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Westwood Works 1903-2003
Trainees in Action
Grades of Apprenticeship
Craft Apprenticeship
Drawing Office Apprenticeship
Student Apprenticeship
Graduate Apprenticeship
What was it like to be an apprentice at Baker Perkins?
1921 - A Willesden Apprentice
1938 - A Pre-War Apprentice
1940 - A Wartime Works Apprentice
1945 - Drawing Office Apprentice
1945 - Fitter/Turner Apprentice
1945 - Interrupted Apprenticeships
1947 - Student Apprentice
1949 - Promotion from Craft Apprentice to Student Apprentice
1951 - A Fitter Apprentice
1954 - A Student Apprentice
1957 - A Student Apprentice on a HND Sandwich Course
1960 - A Graduate Apprentice
1960 - A Student Apprentice in the H&V Department
1961 - A Commercial Trainee
1961 - A Sheet Metal Apprentice/Drawing Office Apprentice
1965 - A Foundry Apprentice
1967 - A Craft Apprentice
1967 - A Works Technician Apprentice
Trainees both in the Apprentice School and in the Works.
Apprentice Outings
Apprentice Test Pieces
The full story of the development of the Baker Perkins Apprenticeship Scheme can be found in Training at Westwood Works, but it is worth taking a look, as part of this revue of apprentices at work, at the different grades of Apprenticeship that were available after WW2.
Opportunities open to Baker Perkins Apprentices.
A year of basic instruction enabling the candidate to be sure that he had chosen the correct vocation - and giving the company an opportunity to assess the candidate.
Boys who had completed pre-apprenticeship or selected boys leaving school were apprenticed to any one of the following trades - machine tool setters and operators (turners, millers, borers, grinders, gear-cutters), tool makers, engravers, plate workers, sheet metal workers, electricians, pattern-makers, moulders, millwrights and fitters.
Of two years duration, candidates were selected from among craft apprentices who had completed three years apprenticeship and had achieved the required standard in technical studies.
A five-year course that provided a wide training for designers, planning, methods and work study engineers, production engineers, service engineers and technical sales representatives for home and overseas service. It is believed that Student Apprenticeships were first introduced in 1943.
A number of university graduates were accepted each year for two years' formal training, normally sponsored by a departmental manager with a view to a specific appointment after satisfactorily completing the training.
Some recollections of ex-apprentices (More can be found in "Reminiscences").
On the fifth of May 1921, Cyril Downing
Cyril Downing and his father, Henry, signed an Indenture document with Joseph Baker Sons and Perkins Ltd, Willesden committing both parties to a training period of seven years as an "outdoor apprentice". His remuneration was to be - "The sum of five shillings per week for the first year of the said term, the sum of six shillings per week for the second year thereof", .............. rising by one shilling per week for each year up to ............"the sum of fourteen shillings per week for the seventh and last year thereof". His father was committed to - "at his own expense find and provide the said Cyril Henry Downing with good and sufficient board lodging clothing washing pocket money medicine medical and surgical attendance and with all other necessaries during the said term".
NOTE: Being a legal document it was long on conditions but short on punctuation.
The Indenture was signed by J.S. Baker and H. Kirman. The document was annotated on 11/06/1927 - and signed by O.B. Binns - works manager - to the effect that -
"the seven year apprenticeship has been duly completed. Six years of his training had been spent in the Sheet Metal and Light Plate Shops and he completed his time in the Drawing Office. His progress and conduct were excellent".
Cyril Downing will be remembered by many ex-Peterborough apprentices as Instructor in the Drawing Office School attached to The Apprentice School in Westfield Road, (see Training at Westwood Works), a position that he took up in 1957. He retired after fifty-one years service in 1971. Cyril was awarded the BEM in 1961 for services to boys clubs in Peterborough.
1938 – A Pre-War Apprentice
Typical 3-monthly Apprenticeship Progress Reports Conditions of Employment given to Bert Slater when joining the company.
Bert Slater
Bert Slater , later to become Experimental Department Foreman, joined the company in 1936 as a 14 year old trainee in the drawing cabinet, receiving a wage of eight shillings and sixpence, this being increased by a shilling a year until he was 16.
(NOTE: This is the same rate of increase per year as enjoyed by Cyril Downing (see above) who started his apprenticeship at Willesden 17 years earlier! Not much wage inflation then! Note also the date of the Conditions of Employment - January 23rd 1919).
Bert clearly remembers his first day at Westwood:
"I had received a letter from Baker Perkins requesting me to present myself at the Enquiry Office at 9.00am on 7th September 1936 and ask for Mr Paul Baker. After an interview, he sent for Mr. Williams, the Time Office Clerk, who took me to the Time Office, gave me a clock card and number and showed me where to clock on. I was taken to the Machine Shop Drawing Cabinet and met Mr. W. Jones, the man in charge. Here the operation of the Drawing Cabinet was explained – how to issue drawings to operators, collect them on return and return them to the correct place on the shelves. There were about 150,000 drawings of various sizes. After 12 months, I was moved to the Inspection room where a time ticket had been put with the machined parts and I had to find the correct drawing to place alongside the finished part ready for inspection. After 6 months you were given a file to remove burrs from the newly machined parts to assist in inspection".
Working hours in 1936 began at 7.45am until 5.30pm, Monday to Friday, plus Saturday morning – 7.45am till 11am. Lunch was taken from 12.30pm until 1.30pm – a total of 47 hours per week.
"At the age of 16, I was asked whether machining or fitting was to be my preferred trade and I chose fitting. I was told to report to Harry Evans in the Fitting Shop, who made out a tool order for a 12" three square file (without a handle) and told me to help Bob Desborough to clean up a phosphor bronze mixer blade. Bob suggested that I ask Mr. Evans for a tool order for a file handle but his reply was " Go to despatch, get a piece of wood and make one yourself". These were the days when craftsmen were expected to provide all their own hand tools"
In 1938, he achieved his ambition by becoming the first Fitting apprentice in the new Apprentice School that had been opened on the ground floor of the 1933 office block. Here he was joined by, among others, Tom Brown, Harry Beale and Martin Plowright. Working under the foreman, Mr J. Carter, his progress was carefully monitored and a report covering suitability for the work, timekeeping, proficiency and progress was sent, every 3 months, by his foreman to Bert's parents. In each report he was awarded marks out of a hundred, in turn converted into a wage increase. By 31st March 1943, at the end of his apprenticeship, Bert was achieving 80/100 and receiving 1/2d extra plus 1/8th of a penny bonus!
Bert recalls – "As the Munich crisis was on everyone's mind, we all had to carry our gas masks, not only to work, but everywhere that we went inside the factory. As the war clouds developed, Baker Perkins started to make field ovens and mobile bakeries. At one time, a batch of 62 Howitzers, still with wooden wheels, had to be modernised, the axles altered to take pneumatic tyres and a tow bar fitted" (see also Westwood Works in WW2).
At the start of his apprenticeship, Bert worked on general fitting jobs but from early 1941 was transferred to work on the famous 25-Pounder Recuperator, the development story of which is told in the Text of Address delivered by Sir Ivor Baker to the Works, Staff and Outdoor Committees and to the Apprentices and Office Juniors at Westwood Works in 1946 (See Westwood Works in WW2)
Bert remembers that, at the time that he joined the company, apprentices were expected to leave the company at the end of their apprenticeship and "get experience of the wider world". This practice ceased with the onset of WW2 and the need to hang on to every trained craftsman.
Roland Maycock
Roland Maycock joined Baker Perkins as a Works Apprentice in 1940. He recalls that the A.I. Baker apprentice bay, established before the war, was continued, located on the ground floor of the main office block adjacent to the machine shop. "The Foreman/Instructors were Mr F.Angel, Mr E. Cole and Mr Churchman. The scheme was monitored by the works office under Mr Paul Baker, Works Director, The training was excellent – as near as you could get to one-to-one instruction and produced many engineers who progressed to management level in the company.
The annual intake of apprentices from school leavers gave priority to the sons of employees; this fulfilled the social obligations of the company not necessarily selecting the best applicants. The apprenticeship was for a period of 5 years from age 16, the first two years in the apprentice bay, which was equipped with a range of machine tools plus a fitter training section. The scheme had approximately 15 apprentices excluding apprentices for foundry-pattern shop, power-house and plate shop who served their time in these departments.
A quarterly report was sent to the parents of the apprentice, giving marks for CONDUCT, PROFICIENCY OF WORK, TIME-KEEPING, WORK AT TECHNICAL COLLEGE totalling marks out of 100. On this basis you were judged EXCELLENT, VERY GOOD, GOOD, FAIR, POOR, BAD. You were encouraged to attend the local technical college and given dispensation to leave early on day-shift or start late on night-shift (without pay). The technical college was part of the Peterborough Education Authority and located on Broadway next to the old Library. Generally three subjects were taken on three separate evenings 7pm to 9pm. Subjects were:-
· Mathematics, Tutor - Mr Palmer, Lincoln Road School
· Engineering Drawing, Tutor - Mr Marvill, Perkins Engines
· Applied Mechanics, Tutor – Mr Newby, Baker Perkins
· Electrical Engineering - (Not known).
The Principal was Dr Davies, Headmaster of Deacons School. and the end of year examinations were set by Nottingham University.
For Year 3 of the Apprenticeship you would move to the main workshops for a higher class of work".
(For Roland's memories of his time in the Works see Working Conditions in Wartime).
"At the re-opening of the Westwood Works Drawing Office in 1945 more draughtsmen were needed. This provided the opportunity to promote apprentices from the workshops to become Improver Draughtsmen; in effect an extension of their apprenticeship, as it would require a further five years' training to attain the status of draughtsman.
C. Dumbleton interviewed the apprentices and 12 were selected to join the various sections in the Drawing Office, achieving staff status and a weekly wage increase from £3 10s 0d (£3.50) to £5. I was to work as an improver draughtsman on the section responsible for design and contracting of orders for Biscuit Plant, Cake Plant, Wafer and Rusk Plant, alongside:
· Mr J. Hart (ex-Willesden) - Section Leader
· Mr G.W. Allen – Deputy Section Leader
· Mr G.W. Day (ex-Willesden)
· Mr T.L. Garner
· Mr R.B. Miller
· Mr C. Downing (ex-Willesden)."
