Vision 103

October 74 No. 103
THE HOUSE MAGAZINE OF RANK XEROX MITCHELDEAN
Starting on the steps that can lead to
top secretary status are the ten
trainee secretaries who joined us on
September 2.
And pictured w i t h them (top right) is
Ruth Morgan who, on the very same
day, began a new venture in
Personnel Department as Development
Assistant working w i t h Organisation
& Development Co-ordinator
Richard Coleman.
Dean Forest Studios
Herself a t o p secretary for some 15
years, Ruth was able to offer the
girls some guidelines which she
hoped would be of help to them in
their secretarial careers.
The girls are (from the left)
Veronica Scott, Loraine Simmons,
Sheila Gifford, Pamela Pochon,
Jane Baynham, Carolyn Ackary,
Tryphena Hanford, Jane Flowerday,
Linda Howells and Lynne Meek.
L a s t m o n t h w e c o m m e n c e d t h e s u p p l y o f A u t o m a t i c D o c u m e n t F e e d e r s to
t h e U S A . For t h e f i r s t t i m e , a I V I i t c h e l d e a n – d e s i g n e d p r o d u c t i s b e i n g b u i l t f or
t h e X e r o x m a r k e t — a r e v e r s a l o f t h e s i t u a t i o n w e h a v e g r o w n u p w i t h . In
t h i s a r t i c l e . K e n B o y d , A c c e s s o r i e s M a n a g e r , E n g i n e e r i n g , t e l l s t h e s t o ry
b e h i n d t h e c u r r e nt
SPOTUGHT
ON THE ADF
^•0
Ken Boyd feeds a batch of work into the ADF fitted to a 3600 in Engineering Records which
was used for trial runs. Combined with a sorter, the accessory makes the 3600 completely
automatic, freeing Dawn Williams (above) and her colleague Mavis Grey to cope with the
telecopier and general messenger services. With 50,000 copies a week being turned out
on this machine it’s not surprising that Engineering Records say of the ADF ‘We wouldn’t
be without it.’
In the past, w i t h one or two
exceptions, most of the projects in
Rank Xerox Engineering have been
concerned w i t h adapting American
designs for Rank Xerox markets.
This requires almost as much
engineering knowledge and as much
care and accuracy, in order to
achieve the high standards of
performance and reliability that we
demand, as is needed for an original
design; but there is obviously less
satisfaction in it because there is no
opportunity to create something new
and original, and there is a relatively
higher content of routine paperwork.
However, the opportunity which this
work has provided is that of
evolutionary improvement of other
people’s designs, and over the years
a wealth of experience has been
gained by living alongside the
manufacturing line and helping to
solve day-to-day manufacturing
problems, and by analysing field data
and devising machine improvements.
This experience has not been fully
exploited and we, the designers, have
been frustrated, feeling like stand-ins
for the actors in a play, knowing the
lines but w i t h no opportunity to get
on stage.
Tom Novak (centre), over here with his
family for a few months as Xerox technicat
resident, visits the ADF line at Lydney with
Wally Watkins (right) of Engineering Field
Support. Testing the accessory is John
Robertson (QA) who is going to the USA
within the next few months to help with any
installation problems.
But Xerox produces many ‘plays’ and
in 1970 one of them had a short
r u n ; the actors were put on more
profitable productions, and we, the
stand-ins, took our chance.
The machine was an accessory— the
3600 ADF (Automatic Document
Feeder) — w h i c h fell short of
customer expectations. W i t h o L’
experience, it seemed that w i t h a
little effort, which could be found
without delaying other projects, we
could demonstrate some worthwhile
improvements.
We set out to re-design the system
using existing components as far as
possible, making the paper path
shorter and the drive system simpler.
We thought that if we could do this,
and keep generally within the
existing size, shape and cost, we
could show that it would be
worthwhile to proceed w i t h a Mk II
design.
So, w i t h the help of our Model Shop,
we built an engineering model of our
own ideas for an ADF II and attached
it to a 3600.
First tests seemed to show that we
had considerably improved the
performance over that of ADF I, and
that we had every chance of meeting
the original performance targets, and
we invited some of the Marketing
Group and the then 3600 Programme
Manager down for a demonstration.
Everything worked well and this,
coupled w i t h the great advantage to
the customer of an Automatic
Document Feeder, resulted in Xerox
and Rank Xerox management
deciding that the Rank Xerox ADF II
was a must.
So the curtain rose again, but this
time the stand-ins were on stage.
More engineers, designers and
draughtsmen were recruited, or
transferred from other departments,
to bring the ‘company’ up to full
strength, and dress rehearsals
commenced in earnest.
Every mechanical device has a
collection of bugs in the development
stage, and the RX ADF II is no
exception — our particular pet bug
being how to move and register
accurately documents with
dimensions and specifications over
which we have no control.
Due to our past experience we had
become familiar w i t h the problems,
and it Is a truism that if the problems
are defined and fully understood, the
solutions are not far behind.
The Mk II design is simpler and has
now been shown by exhaustive tests
to be much better in performance
and reliability than its predecessor.
So we ail know our parts, and are
looking forward to a successful first
night which we know will play to a
packed house.
2
An ADF comes to life on tfie line at our Lydney Plant. From ttie left:
Gordon Fennell carries out tfie first operation, and Bill Lewis makes
adjustments before the ADF is tested on a simulator by Bill Smith.
(More pictures of Lydney on pages 6 and 7.)
(^oration Uplift
The decision to increase the ADF
programme for the United States
Order has presented a stiff challenge
not only to Production but also to
Production Engineering and Service
Departments. A typical situation was
that facing PED whose approach to
the product had been dictated by the
original low volume requirement.
‘Our job is to pick it up from a low
volume to a medium size f l o w/
said Accessories Manager Harold
Hayling.
‘We had one engineer on this
particular j o b ; the number has now
had to be upped to nine, of which
two have been seconded from other
sections. This is in addition to
normal back-up from specialised
sections within PED.
