November/December 76 No. 122
THE HOUSE MAGAZINE OF RANK XEROX MITCHELDEAN
A Merry Christmas
Who’s got the biggest headache — Fred
Johnston, judging the paintings, or Eric
Wee/r’s sculpture ‘Migraine’?
A.rts & Crafts Sliow \
For three days in September, a
section of the ballroom became a
gallery of arts and crafts, revealing
something of the artistic talent that
exists among the people who work
at Mitcheldean.
There were 54 entries for the
exhibition and competition;
paintings made up by far the
biggest class, varying from the
highly imaginative type to single
colour designs. Fred Johnston, who
judged them, commented that for
an exhibition of leisure-hour
artists’ work the standard was quite
high.
It was a delicate water colour of
Lydney Dock by Clive Betts (Design
Engineering) which gained first
prize. Runner-up was Eric Weeks
(Engineering Draughting) with his
still life oil painting; his surrealist
picture of a watery hell inhabited by
fishy monsters also gained him a
‘very highly commended’ note (and
very nearly an ‘ H ‘ certificate ! ).
Two oil paintings by Brian John
(Spot Weld) — a lifelike cat and a
landscape ‘End of Day’ — were
highly commended ; so too was a
pencil portrait of Bruce Lee of Kung Fu
fame by Robert Moore (Tool Room).
With entries in the handicrafts section
ranging from tapestry work to
pottery, judge Mrs Olive Bowkitt
had a tough assignment. She finally
awarded first place to Mike
Churchward (Production Engineering)
for his ‘pinch pot’ (a piece of pottery
made by pinching the clay w i t h the
fingers). Myra Newman (Group
Public Relations) came second with
her crocheted tea cosy.
Two items were highly commended —
‘The Lord’s Prayer’ in crochet by
Margo Kibble (Production
Engineering), and a Japanese lady in
tapestry by Jane Williams (Finishing).
Two winning competitors — (left) Clive Betts who came
first with his water colour (seen top), and Eric Weeks,
runner-up, who did the still life in oils. Caught in the corner
is Brian John’s ‘highly commended’ cat.
The one that didn’t get away, despite some tempting offers —
a leaping salmon created by Stan Cherry which came top in
the sculpture section.
SP@RTS & S&CIAL CLUB
[A Commendec.
A leaping salmon, created in
mahogany by Stan Cherry
(Production Engineering), won first
prize in the sculpture section. Stan
revealed that he had three times
refused offers of £1,000 for the
work — an admission that went
straight to the headlines of the
local press!
The judge, Allen Saysell, awarded
second place to a chunky little polar
bear by Bill Kerr (Industrial
Engineering). This too was sculpted in
mahogany — ‘ I found a small block of
it amongst my firewood and it
sparked off the idea,’ said Bill.
When the winners had received
their shopping voucher prizes and
the exhibits had gone back to their
respective owners, we asked
organiser John Johnson, a
development engineer who paints
and writes poetry in his spare time,
how he felt about the response.
‘This was a trial run,’ he said, ‘but I
think it has proved there is sufficient
interest to justify making the event an
annual one. Next time w e ‘ d like to have
more entries, particularly in the
sculpture section, and greater variety in
the handicrafts section — leatherwork,
toys, jewellery, patchwork, etc.
Handicrafts judge Mrs BowlChurchward. Far right is Myra Newman holding the crocheted tea cosy which gained second
place. Bottom picture: Organiser John Johnson (left) takes a close look at the polar
bear fashioned from firewood by Bill Kerr, runner-up in the sculpture section.
OPERATION
MOONSHINE
If a f ew of our apprentices looked a
little beat on Monday, October 11, it
was because they’d been out all the
previous Saturday night.
Not just having a good time, although
they did enjoy themselves. They
were taking part in an orienteering
exercise over some 20 miles of
Forest woodland, organised by the
Gloucester Regiment 25th Army
Youth team in conjunction with the
Gloucestershire Association of Youth
Clubs.
Six of our lads who belong to
Coleford Youth Club took part;
there were 20 teams altogether,
their members ranging from 16 to 21
years of age.
The night exercise started from
Blaisdon Hall at approximately
7.45 pm, and the youngsters set off
in stout boots and waterproof
clothing, carrying torch, compass,
map and cutlery for a much-needed
meal on arrival at the finishing point—
The Biblins youth centre at
Symonds Yat.
‘B’ team, consisting of Andrew
Hoare, Jeffrey Russell and Martin
Wyman captained by Nicholas Farr,
came in first at 3.30 am, having
completed the course in just under
eight hours. Some 20 minutes
behind them came Coleford’s ‘A’
team, t w o of whom were RX
apprentices David Beach and
Spencer Johnson.
Said their club leader John Drew:
‘I think it was an extremely good
effort, especially considering they
were untrained in this sort of armytype
exercise.’
The t w o teams were subsequently
presented with a plaque by Sir Peter
Scott at St Mary’s College,
Cheltenham, to commemorate their
achievement.
David and Spencer, who are doing
their Duke of Edinburgh awards, are
also currently involved in another
newsworthy activity.
J im Blanche, owner of the Swan
Pool at Redbrook, has lent it to the
Ferry Inn Disabled Children’s
Angling Club (which we have
featured in VISION before) and our
t w o apprentices, along w i t h other
Coleford Youth Club members, have
been busy building a ramp to enable
wheel-chairs to be got from the road
to the water’s edge more easily.
