News of the Week
Page 24
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RIG MOVE IN LONDON STAGGERING
AGREEMENT has been reached between the City of London Local Transport Group and representatives of the principal banks and insurance companies in the City of London to stagger the hours of their employees.
The decision is the biggest single move since the Minister of Transport inaugurated the London staggering campaign at the beginning of the year. Twenty thousand City of London bank and insurance workers are concerned. It is expected that the agreement will be brought into operation in a month's time. Most of the staggered staffs will change their present finishing time of 5 p.m. or 5.30 p.m. to 4.45 p.m.
The Kinematograph Renters' Society has also expressed willingness to adopt staggering proposals affecting over 3,000 Central London workers. The staff concerned are administrative workers.
The new decisions bring the total number of Central London workers who are operating staggered hours to nearly 60,000. Big moves are afoot, in addition, to stagger the hours of 30,000-40,000 Central London civil servants.
TROLLEYBUSES LEAVE FROM KINGSTON FOR EXPORT
DESPITE acute housing shortage for workers, Kingston-on-Thames is now making substantial contributions to Britain's export drive, as trolleybuses leave the Kingston factory of British United Traction Co., Ltd., en route for South Africa. The B.U.T., a company formed by A.E.C. and Leyland Motors, Ltd., which has orders in hand for 219 trolleybuses4for overseas customers alone, has already built 37 six-wheeled machines for Johannesburg and plans to complete a further 23 for this municipality by the end of October.
A22 All the trolleybuses for this order are the latest 8-ft. wide models with four-wheeled rear bogies specially designed to provide greater acceleration without wheelspin.
Standard features of these B.U.T. export-type trolleybuses, which have an 18-ft. 5-in, wheelbase, include compressed air braking on all six wheels, as well as rheostatic braking for the rear bogie.
Other overseas trolleybus orders on hand at the B.U.T. factory are for Zaragosa Tramways, San Sebastian Tramways, Barcelona Tramways— Spain; Pretoria Municipality, South Africa; Auckland Transport -Board, New Zealand; Sao Paulo Municipality, South America; Launceston and Hobart Municipalities, Tasmania.
LEYLAND TO ENTER MARINE MARKET
FOR the first time, Leyland Motors, -Ltd., Leyland, Lanes, is to enter the markets of marine and industrial oil engines with an engine known as the Leyland T. and T. marine unit. Based on the well-known Leyland 100 h.p. 7.4litre oil engine, the new unit has been developed jointly for marine purposes by Thomson and Taylor (Brooklands), Ltd., of Cobham, Surrey, and Leyland Motors, Ltd. The former will market the engine in this country, whilst Leyland's export division will handle all sales overseas.
The new engine is making its first public appearance at the Engineering and Marine Exhibitionnow in progress at Olympia. RECORD OUTPUT OF IRON FOUNDRIES
TrHE output of iron Castings in the 1 second quarter of this year amounted to 714,787 tons, which is equivalent to an annual rate of production of 2.86 million tons. This, according to the Council of Ironfoundry Associations, is the highest output which has ever been officially recorded.
CO-OP. SAFE DRIVERS STEP OUT
THE second of the two gatherings for London Co-operative Society transport drivers, in connection with safe driving awards, was held at the Central Hall, Westminster, last week.
A total of 727 drivers received awards as follow: Diplomas, 454; silver medals, 20; bars to silver medals. 108; gold medals, 25; oak leaf bars, 118; 17-year bar, 1; 22-year star bar, I. The last-mentioned went to Mr. W. Heard, who joined the staff in 1944 and was previously a London Transport driver.
The whole party of 750 drivers and their friends and relations went, after a most enjoyable tea, to the Coliseum theatre for the evening performance of "Annie Get Your Gun." The entire function was informal yet most efficiently organized.
BUS DRIVERS SAMPLE FACTORY LIFE THREE London bus drivers and 4 conductor are to be sent by London Transport to spend a day sampling factory life at the Ford factory, Dagenham, as part of the Board's policy of widening the staff'3 experience.
With them will go engineers, an electrician, a body-maker, a fitter, ' a canteen supervisor and a doctor. The visit is part of a big London Transport programme to send its rank and file staffon visits to industries at home and abroad. A party of 14 is also visiting Lancashire industries.
The office and works of Howard Clayton-Wright, Ltd., and its associated companies, Harrisflex Bearings, Ltd., and Clayflex, Ltd., have been centralized at Wellesbourne House, Wellesbourne, Warwickshire.