Job Wheway and Son
of Green Lane, Walsall, Staffordshire (now West Midlands). Telephone: 3171/2. Telegraphic Address: "Wheyway, Walsall.
1790 Company established by William Webster.
1840 or later, Job Wheway took over the trace halter chains and cart hames manufacturer, John Webster and Son, in Green Lane, Walsall, and greatly enlarged the company. This site became known as Birchills Hame and Chain Works.
Throughout the 1860s the business continued to grow and outgrew the Sandwell Street premises.
Having finished his education at Queen Mary's Grammar School, Walsall, c1877, Sydney Benjamin was brought into the business which became known as Job Wheway and Son.
1894 Acquired the cart hame manufacturer S. Marsh and Son of West Bromwich, for £100. This subsidiary became known as S Marsh & Son Patent Hame Works. Within a few years the Green Lane Factory and S Marsh & Son Patent Hame Works, West Bromwich, were the largest of their kind in the country.
1899 January: Job retired and gave the business in its entirety to Sydney Benjamin. Sydney Benjamin and his wife Mary had five sons:
- Sydney Gell, later to be a Director of the company
- Harold Job, forced to retire early from wounds sustained in WW1
- William Reginald, later to be MD of the company
- George Doughty, who became a barrister and played no part in the firm
- Charles Gell, who later managed the S Marsh & Son Patent Hame Works subsidiary in West Bromwich.
The family were appointed on numerous occasions to the positions of 'President of Walsall Chamber of Commerce', 'Justice of the Peace', and Mayor of Walsall.
Sydney Benjamin travelled widely in search of business - Australia, the US, Canada, many European countries, New Zealand and Africa. In 1900 he invested huge amounts of money in installing plant to produce 'chain welded by electricity'. By 1902 the new plant was in production and the first electrically welded chain ever to be produced in the UK was despatched from the Green Lane factory.
1910 the firm produced the dog trace chains for Captain Scott's Antarctic Expedition. These are still thought to be buried under the ice.
1912 Acquired competitor James Gnosill and Son, a Walsall-based cart gear manufacturers.
The outbreak of World War One caused a tremendous increase in demand for hames and harness gear as the army was still very dependent on horse-drawn transport for supply wagons and gun carriages; the Wheway factories were put on war footing. The work force was increased to 450 and the working day was extended from 7am to 8pm. Production of hames was soon at 600 pairs per week with harness gears to match.
1914 Hame** and Chain Manufacturers and Malleable Iron Founders. Specialities: electrically-welded steel chains, hames and gear work.[1]
1917 Correspondence with Secretary of the Treasury, Whitehall, London, about registration as a private company of Job Wheway and Sons', Walsall. Original letter from Slater and Co Solicitors to Sydney Benjamin Wheway of Job Wheway and Sons enclosing copies of 2 letters sent to and from Treasury. 5th-8th March, 1917. (These documents are held at Walsall Local History Centre).[2]
By 1917 Sydney Benjamin was 60 years old. He made the firm a joint stock company and made his third son, William Reginald, joint Managing Director with himself. The firms name became 'Job Wheway & Son Limited'.
By 1920 the two brothers, William Reginald and Sydney Gell, were effectively running the company, William Reginald as MD, Charles Gell managing the S Marsh & Son Patent Hame Works subsidiary.
Hame trade was declining as the motorcar industry grew. Car bumpers were not fitted as standard and had to be bought separately, and so the S Marsh & Son Patent Hame Works started to produce them. William Reginald visited Sir Herbert Austin at Longbridge to introduce his bumpers but arrived in an American car and was allegedly asked to leave. Manufacturers soon started to fit bumpers as standard, signalling the end of the bumper trade for Job Wheway & Son Ltd.
1925 the S Marsh & Son Patent Hame Works at West Bromwich closed due to a shortage of work; all hame production was concentrated on the Green Lane factory. The firm continued on full employment producing its range of high-specification products right through the depression of the late 1920s and early 30s.
