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Title
English Electric Company photo albums
Reference
GEC/4/3/9
Production date
1960 - 1969

Creator

English Electric Company Limited Biography Biography
The English Electric Company was formed on 14th December 1918 and over the following year acquired Dick, Kerr & Company of Preston, Willans & Robinson of Rugby, the Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Company of Bradford, and Coventry Ordnance Works. After the First World War the various German owned Siemens works were distributed to different UK companies and in November 1919 English Electric acquired the Siemens Brothers Dynamo Works at Stafford, which became the company headquarters in 1931. Coventry Ordnance, primary output naval guns, did not feature in the gradual product rationalisation which took place between the First World and Second world Wars. Willans & Robinson’s Rugby works specialised in prime movers, steam, hydro and internal combustion, and their Stafford works on power station and distribution electrics, including transformers and large electric machines for applications such as mining and steel works. Dick Kerr & Company continued building equipment and vehicles for bus, tram and railway applications with the Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Company concentrating on medium and small electrical machines. Involvement with aircraft continued a small scale. By 1929 the company was in financial trouble and an American syndicate fronted by Lazard Bros. put in new capital. In 1930 Westinghouse of Pittsburgh entered into an agreement with the company for the exchange of technical information relating to steam turbines and electrical apparatus. This cooperation continued into the 1950s. 1930 saw the closure of Preston West works and the transfer of traction electrical design and manufacture to the Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing works. The Westinghouse influence included top management changes with Sir H Mensforth becoming chairman and George Nelson managing director. Both had been with British Westinghouse at Trafford Park. The early 1930s saw a remarkable improvement in the company’s finances and domestic appliance manufacture was started at Bradford and Stafford. In 1936 they began production of diesel locomotives at Preston and were later involved in the production of the Deltic locomotive for British Rail, presaging the end of steam traction in the UK. Extensive shadow factory building for war production commenced in the late 1930’s, including at Preston East works and Salmesbury for aircraft production and at East Lancashire Road, Liverpool for D. Napier aero engines. A large variety of military equipment built during the war included thousands of Cromwell tanks from Stafford and over 3000 Handley Page Hampden and Halifax bombers from Preston and Salmesbury. After the war manufacture of smaller products from Bradford and Stafford moved to the large Liverpool works. This included electrical distribution transformers, switchgear, fuse gear, fractional horsepower motors and domestic appliances. Napier’s continued engine manufacture with the development of the ’Deltic’ diesel engine, mainly for marine applications. The nearby Netherton works took over the manufacture of large hydro-electric turbines and generators from Willans and Stafford. In 1942 English Electric acquired D. Napier & Son Ltd and Marconi in 1946. The company went on to extend their railway interests with the acquisition of the Vulcan Foundry and Robert Stephenson and Hawthorn Ltd in 1955. The company tried to take over The General Electric Company (GEC) in 1960 but failed. Traction manufacture, but not the offices, moved back to Preston East works and ‘K’, ‘RK’ and ‘V’ engine design and manufacture moved from Willans to Preston West works which was now also used for locomotive building. Kidsgrove works in Stafford made industrial controls and for a while was a major player in the UK computer industry, merging with Leo Computers and then into ICL. Train performance calculations were an early user of the mid-fifties ‘Deuce’ computer. Preston also became a major player in the aircraft industry taking over the wartime RAF/USAF base at Warton aerodrome - major design and manufacture contracts included Canberra bombers and Lightning fighters. Rationalisation in the 1960s resulted in English Electric Aviation becoming 40% of the new British Aircraft Corporation. In 1961 English Electric took over Dorman Diesels Ltd which in turn had acquired W. G. Bagnall Ltd. In 1966 English Electric Diesels merged with Ruston and Hornsby which already included Paxmans. This company eventually became GEC Diesels. Elliott Automation was acquired in 1967. The following year GEC took over English Electric, ending its independent existence.

