Mather & Platt
Encyclopedia
Mather & Platt is a large engineering firm, which originated in the Newton Heath
area of Manchester
, England, where they were formerly a major employer.
They now are a subsidiary of the German holding firm WILO SE
and operate from Pune
, India
and largely make pump
s.
There is a company in Manchester that operates under the name of Mather and Platt Machinery, from a site formerly owned by Mather and Platt.
in London.
Newton Heath
Newton Heath is an urban area of the city of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England. It is east north east of Manchester city centre and has a population of 9,883....
area of Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, England, where they were formerly a major employer.
They now are a subsidiary of the German holding firm WILO SE
WILO AG
Wilo SE, headquartered in Dortmund, Germany, is a manufacturer of pumps and pumping systems for heating, ventilation and air-conditioning technology, water supply, sewage disposal and wastewater treatment...
and operate from Pune
Pune
Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and largely make pump
Pump
A pump is a device used to move fluids, such as liquids, gases or slurries.A pump displaces a volume by physical or mechanical action. Pumps fall into three major groups: direct lift, displacement, and gravity pumps...
s.
There is a company in Manchester that operates under the name of Mather and Platt Machinery, from a site formerly owned by Mather and Platt.
Timeline
- 1794: A map is published, showing the Salford Iron Works, Chapel Street, Salford, owned by Bateman and Sherratt.
- 1817: Peter Mather starts making textile machinery.
- 1829: By now only the Sherratts are active at the Salford Iron Works. John and Thomas Sherratt describe themselves as "brass founders, engine makers and iron founders".
- 1836: The Sherratts called themselves "iron founders, steam engine manufacturers, millwrights and hydraulic press manufacturers".
- 1836: Colin "Cast iron Colin" Mather and his brother started a small business, William & Colin Mather. It serviced the local textile bleaching industry by providing simple well-made rollers and equipment. They described themselves as "Engineers, machine makers and millwrights". They had a premises at 23 Brown Street, Salford.
- Colin Mather had three sons, none of whom were destined to play a large role in the business.
- William Mather, who had had little to do with the running of the business, had two sons, and his second son William MatherWilliam MatherSir William Mather was a British industrialist and Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1885 and 1904....
became the chairman when Colin retired. William Mather and John Platt travelled extensively in the USA and Russia expanding into new markets. Mather was also involved on public life and the advancement of education. He was the LiberalLiberal Party (UK)The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
Member of ParliamentMember of ParliamentA Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for SalfordSalford South (UK Parliament constituency)Salford South was a parliamentary constituency in the City of Salford in Greater Manchester from 1885 until 1950. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- History :...
in 1885 and later for GortonManchester Gorton (UK Parliament constituency)Manchester, Gorton is a parliamentary constituency in the city of Manchester, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-1885–1918:...
.
- 1837: Thomas Sherratt dies.
- 1837: Platt takes over the Salford Iron Works
- 1839: The Salford Iron Works was leased to John Platt a machine-maker from Higher Broughton. Platt and his partner Yates continued Sherratt's business.
- 1845: John Platt leased part of the Salford Iron Works to William and Colin Mather. Mather and John Platt form Mather & Platt in Newton HeathNewton HeathNewton Heath is an urban area of the city of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England. It is east north east of Manchester city centre and has a population of 9,883....
in ManchesterManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
(UK) - 1847: John Platt dies.
- 1851: Mather and Platt exhibit at the Great Exhibition as the Salford Iron Works; they took textile finishing equipment including an eight-colour roller printer for calico.
- 1853: John Platt's son William Platt forms the partnership with the Mathers, forming Mather & Platt. William Platt provide capital, land and casting skills; Colin Mather provided the new engineering solution.
- 1873: Professor Osborne-Reynolds designed a turbine pump that Mather and Platt improved. The centrifugal pumpCentrifugal pumpA centrifugal pump is a rotodynamic pump that uses a rotating impeller to create flow by the addition of energy to a fluid. Centrifugal pumps are commonly used to move liquids through piping...
was essential to operating a bleaching kierKier (industrial)A kier or keeve is a large circular boiler or vat used in bleaching or scouring cotton fabric. They were also used for processing paper pulp....
, hence their interest. Later, it became the core product and it is the Pump division alone that survives in India. - 1883: Mather & Platt obtain the rights to manufacture Edison’s electric dynamoDynamo- Engineering :* Dynamo, a magnetic device originally used as an electric generator* Dynamo theory, a theory relating to magnetic fields of celestial bodies* Solar dynamo, the physical process that generates the Sun's magnetic field- Software :...
and, as a result of improvements by Dr. John HopkinsonJohn HopkinsonJohn Hopkinson, FRS, was a British physicist, electrical engineer, Fellow of the Royal Society and President of the IEE twice in 1890 and 1896. He invented the three-wire system for the distribution of electrical power, for which he was granted a patent in 1882...