Concrete peg areas to anchor the
chairs are also planned, as well as an
overflow grille to prevent the loss of
fish stock. The project doesn’t end
there for David and Spencer; keen
anglers themselves, they are also
helping the disabled children to
enjoy the sport.
3
Contracting
-we’re doing it the SMART way
Systematic Material Acquisition and
Release Technique.
You will realise that the initial letters
of the above words spell out SMART,
and we’re willing to bet you have
already formed the impression that
this is another of those ? ? ? systems
changes. Furthermore, by the nature
of the expression you will realise
who its godparents are !
Unlike many of the ‘new faces’ of
Rank Xerox, however, the concept
behind the technique is not new and
is relatively unsophisticated. It is
simply a method of annual
contracting for the supply of goods,
with regular call-off by schedule
instead of the repetitive placement
of purchase orders.
As usual, however, in contracting,
it’s the small print which makes the
technique desirable to us; and it’s
the size of Xerox/Rank Xerox
business coupled w i t h our first-class
business ethics which make the
technique acceptable, even
advantageous, to a supplier.
Why bother, then, to take the
trouble to advise you about SMART
since it hardly appears newsworthy?
The answer is to be found in the
f o l l o w i n g :
• SMART is fundamental to MLS
(remember Material Logistic
System, reported upon last
issue?).
• It will probably involve
fundamental changes to
Purchase/Production Planning
& Control organisation.
• Its use will limit, to the minimum
value. Rank Xerox/Xerox forward
financial commitment in respect
of bought-out supplies. This
means less money potentially at
risk and thus greater security for
our Company.
• It exists and is in use now.
Since the beginning of the year a
team of people from Purchase,
Production Planning & Control,
Management Information Services,
Group Materials and Group Purchase
have been concerned in the design
and implementation of the technique,
and Purchase personnel have been
involved in ‘selling’ agreements to
suppliers. ‘Agreements’ is the term
we use to describe our contracts —
merely because it sounds better.
Ideally, the technique should be
allied to large quantities, high
annual spend per item, stable
programmes and stable design; but,
as you will know, these factors
hardly apply to our business at the
moment. It says much, therefore,
for the skill and application of
Buyers and colleagues in other
departments that the programme is
proceeding on target.
Suppliers, too, are playing their part
by realising that a strong Rank
Xerox means good business, and
anything like SMART which helps
increase that strength makes sense.
Naturally, though, they still try to
negotiate the best deal for themselves,
and this is where the team aspect
of Cost Engineering, Finance,
Production Planning & Control and
Legal people working w i t h Buyers
ensures that the interests of our
Company are secured.
Group departments play their part
too in ensuring that we have
corporate compatible systems. This
latter aspect means that any part of
the Xerox world can lock into an
international agreement, and take
advantage of the greater bargaining
power created by the increased
quantities.
Ken Tucker of Purchasing (centre), who
heads the SIVIART working party, looks in
on some ‘close proximity teamwork’
between Bob Parsons (left) and Jim
Gibbons in Production Planning & Control.
In addition to the financial
advantages afforded by the
technique, SMART brings about
improvements in communication
because we can issue and progress
delivery schedules direct to the
supplier from Production Planning
& Control.
To prove out this latter procedure a
pilot transfer of one LCDC (Leading
Clerk Delivery Control) from
Purchase to Production Planning &
Control took place immediately
after this year’s works holiday and
this is working successfully.
Bob Parsons, who is the man at the
centre of this transfer, sits next to
J im Gibbons, his Parts Analyst
colleague; this close proximity
teamwork means the supplier gets
the most up-to-date information
possible about our production needs
and can tailor his production more
closely to those needs.
This then is the essence of SMART.
But before we end this article we’d
like to offer public thanks to our
colleagues in Xerox — Pete Pulis,
Mike Werdein and their team, whose
unobtrusive help has been conveyed
over the Atlantic whenever required
but never pressed upon us, and to
Arthur Verjans and colleagues in
Rank Xerox Venray, for their
collaboration in devising, so far as
possible, universal systems.
Thanks are also due to all those at
Mitcheidean who have adapted
themselves to the changing
circumstances.
K.T.
Messages
‘Pam, get me this extension at
Venray — Direct, of course.’
The time is September 1977 (give
or take a m o n t h ) ; and the manager
speaking to his secretary is not as
over-optimistic, or abrupt, as you
might think.
Pam reaches for the internal ‘phone,
dials 8, then the Venray location
number followed by the extension.
It’s not engaged at the moment, so
she puts the call through to her
boss as quickly as if the recipient
were in another building on site, and
he is able to speak ‘Direct’ to his
contact at a fraction of the cost
of the normal international call.
This is how it will be a year from
now when Intelnet, our network of
private lines, goes automatic.
In about six months’ time the access,
or code, number will be changed
f r om 0 to 8 ; full automation, cutting
4
Well below the
Brewery CAn I n – d e p t h S t o r y)
It was a gloomy, wet day and the
old Brewery building looked
forbidding. We stopped at a l ow
green door and stepped through
into a store room filled w i t h cables,
coiled like snakes.
Down here,’ said my guide from
Works Engineering (for a moment he
sounded just like Vincent Price) and
1 followed him d o w n the steps into
a tiled cellar.
Pushing back thoughts of
unspeakable doings in horror films,
I went down yet more steps into a
narrow cell. A hole some 5ft across
gaped in t he floor w i t h an ironrunged
ladder leading down into its
depths.