‘We are going through t w o phases of
production uplift. Phase 1 gives us a
quicker response to the programme
in respect of additional tooling and
better quality.
‘The second phase covers long-term
tooling and better production f l ow
for the ultimate requirement.’
PED Accessories Manager Harold Hayling discusses the setting of
some switches with two of his team — ADF section leader Reg
Kentsbeer (far right) and Dave Budrey (centre).
FACTS ABOUT
THE ACCESSORY
• The A u t o m a t i c Document Feeder
takes all types of paper f r om
airmail t o c a r d s t o c k , f r om a
m i n i m u m size of 8 i n . x 5 i n . t o a
m a x i m u m size of 1 4 in. x 9 i n.
The t o t a l stack can measure up to
half an i n c h t h i c k.
• Productivity i m p r o v e m e n t : for
f i v e copies off each document,
o u t p u t is a b o u t 15 per cent above
manual f e e d i n g.
• The A D F can be i n s t a l l e d w i t h in
f o u r hours.
• Rank Xerox have q u i t e a number
of M k II m o d e l s in t h e f i e l d.
• Those n o w being s u p p l i e d for the
Xerox market are d e s i g n e d to
meet U S A safety requirements.
Cinema o n Site
At the suggestion of PED engineer
Eric Edwards (Projects section),
regular film shows are being put on
in Training Dept. during the lunch
hour.
Films include those of general
interest (such as ‘The Pitcairn People’
on October 16 — a 26-minute colour
film) and specialised interest (like
‘The Home Made Car’ a 28-minute
film showing the rebuilding of an old
bull-nosed Morris rescued from a
junkyard, on November 13).
The films are among those on free
loan to industry from BP, Shell and
other film libraries; Training are
loaning the equipment and Eric
Edwards is projectionist. Watch the
noticeboards for details of time, etc.
Tongue in Clieeic
It seems that the Training people
have slipped up. There are
opportunities for learning French and
German, even for polishing up our
mother tongue. But not a single
course in American.
In order to help remedy this situation,
we print here a f ew translations of
words and phrases you are liable to
meet when dealing w i t h Americans
or American copy:
In the ball park — you are somewhere
near the answer to a problem.
Happiness point—when something
reaches a stage at which you feel
happy about it.
Guestimate — not an estimate, not a
guess, but something in between.
Brown-out— where power is
reduced but it’s not a complete
black-out.
And don’t risk the dreadful fate of
one production engineer who asked
an American secretary to give him a
t i n k l e !
3
CAENIVAL TIME
Even on such a relaxed occasion as
Drybrook Memorial Hall’s summer
fete and carnival, Derek Portman,
Manufacturing Group Director, did
not escape decision-making.
He and Mrs Portman not only
officially opened the fete and
crowned the queen but also judged
the carnival entries.
Mitcheldean’s Carnival, organised by
the Community Association, also
took place during August and, as our
picture above shows. Rank Xerox
apprentices were up to monkey
tricks again. Advertising RX Tips, a
well-known brand of tea, they did a
fine road-digging job, and threw
sweets to the kids from their float.
No one minded that, owing to a
costume hitch, there was one gorilla
among the chimps.
As in previous years, the Company
played its part by loaning out lorries
for other floats in the procession.
Vlargo Keeps
inlbucti
‘When you go home, tell them of us
and say: For your tomorrow we
gave our today’ is the epitaph on the
Kohima war memorial in Burma.
These moving lines have been
beautifully worked in fine crochet by
Margo Fellows and she hopes to
present her handiwork around
Armistice Day to the Burma Star
Association at Bath, of which her
father is a member.
Margo, who works in PED, asked
Pat Jordan of TED to design it for her,
and when it was finished, the
Physically Handicapped people in
Cinderford framed the crochet work.
‘I’ve torn up the pattern so it w i l l never
be duplicated,’ she told us.
Margo used to work in Central
Records; then earlier this year she
took up a new j ob in PED as
‘communications girl’. As such she
is responsible for distributing mail,
handling telex messages, operating
the telecopier service not only for her
department but for others in
neighbouring buildings, and
generally saving RX visitors’ and
PED people’s time by putting
them in touch w i t h each other.
‘I like work which involves me w i th
people,’ she says, ‘and I find it quite
exciting contacting places like Venray
or Oslo via the telecopier.’
Her chief. Office Services Manager
Brian Prosser, points out that, w i th
the increase in our multinational
manufacturing activity and the
dispersal of planning engineers to
other locations w i t h i n Rank Xerox,
communications have become a key
area in PED.
Margo shows her crochet work to three PED veterans who fought in Burma in the last war
~ from the left. Les Bent, Stan Cherry and Bill Hobbs.
LCTTCR
We may not have had a summer but
there’s no doubt about the approach
of the festive season. The Social
Centre has been booked for the
annual social on November 2 this
year.
At the end of September we wished
a long and happy retirement to
Winnie Knight and Ray Davies, both
of Engineering Records, and we shall
be featuring them in our next issue.
It was w i t h regret that we learned of
the death of Horace Evans on
September 13. Horace, who was
nearly 53, joined us in December
1949 and last May received his
25-year award. He worked for many
years in Heat Treatment, transferring
to the Fuser Roller section in the
Machine Shop a f ew years ago. He
had not enjoyed good health for
some time, but it was sad that he
should have died while enjoying his
first holiday away for 27 years.
We also record w i t h regret the death
on September 14 of Ernie Dowie at
the age of 73. Until he retired
Ernie worked as a labourer in the
Machine Shop. He had been ill for
some time but even so he managed
to come on the last summer outing
for retired members.
As we went to press we heard also
of the death on September 22 of
Wally Grainger. Although only 54,
he retired last May for health reasons
and was featured in our 100th issue.
We extend our sympathy to the
families of them all.
M a n u f a c t u r i n g G r o up
Peter Salmon has been appointed
Manager Manufacturing Development,
Manufacturing Group, and is
responsible for all Manufacturing
activities to be carried out from the
new Milton Keynes site. He reports
to Roger Haggett, Director of
Manufacturing Operations (UK).
