Drynamels Ltd Shaftmoor Lane Birmingham 1950s

[mikejee]

Came across this video

It is not just the factory, but presumably area around also. Cannot identify it. Below is shot of entrance, but can't make out firm's name

 

[brummy-lad]

Looks like 'DRYNAMELS' but would be surprised if that's right.

 

[mikejee]

Yes I think you are right
AND from 1955 Kellys:
Drynamels Ltd. paint mfrs. (reg. office), Rocky la.Aston 6; works, 220 Shaftmoor la. Hall Green
Which makes the factory the one in red


and the entrance view is now:

Google Maps

Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.

goo.gl

 

[brummy-lad]

An aerial view from 1952.

 

[Julianlzb87]

Yes, it is Drynamels, which shared a boundary with a Lucas factory.
I worked there as a paint research and development lab technician
for four years, 16-20yo, before I went to University in 1978.

When I worked there on the left hand side of the driveway in to
the property there was a single story building containing offices.

At the time Drynamels was owned by Tube Investments but subsequently
has been bought, sold and relocated several times.

I am keen to catch up with anyone who worked there in the early 70's.
Back in the day there was very little health and safety and many chemicals,
solvents and resins, etc. were handled with relatively reckless abandon
and are very illegal today, or at least radically regulated.

I suffered a very rare cancer 4 years ago, all good now, which has no
known cause and thus it is tempting to thing back to that lab.

I'd like to a) catch up with former colleagues for old times sake
and b) and to enquire is anyone else had any health issues that
might be related. I'm not interested in finding someone to blame
or to claim damages from but just curious... my haematologists
would be curious too.

During my time there they went form piloting dry powder coatings
to relatively big investment in production which became progressively
more important to the company. I guess the people in that side of
the business are more likely to have ended up with COPD or other
respiratory problems.

I could probably go on and on but I'm new here and don't know
what is acceptable.

Oh... and hello.

Julian Stephenson

ps. Lived in Solihull from 1969 to 1978, attended Tudor Grange GS
and my mum, 94yo, former member and ladies captain of Robin Hood
Golf Club, still lives in Olton where I was this morning before
returning to my home in London.

pps. West Midland Railways are low and getting lower in
my estimation. I'm quite surprised that was even possible. .

 

[Julianlzb87]

Yes, it is Drynamels, which shared a boundary with a Lucas factory.
I worked there as a paint research and development lab technician
for four years, 16-20yo, before I went to University in 1978.

When I worked there on the left hand side of the driveway in to
the property there was a single story building containing offices.

At the time Drynamels was owned by Tube Investments but subsequently
has been bought, sold and relocated several times.

I am keen to catch up with anyone who worked there in the early 70's.
Back in the day there was very little health and safety and many chemicals,
solvents and resins, etc. were handled with relatively reckless abandon
and are very illegal today, or at least radically regulated.

I suffered a very rare cancer 4 years ago, all good now, which has no
known cause and thus it is tempting to thing back to that lab.

I'd like to a) catch up with former colleagues for old times sake
and b) and to enquire is anyone else had any health issues that
might be related. I'm not interested in finding someone to blame
or to claim damages from but just curious... my haematologists
would be curious too.

During my time there they went form piloting dry powder coatings
to relatively big investment in production which became progressively
more important to the company. I guess the people in that side of
the business are more likely to have ended up with COPD or other
respiratory problems.

I could probably go on and on but I'm new here and don't know
what is acceptable.

Oh... and hello.

Julian Stephenson

ps. Lived in Solihull from 1969 to 1978, attended Tudor Grange GS
and my mum, 94yo, former member and ladies captain of Robin Hood
Golf Club, still lives in Olton where I was this morning before
returning to my home in London.

pps. West Midland Railways are low and getting lower in
my estimation. I'm quite surprised that was even possible. .

ppps. On the map posted above there is a pink block which was the main paint production plant.
On the left hand/West side of the block was the production testing lab where every morning us
young lads would congregate to observe a woman doing her bathroom thing, naked, right in
front of her plain glass, bathroom window. There was absolutely no way she could not have
been very aware of a row of half a dozen attentive teenagers in Lab coats paying their respects
a mere twenty five yards away.

 

[latoyabongaarts]

I can find little about Drynamels apart from the fact the company still survives as Ferro-Drynamels, now based in Staffordshire, and who appear to be powder coating specialists and this is where I think the company was heading when TI was broken up. According to Companies House, Drynamels was formed on 17 July 1930, only formally becoming TI Drynamels in 1978. By 1981 they were just Drynamels again and in 1985 they appear to have been bought by paint manufacturers Macphersons who, as Macpherson Drynamels based in Walsall, sold them on to Ferro (UK) in 1987 when they became Ferro Drynamels.

 

[mw0njm.]