‘Look down there,’ he said — and I
looked, my hand gripping the piping
for moral support.
An electric pump was fitted across
the void a f ew feet down, but
beyond that I could see only
blackness at f i r s t ; then I caught the
glimmer of water some 20ft down.
‘That hole goes down to a depth of
42ft and from there lengths of
tubing descend into the ground a
further 117ft to the water-bearing
layer. So it’s close on 160ft deep
altogether — w e k n ow that from an
old drawing we have dated August
1899,’ said Stan Pulford.
The water was once used by the
old brewery; it’s soft and velvety in
texture and it was that which gave
Senior plumber
Tom Ward down
the well. I’ve a
head for depths,’
he says.
the beer body.’ (I knew a body
would come into this story
somehow).
Because of the recent drought, this
artesian well, or borehole, hidden in
the bowels of Building 6, has
suddenly been exposed to the
photographer’s flash. Today, instead
of being drunk as a constituent part
of Wintle’s beer, water from it is
pumped into a header tank to feed the
Brewery and Maltings area.
On average we take 30,000 gallons
of water a day f r om this well,’ said
Stan, w h o has been temporarily
seconded to the task of checking
our water consumption and
restrictive measures.
‘The more well water we pump up,
the less mains water we use, so our
borehole has made a valuable
contribution to the continuing water
economy campaign.’
Well done, w e l l!
will go DIRECT out all operator intervention, will be
effected later in 1977.
When this happens, callers located
at any one of the RX sites currently
connected into the system, whether
it be Paris or Venray, Mitcheldean
or Madrid, will be able to get
through to Intelnet — or Direct, as
the network is to be renamed —just
by dialling 8. At present, all these
sites have different access numbers.
More and more locations are being
planned for the network — Italy,
Spain, Scandinavia and Lille are t he
latest o n e s— making even larger
what is already one of the largest
private networks in Europe.
Here at Mitcheldean we shall also
be stepping up the number of
Intelnet circuits from ten to 12,
with special equipment to enable
some lines to carry high-speed data
runs as well as speech.
Quick access to the network,
however, will still depend on the
co-operation of the users in limiting
the length of conversation.
The automation of Intelnet was one
of the main projects discussed at a
recent three-day seminar for
telecommunications personnel at
major RX locations which Roy
Brooks, our Communications
Manager, attended along with
Administration Manager Jack Woods.
Another current project discussed —
Hermes — is a message switch
system for telex users which we
hope to have in operation by the
end of this year.
At present our telex team often have
to waste time trying to get a line
prior to putting a message through ;
w i t h the help of Hermes (messenger
of the Greek gods !) it w i l l always be
transmitted without delay.
The sender merely has to dial into
the system and then transmit the
message, feeding it into a mini
computer located at RX House in
London; here it is stored, to be
released when the line is free.
Hermes will also offer data
transmission capabilities at high
speed.
‘In short (and that reminds me —
please keep your calls to a maximum
of six minutes), we are making all
possible use of developments in
technology to ensure that our
networks keep pace w i t h the ever
increasing demands of the business,’
says Mr Brooks.
Christmas Band
Derek Wade is getting together the
bandsmen who last year brought
the sound of Christmas into the
Social Centre w i t h lunchtime
concerts of carols and other
seasonal music. Times of
performances will be publicised
later.
5
Top: Nancy Self pre-forms components
packed in bandoliers. They remind her of
machine gun bullets. 7 feel like a bandit
when I handle them,’ she says. Above:
Keith Grant (left), production engineer
assigned to Electronics Assembly, with Work
Study engineer John Hek.
There’s enough here to make a
bionic man,’ says Nancy Self,
pointing out the bins of miniature
components in Electronics Assembly
— our ‘little bit of Welwyn’ located
in Building 29.
Here, as at Welwyn, we are
assembling logic boards or PWBs
(printed wiring boards) which make
up the electronic brain of our
machines.
Says Ted Sage, Manager, Wiring/
Electronics: ‘At Welwyn we have
what we believe to be one of the
best equipped manufacturing
set-ups of its kind in the country.
‘The volume of work necessitates a
high degree of automation,
although a large number of
operators are still employed on jobs
calling for special sensitivity and skill.
‘Until this November, the Electronics
Assembly section here at
Mitcheldean has been handling the
overload from Welwyn, assembling
PWBs for the 4500 and repairing
line rejects. Now we are starting to
rectify rejects from the field as well,
re-working the assemblies to the
latest mod state.’
The assembly operation starts, like
this story, w i t h Nancy. She unpacks
the raw materials which come to us
via Welwyn from places as far
apart as Arizona and Taiwan, and
stores them in the racks of bins.
These miniaturised components
include capacitors, resistors,
connectors and relays; semiconductor
devices (transistors and
diodes); and integrated circuits
(semi-conductor components
Above: Audrey Luther uses an inserter to
position the integrated circuits. Above
right: Mounted on a carrier, the boards
pick up just the right amount of solder
when they pass over this flow-solder
equipment, operated by Ivor Pudge. Far
right ( t o p ) : With the aid of a magnifying
glass, Audrey Witts checks a newly soldered
board.
grouped on a little chip of silicon
to form an electronic circuit).
The last-named come pre-packed
in plastic tubes or sticks; most of
the others come in bandoliers and
remind Nancy of machine-gun
bullets. ‘I always feel like a bandit
when I handle them,’ she says.
