Teesside Iron and Steel Memories Interview: David Hewitt

Background & early work:
Born 22/8/1944 in South Bank
Dad was a weighman at Cargo Fleet works
Married in 1966, moved to Normanby & has always lived in the area
Started work Sept 1960 as 16yr old Apprentice Roll Turner at cargo Fleet Works (Ormesby Mill) - in the 21" Mill making small sections, angles 2½" x 2½" up to 6" x 3", joints & fishplates
After 2-3yrs, moved to new roll lathe shop to supply the 21", 32" & beam mills
Turned rolls supplied to the mills by rail or lorry
The old shop was closed and machines for roll turning for all mills were progressively moved to the new shop; 3 for beam mill first, then the 32" Mill, then the 21" Mill - eventually there were 11 machines in the shop over a 2yr period
DH then learned to work on all machines
5yr apprenticeship, then certified as a journeyman
Earned 6s/0½d per hour, while other tradesmen got 6s/0d
Turners were in short supply - only 1000 in the country, all in the steel industry
Stayed in new lathe shop until C Fleet closed in 1983, initially on rolls for the beam mill (making sections up to 24" x 12" & down to 6" x 6" joists)
Rolls were taken from the mill when worn (perhaps every 2hrs) and dressed back to profile
Beam mill rolls could be 50"/60" diameter
Some tools could be 2' long & very heavy, all to be manually carried and positioned
They were clamped in place with hammer & wedges & spacers and packed to stop any movement
It was heavy & dangerous work
Many men lost fingers & suffered eye splinters
Not much Health & Safety concern then
Little plastic shields were not very effective
Also very dirty - rolls were rusty from the mill cooling water
Rolls for the beam mill, making 'H' Sections, were profiled to produce the 'H' product shape, 2 edge rolls were also used to control side shape

Subsequent work in Cargo Fleet:
Part of the apprenticeship involved 6 months in the Template shop
A template was made for every section size produced, these were cut & filed to exact profile
DH got a job in the template shop for quite a few years
Then moved into the Drawing Office, drawing & designing rolls for a few years
Rails were a major product of Cargo Fleet Works, produced for British Rail & for export and also for crane tracks etc
There were various grades - 110lb, 113lb, 95lb Bulkhead etc
Rails had to be branded with 'British Steel' or 'Cargo Fleet Works' or other specified brand marks
Rolls therefore had to be indented with a mirror image of the brand mark, the indentation being done with a hammer & chisel using stencils
One particular item of 56kg rail for Saudi Arabia was branded in Arabic! (using chiselled symbols which they hoped read 'Cargo Fleet' in Arabic)
Gradually the export business was lost as more mills were built around the world.
After a few years in the drawing office, DH learned about engineering drawing, and as the Works was gradually declining, C Fleet wanted to increase the size range of the other major product, Larsen Piling
This was a rolled section produced in various sizes; it was essentially a 'U' shaped section with interlocks on the U arms to enable alternate sections to be interlocked to produce a continuous wall of sheet piling. The individual sections were pile-driven into the ground and the next length interlocked with the previous one etc.
Sizes ranged from 1 (2½" deep) to 6 (10" deep)
Computers were just being introduced at the time, and DH wrote a program to design Larsen Piling
He went to night school and obtained a GCE in Computer Studies
Got hold of an Apple computer & came up with a new design
Went to Sheffield where a larger computer confirmed his program
Then had to go backwards (reverse engineering) in the design office to establish the size of feedstock to be used
This was successful, but the Works was to close and the Section would be made at Scunthorpe

Work after Cargo Fleet closure:
When C Fleet closed, DH tried to get the job relating to Piling at Scunthorpe, but they did not want anyone
Moved instead to Lackenby Beam Mill, but had to revert back to being a Roll Turner
This was very boring work, now using new C&C machines which automated much of the process
Lost the 'family atmosphere' of Cargo Fleet with many men working together & the camaraderie that generated
Several men went to Lackenby, but it was never the same feeling, despite the often awful conditions at C Fleet re Safety
To get to the Ormesby Mill they had to walk across the mill floor with red hot bars coming up & down
These would often hit a bump and jump, occasionally hitting someone passing
The mill lathe shop at C Fleet was next to the mill, but at Lackenby it was a distance away with significant transport issues

Social Issues:
Many of DH's family (father, uncle, brother, stepbrother, cousin) all worked at C Fleet, as had his Grandfather previously
He used to cycle to work from South Bank
Collected a time sheet on arrival, and handed in on leaving
If more than 3 or 4 mins late, the gates were locked, and you were 'quarter-houred', ie docked 15min pay
Collected pay in cash on Friday afternoon
Wives waited at the gates to get money for shopping
Workers were encouraged to open bank accounts, but most people did not want that.
Socialised through Cargo Fleet Club & played football for works' teams
5-a-side competition in the 1970's
Went out with roll lathe shop friends & wives
It was common to drink at lunchtime in the 'Station Hotel' over the bridge from Cargo Fleet, then back to work after a few pints and on to the lathes - especially on Sundays when not so many people were around!
Paid 2d a week for membership of C Fleet Club - this never changed
Retired from Lackenby in 2001

DH noted he has drawings & templates of some products (Larsen Piling, some rails)