Nuffield Press was a publisher and printer formed by
William Morris
William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...
(later Lord Nuffield) as part of his
Nuffield Organization
Nuffield Organization was the unincorporated umbrella-name or promotional name used for the charitable and commercial interests of owner and donor, William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield. The name was assumed following Nuffield's gift made to form ...
in 1925. It was formed to primarily produce promotional literature for the motor vehicle manufacturing divisions of the organization, and later expanded to printing of all types including owner's manuals, technical manuals, magazines, diaries, and posters.
Formation
William Morris
William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...
had established his
Morris Motors
Morris Motors Limited was a British privately owned motor vehicle manufacturing company formed in 1919 to take over the assets of William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield, William Morris's WRM Motors Limited and continue production of the same veh ...
automobile company, and had already expanded into a group of marques by encouraging
Cecil Kimber
Cecil Kimber (12 April 1888 – 4 February 1945) was a motor car designer, best known for his role in being the driving force behind The M.G. Car Company.
Biography
Kimber was born in London on 12 April 1888 to Henry Kimber, a printing engi ...
to market modified Morris cars under the MG brand. At the likely suggestion of
Miles Thomas
(William) Miles Webster Thomas, Baron Thomas DFC (2 March 1897 – 8 February 1980),post–World War I recession
The post–World War I recession was an economic recession that hit much of the world in the aftermath of World War I. In many nations, especially in North America, economic growth continued and even accelerated during World War I as nations mo ...
, Morris had acquired a number of distressed suppliers, in an example of
vertical integration
In microeconomics, management and international political economy, vertical integration is a term that describes the arrangement in which the supply chain of a company is integrated and owned by that company. Usually each member of the suppl ...
, and with this history, Morris was unable to find a supplier on suitable terms, due to the fear of becoming a tied supplier. Morris proceeded to produce the first edition of ''Morris Owner'' magazine in 1924 with an external supplier, but he could not get them to commit to becoming a regular supplier. The ''Morris Owner'' used a typeface very similar to the already popular ''Motor'' magazine, which Thomas had worked on previously to be being employed by Morris.
Morris owned large factory sites at the former
Oxford Military College
Oxford Military College was an all-male private boarding school and military academy in Cowley, Oxford, England, from 1876 to 1896. The military college opened on 7 September 1876. Prince George, Duke of Cambridge was the patron of the Oxfor ...
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
. The former college buildings where the press was located are
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
s, and are to the West of the old Morris 'North Works'. Whilst the North and South Works are now both redeveloped, the old 'Body Plant' to the East is still used for car production, now operating as Plant Oxford producing the
Mini
The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...
for BMW.
In 1925, the majority of Morris car production had moved from the original factory in the old college buildings to the new custom built "big tin shed" factories built on the old parade ground. As a result, in August 1925, the ''Morris Oxford Press'' was started in the buildings recently vacated by the manufacturing operation. 100,000 shares were issued in the press, predominantly to the Morris Motor Company, with William Morris retaining share number 1.
Miles Thomas
(William) Miles Webster Thomas, Baron Thomas DFC (2 March 1897 – 8 February 1980),Miehle Verticle and a
Monotype
Monotyping is a type of printmaking made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. The surface, or matrix, was historically a copper etching plate, but in contemporary work it can vary from zinc or glass to acrylic glass. The ...
installation.
The ''Morris Owner'' magazine was a cornerstone of production, reaching a monthly print run of 20,000 copies, and this was supplemented by handbooks, repair manuals, stationery, labels, and factory paperwork.
In September 1942, the press was renamed the Nuffield Press, following the elevation of William Morris to Viscount Nuffield in 1938.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the Morris factory was largely turned to war work, and the press likewise followed suit, becoming a war security zone, and producing documentation to help coordinate this new, important task.
By the 1950s, over 170 staff were on the payroll of the Nuffield Press, and further investment was made in capital equipment including a UK-first M.A.N.
photolithography
In integrated circuit manufacturing, photolithography or optical lithography is a general term used for techniques that use light to produce minutely patterned thin films of suitable materials over a substrate, such as a silicon wafer, to protect ...
machine.
Later ownership
The press continued as the Nuffield Organization was merged into the British Motor Corporation (BMC), then effectively becoming part of
British Leyland
British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd (BLMC), following the merger of Leyland Motors and British Motor Holdings. It was partl ...
in 1968. At its peak in the 1950s the Nuffield Press used more than of paper a year producing sales literature, owners manuals, technical manuals, magazines, diaries and posters. The size of the portfolio meant that the production run for a single
British International Motor Show
The British International Motor Show is an annual motor show held by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders between 1903 and 2008 in England, and as The British Motor Show since 2021 by Automotion Events.
Initially held in London at T ...
involved over half a million machine runs.
It produced technical publications for BMC, and later the wider remit of British Leyland's entire product range. It later continued to produce materials for successor companies Austin Rover Group and
Rover Group
The Rover Group plc was the British vehicle manufacturing conglomerate known as "BL plc" until 1986 (formerly British Leyland), which had been a state-owned company since 1975. It initially included the Austin Rover Group car business (comprisi ...
, as well as for external clients.
The press was arranged as a subsidiary of Leyland Special Products, later SP Industries, headquartered in
Grantham
Grantham () is a market and industrial town in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, situated on the banks of the River Witham and bounded to the west by the A1 road. It lies some 23 miles (37 km) south of the Lincoln and ...
,
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
, within the British Leyland group.