She pre-forms them, bending the wire
‘arms’ or leads of the components,
and then marshals them into assembly
kits, along with the basic logic
boards.
Chargehand Roger Preece (left) with Ted
Sage, Manager, Wiring!Electronics
These boards bear a photographic
image of an electronic circuit in
the form of a metal deposit, and
they are pre-drilled to receive the
components. There are boards for
the programmer, fuser controller,
power supply, sensor, sorter control,
etc., as well as a mother board
which holds no components but
which has edge connectors — the
sockets into which other boards are
slotted.
The assembly operation requires
6
Automatic test equipment
area — left Ray Cole uses a
Membrain for a go/no go test
on a PWB; above Mike Smith
tracks down an ‘illogicality’ on
the Teradyne.
Above: Pete Baker carries out a visual
inspection; such checks occur at various stages in
the assembly operation. Above right: In the
‘shake and bake’ section, trolleys festooned with
boards are wheeled into an oven
Far right: The PWBs subsequently get a
shake-up on the vibrator.
Right: Re-working an assembly
involves Vivienne Wilks in a
spot of hand soldering.
good eyesight, sensitive fingers and
a mind wired-up to the job.
Following a drawing of the design,
the components are positioned on
the boards; the wire leads go
through holes already pierced and
are clinched on the reverse side
(protective spectacles have to be
worn in this area by operatives and
visitors alike).
After inspection the components are
secured by flow-soldering. Mounted
on a carrier, the boards pass over V
J
foaming flux and are exposed to
heating elements before moving
over a solder wave which puts just
the right amount of solder on to the
connections between the component
leads and the boards. An ultrasonic
clean-up follows the soldering
operation.
At the touch-up bench, the boards
are examined under a magnifying
glass to check there are no
unsoldered joins or solder ‘bridges’,
and are then inspected once more
by QC.
After this, the boards are automatically
tested by equipment controlled by
either pre-recorded magnetic tape
or by computer. First a Membrain
provides a g o / n o go test; if the
board proves faulty, it is passed to
the Teradyne test equipment which
diagnoses the ‘illogicalities’ that
need to be corrected.
Such exhaustive electronic checks
take a minute fraction of the time
that would be required for manual
testing, if indeed such testing were
possible at all.
Where automatic testing is not
suitable, bench test sets are used.
The ordeal of the PWBs is not yet
over. To test their resistance to heat
and vibration, they go to the ‘shake
and bake’ section on the floor below.
Here they are loaded on to test beds,
wheeled into an oven and plugged
in for a rather hot 48 hours in
temperatures up to 50°C. No sooner
have they cooled down than they
f i nd themselves having a shattering
time on a vertical and horizontal
vibrator.
After that it’s back to the ATE
section for further testing. If they
come through that safely, they get a
coating of lacquer on their underside
and a visual inspection before being
despatched to Stores en route for
the machine assembly floor.
Ted Sage has considerable
experience in PWB technology,
having come to us from Welwyn, but,
as we mentioned when the new
section was set up in the summer
of 1975, it is a new departure for
Electrical Subs people.
Chargehand Roger Preece, who
used to work in 4500 Department,
spent some weeks at Welwyn
Continued on page 8.
7
BOB BAKER
A TRIBUTE
BY PHIL CLEAi-
Snooker SOS
Fred Davis, snooker ex-world
champion, and Rex Williams, current
billiards world champion, were
playing an exhibition match at Belle
Vue, Manchester, recently.
At the same time, members of the
Sports & Social Club committee
were attending the National Club
Exhibition to pick up a f ew ideas for
the projected club premises.
Sidney Lee of ‘Pot Black’ fame was
unable to referee a third frame and
the call went out ‘Is there a referee
in the house ?’ or words to that
effect. Barry Barton stepped
forward . . .
The question bothering our Billiards/
Snooker section now is: will they
be able to afford his fees ?
A L O G I C A L D E V E L O P M E NT
Continued from page 7
Studying their assembly and training
methods; returning to Mitcheldean,
he was able to impart his newly
acquired skills in PWB assembly to
our selected operatives.
We use the same procedures, the
same documentation, as at Welwyn
where, however, something like
90 per cent of components are
inserted into the boards
automatically.
The individual components are
selected from a bank of bandoliers
and reassembled in the required
order in a new bandolier — this is
the first computer-controlled
operation carried out on a machine
known as a Sequencer.
The new bandolier is loaded on to
an inserter; the operator places two
boards on the board holder and t he
insertion programme is started.
The machine will operate at t he rate
of 4,000 components per hour,
positioning, lead forming, inserting
and clinching. This compares w i t h a
typical rate of hand insertion of 100
components per hour.
A different machine called a DIP
(Dual In-line Package) numerically
controlled inserter handles the
integrated circuits. These are
mounted in their sticks on the
machine, which is programmed to
insert them in correct sequence at
rates averaging 1,600 per hour.
Each inserter has its o w n minicomputer
and keyboard/print-out
unit.
The finished PWBs and mother
boards are then automatically tested
as at Mitcheldean, undergoing t he
same ‘shake and bake’ operation.
At our plant in Welwyn Garden City,
PWB components are selected automatically
by this Sequencer. In the background are
inserter machines which position
components at the rate of 4,000 an hour.
I first met Bob Baker in 1943 when I
joined the Machine Shop of British
Acoustic Films, as it was then
known. Since then, and for most of
the time until approximately two
years prior to his retirement, I was
privileged to work for, and close t o ,
him.
