A GREAT BRITISH INDUSTRY

Stratford Evening Post, Volume II, Issue 221, 15 April 1933, Page 3

A GREAT BRITISH INDUSTRY

GROWTH OF VACUUM OIL COY. LTD. IN ENGLAND Until Mr. Hiram B. Everest, father of mineral oil lubrication and foUndW of the Vacuum Oil Company, prodiiced ii mineral oil. lubricants were obtained exclusively from animal and vegetable sources, ;and such products as lard, rape, olive and Ciistor oils and hard talloW Were generally employed. 0:i account of their natural tendency to oxidise and decompose, this type of lubricant failed to meet Ihe demand enforced by improvements in machinery which were continually being made.

The new oil offered by the Vacuum Oil Company revolutionised tile construction of machinery and gave a fillip to the industrial development of deal Britain towards the latter part of the last century. Industrial plants, railways, motor and sea transport were utile to operate more efficiently and economically as a result of th<" high-grade petroleum products offered by (lie Vacuum Oil Company, and the unceasing study which the company's engineers gave to all forms Of lubrication problems. Largest Grease Plant in World The company's progress in Great Britain kept pace with the industrial development there, ' and to-day _ the Vacuum works at Birkenhead (Liverpool) and Wandsworth (London) are tin- largest and best equipped and employ more British workers than any other in Great Britain handling highgrade lubricating oils and greases exclusively Indeed, the grease plant at Birkenhead is the largest and best cmrpned in the world. Its output, in addition to meeting home requirements, in Great Britain, is exported to Europe, America, Asia, Africa and to British colonies. The Birkenhead works occupy seven acres of land and are situated at Liverpool. Birkenhead serves the north portion of Great Britain. , . , Nine British built tankers bring the oils to England and these are pumped through a system of pipelines to a tank farm which has a storage capacity of 5,500,000 gallons. As the oil is required at the works for manufacturing purposes, it. is moved from the tank farm to various departments by steam-driven pumps. When the oil is drawn from the tank farm it is held in huge tanks under lock and kev until laboratory examination verifies that they attain the standard of ouality and purity set for Vacuum products. In another .department wood and steel barrels made of British material by British workmen are cleaned and painted to ensure their fitness. Modern Equipment at Birkenhead At the Birkenhead works the latest equipment-products of British work Sanship-is used. Among these arc gravity and mechanical conveyors, high speed steam engines directly coupled to generators for power and Sighting, water tube boilers equipped with mechanical stokers. Birkenhead works also has its o;.v covered-in private siding from whic goods for rail transport are loaded into waggons. Another private siding has also been erected where waggons are filled with oil for large consumers who have facilities for receiving delivery in bulk. The Wandsworth works, which occupy a nine-acre site on the south bank of the River Thames, has a capacity of 3 500,000 gallons. The company's British built tankers moor in the River Thames —five miles below Tower Bridge—and discharge their cargoes into tank barges. The barges arc' towed up river and while moored at the company's quay, their contents are pumped through numerous special pipelines to the tank farm. The company is thus able to supply m the most efficient and economical manner possible motor oils, railway ous and lubricating oils and greases tor the industrial machinery of Great. Britain. The Wandsworth works meets the' demand from the southern half of the British Isles. The Vacuum Oil Company is serving Empire industry in Australia, NewZealand, South Africa, Canada and Egypt, and India. Australia and New Zealand

The Vacuum Oil Company commenced business in Australia and New Zealand 37 years ago and is the oldest oil company in the Commonwealth and Dominion to-day. The Vacuum Oil Company employs 3000 Australians and New Zealandcrs. The company has five mam manufacturing plants—at Frcmantlc, W.A., Birkenhead, S.A., Yarraville, Vic, Pulpit Point, N.S.W., and Bulimba, Queensland. A large percentage of the lubricants marketed by the company in Australia is blended and compounded in these plants. In this manufacturing process, local products include oils for lubrication of locomotives, marine engines, steam engines, internal combustion engines, as well as cutting oils, leather dressing oils, and a large number of greases. It is a policy of the company to use local material wherever possible in its building, manufacturing and distributing operations. The company purchases in Australia and New Zealand large quantities of metal-lined hose, thousands of petrol strainers and measures, a great number of equipment units for distribution of oil at garages, .fire extinguishers, electric motors, and many thousands of cases and tins. The company has spent over £4000,000 in Australia and New Zealand in plant and equipment. South Africa The Vacuum Oil Compay commenced business in South Africa 35 years ago. The company developed rapidly and in a short time became an important factor in the industrial and commercial life of South Africa and East Africa, Rhodesia and adjacent territories. To-day the company has 27 brancnes 15 sub-depots, together*with agency representation at S 3 places. The South African staff consists of 954 persons, practically all of whom are British or South African descent. To facilitate the distribution of the company's products, bulk installations have been erected at 27 points, five ot which are ocean terminals. The total capacity is 29,000,000 gallons of refined products. Warehouses have also been erected at 4G places. The efficient su'pplv of petroleum.products is a very important factor in South Africa, where limited railroado in certain tor : ritories make motor transport a vital necessity. . The company is also serving the Empire's industries in the same efficient manner in Canada, India, Egypt, and the company's high-grade products and expert advice on lubrication problems are at the service of petroleum, users in the less important as well as more important, parts of the Empire.