Category Archives: Construction

Who was Mr Bridges?

From a young age I was keen on making things using odd bits of wood. The Showmax hardware shop on Waldegrave Road had a box of timber offcuts, sixpence each, more than a few sold to me. Other boys got footballs and cricket bats as Christmas and birthday presents; I was thrilled to receive a hand drill for my ninth or tenth birthday. What I dreamed of, though, was the day when I would be old enough, responsible enough and strong enough to have an electric drill. In the years before this milestone was reached, I had to make do with the small ads all promising a wonderful assortment of ‘freebies’ since discounting was not then allowed.

The first portable handheld drill was created by in 1895 by Stuttgart brothers Wilhelm & Carl Fein whose company still makes top class power tools. In 1917 the first trigger-switch, pistol-grip portable drill was patented by Black & Decker USA. In the UK the first DIY drill seems to have been Wolf’s Cub, introduced in the late 1940s; my dad owned one with a number of attachments, but I don’t remember him ever using it.

Which? magazine published its first report on electric drills in December 1963. They tested 15 models from these makers: Black & Decker (5); Stanley-Bridges (3); Wolf (2); Speedway (2) and one each from Miller Falls, Selecta and Winfield (Woolworths own brand). Two only were two-speed drills and none had a hammer option. Nearly 13 years later, the February 1976 Handyman Which? carried a report on 14 drills, all double-insulated, all but three two-speed. Makers: Black & Decker (6); Stanley-Bridges (4); and one each from Bosch, Makita, Metabo and Wolf. For domestic scale construction mains drills are now rarely seen; cordless drills sourced from the far east dominate the market.

In 1957 Harold Macmillan told UK voters that they’d “never had it so good”. British industry was thriving. During the 1960s manufacturing accounted for 27% of London’s economic output; (it’s now just 1.8%). The big three’s drills were all made in London: Black & Decker UK had moved to Harmondsworth (near Heathrow) in 1940, Wolf to Pioneer Works in Hanger Lane in 1935, and S.N.Bridges to York Road, Battersea, SW11 in 1959.

From here I’ll focus on Bridges. For more on Wolf and Black & Decker check out these links on Ultimate Handyman and Progress is Fine blog.

S.N.Bridges & Co. was founded in 1937. By the time they moved to Battersea they had 600 employees. Alongside power tools, in the early 1960s they also made domestic appliances: food mixers, hairdryers, electric blankets, heaters etc.

An October 1959 ad reminds us of office work in pre-computer days: “S. N. Bridges & Co. Ltd., manufacturers of the world-famous range of Portable Electric Tools, have now moved into their new spacious premises at York Road, London, S.W.11 Vacancies on the permanent staff can now be filled for the following: Senior Secretaries; Senior and Junior Shorthand-Typists; Dictaphone Typists; Comptometer Operators; Sales Ledger Clerks; Export Shipping Clerks; Cost Analysis Clerks; Invoice Clerks. Only ladies of proved ability and experience, who are desirous of obtaining permanent worthwhile employment, should apply. Applications in writing, with copy references, stating fully qualifications, age, experience and salary, should be addressed to the Company Secretary….”

In 1961 Bridges was acquired by Stanley, the long-established hand tool manufacturer, the power tools now being branded as Stanley-Bridges.

In 1963 the company needed “Temporary Female Assembly Operators. Normal hours of employment, 42-hour week. Company offers attractive rates of pay together with excellent conditions of employment”.

A 1966 advert was looking for capstan setter operators, milling setter operators, machine minders and other workers for the night shift, four nights 9.30p.m.-8.00a.m. followed by a long weekend, 8.00a.m. Friday to 9.30p.m. Monday.

In 1968 there were still no laws against age or sex discrimination: “Managing Director’s Secretary: A secretary is required for our Managing Director. She should possess an efficient and pleasing personality, be a competent shorthand-typist, and should be able to operate at senior executive level for extended periods without close supervision. Age from 23 years.”

But for Bridges employees there was more to life than work. The South Western Star, 5 February 1960 recorded*:

“The sports and social club of S. N. Bridges & Co. of Battersea entertained 196 children of members to a tea and entertainment in the works restaurant on Saturday. After tea the youngsters were entertained with magic and a Punch and Judy show by Clown Will Kindred, assisted by Mrs. D. Fisher, a member of the club. … Another member filled the role of Father Christmas and each child received a present, fruit and chocolates. Visitors included Mr. D. G. Bridges and Mr. S. R. Kilner, directors of S. N. Bridges …”.

