An Engineering Apprentice

at the British Thomson-Houston Engineering Company

1947/1952

by Trevor Sidaway

I was fortunate to start my technical and engineering training at a time when the UK was one of the

World’s leading manufacturers, the pace of which had been accelerated by the demands of WW2

Every spectrum of manufactured goods was covered from basic industries like nail making and

fasteners through to high tech machine tools, ship building, automotive and aerospace

In 1953 the Hawker Hunter Jet fighter broke the Worlds speed record at a speed of 727.6 mph

We were also in the intercontinental rocket business with Blue Streak and Blue Water and, unlike the

2006 trade deficit of more than £60 billion, the UK enjoyed a massive trade surplus in manufactured

goods with “made in Britain” exports to all four corners of the globe

For fifty years the BTH, the British Thomson-Houston Company, was a significant employer at Blackheath

in the heart of the Black Country and when I joined them they were the largest manufacturer of electrical

drive systems in Europe

From the age of sixteen, I served the traditional five year apprenticeship from 1947 until conscripted for

National Service in 1952 and this is my story

trevor_sidaway@hotmail.com

Acknowledgements

The Black Country Bugle editor—Rob Taylor—for some of the photographs

Ex BTH apprentices, other employees and their families

Paul--Security Officer—for obtaining permission for me to tour the BTH site

and Bob Cannon, grandson of Alf Cannon Senior