Bypassed by traffic, overlooked by the Char House and chemical vats, the site of evolve* and Waterfront Park awaited acquisition by an expanding CSR. The Iron Works were bought in 1937, and stood derelict for some years before that.  However, after a century of industrial pollution, matters now took a happier turn.  CSR was always alert to opportunities, and had the skilled engineers and the capital to grasp them. As well as sugar and industrial spirits, the company added a third string to its bow.

As the Depression lifted, demand grew for building material. After exhaustive research, CSR built a caneite factory. As caneite is made by pulping megass (cane after the sucrose is removed) and adding paper and eucalypt, this complemented sugar production. By 1939 production reached ten million square feet each year. Encouraged by this result, CSR spread into other building material including gyprock (and – fatefully – asbestos).

To supply enough caneite for the market, CSR built a new factory: and the present Waterfront Park and evolve* provided a perfect site. Ships could unload outside the factory, and trucks drove the finished product out of Bowman Street to Bank Street and the world.