Metamec was a manufacturer of domestic

clock A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and t ...

s in the second half of the 20th century, and was based in

Dereham Dereham (), also known as East Dereham, is a town and civil parish in the Breckland District of the English county of Norfolk. It is situated on the A47 road, about 15 miles (25 km) west of the city of Norwich and 25 miles (40& ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The name "Metamec" is derived from "metal-work and mechanics". The company started as an offshoot of the furniture manufacturers Jentique about 1941, which made boxes for instruments and bombs 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 opposing ...

Products

The first Metamec model was a mains-powered mantle clock numbered "701" (approx. 1947). All clocks produced by Metamec were produced to a high standard, and the factory expanded with the purchase of new machines to allow them to create their own

movements Movement may refer to: Common uses * Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece * Motion, commonly referred to as movement Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * "Movement" (short story), a short story by Nancy Fu ...

, rather than import the movements from other clock companies. The factory increased in size during the 1960s and 70s, and employed approx 750 people, producing 350 models of clock, and producing 25,000 clocks per week. They became a manufacturer of the now iconic large 'Sunburst' chrome, teak and brass clocks. Metamec was the largest clock manufacturer in the UK at the time.

Decline

The company declined in the 1980s due to penetration by the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

clock industry and imports from the

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. Metamec went into

receivership In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in c ...

in December 1984 and was purchased in January 1985 by FKI of Halifax, West Yorkshire, who continued to use the name until 1993. The Metamec site in East Dereham was run by Ross Consumer Electronics (RCE) until the closure in 1994. Production was moved to the RCE site near Southampton.

Metamec today

The name "Metamec" is still in use, and a clock manufacturer is producing clocks under the Metamec name in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

References

{{Reflist Manufacturing companies of the United Kingdom Clock brands Dereham Companies based in Norfolk