OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums The History Forum Company Histories VILLIERS AUST: 1952-1959 - An Ambitious Project

Hi ODK members,

In this series of posts I hope to present some research I have done on Villiers Australia.

PART ONE:
It was in late 1952 that reports started appearing in Australian newspapers about the possibility of manufacturing Villiers engines in Australia. Things must have moved rapidly because Chairman of Directors Frank Farrer visited our shores in early 1953. The top man from England was needed because, from Mother England's perspective, setting up shop here was not about our Nation building but about politics and the bottom line.

Australian Government tariff restrictions had made business difficult for the Wolverhampton manufacturer. Some 86 percent of the company's output was exported. Farrer was needed to negotiate, "co-operation of Federal and State Governments, as well as suitable labor (sic)" [The Advertiser, SA, 10/02/1953, p5].

Farrer was clearly not impressed with the then recently impost import restrictions:
"We spent £500,000 putting in new machinery to meet Australian orders," he said, "and then, down came your import restrictions. So we are planning to bring out assembly plant, then manufacturing plant to produce our articles here" [The West Australian, 12/02/1953, p22].

In terms of the Victa story, these comments are very important.
It is well known that Victa's own engine was manufactured because of delays in securing adequate numbers of Villiers. One can only speculate how the ultimate cause for the delays rested with Australian politics. Villiers had half a billion pounds of new machinery at Wolverhampton to meet Australian demands (including Victa's) but this had been rendered useless with changes in import laws. In any case, deals were brokered and Villiers Australia Ltd. was formed in Melbourne with nominal capital of £250,000 with an assembly factory to be built at Ballarat [The Advertiser, 07/04/1953, p5].

This was no small deal for Villiers. It would be their first and only fully owned subsidiary, and the intention was for the Australian factory to export to, "New Zealand, India, Pakistan, the East Indies and the Far East, as well as to the Australian market" [Advocate, 14/04/1953, p1].

Work commenced in early April of 1953 on a preliminary building at Ballarat Common [20 acres of land was purchased from the Victorian Government] for assembly of engines from imported parts (with Australian Government approval). The intention was to then build a larger factory for actual production of engines by the year's end [The Age, 01/04/1953, p8].

Villiers set up shop in Australia for commercial advantage, but the impetus was clearly due to Australian government interference. Australia was a growing market for Villiers and its bread and butter was in producing engines for the Primary sector and the company's first engines assembled here were to be for, milking machines, pumping plants, and other primary producing units [The Argus, 02/04/1953, p5]. The emerging garden products market (including lawnmowers) would have to wait.

By mid-1954 Villiers were advertising heavily for employees for local production: engineers, draughtsmen, tool makers, setters, storemen, stenographers and typists - you name it - Villiers wanted it! Advertisements stated, "These positions offer regular work under good conditions, housing available" [example: Argus, 04/09/1954, p36].

It would appear that by 1955 Villiers Australia was largely self-sufficient as a manufacturing plant. It would have been producing both 2 and 4 stroke engines in quantity by that time.

In the next post I will cover the grand opening of the factory.

All very interesting.
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JACK

PART TWO:

It was only after the third stage of the extension program of the Villiers factory
that it was officially opened by the Premier of Victoria, H.C. Bolte, on December 15, 1957.
Villiers took out paid advertising in major newspapers to record the event.

Of particular interest was the coverage given to the opening in the Sydney Morning Herald.
Pages of features and associated advertising were devoted to the event.
In the next two posts I would like to explore page 35 and 36 - the key pages - as paid-for
advertising by the Villiers company(s).

Below is a general layout of page 35:
Detail will follow in the next post.

All very interesting.
-----------------------------------------
JACK

PART TWO - DETAIL of Page 35

These three articles from p35 are revealing in both what was said and what remained
unsaid. I have argued here that Villiers decision to set up a manufacturing base here
was for commercial & political reasons, but the decision to set up shop in country Victoria
was clearly also political.

Summary: 'First Step'
- Decision to build Villiers in AUS made in early 1953
- Import restrictions created hardships
- Building at Ballarat commenced almost immediately
- First locally assembled engines commenced within months

Summary: 'Inspiring Example, Premier'
- Industry in country centres
- 250 engines per week (1953)
- 2,500 engines per week (1957)
- Gov. desire for Ballarat to become 'the Birmingham of Australia'

Summary 'Started on pedals'
- Villiers started as bicycle component manufacturer ... pedals
- Commenced manufacture of bicycle freewheels
- Engine manufacture prior to WW1

PART THREE:

In this post I present the second feature page - page 36 - from The
Sydney Morning Herald of 15 December, 1957. This page is interesting in that it appears
to have been designed under the themes of past, present and future.

Here is the general layout of page 36.
Detail will follow in the next post.

All very interesting.
-----------------------------------------
JACK

PART THREE - DETAIL of Page 36

Page 36 is the second page of the impressive two-page spread that appeared.
Here I present three key articles from that page.

