Image:English_Electric.png '''English Electric''' was a 20th century British industrial manufacturer with a base in Electric_motors that expanded to include Railway locomotives and aviation before eventual inclusion as part of GEC. ==History== The English Electric Company was formed in 1918 and, during that year and 1919, acquired control of Dick,_Kerr_&_Co. of Preston, England, Willans & Robinson of Rugby and the Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Company of Bradford. It also purchased the Stafford works of Siemens Bros, Dynamo Works Ltd. In 1917 Dick, Kerr had acquired the United Electric Car Company, the makers of trams in Preston. As part of the company's reorganisation, its traction activities were concentrated in Preston and continued there until 1930 when the manufacture of electrical equipment was transferred to Bradford. Tramcar, bus body and rolling stock production was retained at Preston. By the late 1920s the company was in a parlous financial state. A complex financial reorganisation, apparently backed by American Westinghouse interests, was required to save the company. The man most associated with the company, George Nelson, became managing director in 1930. During the 1930s the company became associated with the electrification of the English Southern Railway's system, which gave it a strong position in the traction market. English Electric made a substantial contribution to the British war effort during the Second World War. In 1942, English Electric took over Napiers the aero-engine company, and this helped establish the company's aircraft division. Company factories were also converted to build the Handley-Page_Halifax heavy Bomber. In the post-war era the company invested heavily in aircraft design, leading to major successes in the 1950s with the Lightning interceptor and Canberra tactical bomber which is still flying (as of 2005) in Reconnaissance and other roles with many air forces, including the RAF. As well as the company's traditional markets in heavy electrical engineering and railway traction business, the post-war era also brought a foray into domestic markets through the acquisition of the Marconi Company in 1946. Further important companies acquired in 1955 included Vulcan_Foundry and Robert_Stephenson_and_Hawthorne, both with substantial railway engineering pedigrees. The company also manufactured Steam_turbines. In 1958, the aviation business was set up separately as English_Electric_Aviation_Ltd. The early 1960s saw the company rationalise its aircraft division under government pressure. This was to become part of the new British_Aircraft_Corporation. In 1960 English Electric attempted a takeover of one of the other major British electrical companies, GEC. This failed, but the rest of the decade was marked by a string of mergers in the industry; firstly GEC took over the AEI company in 1967, and then after a failed bid for EE by Plessey, the takeover of English Electric by the new GEC conglomerate. ==Products== ===Aircraft=== *Wren 1923 *Kingston 1924 *Canberra 1949 *Lightning 1954 ===Computers=== *English_Electric_KDF9 1960 *English_Electric_DEUCE 1955 ===Railway Locomotives=== '''Engines''' *English_Electric_12CSV Diesel *English_Electric_6KT diesel '''Locomotives and Multiple Units''' *British_Rail_Class_08 *British_Rail_Class_09 *British_Rail_Class_11 *British_Rail_Class_12 *British_Rail_Class_13 *British_Rail_Class_23 *English Electric Type 3 (British Rail Class 37) *British_Rail_Class_40 *English Electric Type 4 (British Rail Class 50) *English Electric Type 5 (British Rail Class 55) *British_Rail_Class_73 components assembled by BR. *British_Rail_Class_83 *British_Rail_Class_86 *British_Rail_Class_487 *British_Rail_D0226 *British_Rail_DP1 *British_Rail_DP2 *British_Rail_GT3 *Keretapi Tanah Melayu Class 15 *Keretapi Tanah Melayu Class 20 *Keretapi Tanah Melayu Class 22 *Nigerian Class 1001 *NIR_1_Class *NS_500_Class *NS_600_Class *Tasmanian Government Railways X_Class ==See also== *Category:English_Electric_locomotives {{airlistbox}} Category:Defunct_British_aircraft_manufacturers Category:Defunct_companies_of_the_United_Kingdom Category:Former_computer_hardware_companies Category:Locomotive_manufacturers