, the Edison-Hopkinson dynamo was produced. This led to the formation of an electrical engineering division, the military work on submarine motors, and later involvement in electricity generation. - 1883: Mather & Platt obtain sole rights outside the USA to manufacture the Grinnel's automatic sprinkler: cotton millCotton millA cotton mill is a factory that houses spinning and weaving machinery. Typically built between 1775 and 1930, mills spun cotton which was an important product during the Industrial Revolution....
s were very vulnerable to fire. These rights expired in the 1970s. The production of sprinkler systems for cotton millCotton millA cotton mill is a factory that houses spinning and weaving machinery. Typically built between 1775 and 1930, mills spun cotton which was an important product during the Industrial Revolution....
s led to the prominent water towers and flat roofs for water storage. - 1899: Mather & Platt incorporated.
- The firm was expanding and over the years acquired neighbouring properties such as Drinkwaters Mill and whole streets such as Foundry Street.
- 1894: A agreement was reached to close Union Street and demolish two rows of cottages for the new "erecting shop" which had the splendid name of the Klondyke. Further expansion was impossible. The need for space was partially caused by the acquisition of three important new products described here.
Park Works, Newton Heath
- 1900: Mather & Platt erect on the present Park Works site an administration building, two storeys high. That is the start of moving to and developing the Park Works, Newton HeathNewton HeathNewton Heath is an urban area of the city of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England. It is east north east of Manchester city centre and has a population of 9,883....
, SJ873998 53.495°N 2.193°W site, joining with Dowson, Taylor & Company Limited, to form Mathers Platt Ltd. The site measured 50 acres (202,343 m²) and was alongside, and with direct access to, the Lancashire and Yorkshire RailwayLancashire and Yorkshire RailwayThe Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways...
.- The first machine shop was originally the Machinery Annexe of the Paris ExhibitionExposition Universelle (1900)The Exposition Universelle of 1900 was a world's fair held in Paris, France, from April 15 to November 12, 1900, to celebrate the achievements of the past century and to accelerate development into the next...
of 1900. Mather & Platt's staff dismantled it and shipped it to Manchester via the Manchester Ship CanalManchester Ship CanalThe Manchester Ship Canal is a river navigation 36 miles long in the North West of England. Starting at the Mersey Estuary near Liverpool, it generally follows the original routes of the rivers Mersey and Irwell through the historic counties of Cheshire and Lancashire. Several sets of locks lift...
, then re-erected it. - The site expanded over the years, eventually incorporating a research laboratory, an iron foundry and a sports ground.
- The first machine shop was originally the Machinery Annexe of the Paris Exhibition
- 31 December 1938: The Salford Foundry closed when the heavy iron foundry was built at the Park Works. Mather and Platt left the Salford Iron Works, and it passed into the hands of ThrelfallsThrelfalls BreweryThrelfall's Brewery Co Ltd was a brewery company having breweries in Liverpool and Salford. It was active between 1861 and 1961.-History:Lupton and Adamthwaite brewery was purchased in 1861 by John Mayor Threlfall. Threlfalls were registered as a Liverpool based brewer in 1888...
the breweryBreweryA brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
. Later a part of the works passed to a firm of motor car spring manufacturers.
Expansion elsewhere
- 1940: Mather & Platt's start manufacturing in India with a factory at KolkataKolkataKolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
- 1959: Mather & Platt's set up a second manufacturing unit set up at Chinchwad, PunePunePune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
- 1978: Mather & Platt's changes its shareShare (finance)A joint stock company divides its capital into units of equal denomination. Each unit is called a share. These units are offered for sale to raise capital. This is termed as issuing shares. A person who buys share/shares of the company is called a shareholder, and by acquiring share or shares in...
holding pattern to become an Indian company - 1978: Mather & Platt's was taken over by the Australian-based company Wormald InternationalWormald InternationalWormald International is a former Australian company that was bought out by Tyco International as of 1990.Joseph Wormald with partner Stanley Russell established Russell and Wormald business in 1889, which continued operating with this name until 1900. Wormald Brothers is formed in 1990 when Harry...