Bob’s j ob description title would have
stated ‘Manager’ and as such he was
a professional in every way. He
excelled in dealing with people or —
as he used to s a y— ‘the most
precious commodity we have’.
He had a great respect for t h em and
they in turn for him. He was a good
listener and an appeal to him always
resulted in action being taken.
His presence was very noticeable;
when he entered a room or walked
across a shop floor everyone was
aware and acted accordingly.
Bob’s leadership, loyalty and
dedication to our Company and its
Executive Management attracted
immense loyalty to him in turn from
his team; each of them was left in
no doubt of the role they were
expected to play and, most vital of
all, their importance in the overall
plan.
I am sure the majority of people
across the site and certainly amongst
our retired colleagues recognise and
appreciate the immense contribution
he made towards the Mitcheldean
Plant as it is today.
They will wish to j o in in extending
our sincere sympathy to his widow
and family.
Bob, who died on October 11 aged 68, w a s the f i r s t of t he production staff
to arrive at IVIitcheidean in 1940. He had joined British Talking Pictures
(later merged into BAF) in 1933, and a s B A F became Rank Precision
Industries and finally Rank Xerox, Bob progressed to t he positions of
production manager, w o r k s manager and, j u s t before his retirement early in
1973, w o r k s superintendent.
A founder member of t he L S A , he held o f f i c e a s i ts chairman and w as
president at t he time of h i s retirement.
He continued to serve the Company in a consultative capacity — he w a s
a member of the selection committee for t he Social Service Leave scheme,
acted a s advisor to younger members of s t a f f on managerial problems,
and conducted v i s i t o r s on t o u r s of t he Plant.
He w a s a former chairman of t he Sports £r Social Club, and w a s in f a ct
a great sportsman himself.
In his native Northamptonshire, at S t a i n e s , Middx, and here in t he Forest
he made his mark a s a c r i c k e t e r . He captained the village of Mitcheldean
Cricket Club at one time and w e recall h i s taking part in many an annual
Management v. Apprentices c r i c k e t match.
He served on t he G l o u c e s t e r s h i r e County Cricket Club Forest Committee
and w a s a member of t he West of Severn County C r i c k e t Committee.
Rugby w a s another sporting interest and he w a s at one time a
vice-president of Cinderford T o w n Football Club.
We also remember him a s a great skittler and a s a cook of some repute,
never happier than when concocting h is o w n dishes.
8
tiace meeting place meeting place i n e e t g place meeting place mee
neeting place meeting place meeting p l a c e meeting place meeting placi
liace meeting place meeting place meeting place meeting place mee
J u n e Cinderey, secretary to Phil
Cleal, Manager of Small Batch Group
Facility, joined us in 1971 — for the
fourth time.
She came straight from school in
1950 to work as a time clerk, chiefly
in Small Batch, when Phil Cleal was
in charge there. Having met and
married one of our carpenters. Bill
Cinderey, she left us, for the first
time, to start a family.
Bill later took charge of the Bell &
Howell case shop, earning the title
of our youngest supervisor.
June’s second stint at Mitcheldean
was in the service department; it
ended when the latter moved to
London in 1963, but a f ew weeks
later she was back again, this time in
Work Study.
The third and last break in her
service was in order to present Bill
w i t h a daughter. Now she is
working in Small Batch again, as
secretary to Phil Cleal, Manager of
the Group Facility. ‘She’s a
tremendous help to me,’ he says,
‘and she liaises w i t h all RX
Manufacturing sites, in this country
and overseas.’
Bill now works in Inspection and
represents the AUEW on the
Negotiating Committee. But he’s
been using his woodworking skills in
‘leisure’ hours converting t wo
cottages at Brierley into one, w i th
June’s help on the designing and
decorating side.
Painting — mostly landscapes in
oils — is, in fact, one of her hobbies
and she has exhibited and sold some
of her work.
Despite enlarging their home, the
Cindereys still need additional
outside accommodation for other
members of the family — 40 mice
and a bottle-reared lamb I
If Dave E d w a r d s of Electrical
Sub-assembly hadn’t come down to
earth w i t h a bump some years ago,
we wouldn’t be writing this.
Dave, pictured re-working electrometers
used by service engineers for
testing the static on 9200 machines,
once had a promising football
career ahead of him.
He started w i t h Newport as a
16-year-old (Newport were then
managed by Billy Lucas, ex-Welsh
international). Playing in the same
Newport Youth side w i t h Dave was
OIlie Burton who later played for
Newcastle and Wales.
In 1956/7 season, Dave gained
Welsh Youth caps, playing against
England, Ireland and Scotland, the
England Youth side including Jimmy
Greaves and John Connelly who
were later to become household
names.
Returning from the Scottish game,
Dave found himself selected to play
for Newport County for a Third
Division game.
Unfortunately, while working at his
job as a scaffolder, he fell 50ft
through a factory roof. The accident
meant a long lay-off from soccer (he
was in hospital for nine months) and
so ruined what would, in the view of
many football experts, a first-class
career in the game.
Dave did, however, continue to
play — for Worrall Hill, Monmouth
Town and Lydbrook — and today he
plays once a week for Newnham-on-
Severn.
You may also recognise in Dave a
member of the 29/13 team —
runners-up when the last Interdepartmental
Football Competition
finals were held last May.
As S a n d r a Meek polishes the stairs
she mentally polishes off a stanza or
t w o ; as she vacuums the carpet in
Bid 23 reception, or cleans the
switchboard room, she adds another
rhyme.
