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).
Secret internal memo analysing the cost of quantity-produced Park Ward car bodies, highlighting anomalies in submitted figures.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 117\1\ scan0224 | |
| Date | 13th March 1938 | |
| 1021 SECRET. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} from Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}3/JH.13.3.38. COST OF QUANTITY PRODUCED PARK WARD BODIES. We have analysed as far as we can the figures relative to the anticipated cost of their quantity produced B.III and B.50 bodies. We have also tried to estimate the shell cost of the B.II body produced according to their existing methods. We have endeavoured to extract these figures from the green card. We suggest that Park Wards should be asked to furnish figures for the B.II body shell which are exactly comparable with those supplied for the B.50 body shell. There are one or two somewhat curious anomalies in the figures submitted by Park Wards. Referring to material, as computed from the figures submitted. In the first place, it will be observed that the material for B.50 shell costs £6/16/5 less than the material for B.III body shell. Some of this material is fabricated, but as the total die cost of B.50 only amounts to £1. per car, this cannot be responsible for the difference. The reduction is still more striking when it is realised that B.50 shell from our figures will weigh 15% more than the B.III shell. In other words, we do not understand how it is possible to get a material cost reduction of 35% by going from quantities of 250 to 1,000. | ||