The E.C.C. When the new Corporation was formed, it purchased and amalgamated the following companies and their patents: 1). Elwell-Parker, Limited. Employing 400
people with a large order-book. The starting Capital of the Corporation was £500,000 in 50,000 shares of £10 each. Numbers 1 to 100 inclusive were Founder’s Shares. The new concern was incorporated on 7th June, 1889, and it was decided to build a new works on the land already purchased by Elwell-Parker at Bushbury, along with some adjacent land. The new works were erected at a cost of £10,000 on the 24.5 acre site. When the building work was complete, the staff and machinery from Commercial Road were moved to the new site. The directors included: Sir Henry C.
Mance, C.I.E. (Director of the West African Telegraph Company) Thomas Parker was Works Manager and the engineer was J.E.H. Gordon, who was well known for his work on connection with the early electric lighting at Paddington Station. The company produced almost every conceivable piece of electrical equipment. Some of the company’s products were alternators, dynamos, motors, accumulators, ammeters, voltmeters, duplex dynamos, transformers, resistance frames, magnetic transformer switches, switchgear, knife switches, continuous current rotary transformers, battery charging transformers, electrical switchboards, high voltage switches, voltmeter switches, arc lamps, and gas tight motors for electric pumps and electric cranes. The company also produced a 52 passenger tramcar for the Bournemouth Tram Depot, a 9h.p. narrow-gauge electric locomotive, an alternator for Manchester Square Station, a 34 passenger accumulator tram for Birmingham Tramways, 15h.p. tramcar motors for the South Staffs Tram Co. and electric colliery locomotives.
The Corporation got off to an excellent start under the chairmanship of Sir Henry Mance. The works were operating at full capacity and orders flooded in, including a further order from the Birmingham tramways, following the successful running of the Elwell-Parker prototype. In the battery-powered vehicles, the accumulators were placed under the passenger's seats, and a portion of the gross profit was absorbed in the settlement of claims from passengers, whose clothing had been splashed by acid. In 1890 the company carried out the electrification of Sir Daniel Cooper's Tudor Mansion, Grim's Dyke. Two E.C.C. 26 seater omnibuses were running in London in 1891. They ran from Charing Cross to Victoria Station and were powered by two large electric motors, and 72 lead-acid batteries. They had wooden wheels with iron tyres. The company also built a number of battery powered, 14 seater, single decker buses, for the London Electric Omnibus Company.
Within four years the new company found itself in deep trouble and was voluntarily wound up in July, 1893. It seems that there was a lot of dissension amongst the Board of Directors, one of whom later was convicted of fraud. The company was reconstructed as the Electric Construction Company Limited. Sir Daniel Cooper was Chairman and Mr. P.E. Beachcroft, J.W. Barclay and J. Irvine Courtenay joined the Board. The Company Secretary was Mr. James Gray and Mr. Emile Garcke joined the Board to be responsible for the reconstruction of the commercial side of the business.
The E.C.C. installed a number of electricity supply stations that were based on a high voltage D.C. system. The central generating station produced the high voltage, which was converted to 200 volts D.C. by motor-generators, which were housed in sub-stations. The first installation was at Oxford and used a 2,000 volt high tension line. This became known as the Oxford System. Following its success, similar systems were installed at Wolverhampton, Birmingham, Charing Cross, Chelsea, Sydenham and Shoreditch. The company also built the switchgear for the Burnley Electric Light Station, the third rail tramway system for the Portrush and Giants Causeway Tramway Company and tramways in Brussels and Melbourne. In1895 the E.C.C. completed an order for the switchboard and transformers for St. Panchras Station, engines, exciter and switchboards for the Oxford Electric Light Station. In the same year the company built and installed the switchboards, switchgear and generators for the Wolverhampton Generating Station, and generating plant for Oxford Central Station. The company also installed electric lighting at Wightwick Manor, which was the home of Charles Mander, whose company manufactured paints, varnishes and inks. The installation consisted of a steam driven generator, which supplied 100 volts D.C. for the lamps. A set of lead-acid batteries was added at a later date. The E.C.C. experimented with motor cars, the most famous of which, the Electric Dog Cart was built in 1896.
This difficulty was overcome by screwing a half egg shaped wooden block to the seat. It rested between the driver's legs and provided the necessary lock between him and the seat. The vehicle had an interesting career including a drive through London with the late Duke of Fife as passenger. In 1896 the car was entered in a race for self-propelled road vehicles, from the Crystal Palace, London to Birmingham. This was organised by 'The Engineer' magazine, and there was a 1,000 guinea prize for the winner. There were 72 entries, but on the day there were only five runners, and so the race was cancelled. The car however, was highly commended. The car was eventually broken-up at the works. The motor was used for many years to drive an ash-hoist in the E.C.C. boiler house.
In 1897 the E.C.C. produced the alternators for the West Brompton generating Station, and Halifax Generating Station. The company also completed orders for a variable ratio rotary transformer for Charing Cross, and another for the Chelsea Supply Company, and tramcars were built for Hartlepool and Madras. In 1900 the E.C.C. carried out the re-electrification of the City & South London Railway.
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