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Midlands Electricity Board MEB

Michael_Ingram

Michael_Ingram

gone but not forgotten
What did this building in Newtown used to be?
Its right at the start of Summer Lane on the corner of Summer lane and Lower Loveday Street, opposite Henrietta Street
 
These images are showing off the flooring installed in the building in 1965. At this time the offices would have been cutting edge, open plan design. Viv.
CAE70677-9749-492E-8333-FAACC4B40650.jpegA277476E-B35B-4331-861B-46B49250CDFD.jpegDF036222-E8D1-442A-B54D-EF18EC2EC7B3.jpeg
 
The ladies are probably busy preparing the accounts, which were sent out quarterly to domestic users. The drawing office might be planning new installations as the redevelopments and new housing took place.
 
Almost certainly 1950s, Dave. I started at BCT in September 1953, and the stores system had been operating a dual ledger and Powers-Samas system for a couple of years. In 1958, the wages system was mechanised too. The accounts office had a single comptometer operator for checking all the invoices by 1957, probably before, as I was on National Service from May 55 to May 57.

Maurice.
 
Hi Maurice
Many thanks for the info, I was 20 years too late I guess.
A bit reminiscent of the Cardboard Computer of the 1970s, where the cards had a row of
holes along the top edge. To set a category you clipped out one of the holes, and
when selecting that category you pushed a knitting needle type thing through that hole
in the 'pack' of cards, lifted the needle, and all the selected cards dropped out.
I suppose we have moved on a bit!

Kind regards
Dave
 
Worked at M E B for 26 years transfers from Dale End to Summer lane in the late 60s worked a National Cash Register did the wages and superannuation just 6 Girls good days I am now 79 And do not like what has happened to our City Marlene Milroy that was.
 
Dave89 said:
Hi Maurice
Many thanks for the info, I was 20 years too late I guess.
A bit reminiscent of the Cardboard Computer of the 1970s, where the cards had a row of
holes along the top edge. To set a category you clipped out one of the holes, and
when selecting that category you pushed a knitting needle type thing through that hole
in the 'pack' of cards, lifted the needle, and all the selected cards dropped out.
I suppose we have moved on a bit!

Kind regards
Dave
Click to expand...

I never used the type of card that you mentioned. I think they were from an age long before the 1970s
1545134640379.png
In fact I have found that they were invented in 1896. I found a punch like the one shown in the photo in an office I once worked in. I wondered what it was used for.
 
Lucas GKS used about 4,000,000 IBM punched cards every month when I was there in the late 1950s.

Maurice
 
Welcome to the Forum Marlene. Please feel free to post more memories, lots of our members are interested in hearing memories from the past. Viv.
 
Hi Maurice,
That's the one mate, just as I remember it!
The Cardboard Computer was advertised in the office equipment mags I
used to receive when I was at the Met in the 70s and early 80s, so It must
have had a very long life!
Kind regards
Dave
 
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I started as a trainee Electrical Engineer in 1978 with the MEB and was based at the Summer Lane offices but did much of my training at either the Southern District, in Kings Heath, or the Eastern District, in Solihull. Very occasionally, they would send me across the city to the Northern District, in Erdington.

There was a training centre at the rear of the Summer Lane offices, to get to it you had to pass by the computer room and cross an enclosed bridge. There was a cafe enclosed into part of the building and the smell of burnt toast would often trigger my migraine. I also remember a notice that read something like "Anyone found not replacing the test equipment will be pressure tested". A pressure test on a high voltage cable involved applying a high voltage, at low current, to test that the insulation on the conductors would hold when the supply was switched back on after working on a cable.

There was a Sports and Social Club in Henrietta Street, which we would often go to for the lunch break on a Friday if on a course at the training centre. Back in the days when you would be allowed to do such a thing...
 
Hi Chris,
Thanks for the welcome, I happened across the site whilst Googling something from my youth. I don't live in Birmingham now, I left in about 1990 when I left the MEB and joined what was then a new company called PowerGen, formed from part of the CEGB.

Looking at the link at the bottom of your message, I see that you are interested in the Home Guard. I'm not sure I can help much, but I know that my Grandad was a member during WWII. I'm afraid I don't have much to give you and unfortunately my Mother now suffers from Alzheimers' so I can't ask her for information. However, her younger sister has not contracted the disease, so I could see if she remembers any details, if you would like me to? Unfortunately, my Grandad did not talk about either WWI (where he was with the Oxford and Buckinghamshire Regiment) or WWII.

Looking forward to delving into the history of Birmingham and adding my own memories where I can.

Cheers - Dave
 
Dave Ackrill said:
I started as a trainee Electrical Engineer in 1978 with the MEB and was based at the Summer Lane offices but did much of my training at either the Southern District, in Kings Heath, or the Eastern District, in Solihull. Very occasionally, they would send me across the city to the Northern District, in Erdington.

There was a training centre at the rear of the Summer Lane offices, to get to it you had to pass by the computer room and cross an enclosed bridge. There was a cafe enclosed into part of the building and the smell of burnt toast would often trigger my migraine. I also remember a notice that read something like "Anyone found not replacing the test equipment will be pressure tested". A pressure test on a high voltage cable involved applying a high voltage, at low current, to test that the insulation on the conductors would hold when the supply was switched back on after working on a cable.

There was a Sports and Social Club in Henrietta Street, which we would often go to for the lunch break on a Friday if on a course at the training centre. Back in the days when you would be allowed to do such a thing...
Click to expand...

I went in there once the social club we must have played the only game of snooker with four players , I worked across the road from the club at ERD . The board as we knew them were one of our biggest customers .
 
Home Guard? Yes, definitely, Dave. I and a number of other members would be interested to see any fragments of information you can pull together about your grandfather's service. There's a longstanding thread on this subject, here - https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/index.php?threads/home-guard.23811/ - and that would be the place to let us know about them.

Hope you will able to contribute on many other matters too. There is a thread somewhere here on almost every aspect of Birmingham history. Use the Search function to dig them out. Above all - enjoy!!

Chris
 
My late wife's uncle, Eric FARMER, was an electrician for the MEB and was responsible for installing and maintaining the floodlights at Villa Park. He passed away in 1970, having retired to Bournemouth a few years earlier.

Maurice :cool:
 
OK, so tell me if this is not on topic and I'll delete it.

MEB Birmingham Area in 1978 was divided up into the Area offices (Summer Lane) and three divisional offices Birmingham Northern Division (George Road, Erdington), Eastern Division (Moat Lane, Solihull) and Southern Division (Kings Road, Kings Heath).

None of which still exist.
 
Dave Ackrill said:
MEB Birmingham Area in 1978 was divided up into the Area offices (Summer Lane) and three divisional offices Birmingham Northern Division (George Road, Erdington), Eastern Division (Moat Lane, Solihull) and Southern Division (Kings Road, Kings Heath).
Click to expand...
I was with the MEB from 1960 to 1967. At that time Birmingham Area was divided into 5 'districts' - Birmingham North-West (Henrietta Street then Summer Lane), Birmingham North-East (not sure if it was then in George Road as I never went there), Birmingham South-West (Kings Road, Kings Heath), Birmingham South-East (Third Avenue, Bordesley Green) and Solihull (Wharf Lane, Solihull). There was also a building in Water Street (bottom of Snow Hill, opposite Summer Lane) where they did silk screen printing for producing advertising posters.

On second thoughts - I think Birmingham North-East may have been in Cheston Road at that time.
 
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