Scope and Content
The box contains 4 English Electric Company photo albums: Album no. 6 - B.R. A.L. Series of 35 kV ac Electrics Bogie Arrangement Bo-Bo, with photos showing reversed photographs in cab, some equipment installations, collision damage to E3028 at Edge Hill, AL6 interior layout. Album no. 7 - Sudan Co-Co diesels, with photos showing Works assembly and shipment. Album no. 8 - Polish Railways electric locomotives, 24 listed photos of erection at works. Album no. 9 - Rhodesian Railways 13 Class, with photos of Works assembly, equipment installations and derailment of two 12 class locomotives and train.
Extent
1 box
Level of description
FILE
Repository name
National Railway Museum, York

Associated people and organisations

Rhodesia Railways Biography Biography
In 1947 the Rhodesian Government took over the private company Rhodesia Railways Co. Ltd. which owned the whole Zimbabwe and Zambia railway system, and in 1949 became known as the public body Rhodesia Railways. In 1967 Zambia Railways took over the lines north of Victoria Falls Bridge, known as Northern Rhodesia, and Rhodesia Railways continued to maintain the lines south of the bridge in Southern Rhodesia. In 1979 Rhodesia Railways became Zimbabwe Rhodesia Railways.
East African Railways & Harbours Biography Biography
In 1948 the Kenya Uganda Railways & Harbours and the Tanganyika Railways & Port Services were merged and became the East African Railways & Harbours Corporation. In 1956 the EAR&H extended the Uganda Railway from Kampala to Kasese and to Arua in 1964. In 1977 the East African Community dissolved and EAR&H split into three national railways; the Uganda Railways Corporation, Tanzania Railways Corporation and Kenya Railways Corporation.
Polish State Railways Biography Biography
In 1918 Polish State Railways (Polish name: Polskie Koleje Państwowe or PKP) was formed following the First World War after Poland gained independence and took over 2,627 miles of railway lines in the territory formerly under Prussian rule, 2,707 miles from the former Austrian territory and 4,575 miles from the Russians. In 1922 the entire railway network in Poland was divided into 9 districts: Warsaw, Radom, Vilnius, Kraków, Lviv, Stanyslaviv, Katowice, Poznań and Gdańsk. During the interwar period from 1931 to 1939 the construction of the Warsaw Main Railway Station was completed. PKP electrified more than 6,214 miles (10,000 km) of lines from 1936 to 1987. In 1939 PKP was divided into eight regions; Warsaw, Torun, Poznan, Katowice, Cracow, Radom, Lwow and Wilno, with the headquarters of PKP located in Warsaw. During the Second World War the railway was subjected to widespread bombing WW2 as it was a crucial part of the German war effort and in 1945 PKP began rebuilding the railway under Soviet occupation. Repairs were performed by the main workshops in Brest, Bydgoszcz, Lviv, Łapy, Nowy Sącz, Ostrów Wielkopolski, Piotrowice Śląskie, Poznań, Radom, Pruszków, Stanyslaviv, Stryi, Tarnów, Tczew, Warsaw-Praga and Eastern Warsaw. The 139 mile route built in 1971 to 1977 between Silesia – Zawiercie – Włoszczowa – Idzikowice – Grodzisk Mazowiecki – Warsaw, known as the Central Mainline (CMK), was the largest investment of Polish State Railways after the war. After 1990, infrastructural investments were abandoned, with the exception of replacement work. The Polish railway network shortened from 14,292 miles to 11,806 miles of which 7,418 miles were electrified. From 1991 the number of passengers using PKP decreased with the closure of some secondary lines and narrow gauge sections. The Polish State Railways Joint Stock Company (Polish name: Polskie Koleje Państwowe Spółka Akcyjna (PKP S.A.) was established on 1 January 2001 as a result of this commercialisation of the Polish State Railways state enterprise.
Sudan Government Railways Biography Biography
Sudan Railways is the main railway system in Sudan, operated by the government-owned Sudan Railways Corporation. It runs over 5000km of narrow gauge, single-track railroads that serve the northern and central parts of the country. The main line underwent construction in 1875, completed in 1899, and runs from Wadi Halfa to Khartoum, and southwest to Al Ubayyid via Sannar and Kosti. In 1904-5 a line between Swakin and Atbara was constructed with the two lines meeting at Saloom station, to facilitate export and import transportation. In 1906 the railway headquarters and workshops were moved from Wadi Halfa to Atbara, and since 1981 the company headquarters have been based in Khartoum. In the 1980’s Sudan Railways declined due to political instability and debt, with lines operating at only 20% capacity by 1989. In 2011-2012 a contract was signed to build a line from Nyala to Chad, extending to the capital of Chad, N’Djamena. In 2015 Sudan Railways had 60 trains available but which could only travel at 40km per hour due to poor track conditions, with President Omer Hassan al-Bashir promising modernisation of the Sudanese railways with Chinese funding.
