A. Reyrolle & Company was a British engineering firm based in Hebburn, Tyne and Wear in the North East of England. For many years the company was one of the largest employers on Tyneside.

A. Reyrolle & Company
Company typePublic
IndustryEngineering
Founded1886 (1886)
Defunct1998 (1998)
FateAcquired
SuccessorSiemens
HeadquartersHebburn, UK
ProductsSwitchgear

History

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Example of typical Siemens switchgear

The company was founded by Alphonse Constant Reyrolle [de], a French electrical engineer and entrepreneur,[1] in 1886 at Fitzroy Square in London to produce scientific instruments.[2] He moved the business to Hebburn on Tyneside in 1901.[3] At its peak it manufactured switchgear for power stations worldwide and employed 12,000 people.[3]

The company had its own football team, which evolved into Hebburn Town F.C.[4]

The company merged with C. A. Parsons and Company to form Reyrolle Parsons in 1968.[5] In 1977 Reyrolle Parsons merged with Clarke Chapman to form Northern Engineering Industries plc,[5] which was acquired by Rolls-Royce plc in 1989.[5]

 
Scan of and early Reyrolle logo showing and early open frame switchgear design
 
Reyrolle Hebburn site layout between 1990 and 2004. Most of the site is now a housing estate. Only the Protection business of the original Hebburn site remains owned by Siemens.

The business was acquired in 1998 by VA Technologie AG,[6] which was acquired by the industrial conglomerate Siemens in 2005, reuniting the company with Parsons under the new owners.[7] Siemens supported the Reyrolle installed base on a global basis, with Operations and Protection based at the remaining section of the original Reyrolle Works in Hebburn, although this constitutes only around 10 percent of the original site.[8] The Major Projects division is based at a modern office building on the nearby Monkton Business Park.[9]

The New Zealand division, Reyrolle Pacific, was sold by Siemens AG/VA Tech to a private individual in New Zealand.[10] This included the switchgear factory in Petone, with a staff of about 100.[11] Reyrolle Pacific Switchgear became RPS Switchgear and manufactures retrofit breakers for the original LMT switchgear, and vacuum breakers and panels for 11 kV substations.[11]

References

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  1. ^ Son of Martial Reyrolle and Marie Faye
  2. ^ Jones, W.S (1996). "A lesson in industrial survival". IEE Review. 42 (2). IEEE Xplore: 75–78. doi:10.1049/ir:19960214.
  3. ^ a b "Open Writing: 50 - The Office Messenger". Openwriting.com. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  4. ^ Reyrolles at the Football Club History Database
  5. ^ a b c "Cranes in NZR Service". Nzrcranes.org. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  6. ^ "Reyrolle switchgear and Peebles Transformers sold by Rolls-Royce to VA Tech". International Power Generation. October 1998. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  7. ^ "Siemens". Siemens.com. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  8. ^ Welcome to Siemens Reyrolle Archived April 17, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ Staff devastated by redundancy news Shields Gazette, 21 May 2010
  10. ^ Reyrolle PAcific Board records - History of Reyrolle Pacific Swicthgear, 7 - 17 Bouverie Street, Petone, Lower Hutt
  11. ^ a b "RPS Switchgear Home". Rpsswitchgear.com. Retrieved 6 May 2021.

Further reading

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  • Arcs, Sparks & Engineers: A Centenary History of A. Reyrolle & Co. Ltd. (1901–2001), Alan Wright (ed.), Reyrolle Heritage Trust Press, 2001, ISBN 978-0-9538972-0-9
  • The Reyrolle Story, Robert Owen, Write Good Books, 2007, ISBN 978-1-905295-07-4