John Wainwright

History

Aggregate Production through the Ages

The Past

Until the end of the last century, the output from stone quarries was dependent upon the employment of a large labour force and to a great extent on a stable localised market. The working and supply of stone was becoming a commercial proposition in these early days when greater use was being made of railways to haul bulk supplies to outlying areas. Short hauls were still dependent on the use of cumbersome horse- drawn wagons either direct to the user or to rail heads, where the stone was transferred into privately owned railway trucks.

Where water transportation was available, as at quarries adjoining rivers and canals, stone was tipped over private wharves into barges and shipped into towns for internal distribution or very limited haulage to sites outside.

Stone Getters

Stone Getters

At the quarry face, stone getters worked in gangs varying in numbers from two to four, each gang being responsible for its own particular "piece" to work, the method of working the stone was simple, but arduous. Each gang undertook its own blasting, breaking and haulage within the quarry. The removal and excavation of a face was affected by a form of benching system employing relatively short holes drilled by a hand-held jack hammer or wagon type machinery. The fireman responsible for boring and firing would use black grain powder, which was poured into the drill and well bedded with the fuse. The fuse was sometimes simply wheat straw filled with a similar explosive, damped to give a slow burning rate. Following the blasting, the loose stone was barred down by the fireman, broken or crushed with hand tools by the gang and loaded into skips, drums or drays which were than pushed on narrow gauge light rail tracks or hauled by horses to loading bays within the quarry. Little or no secondary crushing of the stone took place. Where the stone was required for road purposes the material was stacked into lay-bys outside the quarry or at other prearranged places until required for use, when it was further crushed down by the roadmen into sizes for road works.

It is of interest to note that every quarry man had to provide his own tools, whether sledges, bars or shovels and was even required to pay for all explosives used by the gang.

Steam Power

Probably the most significant development within and outside the quarry area was the use of steam power for plant and road haulage. The steam rail locomotive was by the end of the 19th century the principal means of bulk haulage of materials and stone, and movement of stone by road was still in its infancy. Although the steam traction engine had been in existence for many years and its static counterpart widely used, the Prohibitive Act of 1865, which required a road vehicle to be preceded by a man with a "red flag" on turnpike roads, placed limitations on the use of the steam traction road vehicle.

After 1896, when the "Red Flag" Act was repealed, the heyday of the steam traction vehicle started and for nearly 30 years it was the mainstay of heavy transportation by road. The repeal of the Act made commercial haulage by mechanised power a practical and economic proposition and it was possible, from the Mendips, to haul 6 ton as far as Salisbury and back in a single day.

Steam Power

The passing of the Motor Car Act of 1903 was a further important advance and led to the development of the petrol lorry and more sophisticated road steamers.

Steam development within the quarry was of major importance, providing easier methods of drilling and the installation of the small single rotary crushing mill driven by static engines or chain driven from traction vehicles. Other early developments included the steam crane for bulk lifting.

While the small family investments in local quarrying remained, progress in the installation of plant was comparatively slow. Blasting was assisted by the use of power driven machines, with boring done by pneumatic drills, supplied with air from steam compressors. Narrow or standard gauge railways were developed for working inside quarrying areas. Loading techniques showed some advances with the development of rail mounted steam cranes with grabs and later, well into the 1920's, the steam driven shovel.

Mechanical methods of operation resulted, initially in the gradual reduction of the hitherto large labour force. The late 1920's saw the installation of plant, which was the precursor of the type now to be seen, with primary and secondary crushers and methods of screening. Screening showed considerable advancement. In earlier days there was little demand for chippings, small quantities could be readily produced, cheaply, by small rotary screens installed adjacent to each mill and capable of sieving out sizes then in use. Generally chippings of under 1 inch were regarded as waste. By the 1930's the pattern had changed and chippings, hitherto incidental to the aims of production, were required in quantity. With the introduction of new crushing machinery, the rotary screen gave way gradually to the horizontal screens which separated crushed stone into about a dozen sizes varying from 2 inch (50 mm) down to dust.

Steam operated plant was followed by electrically operated machinery, the power, pre-war, being provided in the main by generators. Meanwhile other forms of power were used, first the gas engine and then in the late 1930's the diesel engine.

Two main types of crushing machinery were used, the jaw and the gyratory crusher. Over the next twenty years, apart from increased production and the demise of the smaller family-owned quarrying companies, there was little change in production method.

However, during the last thirty years or so the industry has undergone its greatest change, the developments being closely associated with larger units, increased production and large-scale capital investments.