Tony Bryson, formerly Manager
Industrial Engineering, Mitcheldean
Plant, replaces Mr Salmon as
Manager Industrial Engineering,
Manufacturing Group, reporting to
Ron Mason, Chief Engineer,
Manufacturing.
Peter Walton, currently Manager
Inventory Control, Manufacturing
Group, is assuming Mr Salmon’s
former responsibility for the
Overheads & Manpower Working
Party in addition to his present
responsibilities, and reports now to
Don Shryane, Director of
Manufacturing Planning.
John Field has been appointed
Manager, Manufacturing Information
& Control, Manufacturing Group, He
reports to Derek Portman, Director,
Manufacturing Group, and is
responsible for the Financial Control
and Information Systems functions
of the Group.
Mr Field joined Rank Xerox in July
1972, and held the position of Group
Information Systems Manager,
Technical Services and Supply Group.
Prior to joining Rank Xerox, he was
financial director of a public company
in Manchester, and before that he
spent five years as a management
consultant based in Canada.
PED
John Huckett has been appointed
Manager, Industrial Engineering,
Mitcheldean Plant, reporting to
Jack Tester, Manager, Manufacturing
Engineering.
Mr Huckett joins us from Smiths
Industries Ltd at Cricklewood, where
he held the position of Industrial
Engineering Manager.
On his return to PED following an
assignment at Venray, Geoff Howell
has been appointed Manager for
RX 7000, reporting initially to
Mike Hook, Manager, Production
Engineering Department.
Ted Tuffley, formerly Assistant
Manager, Capital Projects, has been
appointed Manager, Machine Shop
Planning, reporting to Tony
Nightingale, Manager, Tool
Engineering & Components Planning.
In consequence of the expansion of
activity in the Accessories Section,
Tony Howard had been appointed
Assistant Manager to Accessories
Manager Harold Hayling.
New P r o d u c t C o n t r ol
Vernon Smith, formerly with
Manufacturing Group Programme
Management, has been appointed
Mitcheldean Plant New Product
Co-ordinator, succeeding Stewart
Jones who has taken up a new
Company appointment outside
Mitcheldean. Mr Smith now reports
to John Pinniger, New Product
Control Manager—Duplicators.
T o p r o w ( l e f t t o r i g h t ) :
Peter Salmon, Tony Bryson,
John Field, Vernon Smith.
B o t t o m r o w ( l e f t t o
r i g h t ) : John Huckett,
Geoff Howell, Ted Tuffley,
Tony Howard. Far r i g h t:
Norman Jones, who
recently joined Engineering
Office as Assistant Manager
to John Brain.
L.SA i-ETTER continued
Time hanging heavy on the hands of
Jim Gurney of the Plating Shop I The
parcel contained a fine battery clock, given
to him by his workmates in Plating Shop
when he retired last August, and presented
by George Douglas, Assistant Manager,
Finishing. He also received from them some
cuff-links while from the LSA there was a
cheque handed over by president Bernard
Smith. Jim started with us in 1948 and last
year received his 25-year award.
The receptionist at Lydney is Eileen
Newman, a former assembly operator. She
copes with the two Post Office lines, and
calls over the PA system. The private wire
(internal line) to Mitcheldean is heavily
used and a second private wire has been
promised for early next year. Now that
setting up operations at the site are largely
resolved, it is hoped that pressure on the
lines will be reduced; in the meantime people
are asked to ‘trim their conversations’ on all
three circuits. Eileen also copes with the
newly installed telecopier service (a second
telecopier link with Lydney’s Production
Control team is under consideration).
The ADF liners posed for this p
Document Feeder came off the
Graham Linley once received a letter marked ‘copy to
Mr Lydney’. We can hardly think of a better title than that
for the manager of our second satellite plant.
Fourteen years w i t h the Company, Graham finds his latest
j ob pretty demanding and he appreciates the support of
his t w o assistant managers, Arthur Cooper and Mike
Perkins, in heading the workforce of some 200 people.
Meetings and discussions necessitate frequent
commuting between Lydney and Mitcheldean. ‘When I
started there, the 15-mile journey took me half an hour,
but now I’ve cut it down to 20 minutes. The secret is to
keep off the main road.’
Graham Linley
Richard Beveridge packs a 660. B e l o w:
Operators at work on the 660 assembly line.
A b o v e : Attending to two patients in the well equipped first aid room
is Jim Davis, who used to work in Medical both at Mitcheldean and
Cinderford Plants. Jim is in attendance full-time {‘We keep people’s
records here,’ he said) and Lydney is fortunate in having half a dozen
first-aiders to help back up the service.
first Automatic
We asked what it felt like, being transplanted. There was
an initial feeling of isolation, but we seem to be settling in
well.
We’re now facing our first winter here, but having safely
survived the recent summer gales and high tides we’re not
expecting any trouble.’ he replied, glancing Severnwards.
Certainly Lydney is a very busy place these days and
doesn’t lack for visitors from Mitcheldean. Recent
programme changes have meant stepping up the pace and
Graham told us that, to cope w i t h requirements, double
shifting commenced in September on the sorter line and
will be extended to the ADF line early in the New Year.
And the 660 line? ‘That’s steadily ticking over,’ he replied.
A b o v e : The sorter area. B e l o w : Four walls were knocked out to
make this attractive and well-patronised canteen which seats 100
people. Vending machines here and in the shop floor refreshment
area dispense beverages, snacks and cigarettes.