The South Western Star, 9 December 1960, reported* on the firm’s dinner dance held at the company’s sports and social club at Kensington. 300 staff members and wives from round the UK were invited for an expenses paid weekend with the 80 out-of-town visitors being given a Saturday morning factory tour. Mr. G. N. Bridges, managing Director and Mr. D. G. Bridges, Financial Director, hosting.

Was London getting too expensive or staff too hard to find? A decade after moving to Battersea, another move was afoot. The Newcastle Journal – Wednesday 17 June 1970 reported*

“Why Stanley-Bridges picked Cramlington”

“The world’s leading manufacturer of hand tools is running down London plant and settling up on the Nelson Industrial Estate at Cramlington. “We are doing this to meet our future expansion programme,” said Mr. Derek Mills, managing director of Stanley-Bridges, product of a merger in 1961 between United States-based Stanley and the London family firm of S. N. Bridges and Co. Stanley-Bridges has other plants in Sheffield but it is closing down in Battersea and settling In the North-East principally because the labour pool Is greater than in the South.

Wills, in Cramlington yesterday, said other facts that influenced the move were the North East’s excellent schools. living accommodation and communications and the persuasive powers of Northumberland County Council and the Board of Trade. By August upwards of 300 people, two-thirds of them men and almost all locally recruited, will have the plant In full production on hand and power operated tools for industrial and domestic markets. Main production area of the £500,000 plant is a 72,000 sq. ft. unit.”

After another ten or so years, Stanley-Bridges was no more. Several forum posts suggest that they were taken over by Bosch and then closed down. Anyone know more? Please respond in the comments. And does anyone know anything about Mr. S.N.Bridges? For someone who set up a company that employed nearly a thousand people at its peak and traded for sixty or so years, he’s apparently left no virtual footprint. Or perhaps I’ve yet to find it?

* Links to British Newspaper Archive ($$$)

Stanley-Bridges DR2T drill advert (TalkTenPin)

Stanley-Bridges XL330 drill (Handyman Which?)

Stanley-Bridges XJ422 drill (Handyman Which?)

Wates chalet spotting

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Homes with “an exterior of outstanding loveliness”*.

Last month I wrote about Wates-built houses in New Malden, mainly in the area south of the A3 Kingston Bypass. Drive around the side streets and you can’t help noticing all the chalets, most built by Wates. At a quick glance you might think them all the same but not so.

The first chalets in Malden date from c.1932 – they are semi-detached and the roof slopes rise to a common ridge. Pictures (A) and (B) show two variants: I’m fairly sure that (A) with the front facing entrance door is the earlier and (B) with the side facing entrance door and Dutch gable (the small vertical tile-hung triangle at ridge level), later.

What came next – the semi-detached SC chalets or the more common link-detached variant? Once again we really need the RBK archive to tell us. My hunch is that the link-detached came first. Why? The 1935 Wilverley Park brochure offers buyers both options, promoting the semi-detached chalet as ‘New’:

C4 detached 3-bed chalet: “This wonderful Wates Chalet retains the sweeping roof lines which are so charming a feature of Wates original Chalets. Fully Detached with all its accompanying advantages of peace and privacy – a complete absence of ‘neighbour noise’ – the grand feeling that you really ARE in a house of your own – these are considerations which affect your personal comfort as a discerning Homeseeker.
Come and see for yourself the charm of these new wonder Chalets with their wide bays extending right to the eaves, mellow faced brickwork and smooth rendered walls blending into a delightful harmony – the new Wates Detached Chalet representing a standard of unrivalled value in planning, equipment and beauty.

SC3 Semi-detached Chalet: … For many years now Wates have been famed for their Chalets …. The New Semi-detached Chalet retains all the beauty of design, the bold sweeping roof lines and pleasing elevation which characterises every Wates-Built Chalet. With its newly revised arrangement of rooms it has won the approval of all purchasers. Come and see the improved planning, generous equipment and delightful appearance of these new semi-detached Chalets.

Urban legend had it that the link-detached option gave the advantages claimed above whilst allowing the house to be rated as semi-detached since it was (if only by the brick arch) connected to another house. True? I don’t know.