 

[Julianlzb87]

I can find little about Drynamels apart from the fact the company still survives as Ferro-Drynamels, now based in Staffordshire, and who appear to be powder coating specialists and this is where I think the company was heading when TI was broken up. According to Companies House, Drynamels was formed on 17 July 1930, only formally becoming TI Drynamels in 1978. By 1981 they were just Drynamels again and in 1985 they appear to have been bought by paint manufacturers Macphersons who, as Macpherson Drynamels based in Walsall, sold them on to Ferro (UK) in 1987 when they became Ferro Drynamels.

I'm pretty sure I was sticking TI Drynamels on Lab samples of paint I was sending to customers for a couple of years before I left in 1978.

 

[Pedrocut]

September 1945, Evening Despatch.

 

[morrissey2020]

I worked as a lab tech at Drynamels between 1977 and 1985 before taking redundancy. It was a good place to work with a great bunch in the lab and the factory. There was a drinking culture that seemed to take off in the 1980s (probably lead to the decline of things) which meant long Friday lunchtimes in the Shaftmoor pub.
As Julian said, there was little in the way of health and safety and we washed our hands in solvent (Xylol, Acetone, Trichloroethane) and thought nothing of it. I’ve had no health issues related to that but I was probably immunised by alcohol.
The Christmas doos held at the Swan in Yardley in Jan/Feb were legendary.

 

[Butcher boy]

My Dad worked for Drynamels during the late 50s,early 60s,i think he was helping to blend paints,always came home with pockets full of ball bearings for us kids to play marbles. His name was Ronald (Ron).

 

[Julianlzb87]

I worked as a lab tech at Drynamels between 1977 and 1985 before taking redundancy. It was a good place to work with a great bunch in the lab and the factory. There was a drinking culture that seemed to take off in the 1980s (probably lead to the decline of things) which meant long Friday lunchtimes in the Shaftmoor pub.
As Julian said, there was little in the way of health and safety and we washed our hands in solvent (Xylol, Acetone, Trichloroethane) and thought nothing of it. I’ve had no health issues related to that but I was probably immunised by alcohol.
The Christmas doos held at the Swan in Yardley in Jan/Feb were legendary.

You must have joined just after I left, even perhaps replaced me as I had just completed my ONC on day release and then went to Exeter University. Names I remember in the Lab... Steve Peel, David Miller, Mike, David Allen, Mike Albut

 

[Julianlzb87]

I'm pretty sure I was sticking TI Drynamels on Lab samples of paint I was sending to customers for a couple of years before I left in 1978.

I worked as a lab tech at Drynamels between 1977 and 1985 before taking redundancy. It was a good place to work with a great bunch in the lab and the factory. There was a drinking culture that seemed to take off in the 1980s (probably lead to the decline of things) which meant long Friday lunchtimes in the Shaftmoor pub.
As Julian said, there was little in the way of health and safety and we washed our hands in solvent (Xylol, Acetone, Trichloroethane) and thought nothing of it. I’ve had no health issues related to that but I was probably immunised by alcohol.
The Christmas doos held at the Swan in Yardley in Jan/Feb were legendary.

I can find little about Drynamels apart from the fact the company still survives as Ferro-Drynamels, now based in Staffordshire, and who appear to be powder coating specialists and this is where I think the company was heading when TI was broken up. According to Companies House, Drynamels was formed on 17 July 1930, only formally becoming TI Drynamels in 1978. By 1981 they were just Drynamels again and in 1985 they appear to have been bought by paint manufacturers Macphersons who, as Macpherson Drynamels based in Walsall, sold them on to Ferro (UK) in 1987 when they became Ferro Drynamels.

I've looked but it seems Ferro-Drynamels has been "dissolved." It occurred to me that I might have been in a pension scheme. I guess I should actually go up a level and trace what happened to Tube Investments as any pension would have been in their scheme.

 

[morrissey2020]

You must have joined just after I left, even perhaps replaced me as I had just completed my ONC on day release and then went to Exeter University. Names I remember in the Lab... Steve Peel, David Miller, Mike, David Allen, Mike Albut

Dave Miller was still there when I joined and a really nice guy he was too. The bosses were Mike Albutt, Harry Bowden and Ted Drew. Others there were Rob Hawkes, Rob Truran, Pete Guest, Tom Sherlock, Jim Watt but I’m struggling to remember any more. I went straight from school, so it was a big thing for me to have a proper job. It was a TI company for a while when I was there and eventually they moved to West Brom. I took my pension when I left - it paid for a month travelling round Europe and some. Probably would’ve been worth a stack now but the experience I had was more than the money.

 

[Julianlzb87]

I remember Harry, Ted, Rob, Pete, Tom and Jim. I had a weekly late night poker thing with Rob Truran and his mates. I think he was moving from the Lab into Sales around the time I left.

 

[morrissey2020]

If I remember rightly, Rob went off to Spain on holiday and was then off sick for a bit before leaving. I could be wrong though - it was a long time ago!

 

[Julianlzb87]

If I remember rightly, Rob went off to Spain on holiday and was then off sick for a bit before leaving. I could be wrong though - it was a long time ago!

It was funny when I started there. I had the interview with Mike Albutt and at the end he had me do a colour blindness test that I "failed" (red/green colourblind) and then they gave me the job as a Lab tech anyway.