PAST Summary: 'Villiers powered mowers fifty years ago'
- Villiers had a 50 year heritage in supply of lawnmower engines
- Thousands of Villiers rotary mower engines supplied in Australia
- Torquemaster superior in design and performance

PRESENT Summary: 'Australians head new venture'
- Villiers AUS wholly-owned subsidiary of parent company
- Joint Managing Directors - both AUS born
- Both extensive experience - technical & commercial

FUTURE Summary: 'Latest Villiers Units Designed For Cars'
- Villiers engaged in small vehicle engine design production
- Two new twin-cylinder 2-strokes being developed
- Many makes of 'miniature cars' being developed


All very interesting.
-----------------------------------------
JACK

PART THREE (CONT'D):

Around the key pages there were many advertisements from OEMs congratulating Villiers
on its official opening. These included mower manufacturers and component suppliers.

Of particular interest to me was the Repco advertisement on page 33.
My interpretation of the copy is that Repco were supplying Villiers with pistons, pins and rings
for the production lines at Ballarat.

The second point of interest was the large advertisement on page 34 for Pace mowers.
This ad depicts an all Villiers powered line-up of Pace mowers for 1957.

That must have made Victa take note: a good engine on a superior base (?) -
the low-arch grass discharge base was coming into currency.
Victa could not match that till 1960.

All very interesting.
----------------------------------------------
JACK

PART FOUR - Villiers Magazine

The official UK Villiers Magazine of January 1958 also ran a two page article.
The first page (below) shows the Premier of Victoria at the opening ceremony.

The second page (below) has some great photos and claims output was closer to
10,000 engines per month. One photo clearly shows a number of lawnmowers on
the front lawn and another, the new Villiers Torquemaster.

Special thanks to ODK member Greg Stokes for supplying the scans of these pages.

PART FIVE: Service Training

This one comes from Villiers Magazine, April 1955.
This was over two years before the official opening in 1957 and just two years after the starting of
construction at Ballarat. It shows how serious Villiers were about their Australian future.

Here are the two pages courtesy of ODK member Greg Stokes who has kept a number of these magazines.
I love the Villiers-powered motor coach. I wonder what happened to it? Also note the ties and coats.

All very interesting.
------------------------------------------------
JACK

Hi ODK members,

This was a project I was keen to undertake.
As you all know, I have explored the question as to how much Villiers was responsible for
Victa's supply problems in its critical early years.

For whatever reason, John Mason's The Victa Story failed to mention the bombshell that was
delivered to Villiers in 1952. Here I am specifically referring to the import restrictions imposed on them
by the Australian Government. Villiers recognised the gravity and responded quickly - but obviously
not quick enough to save the Victa account. For me now, the cause is not a simple . . . Naughty Villiers.

In any case, research into Villiers Australia is important because Villiers claimed in 1959 that, "8 out of
every 10 Motor Mower manufacturers choose Villiers engines, famous since 1898" [SMH, 22 November, 1959, p87].

Below are two Ariel photographs of the Ballarat factory.
The first from 1955 when the second-stage extended factory was underway.
The second from about late 1957 when the factory was officially opened.

Again, credit to ODK member Greg Stokes for the scans.

All very interesting.
------------------------------------
JACK

Hi ODK members,

I was surprised to find the Villiers factory survives!
Finding it was not that easy a task though.

I knew the address was Gillies Street, Ballarat. I knew it had a train track running along side it.

From Google Maps I think I found the roof line. It looks like the factory is now . . . Ballarat Holden!
It would be great if someone could confirm that for us.

All very unrecognisable.
--------------------------------------------
JACK

Hi ODK members,

The myth is that Villiers was 'the 2-stroke manufacturer'.
In fact, Villiers main Australian market was for agricultural and industrial 4-strokes.

In this January 1, 1957 advertisement from the Sun-Herald Villiers shows its Australian line-up.
2-stroke: MK 2G, 3G, 5G, 2M, 3M, 7F and 25C.
4-stroke: MK 10, 12, 15, 20, 25, and 40.

Nonetheless, the 7F 2-stroke was meant to be the 'Victa killer'!
Superbly designed and styled, the 7F remains for me the quintessential 2-stroke engine of the era.

All very interesting.
--------------------------------------------
JACK

Hi ODK members,

Would you like to see what 1,300 Villiers 7Fs looks like?
In this extraordinary photograph supplied by ODK member Greg Stokes we see
engines loaded at Ballarat for shipment to a Sydney mower manufacturers.

Given that the factory had a rail siding (see photographs above), I am surprised that
these engines were being sent by road. Maybe it was cheaper to deliver factory
door-to-door this way . . .

Note how these engines are not on pallets. They would have been individually hand-loaded.
[The photograph comes from Villiers Magazine Autumn 1959]

All very roadworthy.
---------------------------------------
JACK