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).
Difficulties and potential benefits of establishing an in-house coachbuilding factory.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 74\1\ scan0030 | |
| Date | 10th June 1910 | |
| R.R. 348c (50 H) (F 901. 10.6.10.) E.P. 6883 DEPARTMENTAL MEMO. HS{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}2/B14710 cont. 4. Issued This column is for Name of Person addressed. DATE. X (1) You cannot order other people's workmen about or treat other people's factories as your own. (2) It is difficult to refuse to take delivery of a body unless it is absolutely out of keeping with the original drawing. (This difficulty might in future be got over by a separate agreement being signed with drawing attached and given with each order - something similar to our present order form for chassis). (3) Then further there is the possibility of an ideal body being created at Derby. The points against such a scheme are:- It would require an expenditure of at least £45,000. on a new coach factory, machinery, hardened timber etc. The only way to make this factory pay would be to standardise our work. We cannot well do this with out present expensive type of chassis although it can be easily done with cheap chassis and body complete, which is not in our line of business. Firms building their own bodies such as the Daimler, Siddeley, Rover etc. standardise their work and it is poor in quality, construction and design. We should in addition have to get the very best draughtsmen and the very best manager and foreman to superintend this factory. This would again involve difficulty in procuring the right This sheet must be filed with the correspondence to which it refers. | ||