The bulk of the work involved in converting
a former warehouse into RX Lydney was
handfed by Works Engineering in
conjunction with Plant Facilities. In
addition to bringing the building interior up
to RX standards, it included relaying the
whole of the car park, reorganising the
drainage system and erecting a new
boundary fence. Tony Valentine {Plant
Facilities) and (right) Phil Kelly (Projects
Planning) who worked together on the job,
told us that the project presented quite a
number of knotty problems. ‘The space was
released to us in stages by J. & C. Ward,
and we had to fit the layout to it as it became
available. The three-day week and the steel
shortage didn’t exactly help We had to go
all over the place, both in this country and
abroad, to get the materials to put in
services, but, with the aid of Purchase
people, we managed to meet the scheduled
start-up dates.’ Now the sorter and ADF
layouts are having to be revised to meet
new programme requirements so it’s ‘back
to the drawing board.’
Lydney’s first twenty-bin sorter is recorded
by the camera. Looking very happy about
it are (from the left) John Thomas
(mechanical run), John Spencer (QA) and
Alan Charles (electrical run).
ANOTHER UOOK AT
LYDNEY OVER THE PAGE
A LOOK AT LYDNEY
Continued
Lydney has played an important role
since ancient times. The Romans
settled here and opened up a way
between Lydney and Mitcheldean
with their ‘Dean Road’; iron was
mined and smelted here, ships built
from Forest wood for the Elizabethan
navy (Drake, Hawkins and Raleigh all
came here). Today its industrial
activities range from paper mills to
engineering — to which latter field
we have added a new dimension
with the setting up of our Lydney
Plant.
To reach RXL, you turn left at the
cross into Station Road and just
beyond the parish church you enter
Lydney’s industrial estate. Go past
the premises of Albany Engineering,
Crompton Paper Mills, Watts Tyre &
Rubber Co., and you come face to
face with the black and white Rank
Xerox sign directing you up a side
turning to the Plant.
The site is flanked on one side by a
service road leading to J . & C.
Ward’s premises, and on the river side
by the railway embankment.
Expresses hurry through but local
trains running between Gloucester
and South Wales stop at Lydney
Station close by (you buy your ticket
on the train).
Arthiur Wymann
If you want to learn about the town
at first hand, talk to Arthur Wymann,
a native of Lydney and the first
Security Officer to be appointed by us
at the site. He remembers when coal
used to be brought down from the
Forest pits and loaded on to railway
trucks, or tipped into barges plying on
Lydney Canal, a short walk from the
Plant.
Now only timber comes in by barge
to the docks, and the barges are far
outnumbered by the pleasure craft.
Near the railway crossing is a new
marina and, if you f o l l ow the canal
down past Pine End wharf to where
a lock opens the door to the Severn,
you find Lydney Yacht Club installed
in the old harbour master’s house.
Lydney’s harbour is tiny and enjoys
the reputation of being the smallest
port in the United Kingdom.
Formerly in the Paint Shop, Mike Phillips
has opted for a more open-air life at
Lydney where he and his fellow Security
Officers Arthur Wymann and Brian Fisher
provide Security service round the clock.
Berkeley Power Station dominates
the opposite shore and, further
seawards, the Severn Bridge unites
England and Wales. As a ‘Special’,
Arthur was on duty when HM the
Queen opened the bridge, and he was
one of the first to walk across it.
He t o ld us there used to be a pub
near the Plant site; today, if RXL
people want a pint w i t h their lunch
they drive to the Cross Keys, the
Swan or the Feathers. Those who
want to exercise more than their
drinking arm enjoy a walk by the
canal and, on warm days, some have
gone swimming in the open-air pool
near the Town Hall.
Vi h a s a Double
Vi Hillman was sitting in a seaside
cafe w i t h her friends Mary Davis (a
colleague in 660 Assembly), Gwen
Simmonds and Olive Sterry (both
of w h om work in Cleaning Services).
They were enjoying a visit to
Blackpool over the spring bank
holiday.
A stranger came up to their table
and asked V i : ‘Are you Marjorie
Proops ?’
‘Yes,’ said Vi without batting an
eyelid.
‘Can I have your autograph,’ he
asked.
‘Sure thing,’ says Vi, adding for
good measure, ‘I’m doing some
research for a feature on people’s
behaviour when on holiday.’
If the real Marjorie Proops ever does
an article on that subject, Vi could
provide some useful material I
DESIGN
CHALLENGE
TED
Design h a v i n g issued a c h a l l e n g e t o TED,
a game w a s arranged for September 11 at
Ruardean Hill CC Ground.
A 15 overs m a t c h was d e c i d e d upon, due t o
t h e w e a t h e r c o n d i t i o n s , and TED skipper
A ‘ G i n g e r ‘ M o r g a n e l e c t e d t o bat.
Openers ‘ G i n g e r ‘ M o r g a n and (E)wart
Lougher set TED off t o a g o o d start against
t h e b o w l i n g of R o b i n G r i f f i t h s and Dave
Bennett, w i t h 25 runs c o m i n g off t h e first
5 overs before Lougher was out for 10.
D. ‘ W o r m ‘ W i l l i a m s t h e n j o i n e d M o r g a n and,
after s u r v i v i n g an early chance, he c o n t i n u ed
t o score freely.
W i t h M o r g a n out for 1 6, and t h e score at
36, W i l l i a m s was t h e n w e l l s u p p o r t e d by
‘ W i n n i e Pooh’ J e n k i n s , t h e partnership
b e i n g 5 4 runs, w i t h J e n k i n s s c o r i n g 10.
T h e n disaster s t r u c k TED, due t o t he
b o w l i n g skills of D e g g y ‘ T w e e n y Tump’
Kear w h o achieved a h a t – t r i c k in his second
over, c l a i m i n g t h e w i c k e t s of D ‘ C a p t a i n ‘
Cook, A. ‘Steak’ W i l k i n s and P. Scrapper’
Hughes.
‘ W o r m ‘ W i l l i a m s was f i n a l l y out off t h e last
ball o f t h e i n n i n g s for an excellent 55, and
TED had amassed a t o t a l of 1 0 2 for 8
w i c k e t s off t h e a l l o t t e d 1 5 overs. L. ‘ ^ t h o f
a’ Gill and L o v e l y Les W i l l i a m s d i d not bat.