"Cycling to work was the normal way for most employees. There were hundreds of cycles in the cycle sheds. Apart from the Directors, who had company cars which were kept in the Directors' Garage and maintained by a full-time mechanic, only one man came to work in a car. This was Jim Warrington, Section Leader of the oven department. He had an Austin 7 Ruby. He was a big man, and the car traveled well down on the springs on the driver's side!
I would like to put on record my appreciation for the excellent engineering training I received from the skilled tradesmen at Baker Perkins, skills I still practice in my home workshop. I consider designing machinery on a drawing board (not a computer monitor) and seeing the result built in metal is the ultimate in job satisfaction. To this day, I never make anything without first producing a drawing".
1945 - Drawing Offices Apprentice
Gordon Steels
Gordon Steels remembers:
"As the WWII war was drawing to its close at the beginning of 1945, a number of craft apprentices who were attending the Peterborough technical night school in Broadway, were selected to be interviewed as suitable candidates for transferring to the newly formed Drawing Office Apprenticeship Scheme. I was interviewed by Claude Dumbleton and was one of the lucky twelve craft apprentices selected for further training at the GTC, Leicester.
We were split up into three groups and the first group, Roland Maycock, Brian Savage, Derrick Stanton and David Thompson, were sent to the GTC in May 1945 for a twelve week course. The second group, Sidney Stafford, Ken Betts, Hubert Holmes and I were sent to Leicester in July 1945, after VE Day and before VK Day.
The third group, which, I am fairly certain was composed of Ben Blacklock, Jim Rawlett, Ivor Powers and Jim Deboo, followed in November 1945.
Roland Maycock, who was in the first group, tells me that the course level was set far too low for the Baker Perkins group, who were at third year level in engineering drawing, and on the first day the course had to be immediately upgraded to a much higher level.
After returning from Leicester, we were allocated to different Drawing Office sections to become Improver Draughtsmen until the age of 25, when we were promoted to Draughtsman level. So, in effect, we had a nine year apprenticeship!
In or around 1957, I became a member of the Drawing Office Apprenticeship Committee, a sub-committee of the Apprenticeship Advisory Committee. Stephen Hargreaves was the Chairman, with David Ogilvie and me as members, and with Cyril Downing, who was in charge of the Drawing Office School, as Secretary.
The purpose of the Committee was to interview a number of craft apprentices selected by Cyril Downing as potential candidates for further training to become Draughtsmen. They were usually around 19 to 20 years old, and if successful at the interview were then given a broader craft training, together with a short stay in the apprentice school drawing office. At the end of this training period they spent about one month with Cyril Downing before entering the main drawing office.
The interviews were carried out mostly once per year and at the beginning around 20 candidates were interviewed and on average, the committee judged about 12 were suitable for further training. Many of the craft apprentices who came through this scheme went on to fill senior positions and contributed to the continuing success of the business.
As the years passed by there were fewer and fewer potential craft apprentices considered as being suitable for training for the drawing office, partly because of the change in education by the raising of the school leaving age, coupled with more opportunities for sixth form education and then on to University.
I recall clearly the last time the committee met and interviewed three craft apprentices selected by Cyril Downing, none of them met the standard we had set, and we judged that it would be better for them to remain good craftsmen rather than risk them not meeting the grade in the drawing office. I do not remember the actual year, but it is likely to be in the late 1960s"
Peter Hornsby (Later to be involved in helping to set up Baker Perkins' involvement in plastics machinery - see History of Baker Perkins in the Chemical Business).
"In the summer of 1945, I left school at the age of 14, the discharge age from Lincoln Road Elementary. I joined Baker Perkins and entered 'the offices' (hours 8.30 am until 5.20 pm with 1.1/4 hours for lunch.) My place of work was the XYZ Department run by a bald gentleman - A.V.Francia. My section was involved with job costings and large amounts of filing. Well, to cut a short story shorter, I caused chaos through slapdash filing and suddenly found myself relegated to 'the works' as a fitter/turner apprentice. (The hours of work there were 7.30 am to 5.30 pm with 1 hour for lunch.) Quite how this unfair time comparison came about I will never know but that's life.
This was the very early days of there being an apprentice school and a section was formed, in a large area along the south wall of the machine shop towards the cutting shop end. There were a number of benches (for the apprentice fitters) and a group of machine tools, lathes, milling and drilling machines. The fitting section was run by Jack Ingrams with Jack Hurst as charge hand and Russell Bullard, with Jack Rowe as charge hand, was in charge of the machine tool section. In overall command was Jim Deboo. At this time, there also started an influx of both student (grammar school) and graduate (university) apprentices. These were to be the high fliers of the future.
The crux of this tale lies in the lead up to Christmas 1946/47. On the last day before the Yuletide shutdown, after we had had our grated cheese and slab butter rolls, washed down by milky cocoa made specifically for scraggy ex-wartime 'children', we usually had the chance to waylay office girls walking through the works delivering mail or whatever and eliciting a Christmas kiss. Jim Deboo decided that this practice had to stop and arranged a film show in his large office.
That lunchtime I cycled to the health shop on the corner of Lincoln Road East and bought a box of strawberry flavoured sulphur tablets. Over the next hour, I munched through most of the packet and prepared for the afternoon matinee. During the film show the resulting sulphur dioxide was secreted in large quantities, creating an obnoxious and awful atmosphere that forced Jim Deboo to throw open all windows and doors, stop the film show and send us all home early. Hooray!
My apprenticeship was completed in 1952 when I joined the Royal Navy for National Service. Because of the Baker Perkins training, I became a Petty Officer Ordnance Artificer and my payback had started".
At the same time that Roland was joining the Drawing Office, men who had had their apprenticeships interrupted to serve in HM Forces were now returning to Westwood and would need to be retrained. The Government's Interrupted Apprenticeship Scheme, agreed by employers and trade unions, provided ways to enable lost time to be made up, any relevant HM Forces experience to be taken into account, and financial aid given to the employer so that the interrupted apprentice could be retrained but paid at nearly craftsman rate until the newly agreed training period had been completed.
(For the story of an Apprentice who was called up as a "Bevin Boy" and returned to Westwood under the Interrupted Apprenticeship Scheme, see Roger Ward's memories in National Service)
Brian Crack
Brian Crack entered the Plate Shop as a Student Apprentice on 13th October 1947. A selection of his quarterly reports as he gained experience in the various departments in the Works follows:
Brian would have been one of the first apprentices to come under the management of Jim Deboo, newly appointed to the post of Apprenticeship Supervisor in Autumn 1947.
At Westwood works there were two ways of becoming a student apprentice; the first was, at the age of 16, to have gained the right number of credits in certain subjects in your school-leaving certificate. The second way was to be upgraded from a craft apprentice when you passed your National Certificate exam. This second method was made available to Bedewell apprentices in 1949. Marshall Grey
Marshall Grey passed his National Certificate that year and became the first student apprentice at Westwood from Bedewell. As well as Marshall, another four Westwood craft apprentices became student apprentices that year, including Ted Thain, Tom Hinch and Bruce Trundle. Marshall recalls:
"Up till then I had never lived anywhere else other than at South Shields but I did not have any qualms about travelling south. I lived in digs in Harris Street with Mr and Mrs Johnson and I shared a room with Bernard. I can't remember Bernard's second name, but at 16 he was over six foot tall and a very big lad; he was a foundry apprentice and lived at Kings Cliffe.
At the beginning, my main problem was to make myself understood because I knew no other language than pure Geordie, and it was quite frustrating having to repeat most of what I said in an attempt to get by. I had the good fortune to meet Jack Scott who worked in the tool store in the machine shop. Jack came from Darlington and he had lived in Peterborough for quite a number of years. When I listened to him talk I then realised how I had to change my accent to be understood.
I was very much aware of the privilege I had been granted and made sure that I behaved myself and tried not to upset anyone. I have since come to realise that those of us who are sent out from the Northeast to spread the Geordie gospel look on ourselves as ambassadors, if not missionaries.
I did the rounds of all of the departments, machine shop, plate shop, pattern shop, foundry as well as doing a stint with the Outdoor Department. When working in the plate shop one of the chap's was studying the horses and he gave me tips for three runners. The bookie's runner used to take bets in the clocking on station and I had three cross doubles and a treble on these three horses. They all won and for a four-shilling bet, I collected £15. When news of this got out the following day quite a lot of people wanted to know what I was betting on.
I used to go to technical College one-day each week and in those days the technical College consisted of three buildings off Garton End Road. However it was not too long before we moved into the new technical College.
I was very keen tennis player and spent a lot of time on the courts at Alma Road. The above-mentioned Jack Scott taught me a lot about the game and eventually I played in the works team. There were dances at the social club every Saturday night and it was there that I met Pam Willoughby. The first time I had a date with Pam we went to the City cinema, it used to be about opposite the end of Bishops Road. Pam worked for Eric Reynolds in the CPO; she requisitioned biscuit cutting machines. We used to go to The Empire that did weekly rep. A string trio used to play under the direction of Urban T Wilkinson. We did some courting at Dogsthorpe Treacle Mines.
Speaking of Bishops Road, after a while, I took up residence at the staff hostel that was on the corner of Bishops Road and Bridge Street (See The Commercial Hotel). Mrs Washington ran it and one of the maids was called Phyllis. It was a wonderful place to live as a young chap because there were very few restrictions; the one which I remember said - "if you are not here at mealtimes you do not get fed"
Motorbikes were very popular at the hostel, I only had a pushbike but seven of the residents had bikes. I remember Bob Eggleton refurbishing an Ariel 500 side valve machine at the hostel. Permanent residents at the hostel included Miss Baxter who was in charge of the comptometer room and Walter Hardware who was the foreman on the gear cutting section.
