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).
Company policy, advocating for production flexibility and perfection over low-cost specialisation.
| Identifier | WestWitteringFiles\P\2October1926-December1926\ Scan074 | |
| Date | 25th November 1926 | |
| TO BJ. FROM R.{Sir Henry Royce} (BJ is struck through) Copy to - HS.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} RR. POLICY. X3993 (written over a struck-through X3054) ORIGINAL (stamp) R3/M25.11.26. X444 (handwritten) CEO A.D.O. 26 NOV 1926 (stamp) The memo. I sent you last night - R1/M251126.. - (to BJ. only,) might be put before the directors. This will shew that my views are in agreement with yours. You will remember our little meeting at the Show when Mr. Nutt, Mr.Cowen, Mr. Sidgreaves, etc, considered that we ought to rig up an unspoilt RR. for speed, not expecting much in the way of Sales, but for the good of ordinary Sales, (not a super high speed car, but just an ordinary one.) I would like to emphasise that I consider the experimental expenditure should be made as liberal as the directors think possible, because our only hope of continuing to be successful appears to be in the flexibility of our system of production, so that we can improve whenever we know how, and so be without fear of becoming fossilized by the production bug. Had we been low cost specialists in any way on the lines of the Americans, naturally we should have been obliged to have other views, but in England, with our small output, our only chanceis that our production shall stand out by all-round perfection, rather than price, and the Company must be satisfied if they can make small and safe profits, (safe because they are likely to continue.) R.{Sir Henry Royce} | ||