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).
Private memo outlining the company's policy on patenting employee ideas.
Identifier | ExFiles\Box 15\6\ Scan177 | |
Date | 24th September 1932 | |
Rg{Mr Rowledge}, Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} and BY.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} from Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} Private 8728 Worl2/T24.9.32. Patents and West of our Experimental Dept. If West, or any other employee, has any ideas worth patenting, we must see to it that the Company takes an active interest in it. In principle, Rg.{Mr Rowledge} and myself agreed to this recently, and of course, it has been the custom of the Company right throughout with the employees. This really means, of course, that we do not want to allow our employees to take out patents on their own account if developed in connection with our own business. This is an important ruling arrived at yesterday at the Board when R.{Sir Henry Royce} brought up the question. Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} | ||