1925 Patent - Improvements relating to harness hames. [3]
1937 Listed Exhibitor - British Industries Fair. Chains, hames, Spring Hooks and all Saddlery Requirements. Pulley Block and Lifting Chains. Plough Traces. Timbering and Logging Chains. Cow Ties. Bottle Carriers. Milk Crates. Non-skid Chains. All Chains Guaranteed. (Stand No. B.704) [4]
1939 Job Wheway & Son Ltd took over hame-maker, Parkes and Gnosill of Regent Street, Walsall. All hame production was transferred to the Parkes & Gnosill factory, leaving the Green Lane factory to concentrate on chain production.
The outbreak of WWII generated an increase in demand for high quality chain. The firm was put under control of the Admiralty and production was rapidly increased. Amongst other things the firm produced chain flails which were fitted to booms projecting well in front of tanks to detonate land mines in the North African desert. The firm also produced anchor chains for the many Sunderland Flying Boats stationed around the coast.
In August 1944 William's eldest son, William Derek, was killed on active service. He had worked for the family firm, in the non-skid tyre chain section, for a year after leaving school. He volunteered for the Fleet Air Arm in 1942 and he was killed just 2 years later. In October of the same year Sydney Benjamin Wheway died at the age of 88.
1945 Patent - Improvements in and in the manufacture of spring snap hooks. [5]
1948 the UK coal industry embarked on a massive mechanisation programme. The new machines needed very high quality chain both to transport the coal in armoured conveyors and to haul the machines themselves. The firm found good long-term markets in supplying mining chain both in this country and abroad.
1949 Incorporated as a public limited company. 760,000 Ordinary one-shilling shares were offered at three shillings each. The offer was quickly taken up and the firm floated on the 30th Sept 1949.
The Wheway firm was also influential in the development of industrial standards and specifications:
- 1950 a British Standard Specification (BS1663) was published with the firm's participation. It detailed a grade 40 chain made from a higher carbon-steel, some 33% stronger than chains previously manufactured.
- 1959 another British Standard Specification was published, again with the firm's full participation (BS3113). This BS specified a Grade 60 chain made from alloy steel of twice the strength of pre-war chains.
- By 1981 a third British Standard Specification was published (BS4942) in conjunction with Wheway. This BS specified a Grade 80 (now known internationally as Grade T).
In September 1957 William Reginald Wheway died aged 65, after 48 years and 8 months service with the firm. His brother, Sydney, also died in the same year. William Reginald Wheway's son, Robert A Wheway (known as Robin), was appointed as Chairman and Joint Managing Director, and Sydney Gell Wheway's son, Sydney W P Wheway (known as Tim), joined the Board of Directors.
1959 an informal partnership with Glasgow-based chain makers Watson and McLean began. Watson & McLean made heavier sized chain whilst Job Wheway & Son Ltd concentrated on the lighter sizes. The co-operation was formalised in November 1959 when the Board of Job Wheway & Son Ltd instructed 'Neville Industrial Securities Ltd' to make an offer on behalf of the Company to the shareholders of Watson & McLean Ltd, to acquire the whole of the issued share capital of Watson & McLean in exchange for shares in Job Wheway & Son Ltd. The two firms amalgamated into one and became Wheway, Watson and McLean Limited', the name shortening in 1965 to 'Wheway Watson Ltd'.
1959 Acquired Mechanical Equipments Ltd, Morley & Leeds, Yorks
The Board of Wheway Watson & McLean Ltd did not support Mr R A Wheway as Chairman and a decision was eventually reached that Mr R A Wheway would step down as Chairman and Managing Director. In 1966 the two Wheway cousins, Robin and Tim, both left the firm, thus terminating its one hundred year association with the Wheway family.
Around 1960, Wheway Watson & McLean Ltd became a Holding Company controlling the three trading companies which formed the Group:
- Job Wheway & Son Ltd
- Watson & McLean Ltd, Govan, Scotland
- Mechanical Equipments Ltd
1961 Wheway Watson & McLean Ltd made an offer for the share capital of Weldless Chains Ltd, finally acquiring the company in 1962.
1964 in order to facilitate the establishment of separate testing and repair depots in the Midland and London areas, a new, wholly owned subsidiary was registered under the name of Wheway Watson (Midlands) Ltd.
1964 Wheway Watson & McLean Ltd purchased the whole of the issued share capital of Carr Bros. (Engineers) Ltd of Beckenham, Kent. The name of this company was subsequently changed to Wheway Watson (London) Ltd. The purchase created a convenient test base for the area.