There were various sized rooms in the hostel and for a long while I was the sole resident in one of the four-bedded rooms, which were known as the barracks. Often overnight visitors stayed in the room only to be driven to distraction by the vegetable lorries stopping and starting at the traffic lights all through the night.
There was no heating in the hostel apart from the one open fire in the lounge, so we were allowed to have electric fires in our rooms. Mostly they were homemade from element kits that you could buy at Woolworths. One very cold weekend we overloaded the circuit and we put in a bigger fuse. This also blew so we tried using a paperclip, this worked but heated up the wall behind the fuse box, so we had to shut down the system. On Monday the works electricians appeared and an upgraded system was installed.
One resident was scuttling about one night complaining that he could smell burning, and he went from room to room trying to find the source of the smell. It was only when he got back to his own room that he realise that his bed was smouldering; he had put electric trouser pressing gadget in his bed to warm it up!
Following my tour of the workshops I then moved into the offices, the first of which was the time and motion department. A consultant called Mr Scott ran this; we shared an office with George Strickson who was the safety officer. Hector Reedman used to come and see George and Hector had a wonderful turn of phrase. I remember when Matt Walton was made machine shop manager at Bedewell and Hector reported this event by saying "Matt Walton is going to Bedewell on three months prohibition"
For a while I was in the jig and tool drawing office and our manager was A P Peat who used to answer his telephone by saying "Peat here". He used to get very upset if the caller replied "Pete who?" I then worked for Alec Ansell in the CPO followed by a stint in the heating and ventilating section of the drawing office.
Eventually, after I got my Higher National Certificate, I was called back to Bedewell as a jig and tool draughtsman. Pam and I married then following National Service I went back in the drawing office and eventually became Standards Engineer. My manager was Eddie Steele and my opposite number at Peterborough was Ben Reynolds.
Moving to Peterborough for two and a half years made a big difference to my life, I still go back to see friends and to smell the sugar beet. "
Staff Thomas
Staff Thomas writes: "By the time I was 15 it was "What do you want to do when you leave school?" In those days there were no visits to firms and offices for a peek into their organisations but at least if you were good with your hands there were many engineering firms around Peterborough (i.e. Baker Perkins, Peter Brotherhoods, Perkins Diesel, Hotpoint, Newalls Engineering, Halls, Benny Lifts, Mitchells Engineering and many small firms).
By chance, I happened to get an interview at Baker Perkins when I was 16 years of age. To be accepted as an apprentice you had to take tests - written and practical which were taken in the large boardroom at Westwood Works. About 20 other lads took the tests at the same time as I did and nearly all passed. My parents were overjoyed when I was taken on as an apprentice. I was very proud even though engineers in those days (1950 to 1985) were two a penny. There were many, many skilled men around at that time, fitters and turners, machinists, boilermakers, platers, tinsmiths, coppersmiths, carpenters, foundry moulders, electricians, painters.
It was a big change from one day being a schoolboy to the next day being in a factory. In those days, 1951, the working day was from 7.30 am, (1 hour for lunch) to 5.30 pm, a 48 hour week and meant working Saturday morning till 10.30 am to complete the working week. To a lad of 16 it meant a big change to the body and the brain had to work overtime to take everything in! Getting to work was by bicycle and to see the mass of men and boys cycling over Westwood Bridge was something special. There seemed like thousands of racks for cycles but woe betide you if you put your cycle in some old fellow's rack – especially Wilf Rockley's!
On the first day, I was met by someone from the Personnel Department, given a works clock number and taken around the factory. Then it was time for a medical before being shown round the apprentice school.
It wasn't a school in the normal sense. It was a long bay at the end of the machine shop with a high wall all along the bay separating us from the machinists. But what struck me straight away was the noise from the machines. All machines worked off belts driven from the roof of the shops by huge long drive shafts. Baker Perkins employed a belt man who manufactured and repaired these belts and he was always busy. The apprentice school was split up into two areas – a fitting bay and a machining bay. The fitting bay had four long wooden benches with vices every yard or so. The foreman and superintendent's office was mid-way between both shops. The machine shop was equipped with a horizontal grinder, vertical drills (large and small)), 2 lathes, mechanical saw, 2 milling machines and a horizontal metal shaper. Now, it was learning time. I was put in the machine shop area first and then after some training, moved to the fitting area. Charlie Bullard was the foreman in the machine shop with Jack Rowe as his chargehand. Jack Ingram and Jack Hurst ran the fitting shop area. I was now on the learning curve, which carried on for five years). Our lunch hour was from 12.30-1.30 pm and we had a works and offices canteen. During lunchtime, we played soccer on the spare piece of land across the road from Baker Perkins, next to the Co-op abattoir!!! You can imagine sweaty lads going to clock on.
In the apprentice bay, we were taught how to operate machinery properly and safely –being tested on what we had learned at every stage – tools were made (turned, drilled, tapped, etc). We manufactured our own marking off tool with points given for the quality of the finish. It was the same thing in the fitting shop area. We were shown how to work safely and handle tools in the correct manner – files, hacksaws, hammers, chisels, hand drills, reamers, air pipes. We manufactured parts for the production of machines in the main fitting shop. Examples included bread prover trays with their wooden fingers clamped in a painted metal cover but we only fitted these together if the fitters were too busy in the main shop. Another job was the wooden belts used on the cone drives for the biscuit machines. We had varied tasks to do, always supervised by Jack Ingram and Jack Hurst. I was to find that all through my apprenticeship most foremen were like those two, kind and understanding, eager to pass on to you their skills.
After passing out of the apprentice bay, you spent time in all the different bays in the machine shop and I spent time on bar capstan lathes. These were production lathes of more than one item of a particular part (not quite mass production), The next bay I was sent to was automatic lathes. This was mass production at its best and the pieces manufactured were checked and tested every 200 or so and the machines adjusted to suit if needed.
The next bay I worked in was gear cutting. While I was working in this area, I had a visit from Ben Reynolds, telling me that I had been accepted for the fitting shop which pleased me immensely Whilst I had been working in the machine shop my Dad made me a tool chest (not a tool box) as it had three drawers and was quite long. I still have it in my shed. This meant that when I got into the fitting shop I had somewhere to put my tools, which could be locked up.
My first day in the fitting shop was in Jack Ellis's shop and I was placed with a man called Mattie Gill, a man from Sunderland. He was a short, tubby man and was a lovely fellow, who knew my Dad as he lived in Willesden Avenue. His mate, whom he worked with, was called Arthur Sykes, who became a foreman later on in my life. They primarily worked on a bread machine called a multi spindle moulder. It was a machine that took the air out of the bread as it came out of the bread divider. The first job for me at 7.30 am on that first day was to go to Annie's tool store (which was in a central area of the fitting shop) and take the requisition tickets for my hand tools – hammer, chisels, files, saw and such. Into my new toolbox they went, and I had to buy more tools as I went along, such as spanners and tap wrenches to start with. Now the task was get your head down, listen to advice and learn as quickly as possible and not to make the same error twice. There were many fine fitters around and only a few were difficult to work with.
We, as apprentices, had to spend early on in our time a week apiece on the deburring benches at the end of each machine bay - Drilling, milling, boring, capstan lathes, automatics and gear cutting. That made six weeks of filing and deburring, which gave you an idea of the products going into the fitting area. In those weeks, you were really under the jurisdiction of foremen of that particular bay. The machine shop was large but not large enough for the amount of production needed for the fitting shop needs, so Baker Perkins was sending jobs out to subcontractors for machining and that made another section in our offices.
During my time in Jack Ellis's bay, I had to move around to gain experience on most of the machines being produced there. Different fitters to work with, different skills, different ways of working. It was possible to learn a lot from even the 'difficult' fitters.
I worked with Dick Olivant on a machine called a 5-roll refiner, a machine that refined chocolate from cocoa beans to find chocolate. The machine had five water-cooled rolls set in two cast iron frames.
The rolls turned very fast in opposite directions and the two at the bottom held the cocoa beans in a hopper and then as the rolls moved in opposite directions took the chocolate up to the top of the machine and refined it as well. It apparently worked well in chocolate factories. I worked on with Dick for about a year. When it was time for me to move on, he went to see Mr Shields, who was the fitting shop superintendent, and asked if I could stop on. The answer was that I could stay long enough to finish off a refiner that we were halfway through.
Next port of call was to go into Bert Hodges' (bakery) machinery) fitting shop. Bert made mainly bakery machines but also soap presses, wafer machines, conveyors for Mars Bars, pie machines and much more! I was put with a fitter called Jack Cooper. A thin, wiry man – quiet, but a good fitter. The machines I was helping to fit together were wafer machines. These machines had been built for about twenty years and always the same shape and design. I believe they were 12 and 18 plate wafer machines, gas fired, that produced wafers for the ice cream industry. All of these machines were clad in sheet plate and lagged with fibreglass. Our blacksmith made rails along the feed end that opened the wafer plates to allow the wafer to be blown off and then it shut the plates when the batter had been spread onto the bottom plate.
For a while I was helping Jack Cooper to build these machines and learning more about fitting all the way along. By the way, we were on a bonus scheme that worked out more than the flat wage paid.
Then the designers produced a brand new design of wafer oven. It was a 24-plate wafer machine. A new shape, a new design of wafer plates and a tong unit to hold the plates in. These tong units were hinged and they held the plates in position. The plates were then fitted to the tong units with a gap between top and bottom plates to suit the thickness of the wafer biscuit. The 24-plate wafer machine took about a month to build including all the sub assembly parts. In those days (in 1953-5), when the fitter was given each his job to put together, the foreman's sheets (which come with the job) were taken to the stores and in our case, Charlie Emblow, the stores parts man, would get all the parts out of racks and send them out to us in metal trays. It didn't take too long either! A few years later, maybe ten years, the system changed and a computer did all this.
We were always plagued by shortage of parts and it was a job to make a good bonus on that particular machine. It wasn't unusual for as many as five or six jobs that needed parts to be left in trays until the parts were manufactured. We got by, though, and still made good machines to a high standard and achieved the target completion date.
