/zoologist Peter Binnie. His biosketch claims they worked together to develop methodology "to identify and eliminate the sources of indoor pollution."

Method of operation
Robertson's "modus operandi" was to discount the contribution that environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) made to poor indoor air quality (IAQ) in the buildings that his staff tested with special air sampling equipment. He was paid substantial sums by the Tobacco Institute, and also by the various tobacco companies, for some of this work -- and was generously rewarded in other ways for his "denial" statements, speeches, and witness statements.

Robertson and his company provided the tobacco industry's major support for their claims that the cause of "sick buildings" and general office, restaurant, and hotel pollution problems, came from sources other than smoking. He pointed the finger at poorly maintained air-conditioning systems (which could harbor dust, bacteria and fungus), and volatile chemicals from office machines, synthetic carpets, etc.

In doing this air-quality testing, HBI staff was accused by anti smoking activist Alfred Lowrey of using using a number of ploys to reduce the smoke readings -- such as setting up their test equipment in the less smoke-polluted parts of the building, and using equipment in ways that didn't reflect the actual conditions. Some of the smoke constituents, like nicotine for instance, only have a short survival life, so the time at which measurements are taken can also be critical. HBI published a detailed rebuttal to these claims The conclusion to this rebuttal includes the following statement:

"In this response to Lowrey’s non-peer-reviewed and unsubstantiated report concerning our 1992 paper, we have systematically addressed every issue he raised. Our regeneration of the entire database used to write our original paper verified that the conclusions we drew are as valid now as they were then. Further, the methods that we used to measure ETS components and the subsequent data analyses were scientifically sound and appropriate. The results reported in 1992 are similar to values reported in the majority of the published literature on the measurements of ETS in the office environment. In contrast, Lowrey (1994) misrepresented our data and misinterpreted our findings to draw unfounded and unwarranted conclusions. In addition, the selection of data convenient to his case raises serious questions about other aspects of his work (Repace and Lowrey 1980, 1982). We urge that it be critically re-examined in the light of larger, more representative and credible field studies now available and that they explain the practice of data selection evident in Lowrey (1994). The flaws in Lowrey’s report we have documented above clearly show that as an objective alternative view of our results, Lowrey’s report has no merit."

According to HBI whistle-blower, Jeff Seckler, they often resorted to guessing or changing the figures when writing up the reports.

However, in a subsequent legal settlement with HBI, Seckler admitted in writing that he knew of no wrong doing by HBI. The settlement conditions read in part, "Relator expressly acknowledges that to his knowledge HBI did not falsely and fraudulently obtain contracts from the United States and did not falsely and fraudulently perform indoor air quality inspections of United States Government buildings and did not falsely and fraudulently represent to the United States on the indoor air quality inspections it performed on government buildings."

On the web site and blog archive Tobacco On Trial, which covered the court proceedings of the 1999 U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit against the major American tobacco companies, Seckler stated,

"I deeply regret ever signing any agreement with tobacco interests and Healthy Buildings International to settle our lawsuit. My actions were primarily due to my poorly financed (I suspect) lawyer’s unwillingness to go to trial. My settlement statement was limited to my personal knowledge of air quality inspections (I was not an inspector) of federal buildings and in no way rescinded any of the other allegations I made about the public relations and other activities of my previous employer (HBI). I would be more than happy to discuss any of this with any interested party."

HBI was able to charge low prices for building surveys because the tobacco industry made generous contributions to the work and supported Robertson through witness, speech, travel expenses, and many other fees. He was one of their most important consultants in two areas:
 * Workplace smoking -- which involved the industry's efforts to block regulation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in offices and factories.
 * Public smoking -- which was the progressive crusade to isolate, and then end smoking in restaurants, hotels, casinos, and public areas.

HBI Magazine
HBI also produced a magazine on indoor-air pollution problems, which was circulated in large numbers around the world to building managers and owners, and to those involved in the ventilation industry.

It was totally controlled and funded by Philip Morris.

Public testimony
Gray Robertson was a favorite witness for the tobacco industry at Congressional inquiries, courtroom compensation battles, and scientific conferences. He was also thought to be an excellent spokesman in media situations, and was highly useful for promoting the industry's message that passive smoking wasn't really a problem in the workplace.

The tobacco industry paid him $500 a day personally, to travel all over the world giving testimony, speeches, etc., on their behalf. He also wrote articles for popular magazines and newsletters, or had them ghosted under his byline.

Gray Robertson has sold the company and in 1999 HBI severed all relationships with the tobacco industry.

Contact
A July, 2004 press release by HBI still listed Gray Robertson as President of HBI.

Gray Robertson Healthy Buildings International (UK Head Office) 229 Hyde End Road Spencers Wood Berkshire RG7 1BU United Kingdom Tel: (0118) 988 9999 Fax: (0118) 988 5599 Email: info AT hbi.co.uk

Related SourceWatch articles

 * Healthy Buildings International
 * Secondhand smoke
 * Gray Robertson appears in 1980s Philip Morris video to argue that health problems attributed to passive smoke are 'probably' caused by bad ventilation