Vulcan Foundry Ltd Biography Biography
The Vulcan Foundry was originally opened in 1830 at Newton-le-Willows, as Charles Tayleur and Company. It initially produced girders for bridges, switches and crossings, and other ironwork following the opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. Robert Stephenson became a partner in 1832, and in the same year, the first locomotives ‘Tayleur’ and ‘Stephenson’ were delivered to the North Union Railway. By 1840 locomotives had been delivered to five European countries and to North America. The company became The Vulcan Foundry Company in 1847 and acquired limited liability in 1864. From the beginning of 1898, the name changed again to The Vulcan Foundry Limited, dropping the word 'company.' Vulcan locomotives were exported all over the world, with the first locomotives for Russia and Japan supplied in 1837 and 1871 respectively and a long association with India began in 1852. First World War production included shells, gun mountings and mine sweeping equipment. The first non-steam locomotive, an electric, was produced for India in 1929. The first diesel locomotive design commenced in 1932/33 and an agreement was reached with A/S Frichs in Denmark. The English Electric 6K engine was used from this time. The “Waltzing Matilda” tank was developed in 1938 and produced in large numbers and over five hundred ‘Austerity’ steam locomotives were produced for the War Department. Other wartime production included gun mountings and torpedo parts. In 1944 Vulcan acquired the locomotive business, Robert Stephenson & Hawthorns Ltd, based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. In 1946 the company began working with the English Electric Company producing diesel and electric locomotives and became part of the English Electric Group in 1955. All locomotive building from Preston was transferred to Vulcan Foundry and Robert Stephenson’s in Darlington. Under the new ownership, the works produced many locomotives for both domestic and foreign railways, notably the Deltic. The mid-sixties saw the ‘RK’/’V’ engine production at Preston moved to Vulcan and Ruston & Hornsby Ltd merged with English Electric Diesels in 1966. After the General Electric Company plc (GEC) takeover in 1968 the Ruston name was used for some time inside what became GEC Diesels Ltd in 1975. Engine production and development continued for locomotive, industrial and marine applications until after the GEC-Alsthom merger in 1989. The company took over Mirlees Engines, Stockport in 1997 and was renamed Alstom Engines Ltd.
British Railways Biography Biography
“British Railways” is the expression commonly used to describe the business run by the following legal entities: • Railway Executive (1948 – 1952) • British Transport Commission (1952 – 1963) • British Railways Board (1963 – 1993) Railways were nationalised on 1st January 1948 when the assets of the railways in Great Britain were vested in the British Transport Commission (BTC), a state-owned corporation created by the Transport Act 1947. Between 1948 and 1952 the business of operating the railways was carried on by the Railway Executive, a state-owned corporation, subsidiary to BTC. The Railway Executive was abolished in 1952 and BTC took over direct responsibility for the railways. Before 1948 there was no brand that was identified with the whole of the railways of Great Britain, only the separate brands of the Group companies, Southern, Great Western, London, Midland and Scottish and London and North Eastern, and London Transport. The railways were run under the corporate identity “British Railways” from 1948 by both the Railway Executive and BTC. The public manifestations of this were the words themselves on vehicles and premises, quasi-heraldic devices on locomotives (the so-called “cycling lion” followed by the “ferret and dartboard”) and the lozenge shape adopted (and clearly inspired by London Transport’s very similar logo) for station names. When the nationalised transport industry was reorganised in 1963, BTC was itself abolished and a new statutory corporation created to run the railways. This was British Railways Board (BRB). The name most closely associated with the national railway system had now become part of the name of the corporate entity, (i.e. the legal person, entitled as a matter of law to own property, to enter into contracts, and to sue (or be sued) in the courts and be prosecuted for breaches of the criminal law) which owned the assets and business of the railways of Great Britain. As a result of the corporate rebranding carried out in 1965 the business name, or brand name (as it was now expressly recognised to be), was shortened to “British Rail”. However, BRB retained the full “British Railways” in its title until its eventual abolition under the provisions of the Transport Act 2000.

Subject
Railways
Trains
Manufacturing
locomotives
Photographs
Photograph albums
Exports