The wafer machines were tried and tested by us fitters and by Ted Hunt, the inspection foreman. The gas burners above and below the wafer plates were ignited electrically by a type of spark plug. The tong units and plates were greased, and everything was run and tested before putting batter through the machine.
The wafer batter was to a special formula and collected from the canteen when needed. This consisted of flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda and fresh eggs, vanilla essence - all mixed with water in our special batter mixer. When the machine was ready for final testing, it was fired up, batter was put in the batter tank ready for pumping onto the plates. Ted Hunt spat on the plates to test if they were at the correct temperature and if so, we produced wafer biscuits without them burning on the plates. After the machine was passed, it was painted and despatched.
Most of my apprenticeship was spent in Bert Hodges' bakery section with a great bunch of lads. There were lots of laughs even though we were on a bonus scheme. We had time to make our lives at work more enjoyable.
If I go into all the work that I was involved with during those five years, then I would be writing forever, but I will say that a record of all the jobs I did and the time taken are recorded in my books which had to be filled in with the correct times taken on all jobs for bonus reasons.
At the age of 21, I completed my apprenticeship and went into the RAF to do my National Service - see here for more details.
About to leave the Fifth Form at Deacon's School with little idea of a future career (and virtually no careers advice from the School), Dick Preston
Dick Preston attended an Open Evening at the newly opened Baker Perkins Apprentice School. He liked what he saw (he recognised many ex-Deaconians in shiny new green overalls) and thought that he would try his hand at becoming an engineer. Being accepted on results achieved at O-level and buoyed up by the congratulations from many of his parents' friends - "You are very lucky to get an apprenticeship at Baker Perkins, you are made for life" - he began his apprenticeship on 10th August 1954, five days after his sixteenth birthday, with a vague idea that, given a fair wind, he would end up sitting on a tall stool in front of a drawing board with the much coveted "staff" status.
Student Apprentices underwent a similar first part training to that of the other categories of apprentices, being expected to achieve similar standards in the finish and fit of the test pieces as those who would later be earning their living as craftsmen (see Apprentice Test Pieces).
"When I first saw these fitting exercises I could not believe it possible that I could produce anything like that - a feeling that I guess was shared by most new apprentices but, to our collective surprise, within a relatively short time, we were turning out items which met the high standards of the expert craftsmen who acted as our Instructors. As well as the test pieces we produced a set of tools - a set square (which I still use fifty years later for DIY jobs), set of 'Vee' blocks, scribing block, calipers, etc - plus a tool box to keep them in. The sense of achievement was profound.
It is impossible to remember all of the strands of the training programme but my "Completion of Apprenticeship" certificate reminds me that I had experienced:
"BASIC PRACTICAL TRAINING ON GENERAL FITTING AND MACHINING, PLATEWORK, FOUNDRY MOULDING AND COREMAKING. EXPERIENCE IN THE MAIN FOUNDRY ON CAST IRON, STEEL AND LOAM MOULDING OF HEAVY CASTINGS. FURTHER MACHINING IN THE APPRENTICE SCHOOL WAS FOLLOWED BY PERIODS OF HORIZONTAL BORING, PLATEWORK, FITTING, CENTRE LATHE TURNING AND GEAR CUTTING IN THE MAIN WORKS. FOLLOWING MILLING EXPERIENCE IN THE APPRENTICE SCHOOL, HE WAS GIVEN TECHNICAL EXPERIENCE IN THE SALES LAYOUTS AND BAKERY CONTRACTS SECTIONS OF THE DRAWING OFFICES AND THE PLANNING AND RATEFIXING DEPARTMENT. DURING THE LATTER PART OF HIS APPRENTICESHIP HE SPENT SEVERAL PERIODS WORKING WITH THE OUTDOOR ENGINEERS INSTALLING MACHINERY IN CLIENTS' FACTORIES. FINALLY HE RETURNED TO THE SALES LAYOUT SECTION TO COMPLETE HIS TRAINING AS AN IMPROVER DRAUGHTSMAN".
A fairly crowded five years from which a few things stand out:
The willingness of all the craftsmen with whom I worked to freely impart their knowledge to someone who was unlikely to be sharing their machine or bench in the future. The many good relationships made at the time came in very useful later in my career.
Being faced with a very large chocolate kettle on the Apprentice School horizontal borer and given the task of machining a threaded hole on the outlet (the last machining operation on that casting). The enormous amount of time, effort and money that had been spent getting the casting to that point was very obvious. However, with some help and persuasion from Jim Deboo, the task was completed.
The Foundry and the process of turning a pile of earth into an intricate casting I found fascinating. The Plate Shop left me with memories of incessant noise and what seemed to be the ever present danger from huge sheets of metal swinging from overhead cranes. The Fitting Shop, where a pile of bits was transformed into a working machine in what seemed to be a very short time and the amount of effort and organisation required to ensure that the individual components were delivered to the right place at the right time never failed to impress. (See The CPO).
Probably the most interesting time was with the Outdoor Department. This not only provided an opportunity to see plant in customers' factories but also to see real engineering being carried out in less than ideal conditions. As well as helping to strip down and rebuild bread plants, I was involved in a call to an oven explosion at a bakery in Oxford. Inevitably, the customer was anxious to get his plant up and running as soon as possible, which meant stripping out the damaged sections while the oven was still warm. Apprentices came in very handy here as they were usually somewhat slimmer than the Outdoor engineers. The sweat could be wrung from my overalls - no Health and Safety at Work considerations in those circumstances! Life on the Outdoor was exactly as described by Denis Swingler in The Outdoor Men.
Baker Perkins had its fair share of "characters". One such was "Cloggy" (Ralph Thraves - see also Old Faces) who looked after the Gents toilets in the Machine Shop. For some reason he had something against apprentices using his facilities, a green overall was to him like a red rag to a bull and any apprentice who tried to enter his domain was soon chased out.
The company was renowned for looking after its employees, particularly those who were in some way disadvantaged. I had the pleasure of working for a short time with a member of the Maintenance Department who suffered from poor vision. He was the company handyman - doing small repair jobs around the Works and offices. His ability to "feel" what was needed and then get the apprentice to understand how to carry out the repair was uncanny.
Who can forget being serenaded each morning in the Apprentice School by Jack Hurst's rendition of "The Story of Tina"?
1957 – A Student Apprentice on a HND Sandwich Course
Denis Swingler
Denis Swingler recalls –
"I joined B.P in September 1957 as a student apprentice. John Warwick put me on an HND (Higher National Diploma) sandwich course, which entailed spending alternating periods of six months at the Technical College and in the Apprentice School. The first six months was in the School.
Not being a native of Peterborough, I was lucky enough to obtain a place at the B.P. apprentice 'hostel' at High Trees, 270 Eastfield Road (later to be an annexe of the Tech), which was run at the time by Major Hooper and his wife. Mr Hooper worked in one of the drawing offices and it was really his wife who ran the show at High Trees; she cooked us breakfast and an evening meal and fussed over us like a mother hen. From memory we paid about 3 pounds, 10 shillings a week and slept dormitory style with 3 or 4 sharing a room. Some of the others there at the time were Dick Talbot, Tommy Edwards, Ed Marriott, Doug Sharratt, Bill Grant, Dave Beech and Terry Worms.
We all cycled to work; pedalling flat out down Broadway, round Park Road, a short run down Dogsthorpe Road, cutting through Green Lane (two-way in those days) onto Lincoln Road, turn right into Taverners Road, then up and over the bridge on Westfield Road and down into the bike sheds. As you progressed down Taverners Road the cycle traffic got thicker and thicker; going down Westfield Bridge and into the works it was like a swarm of bees (nearly said lemmings, but thought better of it.) If you got to Green Lane before the 7.15 hooter went you stood a good chance of clocking in before the deadline of 7.33!
John Warwick, with Charles Bullard as his assistant, ran the Apprentice School. The senior foreman was Jack Hurst (fitting); with instructors Charles Gilbey (milling), Reg Hart (turning), Harry Popple (boring), Charlie Durrance (platework) and Peter Mowbray (everything!). Being more or less straight from school, standing all day was something I was unaccustomed to and for the first few weeks my feet and legs ached from about 9 a.m. onwards; leaning on the bench was definitely frowned on and brought a swift rebuke if you were caught. In that first six months we learned to file (flat, square and to size), scrape, hacksaw and, eventually, after training and practise on turning, milling and boring we produced our own try squares, centre punches and other hand tools to quite an acceptable standard, even including a six inch rule!
The tea trolley came round morning and afternoon and, as well as the obligatory mug of tea, there were usually some cheese rolls, if you could afford them and if you got there quick enough. Dinner was taken in the Works canteen. Choosing where to sit was initially fraught with danger because there was nothing worse than taking a seat that someone had used for the last forty years. All the food was prepared and cooked on the premises and it was pretty good. Although I'm sure Jamie Oliver would disapprove, one of my favourites was spam fritters, chips and beans. We used to queue up to buy next weeks dinner tickets on Fridays. For Tuesdays and Fridays you could purchase a cheaper snack ticket if you wished, which entitled you to egg and chips on Tuesdays; fish and chips on Fridays. After eating, there was usually time for a few hands of 'solo' (whist) while drinking a mug of tea and having a smoke.
The subsequent spells away from the Tech. were spent in the various production shops. I have to say that I found the plate shop, machine shop and foundry a little boring after a week or two, simply because the number of tasks that a 'green behind the ears' student apprentice could be trusted with, were few and far between which meant there was an awful lot of talking and watching. Mind you, holding a conversation in the plate shop was a skill that definitely had to be learned. The fitting shop was better, in as much as there were more tasks that we could be allowed to carry out (albeit with a careful watch being kept.) I recall the 7.35 a.m. routine of smothering the hands with Rozalex, rubbing it well in, then having the first fag of the day before the foreman came out and made his round.
