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EMI Apprentice School 1975
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Author:  FordAnglia [ Tue Oct 20, 2015 4:53 am ]
Post subject:  EMI Apprentice School 1975

Did you work at EMI during the nineteen seventies?

I have some fond memories and a few good yarns to share.

In 1975 I joined EMI as an apprentice. After one year in the Apprentice School I moved through several departments at the Hayes Middlesex site. These included EMI Varian in the Cabinet Factory, Central Services Instrument Lab, Calibration Lab, and Meter Room, all in Dawley 1, then over to Systems and Weapons, behind the staff canteen, before completing the Apprenticeship at EMI Medical Ltd, back in the Cabinet Factory building.

To Be Continued…

What were you doing there? Who do you remember working with, working for, or working against?

Author:  Jon [ Wed Oct 21, 2015 1:06 am ]
Post subject:  Re: EMI Apprentice School 1975

That's brilliant FordAnglia, looking forward to further instalments. Do you have any pix?

Author:  rexy [ Wed Oct 21, 2015 3:04 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: EMI Apprentice School 1975

I started in the App school Nov 16th 1953, went thru many depts, welding shop, heat treat, tool room, 3 months on every machine there, then on to the tool repair bench, Dad took a job at GEC Portsmouth setting up the new factory and dragged me down there and continued App. Lots happened since then, came to America IN 1963, worked as a Tool Designer on most of the Jumbo jets, retired in 1998 from NASA after 20 years working on the External Tank for the Space Shuttle, spend most my time fishing, golfing, paddling in the Gulf in Florida and messing about in general. Advice to schoolboys these days get an APPRENTICESHIP it pays off big time.

Author:  FordAnglia [ Wed Oct 21, 2015 4:43 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: EMI Apprentice School 1975

Jon wrote:
That's brilliant FordAnglia, looking forward to further instalments. Do you have any pix?


The only 'PIX' are my memories. Some vivid as if it was just yesterday, others faded and missing a few details (especially names of coworkers and the other students at the school that year)

In our modern world, with ready access to amazing cameras found on mobile phones it's sometimes hard to fathom why we don't have tons of PIX from our lives in the past. Film and processing were costly, cameras a luxury back in the last century. EMI Electronics was mostly doing work for the MOD (Ministry of Defense), and cameras were strictly forbidden.

Here in American society is much more 'friendly' and 'social' in the work place. Group PIX of class graduations, parties, and work gatherings are very common. In fact, it seems quite odd to me today that EMI did NOT grab a formal PIX of each year's Apprentices when they left the school.

I'm hopeful that memories from any ex-EMI staff will appear here. Please check back often!

Author:  FordAnglia [ Wed Oct 21, 2015 4:52 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: EMI Apprentice School 1975

rexy wrote:
I started in the App school Nov 16th 1953, went thru many depts...


The nineteen fifties and sixties were certainly the 'golden age' for EMI and other British companies that did it all under one roof. The classic 'vertical integration' - Raw materials in here, finished good out there.

The EMI campus was almost a self contained city of industry. They had access to rail transport (even had their own steam locomotive to shunt box cars), their own power plant, stock rooms, tool rooms, corporate accounting, planning, and control. Much of it shaped by military principles of command and control, chain of command, and workers knowing their place and their duty.

Almost forgot to mention the CRL building on Printinghouse Lane. Central Research Laboratories. The invention nursery that brought some amazing products to life, many of which continue to enrich and entertain us today. All Electronic Television, Computer Axial Tomographic Scanning (The "EMI Scanner") for medicine, Stereo sound. Musical recording excellence and gramophone record production. Airborne radar. Color Television. The list seems endless!

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