Hilger and Watts
Hilger and Watts, makers of optical measurement instruments, Camberwell Road, London SE5.
Hilger Division - 98 St Pancras Way, Camden Road, London NW1
of Westwood Industrial Estate Ramsgate Road, Margate (1961)
1948 Incorporated as a public company to acquire 3 old established firms engaged in theodolites, microscopes, etc[1] E. R. Watts and Son, Adam Hilger and James Swift and Son.
1951 Board of Directors: Chairman and Managing Director: G. A. Whipple, Directors: F Twyman, A C Menzies, R Stanley, V W H Towns, A H Campbell
1954 Hilger and Watts, Ltd. Watts Division: 48, Addington Square, London, S.E.5. T.: Rodney 5441-9. T.A.: Collimator Souphone London. Cables: Collimator London. (C. Godfrey; P. L. F. Jones; H. E. Dohoo). Hilger Division: 98, St. Pancras Way, Camden Road, London, N.W.I. T.: Gulliver 4571-7. T.A.: Sphericity Norphone London. Cables: Sphericity London. (E. S. Dreblow; J. H. Dowell; T. L. Tippell; R. A. C. Isbell). Debden Factory: Langston Road, Loughton, Essex. Woodford Green. (A. Compton). Directors: G. A. Whipple; A. C. Menzies; R. Stanley; V. W. H. Towns; A. H. Campbell. instruments. Associated Companies: J. Swift and Co., Ltd.; Collimator Cases Ltd.[2]
1957 It was announced that the firm would expand its Camberwell premises, rather than moving out but widen the scope of its premises.[3]
1959 Measurement devices across a wide spectrum of radiation ultra-violet through visible to infra-red and microwave; new development of use of spectrograph for measuring wear in engine bearings; development of digitising equipment had proved commercially successful; had collaborated with competitor Cooke, Troughton and Simms Ltd to develop a surveyor's automatic level; had acquired Collimator Cases Ltd[4].
1965 Proposal to acquire 40% of Grubb Parsons with view to collaborating on some activities[5]
By 1966 the firm had laboratories at Camden Town and Margate[6]
1968 Queen's Award to Industry for Technological Innovation [7]
1968 Acquired by Taylor, Taylor and Hobson, part of Rank Precision Industries. Presumably it was at this point that James Swift was disposed of.
1968 Became part of a new division of Rank, Rank Precision Industries.
1969 Hilger Microscopes Ltd and Hilger and Watts (International) Ltd were liquidated[8]:
See Also
Sources of Information
- ↑ The Times, 25 February 1948
- ↑ 1954 The Aeroplane Directory of the Aviation and Allied Industries
- ↑ South London Observer 18 December 1957
- ↑ The Times, 1 April 1959
- ↑ The Times 20 August 1965
- ↑ Thanet Times 15 November 1966
- ↑ The Engineer 1968/04/26 p650
- ↑ London Gazette 17 June 1969