I spent some time in Bert Hodges' bay with Matty Gill, Arthur Sykes and a young Bill Smith amongst others; I think they were mostly building chocolate refiners; I 'helped' Ronnie Clay with enrobers in Jack Larman's bay. Strangely enough I worked for a long time with a plater in the fitting shop, Lee Burgess, where machinery, that I was told was a nylon spinning machine, was being assembled. This had a large number of stainless steel covers to be fitted to it, fixed by Lee and myself with very small, probably, 2 BA screws. Lee was probably in his sixties and slightly shaky and consequently frequently broke the tapping drill, or the tap. He gave me a go and because I had a slightly better strike rate than him, I eventually did the bulk of the drilling and tapping. (We swapped watching and working roles whenever a foreman was around.) Of course no matter who broke the drill or tap it was always the apprentice who had to go to the stores for a replacement. Annie got to know me quite well, and she soon only had to ask me "Drill or tap?" I told her I wasn't breaking them all but I don't think she believed me. Lee had a heavy tobacco snuff habit, something he tried endlessly to get me hooked on. I never really got past the sneezing stage.
By this time I had left High Trees – you were only allowed your first year there – and had found digs at 57 Priory Road, which I shared with another apprentice, Brian Harlock. This was ideal; I could leave 'home' on the 7.25 hooter and have plenty of time to get to the clocking in station in good time. Crossing Westfield Road was a bit of a problem though.
The last period of the HND course included a spell with the Outdoor Department. This I enjoyed so much that, perhaps slightly unconventionally for a student, I decided to join it full time when the time came".
J.F.M. Braithwaite
Sir Franklin Braithwaite gave an outline of the training for graduate apprentices destined to become salesmen: This lasted up to two years:
A six months introductory course consisting of time in the Apprentice School and principal manufacturing departments at Westwood Works, also visits to Bedewell, Forgrove and the Export Company.
About fourteen months working with Outdoor Engineering and Service. During this time concentration was on the department to which the trainee was ultimately to be assigned but opportunities were also given to be become familiar with the products of other departments.
Three months practical work at Forgrove and with the Forgrove Outdoor and Service Department.
Two months project experience, e.g., working in a bakery, biscuit factory, etc.
Two and a half months in the Drawing Office Layout department.
About one month in the Commercial Office.
Each trainee was sponsored by a Departmental Manager and interviewed by him at three monthly intervals during his training. During the second year, the trainee undertook two projects decided by his sponsoring manager.
Mike Appleyard joined the Company as a Student Apprentice in September 1960. As was normal during any apprenticeship, Mike spent a short time in a number of Works departments - perhaps not enough to make him an expert in each trade but, as he says - "Once again in three weeks we could only be taught the basics, enough however to give us an insight into what, perhaps later in our career, we may be asking the man on site to undertake."
Mike pulls no punches when describing his reaction to what he experienced in some parts of the Works. (Some of his experiences in the H&V Department and working with the Maintenance Department are related elsewhere.)
"My stay in the Maintenance section ended, and from a few weeks of 'variety', never knowing what was coming next, I was on my way to the Machine Shop, and three weeks of almost total boredom! The Machine Shop, was a huge area, about eighty metres long by fifty metres wide, at its highest about fifteen metres. A central alleyway ran down the building, with machines, lathes drills, grinders etc on one side. On the other side, the manufactured equipment was erected, and run, before being dismantled, and dispatched, for re-erection at its final destination. The machines were in serried ranks, manned either individually or in groups by operators, most of whom had mind numbing tasks, the only highlights being one of the office girls walking through the shop, tea breaks, and dinner time.
I was introduced to my machines by Dave J, a toolmaker by trade, who had graduated to foreman, in charge of the 'automatic lathes'. It was his job to set the lathes up; the skilful part of the operation, my job would be to run a bank of three lathes. Dave showed me each lathe, the sequence of working, and left me to my own devices. Open the pneumatic chuck, take out the completed object, throw it in the bin, take a blank out of another bin, position it on the stops and close the chuck, start the machine, ensure the machine oil is flowing, go to the next machine, and repeat the operation. Do this for eight hours a day, five days a week, there was no wonder that the odd prank was played. Being newcomers and future office workers, we were often the butt of a joke, which you either went along with, and they soon left you alone, as you became one of the boys. If you reacted, they could make your life a misery, I decided to take it all in good humour, although sometimes seething inside, and they soon left me alone. With my 'northern' accent, I was soon seen as one of the lads. One of my fellow apprentices, passing through the workshops as a graduate apprentice, fared far worse then me, his cut glass accent, and his invariable reaction, to any slight, marking him out for special attention!
Reading the Times during his mid morning break was not exactly a good idea, the first he knew of the general opinion, was when someone crept up on him and set fire to the back when he was reading it. A little oil under the paper on his chair seeped through as he sat there, realisation dawning when he stood up the disconnection of one of the hoses on one of his lathes, showering him with machine oil, when he started it up. The more he reacted the worse it became, until eventually; Dave J intervened, threatening retribution, if anything else occurred. The problems ceased, it was a good job however that his stint in the Machine Shop finished, he was not a popular young man.
Thankfully my time in the Machine shop was soon over, next up being the Foundry, as in most similar operations an area of dust, smoke, fumes, noise, and occasionally intense heat, well if you strayed too near to the furnace! As apprentices we were kept well away from the 'business end' of the building, where the molten metal was poured, only coming into contact, metaphorically speaking, when our mould making efforts were put to the test. John, our kindly and helpful tutor, was a foundryman of the old school, having been taught his trade in Sheffield, there was not much he did not know about the business. Coming up to retirement the company gave him the task of imparting his knowledge to us young men, not an easy task in three weeks; however he would do his best. As the company made all its own machinery, the need for castings was never ending, even our 'efforts' being used if they turned out OK. John guided us through all the intricacies of moulds, casting sand, casting boxes and finally the pour. The molten steel cascading out of the ladle into the mould until it came out of the vent hole, meaning in theory that the casting was complete. To John's credit, all our efforts were successful and the resulting castings were put into stock. Although John was passionate about his job, I could never see my future being in the Foundry business. Even though while in the foundry we were given a pint of milk a day, even so the taste of dust and metal lingered for hours after I had left the building.
From there I went into the welding and soldering shop, if we had thought the fumes in the foundry were bad, at least we were not working 'over them' all the time. When welding the fumes are ever present hazards, even though as an enlightened employer, Baker Perkins had installed fume extraction equipment. No one had told the fumes that they were supposed to follow the script and disappear into the hood / canopy/slot. The fumes do not obey the same rules as smoke and rise upwards, instead they tend to spread outwards, forming a toxic layer, building up from the floor, hanging around and only dispersing very slowly. Jim C was the welding instructor, laid back, inclined to be sarcastic, if his instructions did not sink in the first time, with a roll of the eyes a shrug of his shoulders and a shake of the head, he conveyed his thoughts without needing to put anything into words. We were taught the difference between gas welding, using Oxygen and Acetylene, and Electric arc welding, and using copper sheet, we made a 'funnel', to be taught the art of soldering. The technique for each practice, being totally different, he told us the horror stories, associated with both welding techniques, the workman who dusted himself down with the Oxygen from his blow torch, while smoking a cigarette, disappearing in a ball of flame and the welder striking an ark, while electric welding, without his eye guard in place, damaging his eyes. Jim drummed into us think before you do, you only have one life".
Hugh Brenton's career with Baker Perkins began on 14th August 1961 when he joined the company aged 16 years and one month, having completed his education to GCE 'O' level at Deacons School just 2-3 weeks earlier.
"I was one of the first employees to be engaged as a Commercial Trainee – this was a company initiative to introduce an apprenticeship scheme into the office areas which was similar to that of the craft apprentice in the factory. This meant that, during the first 4 years of my employment, I was allowed to attend the Peterborough Technical (now Regional) College one day a week to undertake a Business Studies course. I was also given the opportunity to spend time in several different offices to learn the functions of each department and to see how they inter-related with one another. This tour around the different departments included spending time in the Cost Office in July 1963, where I gained some knowledge of the company's use of Hollerith punched-card machinery" (See also - The Hollerith Department and The CPO).
My name is Peter C. French. I was born in 1946 and raised in Peterborough and lived in Harris Street. Our regular time piece was the Works buzzer that we could hear from our house.
I joined Baker Perkins after leaving Lincoln Road School in 1961. I am the fifth from the left in the first standing row shown in the 1961 September 2 Apprentice Intake. (See Apprentice Intakes).
Joining Baker Perkins was one of the best things that happened to me. The company had what must have been the widest range of trades in the area. Under the direction of Jimmy Deboo we were able to experience so many different jobs.
As my birthday is the 3rd of August and Craft apprenticeships did not start until a minimum of age 16, I was able to experience all of the areas before having to make a final decision as to what trade I would indenture for. That year included a month in the original drawing office school. This was in the winter of 1961/62. This is remembered well as the heating failed and the temperature in the office dropped to around 50F (10C) which made holding a pencil difficult.
As I had requested to be a Sheet Metal Worker my training was delayed until a space was available, only 1 apprentice was allowed for each 5 Journeymen. The instructors suggested that I take a machinist apprenticeship and so I was assigned to the apprentice school for the waiting period operating the horizontal and vertical borers. We made several very small stainless steel mixers for laboratories during this period.
On the fourth of February 1963, I finally signed my indentures (#748) to start my Sheet Metal Training. The first year at Tech was on block release doing the prep. course for ONC. When I started a craft apprenticeship I was switched to the five year City and Guilds course.
In 1965 I was accepted as a Drawing Office Apprentice and issued with a second set of indentures. The first thing was to go into the drawing office school for the beginning of the apprenticeship. My progression put me into the Pneumatic Handling (Food) drawing office in the main office block, then the department was moved to the new office across from the canteen.
In 1968 I was married and looking for possibilities so I went down to the personnel office and had a talk with Mr. W.D. Yale. We talked about the company in Canada and he sent my file and an enquiry over by mail to see if they had any positions that might suit me.
