The Laycock Engineering Company Limited of Archer Road, Millhouses,

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

, England was an engineering business established in 1884 by W S Laycock which made small and major components for railway rolling stock. Laycock died in 1916, and in 1917 the business passed into the hands of Charron, a French automobile manufacturer, then later into receivership from where it was bought by Sheffield engineer and shipbreaker

Thos. W. Ward Thos. W. Ward Ltd was a Sheffield, Yorkshire, steel, engineering and cement business, which began as coal and coke merchants. It expanded into recycling metal for Sheffield's steel industry, and then the supply and manufacture of machinery. I ...

in 1934. Two years later Laycock was bought from Ward by a group of investors and put into the ownership of a new holding company, Birfield Limited, along with

Hardy Spicer Hardy Spicer is a brand of automotive transmission or driveline equipment best known for its mechanical constant velocity universal joint originally manufactured in Britain by Hardy employing patents belonging to US-based Spicer Manufacturing. Har ...

. Both Laycock and Hardy Spicer made transmission or driveline components for the automotive industry. In 1966 Birfield, with Laycock and Hardy Spicer, were bought by the GKN group which was entering the automotive components field following government's announcement of the intended nationalisation of its GKN Steel.

Products

Laycock's initial business was the manufacture of railway carriage and steamship fittings and underframe gear for railway coaches and locomotives. The range was extended to include axles, gearboxes, and motor chassis components, motorcar propeller shafts and the Layrub rubber bushed propeller shaft. After 25 years of importing goods from USA following annual visits W S Laycock introduced for the first time in UK a method of steam heating carriages in a Great Northern train in 1893 following a few years of experience with a similar system in USA. The carriage interiors of the 1908 ''

Southern Belle Southern belle () is a colloquialism for a debutante in the planter class of the Antebellum South. Characteristics The image of a Southern belle is often characterized by fashion elements such as a hoop skirt, a corset, pantalettes, a wi ...

'' "the most luxurious train in the world" later known as the ''Brighton Belle'' were built by W S Laycock's business in Sheffield. By 1964 Laycock's principal products were: Laycock de Normanville overdrives and spring diaphragm clutches for the motor industry and flexible couplings also for industrial use. Dual clutches for tractors, garage equipment, railway air and vacuum brakes, control valves for fluids and gases were also manufactured.

Ownership

William Samuel Laycock (1842-1916) of Upper Hallam, Ecclesall Bierlow, later of Oakbrook, Yorkshire, established this business as his personal sideline to a family business which was his principal occupation until well into the twentieth century. The long-established family business, Samuel Laycock and Sons Limited with branches in

Crewkerne Crewkerne ( ) is a town and electoral ward in Somerset, England, southwest of Yeovil and east of Chard all in the South Somerset district. The civil parish of West Crewkerne includes the hamlets of Coombe, Woolminstone and Henley – and b ...

and

Lavenham Lavenham is a village, civil parish and electoral ward in the Babergh district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It is noted for its Guildhall, Little Hall, 15th-century church, half-timbered medieval cottages and circular walks. In the mediev ...

, manufactured hair seating and hair fabrics. Horsehair was particularly suited to use in the confined space of railway carriages as it did not retain offensive odours. Blinds made of hair fabric also screened carriage occupants from unwelcome sunshine and attention. W S Laycock was born in October 1842 and died 2 March 1916. In the 1911 census he described himself as a Government and Railway contractor of Oakbrook, Fulwood, Sheffield. At the time of his death he was also head, chairman of directors, of Cravens Limited. Laycock and his wife born Catherine Kirkby left no surviving children.

Charron Limited

Charron of Puteaux near Paris, a manufacturer of motorcars, bought a controlling interest in Laycock in 1917 and began the manufacture of aero-engines under contract to the British government.W. S. Laycock, Limited. ''The Times'', Monday, 26 May 1919; pg. 21; Issue 42109 Charron-Laycock cars were sold between 1920 and 1926. A Receiver was appointed in 1924.Law Notices, 5 May. ''The Times'', Monday, 5 May 1924; pg. 5; Issue 43643

Thos. W. Ward

Sheffield engineering business

bought Laycock in November 1930 from the Receiver. At that time its products were of a specialised nature, mostly highly skilled precision machinery. More specifically: general engineering supplies and machinery, motor components, railway, tram, omnibus and motor coach equipment. Garage equipment. Aircraft supplies.The Laycock Engineering Company, Limited. ''The Times'', Wednesday, 8 January 1936; pg. 16; Issue 47266. Some of the most important customers were: Citroen, Daimler,

Humber The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers Ouse and Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between t ...

, Jowett,

Morris Morris may refer to: Places Australia *St Morris, South Australia, place in South Australia Canada * Morris Township, Ontario, now part of the municipality of Morris-Turnberry * Rural Municipality of Morris, Manitoba ** Morris, Manitob ...

, Riley,

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

Standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

Vauxhall Vauxhall ( ) is a district in South West London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. Vauxhall was part of Surrey until 1889 when the County of London was created. Named after a medieval manor, "Fox Hall", it became well known for ...

and in commercial vehicles: AEC,

Commer Commer was a British manufacturer of commercial and military vehicles from 1905 until 1979. Commer vehicles included car-derived vans, light vans, medium to heavy commercial trucks, and buses. The company also designed and built some of its own ...

, Dennis, Guy Motors, Karrier, Leyland,

Metro-Cammell Metro-Cammell, formally the Metropolitan Cammell Carriage and Wagon Company (MCCW), was an English manufacturer of railway carriages, locomotives and railway wagons, based in Saltley, and subsequently Washwood Heath, in Birmingham. Purchased ...

and Morris Commercial. In 1936, when Laycock had 700 employees, an agreement was reached between Thos. W. Ward and an investment trust led by Herbert Hill to buy Laycock. At the end of 1938 Laycock chairman Herbert Hill (1901-1987) then arranged that Laycock should be sold to a new owner named Birfield Engineering which would also buy

Birfield Engineering and Front Wheel Drive

Herbert Hill led Birfield to develop the

constant-velocity joint Constant-velocity joints (also known as homokinetic or CV joints) are mechanical joints which allow a drive shaft to transmit power through a variable angle, at constant rotational speed, without an appreciable increase in friction or play. The ...

breakthrough which permitted reliable

front-wheel drive Front-wheel drive (FWD) is a form of engine and transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitu ...

and led to the development of 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 ...

and the subsequent popularity of front wheel drive cars. He retired in 1961 but remained a member of the board.Mr Herbert Hill. ''The Times'', Tuesday, 7 July 1987; pg. 14; Issue 62814.

GKN

GKN bought Birfield and its subsidiaries Hardy Spicer and Laycock in 1966.Birfield Accept. ''The Times'', Friday, 5 August 1966; pg. 17; Issue 56702 Within GKN Laycock retained an individual identity until the mid-1970s.

Notes

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laycock Engineering Auto parts suppliers of the United Kingdom Rolling stock manufacturers of the United Kingdom