‘Lady Chars’ was the subject of one
recent poem, written by request of
her f e l l ow cleaners.
She first started making up verses for
her children. There was one on
boxing for her eldest son Wayne;
next came some ballet verses for her
dancing daughter Gayle; her
younger son Leigh wanted one on
horse-riding (he’s a member of the
Forest of Dean Pony Club and
Sandra is on the committee). Then
there had to be a sporting one for
her husband Ken who works in
Supply Centre.
These five are being published in an
‘Autumn Anthology’ presenting the
work of unknown poets.
‘I don’t pretend to be a sophisticated
poet — I just write about the things
and the people I know well,’ she
says modestly.
At the last count, there were some
56 Meeks working here at
Mitcheldean, and Sandra’s relatives
account for quite a f ew — for a start
there’s her father-in-law Tom in
Maintenance, brother-in-law Les in
Sorter Assembly, and sister-in-law
Marlene who’s also a cleaner.
Sandra leads an energetic life,
caring for the family, grooming and
exercising her son’s pony, going to
riding events, gardening, reading —
not to mention her latest hobby,
making home-made wine. Working
during the quiet evenings in the
empty rooms gives her a chance to
ponder on life, as poets do.
9
SP@RTS & SOCIAL CLUB
Don’t M i s s These
Bonanza D r aw — There will be a
special Christmas Bonanza Draw
once again; first prize is a portable
colour TV, w i t h second and third
prizes of black and w h i te portable
sets. There are also lots of additional
prizes of drinks, chocolates,
cigarettes, etc.
The big hand-out will take place at
lunchtime on Friday, December 17,
in the Social Centre where the bar
will be open (the club house bar
will be closed).
If you haven’t joined and w o u ld
like to do so, you could be among
the prize-winners, provided you
give in your name to Roy Steward,
Personnel Dept, without delay.
P a r t i e s — Preparations for the
annual children’s parties have to be
got in hand well before C-Day. So
please, all you parents concerned,
take note that the application forms
enclosed should be completed and
returned to Personnel Department,
Bid 23, not later than December 1.
Party dates are: Saturday, January 8
(for the five to seven-year-olds),
and Saturday, January 22 (for the
eights to tens).
i n t e r – p l a n t T r i u m ph
The Golf Society rounded off a very
successful season when they fielded
two six-man teams for the Haggett
Cup Competition held at Frilford,
Abingdon, on October 12, against
very strong competition from
Welwyn, Milton Keynes, Denham,
RX House and UK Operating
Companies. They came out on t op
with the ‘ A ‘ team — consisting of
Johnny Cash (capt.). Rabbit
Matthews, Dave Robinson, John
Spratley, Billy Gilmour and Spot
Meek — running out comfortable
winners and bringing home t he
pot. And our ‘ B ‘ team came second.
This year the Summer Cup contest
took place at St Mellons on
September 1 4 ; rainy conditions
proved unsuitable for l ow scoring
but nevertheless Charlie Walker w o n
with nett 66 & 71 while Geoff Paton
came second w i t h nett 71 & 7 1 .
Twenty-four members set out on
October 8 for Broadway in search
of the Scratch Cup, all hoping for
better weather than on their previous
day out. But the rain persisted and
by the afternoon round the course
was awash. As a result a number of
our older members adjourned to the
warmth and comfort of the bar
earlier than usual.
No doubt Geoff Paton’s brilliant
morning round of gross 74 also
influenced them and this was
reflected in the result, Geoff running
out a comfortable winner w i t h a
gross 74 & 80., and t he runner-up
being Harold Gardiner (gross 83 &
84).
Geoff’s morning round not only
won him the Scratch Cup — it also
clinched the Order of Merit for him
as well, w i t h Rabbit Matthews, t he
only other fancied contender,
improving his score to creep into
second place.
The t op results were as f o l l o w s :
1st—Geoff Paton, 63 p t s ; 2 n d—
Rabbit Matthews, 6 0 ; 3rd—Johnny
Cash, 5 7 ; 4th—John Spratley, 5 6 ;
5th—Spot Meek, 5 4 ; 6th—Eric
Sologub and Billy Gilmour, 5 1 .
The winner of the Matchplay
competitions run throughout the
summer was Johnny Cash, w h o
beat Eric Sologub 8 and 7 in the
final of the Round Robin played
over 36 holes at Monmouth and
Tewkesbury. Winner of the Rabbit’s
Cup was naturally enough Rabbit
Matthews, who beat Billy Gilmour
one up in the final at Abergavenny
after a very thrilling match.
The annual general meeting and
presentation night will be at the
White Hart, Ruspidge, on Tuesday,
November 30.
D . J . M .
M u s i c f o r All
The Music Society continues to
•present lunchtime programmes with
varying themes so as to appeal to
all tastes.
Lovers of the Big Band Sound may
like to know that Harold Gardiner
has chosen this as his theme for a
programme on December 9 featuring
James Last and Bert Kaempfert.
C o n g r e s s Delegates
The Bridge Club continues to meet
lunchtimes and on the first Tuesday
evening of the month in the Club
House. Secretary Wilf Jones, w h o
is now also deputy chairman of the
Sports & Social Club, tells us that a
busy programme of inter-club
matches is being fixed for 1976/77.