On May 28th 1968 we received a letter back with an offer of employment but I had to start on July 2nd. At that time the usual period for emigrating to Canada was a minimum of 6 months, this was only 5 weeks.
This is where the Family of Baker Perkins kicked into gear. First Mr. Yale phoned our export department in London and arranged for somebody to go to Canada House and pick up the applications. These they sent that night up to Peterborough. Next morning I received the package which we filled out and sent back the next day. The London office then hand delivered the papers to Canada House. The following week we received an appointment for Medicals and interviews.
My approval came through by the middle of June thanks to the assistance of the company. My worry was that my wife still had not been accepted. This acceptance only came through on the Thursday before I was to leave on the Saturday.
Except for a short time I worked at Canadian Baker Perkins until it was closed in 1975, initially, as a designer/draftsman, and then looking after the estimating and management of sub contract work for outside companies. (See History of Canadian Baker Perkins).
As I have gone through my working life my training at Westwood has kept me in good stead. People I meet are always surprised with the width of experience that I have which is due to the training program.
It was a sad time when the plant in Brampton was closed down and most of us were let go".
Barry Wingfield
Barry Wingfield began his apprenticeship in July 1965 after one month spent in each of the activity areas of Baker Perkins from welding to the tool room and from the pattern shop to the plate shop. He recalls saying to himself at the time - "Go where no one else is going - at least there is more chance of a future". Little did he know that the UK foundry industry would be so badly hit.
"I recall the initial intake test, held in the apprentice school. Although I might not have achieved a brilliant result, I had the consolation of knowing that I was not on my own and that those in authority might have been able to see through the immaturity that surrounded all 15-year old adolescents way back in January 1965.
Rather than simply describing the foundry environment, I would like to reminisce about a few of my experiences when growing up in a foundry.
Environmentally friendly quality control checks
Ben Killips was at that time the apprentice instructor. Our workplace was immediately on the left after entering the foundry and directly in front of the core room. In those days the fine core sand was bonded with Almarine oil and baked in a gas oven - making an almost ceramic tile like finish with good green strength and little permeability. Men like Joe Kniveton used to be the ones who were asked to make the complex water jacket cores for stator housings and cylinder blocks.
Always inquisitive, I would try to sneak up and watch what he would do to get these fragile and complex cores out of the box and into the oven. Not once did I get the chance, he would religiously guard the way he wrapped the wax vent wire around the core irons and how he rammed and stripped the core onto a core dryer before going into the oven. About all we did get to see was Joe blocking one core vent exit with his finger and blowing cigarette smoke through the opposite end. He would repeat this until he was satisfied that all vents worked and that all of the wax was burnt away – if not then he would either return the core to the oven or break up the core and dump the sand in a nearby (and rarely used) waste bin. Perhaps this use of cigarette smoke would be unacceptable these days – even though it still remains a most practical way of providing a successful quality control check.
Our visitors from the Far East
We worked in gangs in those days - a senior charge hand, a few tradesmen and an apprentice. My recollection was one apprentice for every five tradesmen. Malcolm Farley was with Fred French and I was moulding alongside Stan Brown, a beer drinking and fun loving Geordie who took great pride in making his daily bonus before lunchtime. Anyway, Arthur Grey our foreman, resplendent in his statutory white coat informed us that we had to tidy up the area in preparation for some international visitors who were coming around later that day.
"No problem" said Stan and promptly sent me to the cloakroom for as many old clothes that I could find and a pair of safety boots – "On the way back pick up a tin of iron oxide paint from the paint shop as well, would you?", and I dutifully did. When we had all these, Stan and I went about making a life sized rag doll in overalls and quick release safety boots. Right behind us, the night shift had left large moulding boxes, probably around 8'x10', scattered around the sand floor and, to the uninitiated, it might have seemed that they had simply fallen into place when dropped from a crane. The combination of sand floor and these boxes was too much for Stan, so we then dug a hole under one side of a box and placed the rag dummy under the large moulding box. With a judicious amount of iron oxide scattered over the legs and waist it did appear that there was a large amount of dried blood and a real person trapped there.
Needless to say both Stan and I were hauled over the coals as soon as Arthur saw this – and if my memory is correct, I was only allowed to continue my time as an apprentice because I was indentured for the next few years.
Getting our bonus
Not everything was fun but we certainly had our fair share of laughter. I was lucky enough to work in Bill Toulsen's gang where an apprentice's job was to come in early and get as much moulding "tackle" as we could scrounge. This included core grids and mould "gaggers" which held pockets of sand in place. We also had to retrieve our moulding boxes left in the knock out area after casting.
We worked on a bonus scheme with Bill Airey, allocating a fixed time to complete the process up to casting. If we kept to this time then we were paid an hourly day rate, but if we completed it under the time allowed then we were paid an hourly bonus payment as well - therefore the job of the charge hand was to get good timed jobs and mine was to get all the tackle - but not until Bill had assessed the job.. like this one which came from my logbook in March 1969.
Occasionally there were rush jobs coming through and if there was no time allocated, then Bill had to measure our actual time and charge accordingly.
If this happened, then all our cost cutting exercises were on hold until well after Bill had set a time allowed – but immediately after this "odd sides" came into view, all the tackle needed came out from under workbenches, and the actual time was halved.
I apologise for not mentioning all the others that helped us grow up – from Pat Walpole to Jimmy Farmer – from Michael Breeze to Tommy Badger. When I received my City & Guilds moulding certificate, I made the mistake of telling Ron Smith that - "I now have a piece of paper which allows me to use a trowel". "That's a clever piece of paper", was the reply, "since you couldn't use one last week".
Thanks Ron".
Mick Lord
Mick Lord became a Craft Apprentice in September 1967. After initial exposure to the basics of engineering, he soon made up his mind where his future lay:
"I did not like the foundry work and the smell of resin in the sand, it was all too hot and dirty . Sheet metal work I could never get my head around, always bending the plate the wrong way, melting everything instead of sticking it together when welding. Even burnt the left leg off my overalls one day when trying to braze two bits together, Admiring the usual mess I had made of the job I had forgotten I was still holding the burning torch next to my leg. The overall leg had gone up to the knee without a scorch mark on the trousers underneath!
Fitting was ok, but why, oh why, spend hours filing a perfectly flat and square piece of metal only to cut it up into two wedges? What a waste of all that effort and hard work, what a way to put you off being a fitter. No, turning or milling had to be the answer, let the machine do the work. I liked turning a lot but everything ended up round which was a bit too much of the same, so milling it was, plenty of different shapes, variety of ways in setting up components and lots of different tooling to use".
In the school I found the Instructors to be very good, friendly and fair. There was Pete Woods (turning), Len Barsby (milling), Ray Lydiard (fitting), Peter Mowbray (turning), Walter Swinburn and Dave Stonebridge (sheet metal), Bob Watson (milling) and then Jack Hurst overseeing all from his raised platform. There was a small stores in the Apprentice School for general tooling and measuring equipment manned by Harold Cooke from Crowland. Bob Watson was the brother of Albert the machine shop superintendent who nobody messed with. Bob was a bit stern but we did manage to make him smile a few times".
A key input to Mick's training were the Training Manuals - the General Apprentice manual and the Milling Manual.
Pages from "Apprentice Manual – General
Pages from "Apprentice Manual – Milling
As training progressed, all the jobs and exercises were carefully logged and signed off as satisfactory by the relevant Instructor.
Record of Apprentice's progress through the Training Exercise
"We were undoubtedly given fairly easy work to start with. I remember earning a few shillings extra with the bonus which was a great help at the time. I took home £3 15s then, £3 5s was for lodging, 5s to get home on the train to Boston and 5s spending money for the week!
Copies of Bonus Sheets
The bonus sheet in the manual was a log of all the production jobs I machined. We also put our name, number and time on the reverse of the production card which came with each job. The card would then be passed back to the CPO once the job had been inspected and moved to its next destination. Later, when we went to work in the main factory on the bonus system everyone kept a log of all the jobs you did so that you could check them off against the bonus sheet that you were given each week.
To get the work we used to take a barrow to the CPO (see - The CPO - The Heart of the Matter) in the machine shop where Mario Storti used to sort us all the good jobs - well, according to him anyway - and usually for the price of a cigarette!, load up the barrow and trundle back to the school to machine the relevant jobs. Mostly we would have a day's work or more but on occasions when work was short we would have to make the trip two or three times a day. On one of these occasions I remember Ted Thain asking why we were spending so much time that day pulling a barrow around the shop when we should have been working. Being a bit green we blamed Mario for not giving us enough work to do, so off he went and promptly gave poor Mario a good telling-off. Needless to say, we ended up a bit out of favour with Mario and got some of the most awful jobs going for the next few days, losing most of the bonus we had earned previously. Those days you could actually end up owing the company money if you did not perform on the bonus system. When I eventually left the Apprentice School to work in the main machine shop I was actually in deficit on the bonus scheme but this was wiped clean and a fresh start made.
Looking back, the bonus sheets are quite revealing in how quickly we progressed in training. By September 1968 I was doing full milling production work in the Apprentice School just like anyone in the main machine shop. That is only a year after leaving school which I find quite remarkable now.
After your second year of training and reaching the age of eighteen you were moved out into the main factory and put under the guidance of the foremen and chargehands of the relevant section with Jim Adcock in overall charge of all apprentices. I went to the light milling section where there were some great characters, Dick Winters, Don Edmunds, George Parrot where chargehands and Ron Coltman was foreman. Once you were eighteen you were expected to work shifts. I quite liked working nightshifts because living away from home it gave me the chance to save money as I was not out during the week and making a longer weekend at home. Attending Peterborough Technical College was a bit hard when doing nights as you did that in the early evening then had to go to work after".
End of 3rd year Craftsman Tests End of 4th Year Craftsman Tests
Even after an apprentice moved into the main factory, the formal competence testing did not end. At the end of each year the apprentice was given test pieces to complete to specification and time, performance being signed-off by both management and Union representatives.