The Present

Explosives are now principally used for primary blasting, the method used to detach large sections of the quarry face and to cause it to fracture into pieces or boulders for haulage to the primary crusher

After blasting, the broken stone is normally loaded into Dump Trucks by Face Loading Shovels and delivered to the crushing plant. Crushing plant in use today varies considerable in design and layout. However, typically the stone is discharged into a ground level hopper. Stone is drawn from the intake hopper by an apron feeder and chain curtains control the flow of rock. From the apron feeder the stone falls onto a vibrating "Grizzly" which on some plants has a plate of 100mm square perforations. The under-sized stone falls onto a conveyor belt and the over-sized passes into the primary crusher. These crushers vary in size and design but generally are the "Jaw" or "Gyratory" type. The crushed stone falls from the crusher onto a conveyor belt which is parallel to a belt carrying the under-sized from the grizzly, running from the base of the primary crusher house to a scalping screen.

The crushed rock, say 150mm, is discharged into a surge bin, prior to secondary crushing. Stone from the surge bin is conveyed for further processing. It passes through two secondary crushers in line, giving an overall reduction in size of minus 4Omm. This crushed material is discharged into the tertiary crushers, set to give 20mm product. At some hardstone units where a higher-grade product is required for road surfacing purposes, the shape of the aggregate is most important and, in order to achieve a cubical material, four stages of crushing may be employed.

This material is conveyed to the main screen house where it is passed over three linear motion screens fitted with polyurethane decks. These screens being dressed to give the following product sizes: Dust; 5mm; 6mm, 1Omm; 14mm; 2Omm and rejects.

It must be emphasised that the layout of plant and actual processing varies considerably from quarry to quarry, but at all units the finished material or chippings are screened according to size and required use.

For use in Surface Dressing the chippings may be further treated by washing through a rotary washing plant.

THE EARLY HISTORY

Points in Wainwright's History

Building Trades Exhibition 1913

Mr. Wainwright's first introduction to the quarrying industry was in 1891 when he was made a Trustee for a Mr. George Dyke, a farmer, who had been managing a small limestone quarry at Downside which adjoined Forum Lane and supplied hand broken stone for roads to the local Councils. It did not take Mr. Wainwright long to assess the possibility of greatly extending the business and in a short space of time he purchased the freehold of the quarry and adjoining lands which stretched up to the Windsor Hill Tunnels of the Somerset & Dorset Railway Co.

Mr John Wainwright approached Mr. John Luff, of Evercreech, with the result that his son, Mr. J.P. Luff, provided the capital needed and became a Partner in the venture, which in 1902 was formed into a Private Limited Company and known as John Wainwright & Co Limited.

For quick delivery of the stone, the firm negotiated with the S. & D. Railway Co. for the construction of a railway siding connecting the quarries with the main line. This, with introduction of modern crushing plant, considerably increased output of stone that could be quickly delivered to its destination.

Mr John Wainwright on left holding the walking stick. Purnell Luff, tall one at the back, George Luff next to him at the back.

Soon after the development at Downside, an opportunity occurred to lease for quarrying purposes, a wooded ravine known as Ham Wood, that stretched from Windsor Hill to a point above Croscombe. Further developments came with the acquisition of Moons Hill Quarry - the only Basalt outcrop in the district and the opening of a London Office, since much work was being done in that direction.

With all the quarries in full swing profits increased accordingly and the Directors decided to build up a reserve fund by ploughing then back into the business. Hence, a fleet of 500 railway wagons was purchased around 1905 and more machinery installed where necessary. Meanwhile, the Tar Paving business had increased rapidly, as this type of material was favoured by the Surveyors for road surfacing. In the midst of this great development Mr. John Wainwright died, leaving Mr. J.P. Luff in sole command and it was at this time his brother, Mr. George Luff, who was already with the Company, became a Director.

After the 1914-18 War Mr. Fred Luff joined the firm when changes were afoot as the age of large companies was developing. Mr. George Luff retired in May 1950, and maintained his interest in the Company until to the date of his death in 1955.

In 1934 all limestone interests were disposed of and the Company then concentrated on the hard stone production at Moons Hill which it then proceeded to develop on a large scale.

Up to his untimely death in 1963, Mr. Fred Luff continued as Managing Director. He was succeeded by his son, Mr John Luff, who retired in 1998 after 35 successful years as Managing Director.

The current Managing Director, Mr Peter Barkwill, joined the Company in 1985 as Quarry Manager and was appointed to the Board in 1988.

In 1972 a modern coating plant was installed which has been continuously updated and can even be operated remotely by computer if required.

A major upgrading of the plant within the quarry was undertaken in 1989,with the addition of new screening plant and hot storage bins for the coating plant.

A place in history must also go to Mr Chris Parfitt who has been associated with the company for 69 years. He started in the Quarry in 1931. Appointed Quarry Foreman in 1960, then Quarry Manager in 1971. He retired from this job in 1985 but still helps out at Head Office and at various functions to this day.

The new Office block within Moons Hill Quarry

Purpose built office within Moons Hill Quarry

The old Head Office at Downside that had served the company for some 50 years was sold and will become a residence. The staff moved into a new purpose built office within Moons Hill Quarry on the 10^th January 2000.

Office September 2006