3-bed link-detached (C) and semi-detached chalets are by far the most common variant but there are others too. Two-bedroom chalets (D) – recognisable by the entrance door being towards the front of the flank wall – were created by deleting the front ground floor third bedroom. 4-bedroom chalets (E) are identifiable by a two-storey section at the rear; most also have a ground floor WC. Lastly, and very rare, are the detached chalets with integral garage (F) – this variation doesn’t work for me – and the corner chalets (G) which do.

Some chalets have a round porthole window lighting the first floor box room, others don’t. Some have a flat front-facing window to the ground floor third bedroom, others have an oriel window. Were these extra cost options?

Buyers were offered the option of buying freehold (FH) or leasehold (LH), the latter making housing more affordable. Here’s a summary (all 3-bed):

Detached chalet: FH £929, LH £749, weekly outgoings £1:12:9d/£1:10:11d, TFA ~95m2, lounge 14’3”x13’0” (4.34×3.96m)
Semi-detached chalet: FH £819, LH £639, weekly outgoings £1:8:11d/£1:7:1d, TFA ~95m2, lounge 14’3”x13’0” (4.34×3.96m)

And for comparison, traditional Wates ‘Tudor’ semis:

TDL Tudor Deluxe: FH: £729, LH: £579, weekly outgoings £1:5:9d/£1:4:3d, TFA ~98m2, lounge 14’3”x12’3” (4.34×3.73m)
TDL Tudor Major: FH: £649, LH: £499, weekly outgoings £1:2:11d/£1:1:6d, TFA ~79m2, lounge 13’1”x10’9” (3.99×3.28m)

Thus it can be seen that 1930s buyers paid a premium for chalets, justified by the space and architecture.

Ground rent, included in the LH weekly outgoings, was £9 a year for chalets, £7.10 for Tudor SDs, equating to a 5% return to Wates. I wonder how many people took the leasehold option, given that the saving was less than two shillings a week. Perhaps the reduced deposit was the key attraction. There was also an option to rent: in the 1930s many working class people had an aversion to going into debt even though we now see mortgage debt as ‘good’ debt.

Dormer additions: As built, chalets have a large under-roof box room next to the front bedroom. It’s relatively simple to build this out as an extra bedroom and many owners have done this (H). During my BCO days (1976-84) two local builders, Malcolm Carter and Tony Forte, did little else. Malcolm’s reputation was such that he ran an eighteen month waiting list. You didn’t decide whether to appoint him or not; he decided whether or not he wanted you as a customer. Another common alteration was adding a ground floor WC under the stairs: the space is tight but it can be done.

Other comments: Given Malden’s shrinkable clay subsoil, subsidence problems requiring underpinning were not unknown across my patch. Wates built houses were almost immune to such problems – the filed plans showed them as being built on Twisteel reinforced concrete rafts.

The plan above (for a chalet in Streatham, so may not reflect what was done in Malden) is interesting in that it shows cavity walls on three sides and a one-brick solid wall for the wall facing the mirrored chalet. When I was in primary school we were taught that cavity walls were introduced to improve insulation. They do, but the real reason was to eliminate the problem of driving rain finding its way through the wall. The facing walls are not, obviously, subject to driving rain.

1930s Wates houses also show the durability of concrete roof tiles: they were only introduced in the late 1920s so when these houses were built they were a new and untried innovation. Most roofs are original and still in excellent condition.

Click on an image to enlarge it; click again or press [Esc] to return. Please excuse the quality of the pics: I only had one day free when last in the UK and it was a wet, grey one.

* Weekly Dispatch (London) – Sunday 21 January 1934

House building Thai style

Frame

Chiang Mai house frame

The house structure is carried by a concrete frame with columns supported by bearing pads. The ground and upper floors are concrete with a concrete staircase. Floors are generally tiled. Of course in UK or cooler parts of Australia this would all be a thermal disaster, but in the warm Thai climate having all this thermal mass is a positive.

Structure complete

Chiang Mai house

This picture shows the structure nearing completion Note the bamboo scaffolding. The brick infill and brick surrounding the front piers is non structural. It will all be rendered.

Roof

Chiang Mai house roof detail

This picture shows part of the roof. Note that steel trusses and tile battens are used. Termites are apparently a problem, thus the use of wood-free construction.

Finished house