It w a s n o w Design’s t u r n t o b a t ; f a c i n g a
f o r m i d a b l e t o t a l , t h e y desperately needed a
g o o d start, but t h i s w a s not t o be.
W i t h t h e t i g h t b o w l i n g of G. Hossage’
H a l f o r d and ‘ W o r m ‘ W i l l i a m s , 3 w i c k e t s fell
for just 6 r u n s in t h e first 3 overs, M. ‘Vicar’
C h u r c h w a r d c o m i n g on and t a k i n g t h e 4 th
w i c k e t in t h e 8 t h over w h e n t h e t o t a l s t o od
at 19, w h i c h put t h e brakes on Design.
T h i n g s l o o k e d p r e t t y bleak for t h e m , but
p r i d e w a s restored w i t h A. ‘ S t r i d e r ‘ Davis
and Deggy Kear, w h o put o n 20 runs before
Kear w a s w e l l b o w l e d by L. G i l l w i t h the
t o t a l at 3 9 .
H a r o l d ‘ H a r e ‘ Hale w a s q u i c k t o f o l l o w ,
b e i n g w e l l run o u t , but Davis w e n t on to
be 2 2 not o u t at t h e end of Design’s
i n n i n g s w h i c h had t o t a l l e d 51 for 6 w i c k e ts
off the a l l o t t e d 1 5 overs.
‘ M a n of t h e m a t c h ‘ a w a r d s must surely go
t o ‘ W o r m ‘ W i l l i a m s for TED and Deggy Kear
f o r Design.
The game w a s played in g o o d spirits and
e v e r y o n e e n j o y e d t h e m a t c h d e s p i t e the
a r d u o u s c o n d i t i o n s . Special t h a n k s go t o
Ruardean Hill CC for t h e use of t h e g r o u n d.
C h r i s t i a n F e l l o w s h ip
Special events in t h e a u t u m n p r o g r a m m e o f
t h e C h r i s t i a n F e l l o w s h i p i n c l u d e a series o f
addresses o n October 22 and 29 and
November 12 by e v a n g e l i s t Roger Chilvers.
On November 5 t h e r e w i l l be a s o u n d strip
‘ T h e Book that Came A l i v e ‘ , and the
p r o g r a m m e c u l m i n a t e s in a Carol Service
in t h e B a l l r o om o n December 18.
J u s t a N o b o d y
H e l p f u l answer t o a t e l e p h o n e c a l l : ‘Sorry,
t h i s is an e m p t y o f f i c e — t h e r e ‘ s no one
h e r e ! ‘
W h o in Electrical S u b – A s s e m b l y , arguing
a m i c a b l y w i t h f r i e n d s about w h o s h o u l d pay
f o r petrol o n an o u t i n g t o Cheddar, turned
t o t h e garage a t t e n d a n t and a s k e d : ‘ H ow
m u c h is i t a p o u n d , t h e n ?’
8
ilace meeting p l a c e meetina p l a c e meeting p l a c e meeting p l a c e m e e –
neeting place meeting place meeting p l a c e meeting place meeting plac4
i l a c e meeting place meeting p l a c e meeting place meeting place mete^
High flier G e r a i n t G r i f f i t h s is getting
ahead in leaps and bounds.
A 25-year-old graduate trainee from
Manchester University, Geraint is
currently working as chargehand in
Electrical Sub Assembly, ‘but I may
be changing direction soon.’
That’s something he’s used to doing
in his spare time when, as a member
of Gloucester Athletic Club, he does
the long, triple and high jump, with
a bit of javelin ‘thrown i n ‘ .
He holds the club records in the long
jump (22ft. 4in.) and in the high
jump (6ft. 6in.).
It was w i t h this latter achievement,
when jumping for Wales in a recent
match, that he hit the headlines; he
now ranks eighth in the UK this
year, and is one of the 12 best high
jumpers in Great Britain, which puts
him in t he international jumping set.
‘The Welsh national coach told me
that if I add another t w o inches, I
stand a good chance of getting into
the 1976 Olympic Games,’said
Geraint.
A member of Gloucester Operatic &
Dramatic Society, he was among
those performing excerpts from the
club’s shows over the past 60 years
as part of the opening celebrations at
the new Leisure Centre in Gloucester
from September 21—28.
His sister sings w i t h the D’Oyly
Carte Opera Company, so it seems
that ‘treading the boards’ is in the
family.
Also involved w i t h the GODS’ show
was Mike Benbow, Administrative
Assistant, Production, w h o is the
possessor of a fine bass voice, and
our Personnel Director, Lionel Lyes,
who assisted w i t h the design and
direction of the show.
Bearded B i l l Meeic who works in
the Sheet Metal Shop at RX
Cinderford has been w i t h us for
seven years now, and has a brother
and three brothers-in-law all working
w i t h the Company.
A member of the Golf Society
committee, his name has been
appearing regularly among the
winners of various competitions (the
works Round Robin and a big
Pro Am match at Lansdowne GC,
Bath, among them) and the
silverware is mounting up at home
where he has eight trophies to date.
Those whose handicaps are still in
the twenties may take heart from t he
fact that, although he took up golf
only t w o years ago. Bill has a
handicap of 15 at Ross GC and
recently cut his figure at Monmouth
GC down to 12.
A dedicated man, he usually spends
his lunch hour practising his s w i n g ;
at the time we t o o k our photo he
was training hard for t he coming
12-a-side match against Welwyn
Plant on September 25 at Reading.
He plays skittles, but only in the
winter, and he’s even deserted brass
banding for golf, having been a
member of Cinderford Town Band
for 27 years. ‘Since I started as a
boy I’ve played the cornet, tenor,
baritone and bass (the one w i t h all
the bends).’
His daughter has just started at t he
Royal Forest of Dean Grammar
School, and Bill often finds himself
‘on a course’ w i t h members of the
teaching staff I
‘I’ve always liked taking things
apart 1’ was A n g e l a i V I i i i e r ‘ s answer
when we asked her w h y she became
an engineer.