Dennis Crouch was transferred onto the Works Technician Apprenticeship scheme (see also here)- in October 1967, about a month before his 21st birthday. He recalls:
"I still received my craft indentures as a fitter/turner but most of my time was spent on the light mills. I would have gained my Ordinary National Certificate in engineering by then hence the transfer.
I spent time in a number of other departments - plate/sheet metal, fitting, heat treatment, foundry/fettling etc. and some of the offices. This lasted about 9 months after which I was offered a job as a machine shop inspector which I had for about a year.
After gaining my Higher National Certificate, I became a methods engineer in Technical Services under Bob Roberts – the department manager was Eddie Steele. After two years, that department was then disbanded and Stewart Slack and I were transferred as information engineers to Purchasing as mechanical technical advisers to the design offices on bought out equipment.
I think the Works Technician Apprenticeship was designed for training of what I would describe as works staff - such as inspectors, foremen etc. This dovetailed with the technician course at Technical College, T1 to T6. I believe it was thought that a T6 was the more practical version of an Higher National Certificate but more academic than the City & Guilds qualification for craft apprentices".
At work in the Apprentice School Fitting section Drilling and Fitting The Machine Shop with Sheet Metal Section in the background Machine Tool Training in the Apprentice School The Sheet Metal Training Section Using Acetylene Testing Gears
Drawing Office School Discussion Session In the Machine Shop Pattern Making Commercial Trainees Surface Grinding Model Making
Testing Electrics 1956: The Apprentice School Machining Section 1958: Fitting Training in the Apprentice School 1958: Jim Deboo keeps an eye on things 1958: The School at Work 1960: Dick Reedman at work on the "Individual Apprentice Bench" - see below 1967: Apprentices make wicket covers for Alma Road
1968: Mick Lord working a lathe in the Apprentice School 1968: Turning in the Apprentice School 1974: Training in the Gear Cutting Shop 1977: Apprentice Plater receives instruction in the Apprentice School 1977: Hospital bed made by Apprentices 1977: Turning instruction in the Apprentice School 1978: Renovation of Perkins Steam Engines
1979: Fitting Shop training 1979: Traction Bed for Manor House 1979: Foundry Skills training 1979: Learning Turning skills 1979: Learning Gear-cutting 1982: Apprentice continues training in the Works 1984: Model Presented to Charles Swift
1986: Training on CNC Controlled Machines in the Apprentice School
It was Jim Deboo's practice to organise day visits for apprentices to other engineering companies as part of their training. This shows a group of Westwood apprentices outside the Bedewell factory in 1949, prior to visiting the Swan Hunter shipyard at Wallsend to see the launching (sideways into the river), of Companhia Nacional de Navegacao, Lisbon's twin-screw passenger and cargo liner, Mocambique.
As part of their training, apprentices had to produce test pieces to demonstrate that they had achieved the required level of skill. Some of these were merely a demonstration of the achievement of a particular level of craftsmanship - a piece of ¼" plate in which a square hole had to be cut into which another piece of metal had to be filed to fit (and it had to fit exactly - no daylight showing - in all the four possible orientations!). Any complacency soon disappeared with the next exercise - a similar task but this time based on a hexagon!
We are grateful to John Gilbert (August 1955 intake) for sending in what appears to be a complete set of these exercises. John recalls:
"I found the articles by former apprentices very nostalgic and accurate. I recently took out my work pieces , scribing block, vee blocks etc, and looking at them wondered how Jack Hurst and his colleagues managed to train us in the initial 12 months in the apprentice school to the high level of skill required to make these items. Starting with the very first exercise, which taught us how to use a hacksaw accurately on a piece of black plate, through the chiselling and filing of blocks of rough cast iron which eventually became our vee blocks and the very accurate test pieces shown in the photo's and finally to making all of the components for our own scribing blocks.
I can remember standing nervously in front of Mr Hurst whilst he measured my test pieces and held the two part pieces up to the light to check for uneven gaps between the mating edges. Then to be taught the basic skills required for fitting, marking out, turning , milling and grinding before we were transferred to the works."
The accuracy we were trained to achieve with hand tools was, I believe, remarkable and yet the vast majority of us achieved it. I have just been into my workshop to check the dimensions of the work piece that is a 1" square piece fitting into a 1" square hole. The square piece is accurate to within 1 thou in each direction and I cannot get a 1 thou feeler gauge into the gap between the square block and the hole it fits. Also the block can be turned in any of it's 4 planes and still fits with the same accuracy. I remember we had to chain drill the hole then chisel it out before setting to with the files. Remarkable when you consider that all of the skilled part was done just using a range of files, scrapers and emery cloth. I know I was pretty average but satisfactory, where as the most skilled lads went on to become toolmakers.
The Apprentice then made some of the tools that he/she would use in the workshops later in his/her Apprenticeship - set square, "Vee" blocks, scribing block, etc. These introduced the Apprentice to machining work - planning, milling, turning, thread cutting, etc. Both Student and Craft Apprentices had to tackle these exercises.
Click here to see John Gilbert's Apprentice test pieces.
Similar exercises were undertaken by Plater and Foundry Apprentices.
Foundry Apprentice test pieces
If any ex-Apprentice still has any test pieces or tools we would very much like to photograph them.
Cut- away model of a Compresssor made in the Apprentice School by Brian Rush and Keith Edis.
More complex test pieces. This next series of photographs show some much more complicated test pieces produced by Apprentices for entry in the All-Europe Craft Competitions, partly organised by City and Guilds.
Medals for Craftsmanship were awarded to Baker Perkins Apprentices at one of these competitions held in Spain.
On top of training exercises and working with skilled men on Baker Perkins products, Apprentices also produced other pieces of machinery. They can be seen above, working on special orthopaedic beds and other appliances (see also Careers in Engineering and Manor House) and producing pedal cars in The Self-propelled Vehicle Racing Event.
They also entered the workshop equipment market as shown in this brochure for "The Individual Apprentice Workbench". Designed for use in the company's Apprentice Schools in Peterborough, Leeds and Bedewell, many generations of apprentices learned the rudiments of their trade on such a bench.
Another Apprentice task was to produce mementos to be presented to VIPs and dignitaries who visited Westwood Works (See also VIPs at Westwood Works). These often took the form of a model dough mixer. This one is of a fairly early design of bread dough mixer and was probably made in the early thirties. A later version, presented to Harold Watkinson, can be seen in The Opening of the Apprentice School.
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Check out this new piece of music from Orezi – Weke out now!
Ghen Ghen Music frontline act Orezi is out again to thrill fans with this new jam he calls 'Weke'. This new record is a sequel to his earlier released 'Maro' which had Slimcase.
Orezi's new song sees the singer return to his dancehall root even as he impresses.
Listen, enjoy Orezi – Weke below. Don't forget to share!


Combine onion, carrot, garlic, and oil in medium saucepan. Cover and cook over medium heat until vegetables start to soften, about 5 minutes.
Stir in broth, lentils, oregano, and pepper flakes. Cover and bring almost to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until lentils are tender, about 20 minutes.
Add broccoli. Cover and simmer until broccoli is crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in olives. Add more water, if necessary, to thin the stew to the desired consistency. Serve sprinkled with cheese.
Flavor Up Red-pepper flakes add heat to this recipe, and oregano, onion, and garlic boost the taste even more. They transform earthy lentils and vitamin-rich broccoli into a succulent stew.


text:
Purrfect blend: Cat & Craft brings coffee, cats together in Vista
Luis Alberto Rodriguez
By: Mark Saunders
VISTA, Calif. (KGTV) — North County's first cat cafe is welcoming in guests to enjoy a cup of coffee and make a new best friend — human or feline.
Cat & Craft opened its doors in Vista last week, welcoming its first guests to sit down, have some coffee, and lounge with adoptable felines. The 1,500-square-foot cafe is divided by a glass wall separating the coffee from the cats.
Guests can order coffee, tea, or pastries in the cafe before or after hanging out in a cage-free environment with cats and kitten from the North County non-profit cat rescue, Love Your Feral Felines (LYFF.)
RELATED: Hello Kitty Cafe Truck to stop in Carlsbad, Chula Vista for the first time
The cafe was opened by the wife and husband team of Caroline and Andrew Vaught, who say their shared love of cats and volunteer work with LYFF led them to opening the cafe.
"We created Cat & Craft because we wanted to provide a place for the community to connect with each other and animals who are in need of a loving family to call their own," Caroline Vaught said. "We knew this was our calling after realizing Andrew's coffee expertise would pair perfectly with our shared love of cats. It was our previous volunteer work with LYFF that lead us to create this space for the community."
If a customer falls in love with a particular cat, they can actually adopt the feline. The cats inside the cafe's lounge are fully vaccinated, spayed/neutered, and microchipped. All of the adoption proceeds also go to LYFF.
Reservations are highly recommended when visiting but not required. Only a small amount of people are allowed into the cat habitat at a time. Customers should not bring their own cats as well.
The cafe is set to hold a grand opening later this year, but the cafe is currently opened. So far, they've had two adoptions and aim to have 500 adoptions by the end of the year.
On the food and drink side, the cafe keeps Manzanita Roasting Company coffee beans stocked for all their coffee creations and partners with Bread and Cie, A Delight of France, and Hazel and Jade for their pastry and dessert offerings. The cafe's menu ranges from various espresso drinks and pour-over coffees to teas, toast plates, and pastries.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
hpconnected.com create an account – HP Connected Account
HP Connected Account Sign Up
The Hewlett-Packard Connected site allows a customer to create an account that will keep track of all printer, documents and photos associated with HP products
The site is operated by the Hewlett-Packard Development Company
The customer will need an email address upon account signing up
It should be noted the HP Connected service collects and uses personal, device, payment, and application information to help manage the customers HP Connected profile to provide data for services used. During the sign up process the customer can also sign up for receive offers and updates from HP. HP Connected users who already are registered for the HP Connected service can simply sign in with their email address and password.