. The Pump Department was later sold to the Scottish company Weir Pumps, now Clyde Union Pumps, who supply the OEM spare parts. They used the Newton Heath site until Oct 2008. Most of the original buildings have now been demolished but the foundry and main office building have survived
21st century
- 2005: Mather & Platt's becomes part of WILO AGWILO AGWilo SE, headquartered in Dortmund, Germany, is a manufacturer of pumps and pumping systems for heating, ventilation and air-conditioning technology, water supply, sewage disposal and wastewater treatment...
, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... - 7 October 2008: The Westley Group (a £40m-turnover business with headquarters in Cradley HeathCradley HeathCradley Heath is a town in the Black Country, located in Sandwell metropolitan borough, England. The name is usually pronounced "Craid-ley", not "Crad-ley", but in the Black Country accent, it may even sound like "Craig-ley Aith"...
, West Midlands and employing 500 people on its four sites) buy the old stainless steel foundry at Park Works, Newton Heath from the Weir GroupWeir GroupThe Weir Group plc is an engineering company headquartered in East Kilbride, Scotland. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.-History:...
.- Westley group directors Rob and James Salisbury have a family connection with the foundry and renamed the site "Mather's Foundry". Their grandfather Jim Musgrave served an apprenticeship at Mather & Platt's from 1932, when he was 14. Mathers specialise in the supply of commercial and high-integrity castings in carbon steels, low alloys steels, CrMo steels, nickel alloys, stainless steelStainless steelIn metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....
s, duplex steels, super nickel and the ZERON range. They supply bespoke cast products from a few kilos to 10 tonnes in weight to companies supplying the oil and gas, desalinationDesalinationDesalination, desalinization, or desalinisation refers to any of several processes that remove some amount of salt and other minerals from saline water...
, nuclear (N stamp), paper, rubber, chemical, and power generation industries.
- Westley group directors Rob and James Salisbury have a family connection with the foundry and renamed the site "Mather's Foundry". Their grandfather Jim Musgrave served an apprenticeship at Mather & Platt's from 1932, when he was 14. Mathers specialise in the supply of commercial and high-integrity castings in carbon steels, low alloys steels, CrMo steels, nickel alloys, stainless steel
Avro
- 1910: A. V. Roe & CompanyAvroAvro was a British aircraft manufacturer, with numerous landmark designs such as the Avro 504 trainer in the First World War, the Avro Lancaster, one of the pre-eminent bombers of the Second World War, and the delta wing Avro Vulcan, a stalwart of the Cold War.-Early history:One of the world's...
(Avro) is founded in Manchester by Humphrey and Alliott Verdon Roe. - 1914: Outbreak of World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
: Avro rented part of the Newton Heath site so they could expand production. - 1919: A new purpose-built factory for Avro was completed.
- The Avro AvianAvro AvianThe Avro Avian was a series of British light aircraft designed and built by Avro in the 1920s and '30s. While the various versions of the Avian were sound aircraft, they were comprehensively outsold by the de Havilland Moth and its descendants....
designed by Roy ChadwickRoy ChadwickRoy Chadwick, CBE, FRAeS was an aircraft designer for Avro. Born at Marsh Hall Farm, Farnworth in Widnes, son of the mechanical engineer Charles Chadwick, he was the Chief Designer for the Avro Company and was responsible for practically all of their aeroplane designs...
was built there, and later, parts for the Avro LancasterAvro LancasterThe Avro Lancaster is a British four-engined Second World War heavy bomber made initially by Avro for the Royal Air Force . It first saw active service in 1942, and together with the Handley Page Halifax it was one of the main heavy bombers of the RAF, the RCAF, and squadrons from other...
bomber. When Avro left the site after World War II the factory was used as a storage depot by the Co-operative Wholesale SocietyCo-operative wholesale societyA Co-operative Wholesale Society, or CWS, is a form of Co-operative Federation , in this case, the members are usually Consumers' Co-operatives...
(CWS). Today the building is used by various businesses for storage.
- The Avro Avian
Boiler Yard
The Plate Metal Works, also called the Boiler Yard, was owned by yet another John Platt, who was not related to the main Platt family. He occasionally subcontracted for Mather & Platt.- 1870: John Platt passed the Boiler Yard over to Mather & Platt and was employed as a foreman over 25 men.
- 1906: The Boiler Yard was extended, absorbing the adjoining works of Edmondson and. Co., General Engineers and using it as a machine shop and plate shop. It continued as a Mather and Platt Ltd. production site after the Salford Iron Works was closed - maintaining a link between Mather & Platt and Salford till after 1950.
India
- Mather and Platt Pumps Ltd operate from India.
Art and media
The main entrance to the Park Works features in the 1943 painting Going to Work by LS Lowry. The picture is now in the ownership of the Imperial War MuseumImperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
in London.