The first women ever to be offered
an engineering scholarship by the
Electricity Supply Industry, she was
also the first ever to graduate from
Swansea University in the subject.
She gained cap and g o w n and
husband all at t he same time. He’s a
Rolls-Royce addict so ‘you could
say I married a Phantom lover!’ She
gave up work on computer
applications w i t h the Electricity
Board when he was seconded to
Trinidad and their t w o daughters
were born there.
Returning in 1969, she took up her
career once more and came to us as
a resource analyst last year.
Currently she works in Space
Planning within Industrial Engineering
Department with the distinction of
being the only female engineer in
the Plant.
Says Angela : ‘We have t w o main
functions; one is to forecast what
space will be necessary to meet our
programmes contained in the long
range plan for all assembly,
component manufacture, storage,
office and support functions; t he
other is t he day-to-day space
allocation to people and products.
It’s like a jigsaw puzzle — very
satisfying when the pieces slot
together satisfactorily.’
With a f u l l – t i me j ob and a home to
run (her husband now lives in South
America), Angela finds it difficult to
‘slot in’ leisure-time activities.
She likes to play tennis regularly and
she enjoys reading poetry, especially
that of Dylan Thomas. ‘I don’t have
the time to get engrossed in a deep
novel,’ she says.
m e e t i n g p l a c ej m e e t i n g p i a«
9
B i r t h s
M e l a n i e Miranda, a d a u g h t e r for J o hn
B r o w n ( S u p p l y Centre) and his w i fe
Maureen, o n A u g u s t 15.
Robert J o h n , a s o n for George S w a i n s on
(PED) and his w i f e D o r o t h y ( f o r m e r ly
Canteen) , o n A u g u s t 17.
Helen, a daughter for D u l c i e J a y ne
( f o r m e r l y Purchase Dept) and her husband
Tony, on September 4.
E n g a g e m e n t s
Pat S m i t h ( I n d u s t r i a l Engineering
Department) to George Gawler on
A u g u s t 28.
Pete J a m e s t o Cheryl G w i l l i a m s ( b o th
S u p p l y Centre) on October 5.
W e d d i n g s
Pam Ireland ( 6 6 0 Assembly, RX L y d n e y ) to
David Hodges at t h e Forest C h u r c h,
Drybrook, o n J u l y 13.
J e n n y W i l l s t e a d ( 4 0 0 0 Sub A s s e m b l y ) to
Dave B u n d y (RX Lydney) at St S t e p h e n ‘s
Church, Cinderford, o n A u g u s t 24.
J a n e Davies (secretary t o Manager,
Technical Services, E n g i n e e r i n g ) t o A l an
Carney (Plant Facilities) at St. M a r k ‘s
C h u r c h , C h e l t e n h a m , o n A u g u s t 24.
J o y Marshall ( M e c h a n i s e d Stock Records)
t o J o h n Boyle (formerly 4 0 0 0 Assembly)
at Ruardean Church on A u g u s t 3 1 .
Sue S i m m o n d s ( P e r s o n n e l ) t o Roger Lewis
at C h r i s t c h u r c h C h u r c h on A u g u s t 3 1 .
L y n n e M a t t h e w s ( T r a i n i n g ) t o Richard Coote
( Q A ) at Ross Register O f f i c e o n A u g u s t 3 1 .
L u c i a n a M a r a n g o n ( O p t i c a l & Electrical
L a b o r a t o r y ) t o Robert M i l l s (PED) at
C o l e f o r d C a t h o l i c C h u r c h on September 14.
Pam T u r l e y ( P e r s o n n e l ) t o Geoff W o od
( M a c h i n e S h o p ) at Our Lady of V i c t o r i es
C h u r c h , C i n d e r f o r d , o n September 14.
S i l v e r W e d d i n gs
C o n g r a t u l a t i o n s t o C o l i n Organ ( S u p p ly
Centre) and his w i f e Ruby w h o celebrated
t h e i r 2 5 t h w e d d i n g anniversary on
September 17.
C o n g r a t u l a t i o n s also t o Fred J o n es
( c h a r g e h a n d . Electrical S u b – A s s e m b l y ) and
h is w i f e Edna ( f o r m e r l y M e d i c a l ) w ho
c e l e b r a t e d t h e i r s o n September 25.
R e t i r e m e n t s
Best w i s h e s t o Herbert J a m e s (Purchase)
and Hector Surge ( 4 0 0 0 A s s e m b l y ) w ho
r e t i r ed in September.
R a y L e w is
We are sorry t o have t o r e c o r d t h e d e a t h on
September 23 of Ray L e w i s (PED) at t he
age of 52, a n d e x t e n d our s y m p a t h y t o his
f a m i l y .
A l i s o n B e n n e tt
Our s t o r y c o n c e r n s a very brave l i t t le girl —
s e v e n – y e a r – o l d A l i s o n , o n l y daughter of
M i c k Bennett (RX N o r t h e r n Colliery) and
h is w i f e Margaret.
Back in J u n e , A l i s o n w a s i n v o l v e d in a
serious car a c c i d e n t , as a result of w h i ch
her right leg had t o be a m p u t a t e d above the
knee. She spent nine w e e k s in hospital and
faces a prospect of many more v i s i t s for
f i t t i n g of a r t i f i c i a l l i m b s as she g r o w s up.
There c o u l d be no o f f i c i a l c o m p e n s a t i o n,
but t h e c o m p e n s a t i o n s she has been
r e c e i v i n g have o v e r w h e l m e d her f a m i l y.
B o t h in Ruardean w h e r e she lives a n d in
n e i g h b o u r i n g places, people have f o u nd
w a y s and means of raising v a r y i n g sums
w h i c h have been invested for her, and have
presented her w i t h all kinds of gifts.