Information technology corporation specializing in hardware, software and consumer services
Popular HP produced products include personal computing devices, enterprise, cloud related storage devices, networking products, and printers
Founded by former BFF's Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard
Hewlett-Packard is considered one of the World's Most Admired Companies and is dedicated to cleaning up the environment. HP has recycled over one billion pounds of electronics, toner and ink cartridges and two billion pounds of hardware by the end of 2010. Through their efforts they have earned a number one position due to its greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction programs. HP also excels in ethics as it was named one of the World's Most Ethical Companies two years in a row by the Ethisphere Institute.
HP Company Information
Based at 3000 Hanover Street Palo Alto, CA 94304
Corporate phone number: 650-857-1501
Found on the NYSE at HPQ
Over 300,000 full-time employees
The Hewlett-Packard Development Company competes with major IT firms to include IBM (International Business Machines Corporation), Accenture and Dell.
Operated by: Hewlett-Packard
Designed for: Customers who purchased a HP Product


Go beyond the music and explore our wide array of festival experiences and mouthwatering food and beverage options.
Stop by Angry Bird Grill and check out the medieval hand-forged iron grill. Grab a jumbo sized turkey leg hand or try some Cajun grilled chicken on a skewer. Pick the gourmet sauce of your choice: ginger Siracha, bourbon BBQ or a homemade remoulade sauce.
We founded Brucci's Pizza behind the lifetime experience of a family that believes in "Down Home Simple Italian". Our pizza is first and foremost. Dough that is made fresh daily, sauce made with the best California tomatoes, creamy Wisconsin mozzarella and a simple blend of seasoning and spices.
Traditional Filipino food at it's best. Try the Lumpia and Pancit! Just like back home (if home is the Philipines).
Comfort food at its best, Cheese Louise offers gourmet grilled cheese melts and Mac n Cheese bowls. Build your own with toppings including jalapeños, fried chicken, bacon and more!
Street food at its best. Mix it up with tacos, burritos, quesadillas, and more!
The Cracker Cowboys of Florida were colonial-era settlers, often of Scots-Irish descent, who arrived in Florida when Spain traded their territory of La Florida to the English. The term Cracker in Florida usage relates to the whip these "cow hunters" used to herd cattle in Florida's Palmetto Prairies. Called Quaqueros by the Spanish, these hardy and hard working Cracker Cowboys helped to shape the history of Florida, the nation's oldest cattle raising state. We brew Florida Cracker White Ale with unmalted wheat, orange peel and coriander and then ferment it with a Belgian yeast strain to give it a spicy and dry finish. Perfect for a warm day on the Palmetto Prairie.
Demons Behind Me is a message designed to inspire anyone who has or is working to overcome an obstacle in their life, and we exist to motivate them to continue to achieve their goals. The Demons Behind Me Podcast offers a chance for people to speak with the owners of Demons Behind Me, Jim Thelen, Chris Richardson, and Paul Phillips (Former Lead Guitar of Puddle of Mudd, Rev Theory, & Operator) to share their story of triumph over a hardship they have encountered. By sharing these stories, our hope is that our listeners who may be going through something similar, understand that they are not alone and the Demons Behind Me Community exists to support them. Share your story live with Demons Behind Me at Welcome to Rockville, or simply visit if you are looking for any type of support.
Meet the owners of Demons Behind Me at Welcome to Rockville and join their community. To learn more visit demonsbehindme.com and listen to Season 1 of the Demons Behind Me Podcast at the Demons Behind Me YouTube Channel.
YOU LIKE TACOS VATO? WE GOT 'EM! We Serve The Classics Like Carne Asada, Chicken And Carnitas But Toss In The Veggie Option With Jackfruit Tacos. All Topped With Custom Home Made Pico De Gallo.
Through our dedication to the craft of smoking meats, great recipes, and humble, attentive customer service, Eli's BBQ has become an institution. Everyone can enjoy our delicious pulled pork, smoked turkey and our specialty loaded all beef smoked hot dogs.
Try an authentic Pennsylvania Dutch funnel cake fresh and hot, ready to eat!
Fxck Cancer's mission is to fight cancer by raising awareness and education about early cancer detection and prevention, ultimately putting an end to late-stage cancer diagnosis. Through our Dyin 2 Live Dreams program, we look to enrich the lives of those fighting cancer by offering them a VIP experience that we hope will bring joy, inspiration, and courage. In doing this, we hope we can help give the cancer fighter a chance to forget, even if it's only for a day, what they are going through. For more information please visit, www.fxckcancer.org.
We know the best way to change minds is through the stomach so we present to you our traveling #NachoBar!! Filled with healthy, organic, delicious chips and toppings it pleases the palate of the pickiest eaters. People always come back for seconds…even those unsuspecting meat-eaters who just love the quality and taste of our nachos and homemade queso.
Deluxe Sandwiches named after fictitious movie gangsters and "bad guys". Try the SCARFACE (Brisket and Mac N Cheese) or the Dr. Lector (Brisket, Sausage, Grilled Chicken, Mac N Cheese) and don't forget to ask for extra Gouda cheese sauce that seems to smother EVERYTHING!
Homemade ice cream made with real cane sugar and no artificial fillers. We only use milk and cream from cows NOT given hormones, steroids, or anti-biotics. All our flavors are proprietary and made in small batches in a certified kitchen in central Florida.
Handcrafted locally in small batches to ensure quality and freshness. Only use the best ingredients are used including exotic and delicious fruits, as well as local ingredients whenever possible. They never use artificial flavors, colors or preservatives. These artisanal pops are delicious, gluten free, and most are also dairy-free.ee.
Say "aloha" to any worries when you stop by Heavy Tiki. With specialty island cocktails and tropical beats playing all weekend, Heavy Tiki is sure to be the getaway you need to make your festival vacation complete.
Hebro's Kitchen joins us this year to celebrate it's love for bacon! With a variety of dishes, the bacon fan will surely be satisfied! Try the Rosemary Bacon Mac and Cheese, a Bacon Gyro or the homemade Bacon Corn Fritters.
Featuring festival favorites like Philly cheese steaks, giant burgers, gourmet sausages and much more.
These flavorful favorites are sure to pack a punch on your taste buds! Crispy Chicken sandwiches, Burgers with the works and Steak tips seasoned to perfection.
Feeling Cheesy? Come down to Mac Attack and satisfy your craving for some good old comfort food. Try a variety of Mac n Cheese variations including Lobster Mac, Bacon-Jalapeno Mac, Teriyaki Chicken Mac, and Buffalo Chicken Mac.
Mama knows best! Try a Steak Quesadilla, Empanada with beef / chicken, or a Rice Bowl with your choice of Chicken or Steak. Top off the meal with a side of black beans or seasoned fries.
These Gastro pub style patties are piled high with all the favorites. Try a Moink Burger with ground beef, Cheddar Cheese and Pulled Pork drenched in homemade BBQ sauce.
Have you found your Mojo?
Transport yourself to Ancient Greece and Taste the Greek with a variety of Mediterranean delights from gyros to falafel, chicken and beef. Items are served in pita bread, burrito or on a bed of mixed greens with unlimited options salad bar of salsa, feta cheese, hummus, guacamole, Kalamata olive and sundried tomato.
The name says it all. Serving delicious "island" fare like grilled shrimp and fried fish, a twist on chicken tenders and fries are also on the menu.
Hot, ready to eat Tater Tots, smothered in melted cheeses, bacon, and chili. Enough said. Build-Your-Own Tots with an array of savory and spicy toppings!
Pele's Wood Fired is always focused on providing the best pizza possible by using quality ingredients and hand made dough from scratch.
Gourmet Thin Crust pizza, prepared in front of you and cooked in our 900-degree wood fired oven. Try an array of toppings, combinations, and fresh salads.
Giant Burritos, Wraps, Greek Pitas – these are the best it gets when you hit the Strawberry Fields booth. With healthy salads and vegetarian options, it's a great spot for everyone.
An All Natural sweet Shoppe, get your sweet tooth going with cotton candy, Ice cream, chocolates, caramels and much much more!
For more information, please visit: www.takemehome.tv.
We proudly serve sandwiches and sandwich boards made with our baked-in-house bread, as well as fresh salads, made-from-scratch sides, and entrées inspired by our travels around the world. Options change seasonally to showcase ingredients at their peak flavor. For anything we can't make in-house, we partner with purveyors who share our commitment to time-tested preparation techniques that let the ingredients do the talking.
The Music Experience features all the elements that are involved in making music in a professional band setting. The interactive exhibit features guitars, basses, amps, drums, keyboards, and electronic gear that are used by today's most popular bands. After laying your hands on the hottest equipment available, you will walk away feeling like a rockstar and you may even see one there, too! Come and meet your favorite band members form the festival at the Music Experience Tent. With contests and interactive exhibits all day, you may have the opportunity to win free amps, free guitars and get tons of other free stuff.
Tica's Offers Tacos, Burritos, Loaded Nachos, Queso Fries – All With Top Quality Ingredients. Looking For Something Different, Try The Cuban Firecracker Shrimp Or For You Veggies, The Fried Plantain.
Jacksonville's taking the bait with What's the Catch's finest, and freshest fish tacos. Try an Ahi Tuna Taco on a bed of lettuce with pineapple mango salsa, soy sauce and sesame seeds.
Wurstbusters is owned by best friends and business partners Annett and Natalie who share a love for authentic German food and the passion for hospitality.
The name Wurstbusters was born on a lazy beach day in Jacksonville in 2014 and with a play of words we came up with – Wurstbusters, because: If the hunger strikes in the neighborhood, who you wanna call…? Opening the food truck in April 2017 we started with a basic menu and items that you can find in Germany especially in the streets of Berlin were we lived most of our adult lives.
The menu evolved over the years, incorporating American ideas into our authentic German dishes.
Zippo Encore will be back in action at Welcome to Rockville with a full stock of Zippo lighters, including the limited-edition festival designs! Come by and spin their wheel for great prizes, enter their Zippo Custom art contest, and get your Zippo lighter filled for free.
Be sure to go see them early every day and ask about how you can attend Zippo Sessions!