Wilf and Ron Carter of Small Batch
recently attended the Porthcawl
Bridge Congress. With t w o other
players they formed one of the 52
teams (which included three Welsh
international teams) and were
pleased to f i nd themselves in the
top 13, qualifying for the
championship f i n a l ; they also came
half way in t he men’s pairs
championship.
Another member, Ray Reed, recently
received the c up for t he Newent
Singles Championship.
M a g i c i – a n t e r n S l i d es
It’s back to magic lantern days on
November 24 when Ron Baker of
Production Planning & Control
brings along his collection of
original glass lantern slides depicting
Sir John Franklin’s voyage to
discover the North West Passage in
1845. The s h ow starts at 7.45 pm
in the Club room. Building 6.
The personality on ‘Personality
Night’ — December 8 — w i l l be
Mr R. H. Inhelder, the technical
sales manager of Wotan Photo, w h o
w i l l give a presentation on lighting
equipment and also judge the open
print competition.
Unfortunately, due to lack of
response from members, the making
of a club f i lm of the canal trip,
which took place on September 19,
had to be abandoned.
Next issue we hope to let you have
the results of the recent slide battle
w i t h Ross Photographic Society.
i n t e r – D e s i gn
C h a m p s
Meet’ The Reliants’ from
the Maltings — winners
of the recent Inter-
Design Skittles Knockout
Competition. They
beat The Terrapins by 24
in the front pin final
played on September 29.
From the left, back row :
Richard Schofield, Steve
Syer, Dave Bennett,
Geoff Barnes, Fred
Bennett; front row : Alan
Robertson, Vere
Christopher, Ron Beddis
(capt.), Roger Prout,
Bob How ells.
10
J. Ingram
Andrew and Linda Phillips
Weddings
Bob Vincent (Goods Inwards Inspection)
to Vivienne StolNewent, on August 14.
Rosemary Davies (secretary to John
Wellington, Administration Officer,
Manufacturing Engineering) to Paul
Sologub (Production Planning & Control)
at St Michael’s & All Angels Church,
Mitcheldean, on August 29.
Pauline Wright (secretary to Lionel Lyes,
Director of Personnel and Communications),
to David Thomas at St Andrew’s Church,
Kirk Ella, Hull, on September 1 1 .
Carolyn Ackary (secretary to Vic Buhlmann,
Manager, Machine Shop) to Mervyn Bowles
at Lydney Register Office on September 11.
Andrew Phillips (Design Engineering) to
Linda Baker at Clements End Methodist
Church on September 18.
Births
Zachary G., a son for Geoffrey Moss (SQA)
and his wife Margaret, on July 28.
David Clive, a son for Stephen Vaughan
(Transport) and his wife Lynnette, on
September 8.
Neil Geoffrey, a son for Geoff Turley
(Machine Shop) and his wife Pam
(formerly secretary to Bill Nivison,
Personnel), on September 16.
Kevin John, a son for David Tuffley (TED)
and his wife Patricia (formerly Electrical
Sub-assembly), on September 16.
Kerry Ann, a daughter for Dennis Brain
(Production Planning & Control) and his
wife Rita, on October 3 1 .
Retirement
Our best wishes for the future go to Henry
Norman (Production Planning & Control)
who retired in October, and to Alfred
Roberts (Supply Centre Warehouse) who
leaves this November; both have been
with the Company for nearly nine years.
Silver Wedding
Congratulations to Les and Myrtle Rosser
(both of RX Lydney) who celebrated their
25th wedding anniversary on September 29.
Obituary
We record with regret the death of the
following :
Brian Williams (Engineering Draughting)
on September 4 ; Brian, who was 56, had
been with us for some 12 years.
Walter Sterry (Quality Assurance) on
October 2 at the age of 5 2 ; Walter joined
us in April 1963.
Stan Durrant (Design Engineering) on
October 31, aged 53 ; he had been with us for
three and a half years.
Our sympathy goes to their respective
families.
ANY NEWS FOR VISION?
If you have, then please —
mail it to me c/o Reception, Building 23,
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 — ext. 566 or Drybrook 542415.
Myrtle Fowler, Editor
HOME MARKET When sending in items please give your
extension number and/or department to ensure
inclusion.
For Sale
Mothercare pram, tan vinyl body, all
chrome super folding chassis, £25.
M. Walker, ext. 646.
Large baby’s cot, white w i th bow ends and
dropside, mattress and bedding, £15.
Dimplex oil-filled thermostatically controlled
radiator 4ft 6in by 1ft 6in, £12. N. Swan,
ext. 534.
3ft divan, good condition, with mattress
and headboard, £20. D. Foster, ext. 949.
1974 ‘ M ‘ reg. Honda CB 250cc, G5 motor
cycle, £375 o.n.o. J. Greenway, apprentice.
Machine Shop, Bid 36, ext. 328.
Silver Cross pram, fawn, excellent
condition, canopy, wet weather cover,
sunshade, collapsible chassis, £25.
Large quantity baby clothes up to 1 year,
sold as required. Ext. 998 or Coleford 2599.
Cinderford 2 miles — attractive detached
chalet style bungalow overlooking
woodlands, large lounge with dining
annexe, large kitchen, 4 bedrooms,
bathroom, utility room, integral garage,
full gas-fired cent, htg, £12,400.
Cinderford 22407.
Child’s playpen, £4. Pair Lucas Square 8
quartz iodine fog lamps, brand new and
unused, £10 pair. Pair Rover 2000 fog
lamp brackets, new, £1. Peter Street,
Finance, ext. 2 4 1 .
