Care in the
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COMMON'
The architects of Port Sunlight and Bournville were the philanthropic bosses of soap and chocolate empires who wanted a decent environment for their workers. Less wellknown near Oldham, Lancs is haulier A&J Butterworth who owns a street in Greenfield. The depot is easy to find. On the righthand side, about half a mile after you enter the village of Greenfield from the south, is a break in the line of stone-built terraced cottages. It is clearly marked by two
museum-pieces a pair of mechanical petrol pumps which were once the life-blood of the community. Turn right into Clifton Street— passing three more terraced cottages on either side—and within about 30 yards the road is swallowed by what appears to be a very old, very wide and very large, woodpanelled garden shed.
This is the garage of haulier A&J Butterworth. The neighbours are an understanding lot who would never dream of complaining—the company owns the street. Its occupants include drivers and company directors including managing director Kenneth Wood.
He joined his step father Albert in the fami
ly firm 41 years ago. Despite retiring last year, he is still on top of the job and runs the company. This is made easier because the traffic office is on the ground floor of his house.
Wife June is co-director, son John is company engineer and occasional driver, while daughter Catherine is company secretary. Located so deep in the heart of the community, real expansion has always been limited. "We have had to try and maximise what we can do with what we can garage. We would never allow the drivers to take their vehicles home," says Kenneth. Such is the company's residential policy, few have ever had to travel further than the cottages across the street.
A haulier with tied cottages for its drivers? This is the kind of community operator you've only previously read about in the big company brochures. "When we bought the cottages, the thinking was that it was a way of stabilising the high turnover of drivers we were hay ing at the time," says Kenneth. The move seems to have worked. One driver has 25 years' service while another has been on the books for 18 years. At only 21, the latest recruit Simon Culhill looks to have good long-term career prospects.
Pallet loads
The business currently runs four vehicles and turns over £140,000 a year. It specialises in carrying locally manufactured textiles. This involves deliveries of cord to major tyre manufacturers, or pallet loads of dental hygiene materials to the regional distribution centres of major high-street retailers.
Given the size and location of the premises, there is no warehouse activity, but expansion and relocation was once considered, says Kenneth. "About 35 years ago I looked at the possibility of buying an old factory and moving into storage, but my step-father and I didn't see eye to eye on it." Existing schedules involve regular runs down to the South-east, on to the south coast and up into the Midlands where the company has been delivering to one customer since 1935. Connections like this run all through a company so rich in heritage it is almost a working transport museum.
A &J Butterworth was a founded in 1912— seven years after Commercial Motor. The Butterworth's were originally piano builders, but son Albert and father James evidently realised there was more money to be made from delivering things. They quickly switched to haulage and the operator was born. Business since then has closely followed the socio-economic development of the region.
An early pioneer of the swap-body, A&J Butterworth's first vehicle had a dual function—a flatbed during the week and a coach body was winched on to satisfy the leisure requirements of the local mill and mine workers for the weekend. As bicycles were the main means of personal transport, the company established a bicycle sales and repair business. When cars became popular, the company introduced the first mechanical petrol pumps to the district. The haulage business grew with the prosperity of the cotton mills so a new garage was required for the expanding fleet.
Army hut
Albert Butterworth spotted the ex-US Army hut that is now the company's garage while out one day at Warrington in 1921. He plainly recognised a good long-term investment when he saw one. It was bought, dismantled and transported back to Greenfield on the back of his wagon before anyone could say, or even invent, the word Airfix.
Today it is home to two Scania units—a 10year-old 112 and a nine-year-old 113—as well as a 7.5-tonne Leyland Roadrunner which is eight and a 17-tonne Leyland Freighter which has run for 11 years.
All of the outward bound work is sourced within six to eight miles of Greenfield.
Kenneth says the nature of the work means the big national operators are less disposed to try and win it from them. "The big operators are ruthless and more efficient and that's why they have grown so quickly, but they are not a threat to us. They want a load that is available but where it is going doesn't matter because there is probably another depot there already. The work we have is no use to them because although it is regular, by comparison it is too haphazard. We might turn up to collect a load in the afternoon but a single roll is not available until 19:00hrs because a production schedule has changed. Or, we might have to go back and get one at 06:00hrs because that's what the customer wants."
This gives real meaning to personalised service and preserves operators such as A&J Butterworth. Continuing its association with local needs, the company re-introduced the bicycle business in 1968 which had been a feature of Greenfield in the 20s and 30s. A plan to make better use of the shop frontage on the main street later had an unexpected haulage spin-off. "Seven or eight years ago the bike manufacturer was expanding. One day they said they were looking for a more reliable haulier then the one they had. Off we went," says Kenneth.
That work is now a regular contributor to revenue. In the late 1980s the company struggled, along with many other hauliers. The fleet which had grown to six was cut to four and the closure of coal mines hit the company hard too. However, Kenneth says his family's haulage business is more a way of life. That could be why it has survived so long. "We've never asked too much of it," he says.
They have hung on to what they have. This includes a 1953 Leyland Comet which spluttered into life and rolled out of the garage for the first time in 25 years on the same morning that CM arrived. "I bought it secondhand in October 1960 and it was in use until 1972 when we put it to one side," says Kenneth.
Last year John started to restore it. One thing is certain. It won't be for sale. It's another piece of the living history of Greenfield.
by Steve McQueen