A l t h o u g h w e d o not normally publish
t h a n k y o u letters, w e felt w e s h o u l d make
an e x c e p t i o n in t h e case of t h e f o l l o w i ng
message f r om A l i s o n ‘ s aunt, M a r i l y n Meek
of C l e a n i n g s t a f f:
‘ W e have no idea w h e r e some of t h e money
has c o m e f r om and w e w o u l d like t h r o u gh
t h e m e d i u m of V I S I O N , t o say t o all t h o se
w h o have c o n t r i b u t e d in any w a y that their
k i n d n e s s is d e e p l y a p p r e c i a t e d .’
David and Pam Hodges
Roger and Sue Lewis
Dave and Jenny Bundy
Focal Richard and Lynne Coote
J. Ingram John and Joy Boyle J- Ingram
Robert and Luciana Mills Dean Forest Studios
10
SP@RTS & SmCIAL CLUB
All eyes on Board 1 as Richard Walker (left). Group Inventory Control captain, and Ray Barnett,
captain of the Information Systems team, move towards a stalemate. Far right is John Johnson
(Optical B Electrical Laboratory) who organised the competitions single-handed.
The first game to be decided was won
by Charles Cunningham, who in
move 6 forked his opponent’s queen
and rook w i t h a knight, and then,
helped by a vital mistake in move 7
by John Mannering, broke through
to capture the queen and force a
checkmate at move 26.
In game 2, neither Roger Harris or
Ian Billson could gain any real
advantage until about move 2 3 ; Ian,
who had had a rather shaky-looking
defence, suddenly broke through and,
after a swift exchange of pieces,
found himself definitely in command,
w i t h Roger’s only hope the rather
forlorn one of expecting Ian to fall
for a sucker checkmate — the king
trapped behind its own pawns. But
he forced Roger’s resignation at
move 30.
Game 1 became a real nail biter,
after a rather shaky start by Richard
Walker whose defence on the king’s
side seemed to be split wide open by
move 10. However, he recovered,
the game going to move 52 w i t h both
players in possession of five pawns
and t w o castles, and w i t h both
threatening to queen at least one
each.
Then unaccountably Ray Barnett
exchanged a castle for a pawn, much
to the consternation of his team
mates, particularly as just previously
he had missed a golden opportunity
to break through and win.
However, a frantic exchange of
pieces followed, leaving Ray w i t h a
pawn on R7 guarded by his king,
and Richard w i t h a castle w i t h which
Chess Set
Our t w o chess competitions reached
their climax on September 5 in the
Club House when teams from
Information Systems and Group
Inventory Control met in the final for
the Wickstead Shield, and Nigel
Watts (4000 electrical) met Nick
Swan (Design) to decide who should
be the first winner of the Portman
Trophy — a magnificent silver
rosebowl donated by Derek Portman,
Director, Manufacturing Group.
The t w o teams were:
Boards Information
Systems
Ray Barnett
( c a p t .)
Roger Harris
Charles
C u n n i n g h am
Group
V Inventory Control
V Richard Walker
( c a p t . )
V Ian B i l l s on
V John M a n n e r i ng
The captains drew for choice of
colour for first board which Ray
Barnett won, choosing white for first
and third boards.
Mr Portman hands the trophy which he
donated to the winner of the individual
competition, Nick Swan (Design).
he drove Ray’s king into R8 in front
of his o w n pawn, w i t h his (Ray’s)
king strategically placed to force a
stalemate.
The result of the team match
therefore remained undecided, with
game 1 having to be replayed at a
later date.
The game for the Portman Trophy
was also evenly contested, the moves
only made after long deliberation.
Early on both players castled, Nick
on the queen’s side, and Nigel on the
king’s. Nick attacked the king’s side,
forcing Nigel to exchange his castle’s
pawn for his knight’s pawn, leaving
the end file wide open for his two
lined-up castles, and w i t h his queen
threatening a diagonal checkmate on
the other side, Nigel resigned at
move 22.
This was a good win for Nick Swan
who was playing w i t h black.
Our thanks go to Mr Portman, who
presented the trophy to Nick Swan.
We would also like to thank the Ross
Chess Club who provided the chess
sets, boards and clocks for the
evening. Charles Cunningham
would welcome any enquiries about
the club, w h o meet each Monday
evening. J . J .
Please watch for further announcements
concerning the two competitions which it is
hoped to begin again before the year ends.
Golf C u p s G a l o re
Having won the Inter Plant
Competition for the last t w o years,
the Golf Society went all out for a
hat trick to secure the Portman Cup
on September 25 at Reading.
Captained by Mike Mee, the team
won 10 games to Welwyn’s two.
More successes: Rank Xerox golfers
have taken the t w o main trophies
from Monmouth GC this year — the
President’s Cup, won by Maurice
Pask (Purchase), and the Rabbit’s
Cup, won by Derek Parker (Finance
Et Administration).
The first Summer Cup outing to
Knowie GC, Bristol, was a wash-out
and the course was declared
unplayable after half-an-hour’s golf.
The competition was postponed until
September 30 when Dave Robinson
won the Cup, John Spratley being
runner-up.
W a n t t o W a l k t h e P l a n k?
Are you the sort that likes getting
into deep water? If so, contact
Tony Gibbs, ext. 626. He and a
number of other sub aqua types are
considering the possibilities of
forming a diving club.
11
Recent weeks have seen the transfer of 7000 sub assembly work from Venray to
Mitcheldean — the operation being co-ordinated by Ralph Zimmermann assisted by Kevin
Horrobin. During this time, parties of production workers and representatives of PED,
Production Control and QA have been commuting between the two plants. Instead of the
usual scheduled services, chartered services have been used to fly the teams between
Staverton and Eindhoven, achieving a considerable saving in travelling time, and this cartoon
is Venray engineer R. Wiepkes’ impression of the transfer team in transit. Our side have
pointed out one slight inaccuracy — the Piper Aztecs do not fly so close together!
