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).
Letter discussing the standardization of high-pressure petrol pumps and a request to fit a non-standard version to a customer's car.
Identifier | ExFiles\Box 146\2\ scan0347 | |
Date | 31th July 1937 | |
W/P. Sr. from Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}3/R.31.7.37. You are asking for high pressure pumps. We are doing the best we can to let you have some; on the other hand, the petrol pump in the frame is not yet standardised. Hancock told us the story of Benmeyer - 3.BT.{Capt. J. S. Burt - Engineer}121. He pointed out that the car had been in Paris. We think this is a case where you might have helped us and yourself by trying out the scheme on a customer's car who was in trouble. After all, as Hives points out, it is the result that counts. We know that such a scheme is not standardised; on the other hand, we are always sending you parts to deal with your Continental conditions which are not standardised. It is far better to get a customer happy with non-standard features than to let him go on complaining of standard parts. We should not like you to think we know how the Benmeyer scheme gets the results; frankly, we do not, and very probably if you fitted it up on another car you would say it did not work, and that the improvement experienced was due to the union on the suction side of the pump being tightened up properly, or something of the kind. You could, however, give us some information. You will realise that for Continental conditions we have one experimental car running at Chateauroux sometimes. All your cars are on the Continent for most of the time, therefore, you are in a better position to get information, on the whole, than we are. With the best will in the world, the high pressure pumps for fitting to customers' cars will not be available until the hot weather this season is over. Therefore, will you tell us if the scheme on Benmeyer's car is really any good, and if so, we will give it our blessing as a temporary expedient until the pump in the frame is available. Incidentally, a photograph of a scheme like this tells us more than two or three full pages of typewritten matter. Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} | ||