3 replies to this topic

[mab01uk]

"Around 330 jobs have been put at risk after Goodyear Dunlop announced plans to close its Wolverhampton factory – putting an end to the company's manufacturing in the West Midlands. The news comes after the company closed its Dunlop Motorsport plant in Erdington."
http://www.birmingha...hampton-9524090

 

[CityEPete]

Most of it has been flattened ages ago, makes less of a headline when they finally close the last bit doesn't it? What was the peak employment there?

[A-Cell]

6500 in the 1970's
March 2012 Wolverhampton Express & Star reported...
"UK production director Ian Taylor said there had been a fantastic turnaround in performance since Goodyear had teamed up with the Dunlop operation in Birmingham, which had also been suffering at the time.

Mr Taylor said that some people in the local community still believed the factory had shut down. “Now we want to tell the community that we are still here after five difficult years,” he added. Mr Taylor said that performance had reached record levels in 2011, which was a credit to the whole workforce.

He added that there was no reason why the factory, which marks its 85th anniversary in October, could not continue to celebrate 100 years.

The factory was the first that Goodyear, based in Akron, Ohio, opened outside the United States and at its peak employed 6,500."

http://www.expressan...odyear-7-rh-15/

[A-Cell]

Motor report on 50 years at Bushbury in 1977 and the Goodyear Racing division
http://www.motorspor...mpton-1927-1977

Back then there was a huge and I mean huge area of Bridport for wet grip tyre testing. I used to go there with BMC and BL cars from Longbridge to carry out development and Approval tests.
Bridport surface is Tarmac made using the round pebbles from the Bridport end of the Chesil Beach, which are tiny maybe 8 to 10 mm and fairly round. Effectively like ball bearings embedded in the Tarmac. When flooded give a very low coefficient friction surface mu=0.4.
A skid pan, but without mixing oil and water on conventional Tarmac. Gives consistency of surface and clean.

All disappeared now under houses and shops.