Factory Visit –
April 2013
Upon entering the Brooks England factory, it immediately felt like a ‘family
affair’. Only a thin glazed boundary divided the office and factory spaces, creating
a cohesive feel between office and factory staff. The staff were instantly welcoming and
humorous and I personally couldn't wait to get on with the factory ‘tour’.
The Office Manager, Steve, guided us through the manufacturing process -
‘Goods In’ all the way through to ‘Goods Out’, showing us the raw materials
that make their way through stamping, folding, stretching, bending and
breaking. Brooks utilize materials as
diverse as leather and titanium in the production of their bicycle saddles and
accessories.
The factory space was lofty, airy and bright; probably cold in the wintertime
but on a sunny day in April, this corrugated cathedral to British engineering somehow
shone - the containers of chrome components sparkled through the pulsing commotion
of machinery and blaring radio daze. It
was a surprisingly pleasant place to be, not just because of the inherent
productive activity, but the men and women greeted us with smiles and welcomed
us with warmth. The employees seemed relaxed
about demonstrating their activities to us, they appeared proud, self-assured
in what they were producing. This was an earnest effort – a proud individual
determination and sense of belonging to a whole.
Steve showed us decade’s old machinery, like bulky old iron men,
steadily turning out steadfast parts – turning wire into springs and pressing
plates into cups. The somber edged
economy of the equipment brought forth memories of a richer material past, a
time when brawn succeeded elegance. The
large contraptions, mostly air driven, hissed - loudly driving cogs, cams and
cutting tools; they were metronomic and hypnotic. Being close to the power of the machinery was
slightly disconcerting for us but the calm workers seemed deftly intertwined
with their motorized counter-parts. They
seemed at one with automation, instinctively moving between mechanical movements,
their limbs dancing underneath the tooling.
In another part of the factory, tanned leather (of various colours and
hues) lay upon palettes under skylights; their aroma was distinctive, warm and
pungent. Hide from the U.K. Ireland and
Scandinavia, waiting to be divided, cut, pressed and paired into saddles. Veins were visible, evidence that the material
was once skin, it was once alive - it had housed a beast, witnessed the seasons
and taken on the qualities of its surroundings.
Stamped, soaked and stretched, pushed over brass patterns and the edges
cut away by hand, the saddles then needed time to rest - they were being cured
in rows on racks, now waiting to be numbered, stamped and branded.
Then fixing to the frame. The
formed saddles were fastened by machine and by hand. Employees yielded sharp-nosed customized
hammers, shiny-ended mallets to round down the rivets. Hands were essential here, harmonious hitting
upon the saddle’s surface left the traces of their manipulation in glistening
copper. The maker’s monogram was left behind;
the individuality of the day was left as a coded signature forever.
And the final cut - the saddle chamfer, carried out by the wonderfully
enthusiastic, Eric Murray (pictured above) . Eric executed
the chamfer with humility and purpose, using an old knife, especially sharpened for
the job. Eric and his cohorts seemed to
have a wonderful ability for concentration.
In all the noise and movement of the factory floor, they seemed to possess
attentiveness in the face of incredible distraction. There’s a lesson for us
all there in the modern world of attention deterioration it pays to practice,
to commit to doing one thing really well.
And so to polishing; the black leather saddles, were liquorice-like and
quickly buffed to a regimental sheen; the brown saddles had a conker-like
finish when completed; the resulting surface, beautifully tactile and pleasing
to the touch.
I think we all came away from Brooks feeling proud and privileged to
have been allowed to look around the premises. Those of us who didn't own a
Brooks saddle wanted to buy one; those who did wanted to get away and go
cycling. The whole experience fuelled
our enthusiasm to be involved with the company. It deepened our understanding
of the brand, the products and people who are so lovingly involved with them. Thank you for having us.
Gregory Dunn
