I worked for a year or so at the Dogpool plant as a Lab Assistant - probably about 1967/8, so I was only in my teens then. The only people whose names I can recall in the Lab were Nancy Tortoishell, Sheila, and Joe Footes, although there were two or maybe three other people working there as well. A Jeff/Geoff someone was in overall charge of the Lab.
Arthur Browning was/or seemed to be boss of the foundry workers.
My dad used to work for many years here in the factory. Several times he had to go to Selly Oak Hospital to have stitches and treatment to cuts on his hands caused by razor sharp swarf when pointing rods in preparation for being drawn down into wire.
I remember that the work I did in the Lab was really exhausting and I seemed to be on the go all the time. One of my many duties was to collect and replace the furnaces’ pyrometer charts so that the melting and pouring temperatures of the furnaces could be checked. These were positioned on gantries on he same level as the furnaces. On one occasion I was doing this when one of the furnacemen loaded some billet ends into the furnace next to me, which caused a shower of molten metal to erupt. Needless to say I shot off the gantry and down the steps like a bullet ! However, some spots of metal did burn though my trousers and socks and into my ankle. Luckily they were very minor burns that didn’t need medical assistance, apart from some plasters.
Friday afternoons seemed to be a little more relaxed than other days/times. Someone used to collect fish & chips from a local Chippy at lunchtime and we used to down them with dashes of dilute Acetic acid and sprinklings of Sodium Chloride! (Vinegar & salt)
The Company used to have a really good Staff Xmas meal and party, held at a hotel in the city centre, and there were also memorable Xmas celebrations held in the Lab prior to the Xmas hols.
I’ve had a look a where the factory used to be via Google Maps, but there’s no sign of it now. Does anyone know when it closed down and/or its history from the ‘70s onwards?
