From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Use of proprietary versus externally sourced components and the strategic choice of materials.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 87\3\ scan0066 | |
| Date | 26th November 1936 | |
| SS.{S. Smith} HS.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} 237 BY.4/G.26.11.36. GRY{Shadwell Grylls} PROPRIETARY ARTICLES. Referring to Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}/Gry.{Shadwell Grylls}11/R.24.11.36. and Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}/Gry.{Shadwell Grylls}10/R.24.11.36. covering same, I agree with Gry.{Shadwell Grylls} that the issue is really one of principle and not any particular case. It appears to me that when a customer is buying a Rolls-Royce car he expects to receive a Rolls-Royce product, If on later examination he discovers that he has a propeller shaft by Spicer, ignition by Delco, brakes by Girling, radiators by Marston, carburetters by Stromberg, Clutch by Borg & Beck, steering gear by Adamants, and one might add as a next step, a gearbox by Moss Gears, at this stage he will then be wondering what he is paying the Rolls-Royce price for. There are certain issues which one is quite in agreement with viz. that we cannot afford to produce cast iron pieces in these Works when it is possible to buy them outside, the particular reason being that we cannot expand on the present site, and whatever space we have should naturally be engaged upon more profitable issues than making castings. The next point one would refer to is the question of aluminium raised in Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}3/R.23.11.36. and Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}/Smth.4/R.23.11.36. The L.5 alloy referred to is the type which we abandoned because of unsatisfactory results, and was in itself the main factor in H's investigation which resulted in the production of the new alloys. We are being paid a very considerable sum every year by Messrs. High Duty Alloys Ltd. as a result of their marketing our materials. For us to abandon these, except where there is a real reason in the direction of difficulty of production would be to undermine Mr. Devereux's position with the trade, and to my mind this is unthinkable. There is one other aspect of this matter of using other alloys, viz. that the runners and risers and general scrap from the aero engines are not melted for aero engines, our outlet for these being the chassis, not that they do not represent a perfectly sound project but the Air Ministry specify only a certain percentage of scrap must be re-used and we endeavour to use virgin materials for aero engines as far as possible. I am in agreement with the use of die castings where-ever they can be produced, but I consider that we should use our own materials which are unquestionably better in every respect than the alloys which are suggested, i.e. L.5 at £89. per ton, and secondary aluminium, which is a reclamation of all sorts of | ||