1965 American company Columbus McKinnon Corporation, who were in-part engaged in chain making, took a substantial holding in, what was now named Wheway Watson Ltd. Part of the deal was the provision of advanced chain making machines which kept the firm abreast of the latest technology. The firm's name was amended to 'Wheway Watson (CM) Ltd' to acknowledge the new situation.
1974 Name changed to Wheway Watson Holdings Ltd and from this date the three trading divisions of the company operated as subsidiary companies. The subsidiaries had their own boards of directors and company offices located at Walsall, Warley and Kingston-Upon-Thames.
1975 the subsidiary companies were listed as:
- Wheway Watson (CM) Ltd, based at Walsall, this was the former Chain Division of the Company
- Felco Hoists Ltd, hand and electric hoists marketed under the Felco brand name
- Wheway Watson (ME) Ltd, this subsidiary comprised the six units originally operated under the General Division.
By 1978 the firm's head office transferred from Hillington, Glasgow, to Erdington, Birmingham.
1980 Restructured with the formation of seven separate operating companies under the Wheway Watson Holdings Ltd title:
- Holdings
- Chain Division
- Hoist Division
- Marine Division
- Forging Division
- General Division
- Lifting Engineering Division
During this period, UK and Worldwide recession occurred, and demand from the National Coal Board was vastly reduced. As a result, in 1981, in order to cut costs, the head office in Erdington was sold and the firm moved to smaller premises.
1982 the company re-registered as a public limited company and became Wheway Watson Holdings PLC.
The Chain Divisions and, to a lesser extent, the Hoist and Mechanical Handling Division, were major suppliers to the National Coal Board and accordingly were affected by the ban on overtime imposed by the National Union of Mineworkers in October 1983, which developed into a strike in March 1984. The firm adopted practices of short-time working, changes in working practices, and redundancies to try and keep afloat.
By 1984 two of the six units of the Mechanical Handling Division were the subject of management buy-outs and were sold at a loss.
In November of 1984 Wheway Watson (CM) Ltd commenced trading as a wholly owned subsidiary in its own right. However, by 1985 50% of this chainmaking operation was sold to German manufacturing group Becker Pruente GmbH, and Wheway Watson (CM) Ltd became known as Wheway Becker.
By 1985, as a result of the difficulties caused by having business based predominantly within one sector during the recession, Wheway Becker moved into the product design, distribution, service and manufacturing businesses. Non-manufacturing businesses were estimated to account for some 40% of turnover and 45% of profit during the year. Markets served were widely spread with six industries accounting for 10% or more turnover, with none above 24%. Sales to the mining industry as a percentage of total turnover fell from over 50% to approximately 14%.
In September of 1985 the forging operation of Arthur Edge and Co Ltd' were acquired from McLeod Russel PLC, Glasgow, in exchange for 11,300,216 ordinary shares.
By 27 September 1985 the firm's name had changed once more, to Wheway PLC, and was listed as having the following wholly owned subsidiaries:
- HOIST AND LIFTING COMPANIES - Felco Hoists Ltd, Loveridge Lifting Services Ltd
- MARINE LASHINGS COMPANIES - International Lashings Systems Ltd, ILS (America) Incorporated
- TRANSPORT COMPANY - W Hughes & Sons (Old Hill) Ltd
- FORGING COMPANIES - Shakespeare Forgings Ltd, Arthur Edge & Co Ltd, Thermal Processing (Midlands) Ltd
- ENGINEERING COMPANY - Shakespeare Engineering UK Ltd
1986 Wheway PLC acquired D. F. Bevan (Holdings) PLC.
As a result of continuing acquisition and rationalisation programmes, the principal activities of the group changed and were placed into three categories; design, manufacture and merchanting.
1987 Wheway PLC's entry into the environmental fields of Clean Air and Environmental Engineering was initiated by the acquisition of the Wright Air Conditioning Group.
1990 Wheway PLC sold their remaining 50% shareholding in Wheway Becker, signalling the end of 200 years of the firm's involvement in the chain making industry. This area of the business was incurring heavy losses.
- Note: **
- Hame - one of the two curved bars of a draught-horse's collar. [origin: Dutch/Lower German] [6]
See Also
Sources of Information
- [4] National Archives