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).
Visit to the Ordnance Factory in Nottingham regarding capacity for barrel manufacturing.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 176\3\ img185 | |
| Date | 18th June 1940 | |
| Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} from Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} 2e Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}1/ML.18.6.40. VISIT TO ORDNANCE FACTORY, NOTTINGHAM. HPS.{Horace Percy Smith - Experimental Factory Mgr} and Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} visited the Ordnance Factory on Monday afternoon last, 17th June, and contacted Mr. Voce with the object of finding out whether they had any spare capacity for rifling and boring barrels, the intention being to get them to do some of the 40 mm. barrels for us. They agreed that they could do 20 a month; solid boring, final boring, honing and rifling. With regard to obtaining machines for ourselves for boring, Mr. Voce said that deliveries were exceedingly poor and most of them would be at least 6 months. The best machines that he knew of were Urquhart and Lindsay of Dundee, or Greenwood and Batley. The American "Monarch" was also a good machine. With regard to rifling, they had had some machines made by Crossley Premier of Sandiacre, but these were now 6 months delivery. The quicker source of supply might be E.H.Jones of Colindale, Hendon, who was the American Agent. Mr. Voce expressed the opinion that the Earnhardt was probably the best American machine of it's type. He also mentioned that Crossley Premier's had dispensed with their designer, who was a very capable Swiss named Croset. Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} | ||