Girl’s Mini Puch bicycle, as new, suitable
6 to 10-year-old, £15. Coleford 2347.
•22 Scorpion air pistol with scope, very
powerful, cost £27 ; £20 o.n.o. J. Wood,
Machine Shop, ext. 318.
Pedigree pram with tray and cover, £20
o.n.o. Pushchair £5. Drybrook 542935.
1963 Vauxhall VX490, will sell cheap or
breaking for spares. Dave Meek, ext. 565.
3Kw GEC tubular heater suitable for
greenhouse/garage; 1 Kw GEC electric fire;
two 2Kw coal effect fires; Philips electric
blanket. All in good condition.
R. Blanckley, ext. 279 or Longhope 830700.
Vauxhall Viva SL 1967, good condition,
£225 o.n.o. Bob Ashmead, ext. 454.
Huntley — 3-bedroomed semi-detached
house, cent, htg., integral garage, fitted
kitchen, downstairs cloakroom, fitted
wardrobe unit in main bedroom, £10,750.
P. Hodgson, ext. 655.
Morland sheepskin coat, full length, size 18,
dark brown, cost over £100, selling for £60.
Mrs. E. Thomas, Whitecroft 562880 after 6 pm.
1965 Austin Cambridge, breaking for
spares. D. A. Barnard, ext. 684 or
Blakeney 509.
3 storage heaters plus ancillary equipment,
one Primatic cylinder and one Direct
cylinder (both 36in by 18in). D. J . Lewis,
ext. 532 or Cinderford 23306.
Wanted
Child’s pedal go-kart. C. Bryant, ext. 655.
Portable television ; also boy’s bike, suit
age 14. Ext. 252 or 701.
4-berth caravan. Sprite Alpine or similar,
good condition essential. Peter Street,
Finance, ext. 241.
Dropside cot, carrycot and/or transporter,
bath-stand. G. T. Spencer, ext. 998 or
Longhope 830850.
Saw bench, no engine reqd. Les Lane,
ext. 1282 or Longhope 830350 evgs.
Entertainment
Sounds Electric Roadshow Disco, all ages
catered for. Rob Lewis, ext. 657, P.
Bowdler, Cinderford 22653, R. Phillips,
Cinderford 23286.
11
Taking a preliminary blood test.
PENSIONER
George Wiggins was looking fit as
a fiddle after giving his 75th pint of
blood. Not all in one go, of course.
He started as a blood donor way
back during the war when he was
working at Gloucester Aircraft. ‘We
used to have blood donor sessions
three times a year then,’ he t o ld us.
He already holds a bronze medal,
for his 10th pint, a silver, for the
25th, and a gold medal — that was
for his 50th. Now he is 64 (he took
early retirement from his j ob in
Production Engineering), and he
intends to keep up t he good work
next year, when he reaches the
maximum age for a donor. He w i l l
receive a special plaque after his
65th birthday and we look forward
to reporting the presentation.
George was inspired to continue
his donations after reading a letter
from a parent telling how his badly
burned child was saved by a plasma
transfusion.
The National Blood Transfusion
Service say that every year some
3,000 people are burned or scalded
badly, and over half of these are
children.
Blood from donors — there were
315 during the October session at
Mitcheldean — is stored in a blood
bank and is used to help sick and
injured people in our hospitals.
Most of it used within three weeks
of donation; if not, the blood is
processed to make dried plasma
which can be stored for several
years and reconstituted to save t he
lives of those suffering from
extensive burns and scalds.
A n o t h e r P a i r of Hands
Money collected on site, coupled
with the Company’s donation (see
right), has enabled us to reach our
target of £500, needed by Gloucester
Royal Hospital for the purchase of a
mechanical assistant for operative
surgery. Thanks — all you givers and
helpers.
George Wiggins has just given his 75th pint. 18-year-old Shona Butler from Purchasing
has just given her first, and they’re both enjoying some tea and biscuits handed out by
Winnie Knight. Below: Some more donors taking a well-earned rest.
GEORGE GIVES HIS 75th PINT
HOW W E ‘ V E HELPED LOCAL
CHARITIES
With charitable institutions under
heavy economic pressure this year,
due to the falling value of the pound
and tightening money supply, the
business community has been called
upon even more than usual to give
financial help.
By and large, the response has been
good, and Rank Xerox has been able
to maintain its level of contributions
over the last f ew years.
In the 1975 financial year, t he
Company donated some £350,000
in total across the 26 countries in
which it operates.
Manufacturing Group plants have
an allocation for support within
their own neighbourhood and, so
far this year, the f o l l o w i ng
organisations in the area have
benefitted from contributions
amounting to a total of £3,670:
Mitcheldean Old People’s
Committee; Mitcheldean Community
Centre Youth Club; Ross Round
Table; National Children’s Home —
Local Appeal; Pageant of Ross &
Archenfield; Gloucester Salvation
Army Band; Gloucester Royal
Hospital; Scarr Bandstand Fund;
Forest of Dean Rotary Club (Lydney
Day Centre); Ross Action
Committee (minibus); Mitcheldean
Community Association; St John
Ambulance, Cinderford (ambulance);
St John Ambulance, Coleford
( r e – k i t t i n g ) ; Royal Institution of
Gt Britain; Littledean Community
Association; British Legion,
Littledean; and Ruardean Hill
Recreation Ground.
12 Printed in England by Taylor, Young (Printers) Ltd.