SP@RTS&Si PCIALCLUB
1975 Dance Programme
F r i d a y F e b r u a r y 14
St. VALENTINE’S DANCE
HI-LIFE SHOWBAND
HARBOUR LITES
and Cabaret with Joan and Terry
S a t u r d a y A p r i l 26
PETER WINSLOW
AND HIS
KING SIZE BRASS
supported by
ASHTON RACE & EVANS
S a t u r d a y J u n e 7
SHAG CONNERS
AND THE
CARROT CRUNCHERS
S a t u r d a y S e p t e m b e r 13
RAY McVAY
AND HIS ORCHESTRA
supported by
THE HI-LIFE SHOWBAND
S a t u r d a y N o v e m b e r 29
JOE LOSS
HIS ORCHESTRA
AND SINGING STARS
supported by
SOUNDS INTERNATIONAL
supported by
PENDULUM
ANY NEWS FOR VISION?
If you have then please—
^ let your departmental correspondent know,
• or leave it at any Gate House for collection by me,
• or post it to me at Tree Tops, Plump Hill, Mitcheldean,
• or ring me—it’s Drybrook 542415. Myrtie Fowler, Editor
HOME MARKET
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F o r S a le
S e m i – d e t a c h e d house w i t h f u l l central
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Personnel or D. Clegg, ext. 9 8 7 o r
D r y b r o o k 5 4 2 0 0 2.
T w o Dimplex night s t o r a g e heaters, as new,
£ 1 2 each or offers. V. Gertner, ext. 537.
1 9 7 2 ‘K’ M i n i 1 0 0 0 , 3 5 , 0 0 0 miles, one
o w n e r , regularly serviced, £ 6 5 0 o.n.o.
T o n y W i l s o n , ext. 0 1 1 6 or L y d b r o o k 632.
M o d e r n s e m i – d e t a c h e d 3 – b e d r o om house,
part central heating, garage. ‘ M o n t a n a ‘,
Clays Road, S l i n g , C o l e f o r d . Offers around
£ 8 , 7 5 0 . M. M o r g a n , ext. 965.
Green brushed n y l o n pram, I t a l i an style,
c o m p l e t e w i t h s h o p p i n g tray, i m m a c u l a te
c o n d i t i o n , £ 1 5 . Carry Cot and transporter,
£3. R. D a v i s , Design, ext. 8 3 9.
P h i l i p s 20 in. m o n o c h r o m e TV, 3 – c h a n n e l,
2 years o l d , dark w o o d case, £ 4 0 o.n.o.
i n c l u d i n g stand. Ian Thomas, W h i t e c r o f t 703
or ext. 265.
3 – b e d r o o m s e m i – d e t a c h e d house w i th
garage, l o u n g e / d i n e r , f i t t e d k i t c h e n,
b a t h r o o m , n i g h t storage heaters, w e l l laid
out garden, o p e n aspect at f r o n t , £8,750.
11 Carisbrook Road, M i t c h e l d e a n , or
ext. 760.
‘ L ‘ r e g i s t r a t i o n T o y o t a Carina, taxed
A u g u s t 1975, £ 8 5 0 . Mr Barton, ext. 8 4 1 .
Central h e a t i n g oil t a n k ( 2 5 0 gals, c a p a c i t y)
i n c l u d i n g 5 0 gals, o i l , £ 2 0 or o f f e r s .
R. B. Chambers, ext. 0 1 3 4.
3- b e d r o om d e t a c h e d house, p o r c h and
garage, M i t c h e l d e a n . Full g a s – f i r e d central
h e a t i n g , £ 1 0 , 0 0 0 . Tel. 5 4 2 6 5 1 .
H i t a c h i stereo unit, 1 0 W per c h a n n e l,
4 – speed record deck, A M / F M stereo radio,
i n t e g r a t e d cassette recorder plus 2 speakers,
£ 9 0 o.n.o. C o l i n Ford, ext. 3 6 8.
Koss ESP-6 S t e r e o p h o n e s w i t h speaker/
h e a d p h o n e transfer s w i t c h and c a r r y i ng
case. Hardly used, £ 2 5 . Drybrook 5 4 2 4 15
e v e n i n g s .
‘ L ‘ registered H o n d a 3 5 0 . 1,700 miles, one
o w n e r , bike in s h o w r o o m c o n d i t i o n . Cost
£ 4 0 0 , sell for £ 3 0 0 or £ 2 2 8 and six
p a y m e n t s of £ 1 2 ( i n c l u d i n g r i d i n g kit and
c o v e r ) . A l s o G o o d m a n s M o d u l e 11 tunera
m p l i f i e r , 4 0 W per c h a n n e l , LW, M W , SW
and stereo UHF. Cost £ 1 1 0 ( d i s c o u n t ),
sell for £ 6 6 . Ian S m i t h , B l o c k 5 1 , ext. 0 1 1 5.
W a n t e d
Homes for f i v e k i t t e n s . R. J o n e s , ext. 165.
B o y ‘ s ‘ C h o p p e r ‘ b i c y c l e in g o o d c o n d i t i o n.
Mrs P. P h e l p s , ext. 170.
T y p e w r i t e r , p o r t a b l e or o t h e r w i s e . Mrs A. E.
Kyte, S u p p l y Centre, ext. 3 0 4 or 3 0 8 .
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chest of d r a w e r s or c o m b i n a t i o n w a r d r o b e.
Ken W i l l i a m s , ext. 8 3 6.
E n t e r t a i n m e n t
‘ I n t h e G r o o v e ‘ Disco. Enquiries: D. Jeynes,
3 A G l e n m o r e Road, o f f Valley Road,
C i n d e r f o r d .
Brass b a n d c o n c e r t s at L y d n e y T o wn
Hall — O c t . 2 0 : C a r l t o n M a i n C o l l i e r y;
Nov. 2 4 : G r i m e t h o r p e C o l l i e r y ; Dec. 1 5 :
Foden M o t o r w o r k s . Tickets f r om :
B. Nelmes, ext. 8 3 8 or D. Haynes, ext. 8 6 5,
D e s i g n Dept, BIdg 38.
12 Printed in England by Taylor, Young (Printers) Ltd.