During the 1960s, the Special Products division acquired the Lyne and Sons printers in Grantham, which was later merged into the Nuffield Press. In 1976, the combined press, including the Lynes subsidiary, embarked on a £250k capital investment programme.
By 1977, the press employed 300 people at the Cowley site, had sales in excess of £3m, and was producing a wide range of products including full-colour printing of items like calendars.
In 1978, the press was moved from SP Industries to B L International.
The Lyne Printers division in Grantham was divested to Suter plc, owned by David Abell, former Managing Director of SP Industries and later of BL Commercial Vehicles. After a further sale, Lyne closed in 1990.
Decline and administration
By the 1980s, the press became unprofitable, and was losing money for British Leyland, and in September 1986, despite being back at break-even, the Nuffield Press was sold by BL to press magnate
Robert Maxwell
Ian Robert Maxwell (born Ján Ludvík Hyman Binyamin Hoch; 10 June 1923 – 5 November 1991) was a Czechoslovak-born British media proprietor, member of parliament (MP), suspected spy, and fraudster.
Early in his life, Maxwell escaped from N ...
. Initially sold to his Pergamon Holdings company, which already owned the
Pergamon Press
Pergamon Press was an Oxford-based publishing house, founded by Paul Rosbaud and Robert Maxwell, that published scientific and medical books and journals. Originally called Butterworth-Springer, it is now an imprint of Elsevier.
History
The cor ...
based on the other side of Oxford in at
Headington Hill Hall
Headington Hill Hall stands on Headington Hill in the east of Oxford, England. It was built in 1824
for the Morrell family, who remained in residence for 114 years. It became the home to Pergamon Press and to media tycoon Robert Maxwell. It cur ...
. It later formed part of his Headington Holdings company under the Robert Maxwell Group. Under Maxwell, the company specialised in colour promotional and technical publications. At the time of the sale to Maxwell, there were 170 employees at the press.
The firm's employees were affected by the loss of pension funds by theft, which emerged in 1992 after Maxwell's death, with two-thirds of their pension fund missing.
Following the collapse of the Maxwell Group in early 1992, there was major restructuring with a sale to
Reed Elsevier
RELX plc (pronounced "Rel-ex") is a British multinational information and analytics company headquartered in London, England. Its businesses provide scientific, technical and medical information and analytics; legal information and analytics; ...
, who formed a new company (initially as Coleslaw 210 Ltd, before renaming as Nuffield Press Limited). A number of employees were made redundant without payment.
In 1994, then owner
British Aerospace
British Aerospace plc (BAe) was a British aircraft, munitions and defence-systems manufacturer. Its head office was at Warwick House in the Farnborough Aerospace Centre in Farnborough, Hampshire. Formed in 1977, in 1999 it purchased Marconi ...
sold the
Rover Group
The Rover Group plc was the British vehicle manufacturing conglomerate known as "BL plc" until 1986 (formerly British Leyland), which had been a state-owned company since 1975. It initially included the Austin Rover Group car business (comprisi ...
to BMW and, after 69 years, the press left the now BMW-owned Cowley site, and relocated to Nuffield Way, Abingdon. In 2000, the firm was subject to a management buyout for £850k, funded by HSBC Ventures. The Nuffield Press Limited was placed into
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative assistant, Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an admini ...
on 27 June 2011, with the loss of 53 jobs (and 14 kept on pending any potential buyer). It was reported that the company had been in talks with Maurice Payne Colourprint, another struggling printer, but with no deal concluded, both went into administration in the same month. At the time the company went into receivership it employed approximately 67 people and had a turnover of £6.7 million according to ''
PrintWeek
''PrintWeek'' is a UK print-related magazine and website. It covers print industry-specific subject matter, particularly the equipment and business sides of the sector. The fortnightly magazine focuses on industry news and printing equipment, ...
'' magazine.
Publications
The following publications were produced by the press:
* ''Morris Owner'' (later the ''Morris Owner and Nuffield Mail'') for
Morris Motors
Morris Motors Limited was a British privately owned motor vehicle manufacturing company formed in 1919 to take over the assets of William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield, William Morris's WRM Motors Limited and continue production of the same veh ...
from 1925
* ''Worldwide'' for the
Austin Motor Company
The Austin Motor Company Limited was an English manufacturer of motor vehicles, founded in 1905 by Herbert Austin in Longbridge. In 1952 it was merged with Morris Motors Limited in the new holding company British Motor Corporation (BMC) Limi ...
aimed at dealers
* ''Outlook'' magazine, replacing the ''Morris Owner'' as more marques were added to the company.
* ''Transport Efficiency'' for commercial vehicle operators, from 1957
* ''News Exchange'' for the
Nuffield Organization
Nuffield Organization was the unincorporated umbrella-name or promotional name used for the charitable and commercial interests of owner and donor, William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield. The name was assumed following Nuffield's gift made to form ...
in the 1960s
* ''Motoring'' for the British Motor Corporation in the 1960s and replacing ''Outlook''.
* ''Austin'' for BMC/Austin in the 1960s
* ''Rover'' for
Rover Company
The Rover Company Limited was a British car manufacturing company that operated from its base in Solihull in Warwickshire. Its lasting reputation for quality and performance was such that its first postwar model reviewed by '' Road & Track'' i ...
in the 1960s
* ''Sidelights'' for the BMC Driver's Club
In popular culture
The novel ''First impressions'' by Charmian Coates is set in the Nuffield Press at Cowley during the 1950s.