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).
Confidential memo on Motor Show impressions, discussing design costs, manufacturing efficiency, and supplier quality.
| Identifier | WestWitteringFiles\V\October1930-February1931\ Scan025 | |
| Date | 20th October 1930 | |
| SC. LHS.{Lord Herbert Scott} WOR.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} ) FROM R.{Sir Henry Royce} LORD WARGRAVE. ) Mr. CLAREMONT. ) CONFIDENTIAL. ORIGINAL R4/M20.10.30. X631 X777 X579 C. to HS.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} BY.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} DA.{Bernard Day - Chassis Design} MOTOR SHOW IMPRESSIONS. My impressions of the Motor Show are that we are not abnormally costly in design. Our chief sins in this direction are with the smaller details, but these ought not to seriously affect the complete car price. Compared with Americans our numbers are too small for economy and results in breaking down machines instead of keeping them continually set up. We are suggesting to WOR.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} the use of much simpler types of machine tools which can be set up for a certain operation on a part and not disturbed, although such a machine may only run an average of one quarter the working hours. This naturally only applies to a very small proportion of the whole, but we think that some economy can be made in this direction. The extra reliability and durability for which we work costs us money because we give liberal dimensions and then have to cut down the weight by extra machining. We have schemes which are thorough to make their performance lastingly right, such as the brakes, but the difference in cost fundamentally should be under 50%, that is, the more costly part of brake drums and shoes, and mechanical operation, cannot be much modified, and the smaller things such as equalisers etc are the only things where we can be considered extravagant, but to replace these by another arrangement which would be less perfect should not amount to much, say not more than 25% of the whole. The suppliers of our raw and part finished materials charge us more than they do other people owing to our somewhat exacting specifications, which have gradually been tightened to avoid failures in customers' hands, for instance, the road springs have now so greatly improved that failures which were accepted on the 10,000 miles trials (in the past) do not now occur. You will realise that we have to pay for our reputation as well as live up to it. Buyers of our cars have to pay such a very high price that they expect perfection almost beyond possibilities, many of their complaints are beyond our control, and often due to the ignorance of their drivers, bodywork, unsuitable combination of springing to weight: these have always existed. (1) | ||